Capture of Cyane

Capture of HMS Cyane and HMS Levant

Larger but outgunned USS Constitution captures HMS Cyane and HMS Levant

Date	February 20, 1815
Location	mid-Atlantic
Result	American victory

Belligerents

United States

United Kingdom

Commanders and leaders

Charles Stewart

Gordon Falcon(POW)

George Douglas (POW)

Strength

1 frigate
450 crew:

2 sixth-rates
320 crew:

Casualties and losses

6 killed
9 wounded

19 killed
42 wounded
2 ships captured

The capture of HMS Cyane and HMS Levant was an action which took place at the end of the Anglo-American War of 1812. The British warships HMS Cyane and HMS Levant fought USS Constitution on 20 February 1815 about 100 miles east of Madeira. Following exchanges of broadsides and musket fire, both Cyane and Levant surrendered. The war had actually finished a few days before the action with the ratification of the Treaty of Ghent by both sides, but the combatants were not aware of this.

Constitution and the two prizes anchored in Porto Praya in the Cape Verde islands. Levant failed to escape when a British squadron appeared, and was recaptured.

The American frigate Constitution, commanded by Captain Charles Stewart, had broken out of Boston late in 1814 in a westerly gale which blew the British blockading squadron under Captain Sir George Collier off station. Stewart then embarked on a commerce-raiding cruise which took Constitution to Bermuda, Madeira, the coast of Portugal and finally back towards Madeira.

At 1:00 pm on 20 February 1815, two ships were sighted to the south, and Stewart set all sail in chase, in an easterly wind. The two ships were the sixth-rate Banterer-class post ship HMS Cyane (sometimes referred to as a "corvette"), commanded by Captain Gordon Thomas Falcon, and the Cyrus-class post ship (also a sixth-rate) HMS Levant, commanded by Captain the Honourable George Douglass.Cyane was armed with 22 32-pounder carronades, 10 18-pounder carronades and two 12-pounder long guns, the slightly lighter Levant had 18 32-pounder carronades, 2 6-pounder long guns and a shifting 12-pounder. The crews of the two British vessels totalled 320.

...
Wikipedia