On This Day 5 August

[Coog]

The Capture of HMS Dominica was a notable single-ship action that occurred on 5 August 1813 off the Bermudas during the War of 1812. American privateer Decatur and the Royal Navy warship Dominica engaged in a fierce contest that ended with the capture of the British ship after a long battle.

HMS Dominica was a schooner under the command of the young Lieutenant George Wilmot Barette. She had a crew of 88 men and was armed with twelve 12-pounder guns, two long 6-pounders, one brass 4-pounder and one 32-pounder. The British vessel was escorting the merchantman Princess Charlotte.

At about 10:30 am on 5 August 1813 the schooner Decatur appeared on the horizon. Captain Dominique Diron commanded the privateer, which was armed with one 18-pounder Long Tom and six 12-pounder guns. She had a complement of 103 officers and crew.

Diron approached cautiously but none of the vessels were flying colours. For over an hour the three vessels sailed side by side almost at gunshot distance as Diron attempted to ascertain the identity of the other vessels and to position his ship off the Dominica's starboard bow. At 12:30 pm the Americans learned that their prey was a schooner-of-war when Lieutenant Barette raised the British flag and attempted to flee with the merchantman.

At about 1:30 pm Dominica fired when it maneuvered in for an attack, but the shot fell short. Although Dominica was more heavily armed than Decatur, Diron chose to engage her. The Americans then raised their colors and beat to quarters. To ensure that none of his men fled below, Captain Diron ordered all the hatches closed after all the ammunition, water and grappling hooks were brought on deck. Diron planned to get as close as possible to the Dominica without firing a shot so as to release a broadside and a discharge of musketry before boarding under cover of the smoke. It was around 2:00 pm when the Decatur maneuvered for this but the Americans were answered with a broadside and a deadly duel ensued. The two schooners exchanged fire while the merchantman continued her escape.

The combatants fought at such a short distance from each other that Diron could hear Barette shouting to his men, telling them to take better aim and to fire into Decatur's hull. Their next salvos smashed two shot-holes through Decatur's hull, killing two men and also damaging the ship's sails and rigging. This, the most damaging British broadside of the battle, stopped an attempt at boarding and temporarily disabled Decatur, whose crew had quickly to repair the rigging. After repairs the Americans responded with fire from the Long Tom and began scoring more hits on the Dominica. Many of the cannon balls landed on deck so the British tried to flee but the Decatur was a fast ship and remained in Dominica's wake.

The battle was a chase at this point, neither side could accurately fire on each other and when Diron moved in for a second attempt at boarding, he was repulsed in the same manner as the first. Barrete's last maneuver prevented the Americans from boarding but he ultimately steered his ship out of the wind so the Decatur was able to overhaul the Dominica and carry out a third attempt at boarding. It was about 3:30 pm when Captain Diron ordered his boarders to prepare for going over the side. At the last moment, Diron moved his ship so that the bow spirit of Decatur was heading directly for the Dominica's stern. The two ships collided and Diron's jib boom pieced through Barette's mainsail. The Americans were then able to board and gain control of Dominica's deck, forcing her colors down and ending the fight.

The Americans had five dead and fifteen wounded. Lieutenant Barette was mortally wounded but continued fighting with sword in hand until he died. In all, thirteen Royal Navy sailors were killed in action, forty-seven others were wounded, five mortally. The Dominica and the Decatur were both heavily damaged but the latter managed to bring the former into Charleston, South Carolina a few days later. Captain Diron was made a hero for being one of the few privateer commanders to make a prize out of a Royal Navy warship during the war. Diron was already well known before the battle and the Dominica's demise added to his notoriety. Barette was also reported by the Americans as having defended his ship until death in a most gallant fashion and when the survivors were released after the war, they said that they were treated well by Diron and his crewmen. The British never surrendered in the battle and were defeated by force alone.

[Coog]

The naval Battle of the Dogger Bank took place on 5 August 1781 during the Fourth Anglo-Dutch War, part of the American War of Independence, in the North Sea. It was a bloody encounter between a British squadron under Vice Admiral Sir Hyde Parker, 5th Baronet and a Dutch squadron under Vice Admiral Johan Zoutman, both of which were escorting convoys.

In December 1780, Great Britain declared war on the Dutch Republic, drawing it militarily into the American War of Independence. The Dutch had for many years been supplying the Americans, and shipping French supplies to the Americans, in support of the American war effort. The opening of hostilities with the Dutch meant that Britain's trade with countries on the Baltic Sea (where key supplies of lumber for naval construction were purchased) was potentially at risk, and that the British had to increase protection of their shipping in the North Sea. In order to accomplish this, the British began blockading the Dutch coast to monitor and intercept any significant attempts to send shipping into or out of Dutch ports, and began to protect merchant shipping convoys with armed vessels.

The Dutch were politically in turmoil, and were consequently unable to mount any sort of effective actions against the British. The result of this inaction was the collapse of their economically important trade. It was finally decided that a merchant fleet had to be launched. On 1 August 1781, Admiral Johan Zoutman led a fleet of some 70 merchantmen from the Texel, protected by seven ships of the line as well as a number of frigates and smaller armed vessels.

Admiral Hyde Parker was accompanying a convoy of ships from the Baltic when he spotted the sails of the Dutch fleet on the morning of 5 August. He immediately despatched his convoy toward the English coast, and ordered his line to give chase. Zoutman, whose ships had been interspersed with the merchantmen, signalled his line to form in between Parker and the convoy.

The ships of Parker's fleet were not in the best of condition, since great demands were placed on the Royal Navy by the demands of the war, and all manner of ships were pressed into service, or did not receive necessary maintenance. Some ships were in such poor condition that the number of guns available to fire was reduced from its normal complement. In spite of this, Berwick and Parker's flagship Fortitude, both 74 guns, were both relatively new and in good shape. The Dutch fleet had not seen any significant action due to the British blockade.

With a calm sea and a breeze from the northeast, Zoutman maneuvered his line onto a port tack, heading east-southeast, and awaited Parker, who held the weather gage. The British fleet closed, raggedly at first due to the poor condition of some of the ships. When Parker raised the battle flag shortly before 8 am, the two fleets were about half a musket shot apart. Zoutman then also raised his flag, and opened fire, raking the Fortitude with a broadside. Close action ensued, lasting for more than three hours. Around mid-morning the Dutch merchantmen moved away from the action and headed back to the Texel. Around 11 am Parker gave the signal to reform his line, which reformed and limped away from the Dutch.

Casualties on both sides were high, considering the number of ships involved. (Fewer casualties were suffered, for example, in the Battle of the Chesapeake, fought a month later between fleets more than twice as large.) The British claimed 104 killed and 339 wounded, while the Dutch claimed 142 killed and 403 wounded. There were private reports made that the Dutch casualties were actually much higher, possibly reaching 1,100. The Hollandia sank the same night. Her flag, which was kept flying, was taken away by the Belle Poule, and carried to Admiral Parker.

Although the Dutch celebrated the battle as victory, their fleet did not leave harbour again during the war and their merchant trade remained crippled. At least one convoy did make it to the Baltic, but it flew under Swedish flags and was accompanied by a Swedish frigate.

Parker considered that he had not been properly equipped for his task, and insisted on resigning his command. The battle had no real impact on the general course of the war.

[Coog]

The Battle of Samos was a naval battle fought on August 5/17, 1824 off the Greek island of Samos during the Greek War of Independence.

The island of Samos, under its leader, Lykourgos Logothetis, had successfully rebelled against the Ottomans in 1821, and established its own autonomous government. The island's position however, a few miles off the Anatolian coast, made it vulnerable to a potential Ottoman attack. In the summer of 1824, following the destruction of Psara, the Ottoman fleet and troops assembled on the Anatolian coast, with the intention of capturing the island. Anxious to avoid repeating the failure to protect Psara, the Greek fleet, under admiral Georgios Sachtouris, assembled to guard the island.

After some minor engagements on the previous days, the decisive battle occurred on August 17. The Greek fireships, including one under the celebrated Constantine Kanaris, then attacked and succeeded in burning three Ottoman ships, forcing the Kapudan Pasha Mehmed Hüsrev to withdraw.

Together with the victory at the strait of Gerontas soon after, the battle of Samos ensured the safety of the island this year. However, it was also not included in independent Greece; rather, it became an autonomous principality under Ottoman suzerainty until the Balkan Wars.

[David Manley]

We played a few Greek Independence campaigns back in the day. Always good fun, interesting settings, and they set the scene for our steam driven 1912 games as well :)

[Coog]

That's one thing about the age of sail, there is a lot more to it than the Napoleonic Wars and War of 1812. There are quite a few "small" wars between countries you usually don't think about during the period.

[csadn]

All in all: Not a good day for the RN.... ;)

[David Manley]

We've had worse :)

Some of the South American "fight for independence" settings are a real treasure trove for small ship actions and hypotheticals, especially if you get into the realms of "Napoleon liberated" and other potential fun and nonsense.

[Blackrose]

It seems like after any Major war, there's a lot of little ones that get lost in the cracks of history. Such things can make good senerios, if you can find out about them.
Karl

[Coog]

Thought I would rerun this 5 August thread. No British psychological dominance in HMS Dominica vs. the American privateer Decatur.