The sloop

Sloop-of-war

In the 18th and most of the 19th centuries, a sloop-of-war was a warship with a single gun deck that carried up to eighteen guns. As the rating system covered all vessels with 20 guns and above, this meant that the term sloop-of-war actually encompassed all the unrated combat vessels including the...

 Essex Junior, formerly the British whaler

Whaler

A whaler is a specialized ship, designed for whaling, the catching and/or processing of whales. The former included the whale catcher, a steam or diesel-driven vessel with a harpoon gun mounted at its bows. The latter included such vessels as the sail or steam-driven whaleship of the 16th to early...

 Atlantic, was captured by the frigate

Frigate

A frigate is any of several types of warship, the term having been used for ships of various sizes and roles over the last few centuries.In the 17th century, the term was used for any warship built for speed and maneuverability, the description often used being "frigate-built"...

 Essex

USS Essex (1799)

The first USS Essex of the United States Navy was a 36-gun or 32-gun sailing frigate that participated in the Quasi-War with France, the First Barbary War, and in the War of 1812, during which she was captured by the British in 1814 and served as HMS Essex until sold at public auction on 6 June...

, Captain David Porter

David Porter (naval officer)

David Porter was an officer in the United States Navy in a rank of commodore and later the commander-in-chief of the Mexican Navy.-Life:...

, off the Galapagos Islands

Galápagos Islands

The Galápagos Islands are an archipelago of volcanic islands distributed around the equator in the Pacific Ocean, west of continental Ecuador, of which they are a part.The Galápagos Islands and its surrounding waters form an Ecuadorian province, a national park, and a...

 on 29 April 1813. She was taken into service by the United States Navy

United States Navy

The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...

, converted into a cruiser

Cruiser

A cruiser is a type of warship. The term has been in use for several hundreds of years, and has had different meanings throughout this period...

, and placed under the command of Commander John Downes

John Downes (naval officer)

Commodore John Downes was an officer in the United States Navy, whose service covered the first half of the 19th century.-Early life and career:...

.

After cruising in the waters off the western coast of South America Essex Junior accompanied Essex to the island of Nuka Hiva in the Marquesas Group

Marquesas Islands

The Marquesas Islands enana and Te Fenua `Enata , both meaning "The Land of Men") are a group of volcanic islands in French Polynesia, an overseas collectivity of France in the southern Pacific Ocean. The Marquesas are located at 9° 00S, 139° 30W...

 where repairs were made. Essex Junior returned with Porter in Essex to the coast of Chile

Chile

Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...

 on 12 January 1814. There in the neutral waters of Valparaiso Harbor

Valparaíso

Valparaíso is a city and commune of Chile, center of its third largest conurbation and one of the country's most important seaports and an increasing cultural center in the Southwest Pacific hemisphere. The city is the capital of the Valparaíso Province and the Valparaíso Region...

 they were attacked

Capture of USS Essex

The Battle of Valparaiso, also called the Capture of USS Essex, was a naval action fought during the War of 1812. It took place off Valparaíso, Chile on March 28, 1814, between the frigate and the sloop of the United States Navy and the frigate and sloop of the Royal Navy...

 by the British ships, HMS Phoebe

HMS Phoebe (1795)

HMS Phoebe was a 36-gun fifth rate of the British Royal Navy. She had a career of almost twenty years and fought in the French Revolutionary Wars, the Napoleonic Wars and the War of 1812...

 and HMS Cherub

HMS Cherub (1806)

HMS Cherub was an 18-gun Royal Navy Cormorant-class sloop built in Dover in 1806.-West Indies and Pacific service:Cherub was stationed in the West Indies and took part in the capture of Guadeloupe in 1810 and remained on the Leeward Islands station until 1812. That year she returned to England with...

 mounting preponderate arms. Both vessels were captured and Essex Junior was converted thereafter to a cartel to transport paroled prisoners of war to New York

New York

New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...

.

Arriving at New York in July 1814, she was seized by the marshal of the district, condemned, and sold on 26 August. Essex Junior was armed with 20 guns and had a crew of 60 officers and men.