in the dyin g breeze from different po ints on Chesapeake, and Lawrence fl ew from the fore topgallant truck a flag inscribed with the sloga n th at had becom e the battle cry of the pas t yea r: "Free Trade and Sa ilors' Ri ghts." Th e captain crowded on mo re sail, hoping to engage before d arkness sho uld overtake them . In the American ship, th e offi cers and m en wa tched as Shannon likewise put up more canvas and altered co urse to close. When Chesapeake fired a w indward gun to announ ce their intention to engage, Shannon immediately answered, then hauled her wind and hove to, awaiting her enemy. Lawrence maneuvered his ship within musket range of the British ship and , upo n hearing a British musket fire, ordered his crew to "fire as yo u bear, lads. We'll Peacock her!" Chesapeake then started to round up under the stern of the British fri gate, opening fire and sending several round sho t into her stern. Lawrence realized he was going faster than he had anticipated and that he would not have tim e to fire his full broadside into th e enemy. Instead of continuing to bear o ff, he ord ered his sails luffed and brought his bow around so as to pass alongs ide Shannon, clearly intending to fire his broadside into her hull. Instead, he received the full broadside of the British ship as he passed, still making way through the water faster th an he wished . The second British
"USS Chesapeake approaches HMS Shannon" by Robert Dodd (1 748-1815) broadsid e des troyed Chesapealee's headsail sheets and shot away her foretops'l chains, allowing the ya rd to drop into the lifts, m aking the sail unm anagea ble. Other ro unds cut th e spanker b ra ils, causing that sail to billow o ut aga inst the rigging. Lawrence fa iled to m ake it through stays and found his ship wallowing alongside, just slightly ah ead of her enemy-her larboa rd quarter full y exposed to Shannon's devas tating fire. Onboard Shannon, Captain Broke rook full adva ntage of the blunder and poured several partial broadsides in his now helpless prey. Canister and grapeshot decim ated the crew; round sho t dismounted canno n and holed her sides . The American fri gate, caught in stays (head to wind and
un abl e to fall off on either tack), bega n to drift as tern , ultimately fouling her larboard aft channel and mizzen shrouds in Shannon's starboard anchor. Broke imm ediately sent men forward to secure the two ships so th ey wo uld remain joined. Wound ed in the shoulder from British grapeshot, Law rence struggled to exhort his crew to action; fire the guns that would bea r, repel boarders- eve n board the Bri tish ship. Then a British marksman perched in Shannon's forerop found Lawrence in his sights. The ball struck Lawrence in the stomach. H e collapsed, mortall y wounded. Augustus Ludlow ordered Acting Lieutenant Cox to get the comm ander below to the surgeon . As Cox and a seaman lifted
"British Valour and Yankee Boasting, or Shannon versus Chesapeake " by G. Cruikshank. While more than a Jew dramatic works of art, depicting Lawrence as glorious in combat and heroic in death, were created in the United States after the battle, the British tnnk a different view. H ere, a cartnnn shows a British boarding party routing the crew of the C hesapeake; the American sailors are portrayed as hapless and cowardly.
SEA HISTORY 114, SPRfNG 2006
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