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The Chesapeake-Leopard Affair
The Chesapeake-Leopard Affair was a naval engagement which occurred off the coast of Norfolk, Virginia, on June 22, 1807, between the British warship HMS Leopard and the American frigate USS Chesapeake. It began when the crew of the Leopard pursued, attacked and boarded the American frigate looking for deserters from the British Navy. The Chesapeake was caught off guard and unprepared and after a short battle her commander James Barron surrendered his vessel to the British after firing only one shot. For crew members were removed from the American vessel and tried for desertion and one was later executed. When the Chesapeake returned home, James Barron was court-martialed and suspended for five years from command.
The boarding party found four Royal Navy deserters among the Chesapeake crew: Daniel Martin, John Strachan and William Ware, from HMS Melampus; and Jenkin Ratford, from HMS Halifax. Of the four, only Ratford was British-born; the other three sailors were American citizens who had served in the Royal Navy. The Leopard carried the men to Halifax for trial. The British citizen, Ratford, was sentenced to death and hanged from the yardarm of the Halifax on August 31, 1807. The tree Americans were sentenced to 500 lashes each, but the sentence was later commuted. |