Existing comment:
John Paul Jones:
Captain John Paul Jones gained prominence in the Continental Navy's Alfred and Providence in 1776. Sailing off Nova Scotia, he captured over fifteen vessels, including the heavily armed Mellish. After the French Alliance enabled the Navy to strike at the British Isles, Jones, in Ranger and Bonhomme Richard, raided enemy ports, captured numerous merchantmen, and achieving the most celebrated naval victory in the war. Encountering a Baltic convoy, Bonhomme Richard engaged and captured the escort, HMS Serapis, in a bloody duel during which Jones retorted to the suggestion that he surrender his sinking ship, "I have not yet begun to fight!" |