In this battle the Constitution lost seven men killed and seven wounded. Her rigging suffered considerably, but her hull was only very slightly damaged. The Guerriere lost seventy-nine men killed or wounded. The location of this battle may be found by drawing a line directly east from the point of Cape Cod, and another directly south from Cape Race; the point of intersection will be very near the battle-ground. It is a little south of the track of steamers between New York and Liverpool.
The news of this victory was a startling revelation, on both sides of the Atlantic. In expressing their contempt for the American navy, the English journals had especially ridiculed the Constitution, as "a bunch of pine boards, under a bit of striped bunting." This bunch of boards had now outsailed a squadron of eleven British war-vessels, and in a fight of half an hour had reduced one of their frigates to a wreck and made her strike her colors. It was true that the American ship was slightly superior in number of men and guns; but this would not account for the superiority of seamanship, the better gun-practice, and the enormous difference in losses. Captain Dacres, who was afterward put on trial for losing his ship, asserted that he had sent away a considerable number of his men in prizes; that he had several Americans in his crew who refused to fight against their countrymen, and that he permitted them to go below. But all allowances that could be made did not change the essential character of the victory. Only a short time before, the London Courier had said, "There is not a frigate in the American navy able to cope with the Guerriere."
Captain Hull, who was now in his thirty-eighth year, had entered the navy at the age of twentythree, and had gained distinction in the war with Tripoli. When he landed in Boston with his prisoners, nearly the whole population of the town turned out to greet him. Flags and streamers were displayed on every hand, decorated arches spanned the streets, and a banquet was spread for him and his crew. He made a sort of triumphal progress to New York and Philadelphia, where similar honors were paid him, and handsome swords and snuffboxes presented to him. Congress voted him a gold medal, to each of his commissioned officers a silver medal, and fifty thousand dollars to the crew as prize money.
In his official report the Captain said: "It gives me great pleasure to say that, from the smallest boy in the ship to the oldest seaman, not a look of fear was seen. They all went into action giving three cheers, and requesting to be laid close alongside the enemy." The London Times said: "It is not merely that an English frigate has been taken, after what we are free to confess may be called a brave resistance, but that it has been taken by a new enemy, an enemy unaccustomed to such triumphs, and likely to be rendered insolent and confident by them. He must be a weak politician who does not see how important the first triumph is, in giving a tone and character to the war. Never before in the history of the world did an English frigate strike to an American; and though we cannot say that Captain Dacres, under all circumstances, is punishable for this act, yet we do say there are commanders in the English navy who would a thousand times have rather gone down with their colors flying than have set their brother officers so fatal an example."
The next naval contest, in the order of time, was that of the Wasp and the Frolic, one of the bloodiest of the war. The Wasp, an American sloop-of-war, of eighteen guns, commanded by Captain Jacob Jones, was a very fast sailer, and had gone to Europe with despatches, when the war broke out. On her return she was refitted with all haste and sent out on a cruise. In the night of October 17th, about five hundred miles off Cape Hatteras, she sighted a fleet of six English merchantmen under convoy of the Frolic, a brig, of twenty-two guns, Captain Whinyates. Four of the merchantmen were armed.
The next morning, the sea being somewhat rough, the Wasp was put under short canvas and got into fighting trim, and then bore down upon the Frolic, which kept herself between her convoy and the enemy. She also was under short canvas, and her main-yard was on deck. About half past eleven o'clock the Wasp came up close on the starboard side of the Frolic, and broadsides were exchanged at the distance of only sixty yards. The fire of the Englishman was the more rapid, but that of the American was the more deliberate and effective. In a little over four minutes the Wasp's maintopmast was shot off and with the maintopsail-yard fell across the braces, rendering the head-yards unmanageable. A few minutes later her gaff and mizzen-topgallant-mast were shot down; and before the action was over, every brace and most of the rigging was carried away. The shot of the Wasp was directed mainly at her enemy's hull, and the firing on both sides was kept up with great spirit, little or no attempt being made to manoeuvre, and the vessels gradually approaching each other. At last they were so near that the American gunners touched the side of the Frolic with their rammers, her bowsprit passed over the Wasp's quarterdeck, and the latter was brought directly across the Englishman's bows, in position for raking. Captain Jones ordered a broadside; and when it was fired, the muzzles of two of the guns were actually in the bow ports of the Frolic, and the discharge swept her from stem to stern.
As no sign of submission had come from the enemy, Captain Jones was about to repeat the raking, but was prevented by the impetuosity of his crew. A sailor named John Lang, who had once been impressed on a British man-of-war, hot for revenge, sprang upon the bowsprit of the Frolic, cutlass in hand, and was followed by Lieutenant Biddle and an impromptu boarding-party. They met no opposition. Two or three officers, wounded and bleeding, were standing on the after-part of the deck; there was a cool-headed old seaman at the wheel; and dead and wounded sailors were lying about in all directions. The officers threw down their swords, and Lieutenant Biddle sprang into the rigging and hauled down the British flag. The battle had lasted forty-three minutes. On board the Wasp, five men had been killed and five wounded. The loss on the Frolic has never been ascertained, it was at least seventy-five. Captain Whinyates, in his official report, said that not twenty of his men escaped injury.
The two vessels were separated, and in a few minutes both masts of the Frolic fell. Arrangements were made for sending her into Charleston with a prize crew, while the Wasp should repair damages and continue her cruise. But before this plan could even be fairly entered upon, the British ship-of-the-line Poictiers, carrying seventy-four guns, hove in sight, and speedily made prize of both vessels and took them to Bermuda.
On the same day when this action took place. Commodore Stephen Decatur, cruising in the frigate United States, captured the British packet Swallow, which had on board a large quantity of specie. He continued his cruise eastward, and only a week later (October 25th), at a point about midway between the Azores and the Cape Verd Islands, sighted a large vessel to windward, which proved to be the English frigate Macedonian, carrying forty-nine guns, Captain Carden. She was somewhat smaller than the United States, and had fewer men. Decatur made up to the stranger; but she had the advantage of the wind, and for some time managed to keep out of reach. At length, after considerable manoeuvring, the distance was shortened, and both vessels opened fire with their long guns. The gunnery of the American was superior, and while sustaining little injury herself she inflicted serious damage upon her antagonist. At the end of half an hour, the distance had been still more diminished, so that the carronades were brought into use. A carronade is a short gun, throwing a comparatively large ball with not very great velocity. The size of the ball and its slower motion cause it to splinter and tear a ragged hole in the side of a ship, where a smaller shot with a greater velocity would pass through and make a smooth round hole, which could easily be plugged up again. As the Macedonian became disabled, she fell off to leeward, while the United States passed ahead and to windward, and then tacked and came up under her lee. The firing, which had been entirely with artillery, now ceased on both sides. The Macedonian's mizzen-mast was gone, her main and foretopmasts carried away, her main-yard cut in two, and her ensign had disappeared. The United States hailed her, and was answered that she had struck her colors. She had received a hundred shot in her hull, most of them in the waist. She went into the action with three hundred men, of whom she lost thirty-six killed and sixty-eight wounded. On board were seven impressed American sailors, two of whom were killed. On the United States five men were killed and seven wounded. Her rigging was considerably cut, but otherwise she received very little injury.
Decatur took his prize to New York, going in by way of Long Island Sound, where he arrived on New Year's day, 1813. He was received with a great ovation, and there were banquets, orations; and public rejoicings unlimited. Congress, following the precedent set in the case of Hull, voted a gold medal to the commander, and a silver one to each of his commissioned officers.