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USS Nautilus (1799)
Encyclopedia
Nautilus was a schooner
Schooner
A schooner is a type of sailing vessel characterized by the use of fore-and-aft sails on two or more masts with the forward mast being no taller than the rear masts....
launched
Ship naming and launching
The ceremonies involved in naming and launching naval ships are based in traditions thousands of years old.-Methods of launch:There are three principal methods of conveying a new ship from building site to water, only two of which are called "launching." The oldest, most familiar, and most widely...
in 1799. 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...
purchased her in May 1803, renaming her the USS Nautilus; she thus became the first ship to bear that name. She served in the First Barbary War
First Barbary War
The First Barbary War , also known as the Barbary Coast War or the Tripolitan War, was the first of two wars fought between the United States and the North African Berber Muslim states known collectively as the Barbary States...
. She was altered to a brigantine
Brig
A brig is a sailing vessel with two square-rigged masts. During the Age of Sail, brigs were seen as fast and manoeuvrable and were used as both naval warships and merchant vessels. They were especially popular in the 18th and early 19th centuries...
. The British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
captured Nautilus early in the War of 1812
War of 1812
The War of 1812 was a military conflict fought between the forces of the United States of America and those of the British Empire. The Americans declared war in 1812 for several reasons, including trade restrictions because of Britain's ongoing war with France, impressment of American merchant...
and renamed her HMS Emulous. After her service with the Royal Navy
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
, the Admiralty sold her in 1817.
Origins
Henry Spencer built Nautilus in 1799 as a merchant vessel on the Eastern Shore of MarylandMaryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
. The Navy purchased her at Baltimore, Maryland, from Thomas Tennant. She was commissioned 24 June 1803, under Lieutenant Richard Somers
Richard Somers
Richard Somers was an officer of the United States Navy, killed during a daring assault on Tripoli.-Life:...
.
First Barbary War
Nautilus sailed to Hampton RoadsHampton Roads
Hampton Roads is the name for both a body of water and the Norfolk–Virginia Beach metropolitan area which surrounds it in southeastern Virginia, United States...
, whence she got underway on 30 June for the Mediterranean, carrying dispatches for the U.S. Mediterranean Squadron stationed there assigned to protect the interests of the United States and its citizens residing or trading in that area, and threatened at that time by the Barbary States.
Nautilus arrived at Gibraltar
Gibraltar
Gibraltar is a British overseas territory located on the southern end of the Iberian Peninsula at the entrance of the Mediterranean. A peninsula with an area of , it has a northern border with Andalusia, Spain. The Rock of Gibraltar is the major landmark of the region...
on 27 July and departed again on the 31st to deliver dispatches to Captain John Rodgers
John Rodgers (naval officer, War of 1812)
John Rodgers was a senior naval officer in the United States Navy who served under six Presidents for nearly four decades during its formative years in the 1790s through the late 1830s, committing the greater bulk of his adult life to his country...
in , then returned to Gibraltar to await the arrival of Commodore Edward Preble
Edward Preble
Edward Preble was a United States naval officer.-Early life and Revolutionary War:Preble was born at Falmouth, Eastern Massachusetts, now Portland, Maine, 15 August 1761, the son of Gen. Jedidiah Preble. As a boy, his home was destroyed in the burning of Falmouth by British Naval Commander Henry...
, in , and join his squadron. Constitution arrived at Gibraltar on 12 September, and after provisioning, the squadron, less , sailed 6 October with vessels of Capt. Rodgers's squadron to Tangier
Tangier
Tangier, also Tangiers is a city in northern Morocco with a population of about 700,000 . It lies on the North African coast at the western entrance to the Strait of Gibraltar where the Mediterranean meets the Atlantic Ocean off Cape Spartel...
. This display of naval strength induced the Emperor of Morocco
Morocco
Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara...
to renew the treaty of 1786.
On 31 October 1803, the Tripolitans captured Philadelphia and the squadron's interests came to focus on Tripoli
Tripoli
Tripoli is the capital and largest city in Libya. It is also known as Western Tripoli , to distinguish it from Tripoli, Lebanon. It is affectionately called The Mermaid of the Mediterranean , describing its turquoise waters and its whitewashed buildings. Tripoli is a Greek name that means "Three...
and Tunis
Tunis
Tunis is the capital of both the Tunisian Republic and the Tunis Governorate. It is Tunisia's largest city, with a population of 728,453 as of 2004; the greater metropolitan area holds some 2,412,500 inhabitants....
. Using Syracuse
Syracuse, Italy
Syracuse is a historic city in Sicily, the capital of the province of Syracuse. The city is notable for its rich Greek history, culture, amphitheatres, architecture, and as the birthplace of the preeminent mathematician and engineer Archimedes. This 2,700-year-old city played a key role in...
as their rendezvous point, the vessels appeared off Tunis and Tripoli at different times between November 1803 and May 1804. In February 1804, while Lt. Stephen Decatur
Stephen Decatur
Stephen Decatur, Jr. , was an American naval officer notable for his many naval victories in the early 19th century. He was born on the eastern shore of Maryland, Worcester county, the son of a U.S. Naval Officer who served during the American Revolution. Shortly after attending college Decatur...
daringly sailed into Tripoli harbor and burned the captured Philadelphia, Nautilus cruised off Tunis.
Toward the end of the month Nautilus retired to Syracuse, returning to Tripoli in mid-March. During May and June she repaired at Messina. Departing 5 July, she joined Constitution off Tripoli on 25 July. During August and early September, she took part in the siege of Tripoli and saw action in five general attacks between 3 August and 3 September. For the next five months, she continued to cruise off Tripoli and Tunis, retiring periodically to Syracuse and Malta
Malta
Malta , officially known as the Republic of Malta , is a Southern European country consisting of an archipelago situated in the centre of the Mediterranean, south of Sicily, east of Tunisia and north of Libya, with Gibraltar to the west and Alexandria to the east.Malta covers just over in...
, whence in February 1805, she sailed to Livorno
Livorno
Livorno , traditionally Leghorn , is a port city on the Tyrrhenian Sea on the western edge of Tuscany, Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Livorno, having a population of approximately 160,000 residents in 2009.- History :...
to acquire a new mainmast.
On 27 April 1805, with Oliver Hazard Perry
Oliver Hazard Perry
United States Navy Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry was born in South Kingstown, Rhode Island , the son of USN Captain Christopher Raymond Perry and Sarah Wallace Alexander, a direct descendant of William Wallace...
in command, she arrived off erna, Libya|Derna] to participate in the attack, capture, and occupation of that town. She remained until 17 May, during which time she provided cover for the forces of Hamet Caramanli, former Bashaw
Pasha
Pasha or pascha, formerly bashaw, was a high rank in the Ottoman Empire political system, typically granted to governors, generals and dignitaries. As an honorary title, Pasha, in one of its various ranks, is equivalent to the British title of Lord, and was also one of the highest titles in...
of Tripoli, as they went into action against the army of Hamet's brother Yusuf ibn Ali Karamanli
Yusuf ibn Ali Karamanli
Yusuf Karamanli, Caramanli or Qaramanli or al-Qaramanli , was the best-known Pasha of the Karamanli dynasty of Tripolitania .-Assumption of the throne:Yusuf, a member of the Karamanli dynasty Yusuf (ibn Ali) Karamanli, Caramanli or Qaramanli or al-Qaramanli (most commonly Yusuf Karamanli),...
, who had overthrown Hamet and assumed his title. Departing on the 17th, Nautilus retired to Malta with dispatches and casualties. At the end of the month, she returned to Tripoli and on 10 June hostilities ceased with the signing of a peace treaty.
Nautilus remained in the Mediterranean for a year after the treaty went into effect, conducting operations from Malta and Gibraltar. In the spring of 1806 she was assigned to Algiers
Algiers
' is the capital and largest city of Algeria. According to the 1998 census, the population of the city proper was 1,519,570 and that of the urban agglomeration was 2,135,630. In 2009, the population was about 3,500,000...
for dispatch duty, sailing in June for the United States.
Between wars
Arriving at Washington, D.C.Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
, in mid-July, Nautilus entered the Washington Navy Yard
Washington Navy Yard
The Washington Navy Yard is the former shipyard and ordnance plant of the United States Navy in Southeast Washington, D.C. It is the oldest shore establishment of the U.S. Navy...
there and was placed in ordinary
Reserve fleet
A reserve fleet is a collection of naval vessels of all types that are fully equipped for service but are not currently needed, and thus partially or fully decommissioned. A reserve fleet is informally said to be "in mothballs" or "mothballed"; an equivalent expression in unofficial modern U.S....
. Reactivated in 1808, she was employed on the East Coast until entering the Navy Yard again in 1810. The Navy then altered her to a brig, giving her a battery of twelve 18-pounder (8 kg) carronade
Carronade
The carronade was a short smoothbore, cast iron cannon, developed for the Royal Navy by the Carron Company, an ironworks in Falkirk, Scotland, UK. It was used from the 1770s to the 1850s. Its main function was to serve as a powerful, short-range anti-ship and anti-crew weapon...
s. The Navy recommissioned in 1811 and she joined Stephen Decatur's squadron.
After the War of 1812
War of 1812
The War of 1812 was a military conflict fought between the forces of the United States of America and those of the British Empire. The Americans declared war in 1812 for several reasons, including trade restrictions because of Britain's ongoing war with France, impressment of American merchant...
with Britain
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
broke out on 18 June 1812, Nautilus gained the dubious distinction of being the first vessel lost on either side. A squadron built around the Third Rate (64 guns) and the two Fifth Rate frigates, (38 guns) and (32 guns), captured her off northern New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
. Nautilus was 24 hours out on a cruise from New York when Shannon and Aeolus captured her on 17 July. At the time of her capture she mounted 16 guns, had crew of 106 men and was under the command of Lieutenant William M. Crane
William M. Crane
Commodore William Montgomery Crane was an officer in the United States Navy during the First Barbary War and the War of 1812. He was the son of Gen. William Crane who was wounded at the Battle of Quebec while serving under Richard Montgomery in honor of whom he was given the middle name of...
.
British service
The British immediately but informally took Nautilus into service under the name Emulous, having just lost the Cruizer class brig-sloopCruizer class brig-sloop
The Cruizer class was an 18-gun class of brig-sloops of the Royal Navy. Brig-sloops were the same as ship-sloops except for their rigging...
Emulous
HMS Emulous (1806)
HMS Emulous was a Royal Navy 18-gun Cruizer-class brig-sloop, built by William Row at Newcastle and launched in 1806. She survived an inconclusive but bloody battle with a French frigate during the Napoleonic Wars and captured a number of prizes, including two privateers, on the Halifax station...
on 2 August. On 30 July '"Emulous captured the American ship Gossamer.
On 25 August Emulous captured the American privateer schooner Science, under the command of Captain W. Fernald. Science, of 74 tons, five guns and 52 men was on a cruise out of Portsmouth.
On 29 August the Admiralty formally purchased Nautilus/Emulous for £3,252 17s
Shilling
The shilling is a unit of currency used in some current and former British Commonwealth countries. The word shilling comes from scilling, an accounting term that dates back to Anglo-Saxon times where it was deemed to be the value of a cow in Kent or a sheep elsewhere. The word is thought to derive...
2d. Next, Emulous was among the vessels sharing in Spartans capture of the Melantho on 17 September. Four days later Emulous, with , and captured the brig Ambition, sailing from Baltimore to Boston on 21 September 1812.
On 2 February 1813 Emulous was commissioned under Commander William Mackenzie Godfrey, on the Halifax
City of Halifax
Halifax is a city in Canada, which was the capital of the province of Nova Scotia and shire town of Halifax County. It was the largest city in Atlantic Canada until it was amalgamated into Halifax Regional Municipality in 1996...
station. On 5 April she captured the American schooner privateer Cossack.
Next, on 5 May, Emulous, Shannon, and captured the schooner Ann, of 42 tons, sailing from New Orleans to Bourdeaux. That same day Nymphe, together with the same three other British ships, captured the American ship of war Montgomery, of 12 guns and a crew of 75 men. She was on her way home after a two month cruise off the coast of Ireland.
On 4 August 1813, Emulous recaptured the schooner Four Brothers, of 330 tons bm
Builder's Old Measurement
Builder's Old Measurement is the method of calculating the size or cargo capacity of a ship used in England from approximately 1720 to 1849. It estimated the tonnage of a ship based on length and maximum beam...
, R. Sinclair, master.
On 21 or 24 September, the Canadian privateer Dart drove the American privateer Orange, a chebacco boat of two guns and 11 men, on to Fox Island in Machias Bay
Machias Bay
Machias Bay is a bay in Washington County, Maine that opens into the Gulf of Maine.The bay was the scene of the Battle of Machias — the first naval battle of the American Revolution, occasioned by the British need for lumber for Boston....
on the coast of Maine
Maine
Maine is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the east and south, New Hampshire to the west, and the Canadian provinces of Quebec to the northwest and New Brunswick to the northeast. Maine is both the northernmost and easternmost...
.A chebacco was a narrow-sterned boat formerly used in the Newfoundland fisheries; also known as a pinkstern or chebec. There the boats of Emulous and Bream
HMS Bream (1807)
HMS Bream was a Royal Navy Ballahoo-class schooner of four 12-pounder carronades and a crew of 20. The prime contractor for the vessel was Goodrich & Co., in Bermuda, and she was launched in 1807. Bream operated primarily in North American waters and had an uneventful career until the War of 1812...
, under the command of Lieutenant Wright of Emulous, destroyed her.
Then on 10 October 1813, Emulous destroyed two small American privateers in Passamaquaddy Bay, between Maine and New Brunswick. One was a schooner called the Orion, of one gun and 16 men; the other was the row boat Camelion with 17 men and small arms. At some point Emulous captured the American ship Bird.
Post-war and fate
On 22 July 1814, Godfrey removed to . Captain John Gore then took command on 23 July 1814 and remained until 3 February 1815. In June 1815 she came under the command of Commander John Undrell, still on the Jamaica station. His replacement was the newly-promoted Commander Thomas Wrenn Carter, who removed to Carnation in April 1816. Her last commander was Lieutenant Caleb Jackson (acting).Emulous arrived at Deptford on 19 June 1816 to pay off and was laid up there. The Admiralty sold her for £900 in August 1817.
External links
- Phillips, Michael: Ships of the Old Navy - Emulous (1812). http://www.ageofnelson.org/MichaelPhillips/info.php?ref=0836