USS Constitution vs HMS Guerriere

USS Constitution vs HMS Guerriere
Part of the War of 1812
USS Constitution vs HMS Guerriere by Michele Felice Cornè
Date 19 August 1812 Location Atlantic Ocean 41°42′N 55°33′W / 41.700°N 55.550°W / 41.700; -55.550 Result American victory
Belligerents
United States	United Kingdom
Commanders and leaders
Isaac Hull	James Richard Dacres
Strength
1 Frigate 44 guns 684lb broadside 450 U.S. Navy Sailors and U.S. Marine infantry	1 Frigate 38 guns 526lb broadside 272 Royal Navy Sailors and Royal Marine infantry
Casualties and losses
7 killed 7 wounded	15 killed 78 wounded 257 captured 1 Frigate sunk

USS Constitution vs HMS Guerriere was a single ship action between the two ships during the War of 1812, approximately 400 miles southeast of Halifax, Nova Scotia. It took place shortly after war had broken out, and would prove to be an important victory for American morale.

When the United States declared war on Britain on 18 June 1812, the Royal Navy had eighty-five vessels in American waters. By contrast, the United States Navy, which was not yet twenty years old, was a frigate navy that had only twenty-two commissioned vessels. The chief fighting strength of the U.S. Navy was a squadron of three frigates and two sloops of war under Commodore John Rodgers, based in New York. A week after Congress declared war, United States Secretary of the Navy Paul Hamilton had sent orders to Rodgers to cruise off New York, and to Captain Isaac Hull, commanding USS Constitution at Annapolis on Chesapeake Bay, to join Rodgers.

However, Rodgers set out to sea immediately when he heard of the declaration of war, before he could receive Hamilton's instructions. He feared that if he delayed he might be blockaded by a superior British fleet, but by sailing immediately he might catch isolated British ships before they could concentrate. He did indeed encounter the frigate HMS Belvidera, but Belvidera escaped, aided by a bursting cannon aboard USS President which injured Rodgers and caused much damage and confusion. Rodgers then crossed the Atlantic hoping to catch a valuable British convoy from the West Indies. The weather was foul throughout the voyage and Rodgers missed the convoy, capturing only seven small merchant vessels.

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