USS Hornet (1805)
.jpg) Artist's depiction of Hornet's foundering
| |
| History | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Name | USS Hornet |
| Launched | 28 July 1805 |
| Commissioned | 18 October 1805 |
| Fate | Sunk in storm, 29 September 1829 |
| General characteristics | |
| Type | Sloop-of-war |
| Tonnage | 440 |
| Length | 106 ft 9 in (32.5 m) |
| Beam | 31 ft 5 in (9.6 m) |
| Draft | 14 ft (4.3 m) |
| Propulsion | Sail |
| Armament | list error: <br /> list (help) 18 × 32-pounder carronades 2 × 12-pounder long guns |
The third USS Hornet was a brig-rigged sloop-of-war in the United States Navy. Later, however, she was re-rigged as a ship. [Notes 1]
Hornet was launched on 28 July 1805 in Baltimore and commissioned on 18 October. She fought in the War of 1812 under command of James Lawrence, who later (while commanding Chesapeake) gave the United States Navy their famous motto "Don't give up the ship."
War of 1812
At the outbreak of war Hornet sailed under Lawrence's command on a raiding voyage to South America. She captured the privateer Dolphin on 9 July 1812, although the British recaptured the ship shortly afterwards. Hornet assisted in the blockade of HMS Bonne Citoyenne in the harbor at Salvador, Brazil. When Montague arrived and broke the blockade, Lawrence decided to shift his efforts to the Caribbean.
On 24 February 1813 Hornet engaged HMS Peacock off Demerary (Guyana). Hornet forced Peacock, which had lost her captain and taken heavy casualties, to strike, but Peacock was so damaged that she sank shortly thereafter. Hornet then returned to New London. Lloyd's List initially reported that Captain Peake of Peacock and eight of her crew were killed in the action, and 27 were wounded; 19 men, who could not be rescued, went down with her when she sank, but Hornet rescued the rest. She herself had reportedly lost only one man killed and two wounded. She then arrived at Martha's Vineyard on 19 March.[1]
On 14 November 1814, under new command, Hornet sailed on a second raiding voyage to the South Atlantic. On 23 March 1815, she captured HMS Penguin in a short battle off Tristan da Cunha. This was one of several naval engagements that took place after the war had ended. On 27 April, she engaged HMS Cornwallis, having mistakenly identified her as a merchant vessel. Hornet managed to escape by throwing overboard boats, guns and other equipment so to enable higher speed.[2]
Loss
Following the war, she took part in anti-piracy patrols in the Caribbean. Hornet sank in a storm off Tampico, Mexico on 29 September 1829 with the loss of all on board.
See also
References
![[1]](http://www.1812privateers.org/LLOYDS/1813/05-14-1813.jpg){kind=link}
Notes
- ^ Not to be confused with the Sloop-of-War Hornet also built in 1805.
Bibliography
- James, William; Chamier, Frederick (1837).
The naval history of Great Britain: from the declaration of war by France in 1793 to the accession of George IV.
Richard Bentley, London. p. 568. Url
- Harris, Gardner W. (1837). The life and services of Commodore William Bainbridge, United States navy.
Carey Lea & Blanchard, Philadelphia. p. 254. ISBN 0-945726-58-9. Url1 Url2
- Cooper, James Fenimore (1826). History of the navy of the United States of America.
Stringer & Townsend, New York. p. 508. OCLC 197401914. Url
- Dept U.S.Navy. "Hornet (brig)". Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships.
DEPARTMENT OF THE NAVY -- NAVAL HISTORICAL CENTER. Retrieved 18 October 2011.{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|work=(help)