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} |} USS ''Wasp'' of the United States Navy was a sailing sloop-of-war captured by the British in the early months of the War of 1812. She was constructed in 1806 at the Washington Navy Yard, was commissioned sometime in 1807, Master Commandant John Smith in command. In 1812 she captured , but was immediately herself captured. The British took her into service first as HMS ''Loup Cervier'' and then as HMS ''Peacock''. She was lost, presumed foundered with all hands, in mid-1814. ==US Service== In 1808 ''Wasp'' was heavily involved in supporting Jefferson's Embargo, including delivering an army garrison from New York City to Passamaquoddy in June, patrolling Casco Bay, Maine, in the winter of 1808-1809, and remaining at Portland until May, 1809. In the final weeks of 1810, she was operating from the ports of Charleston, South Carolina, and Savannah, Georgia, presumably patrolling the waters along southern Atlantic coast. In 1811, she sailed to Hampton Roads, Virginia, where she and the brig joined frigates and in forming a squadron commanded by Commodore Stephen Decatur.〔U.S.Navy, DANFS, Wasp prgh.1〕 On 9 March 1812 ''Wasp'' sailed from New York for France to deliver an adventurer named John Henry who had sold correspondence to President Madison indicating Britain's interest in determining if the New England states wished to secede from the union. The correspondence, known as the Henry Papers, helped build outrage in Congress against Britain that led to the declaration of war. ''Wasp'', under the command of Master Commandant Jacob Jones continued to operate along the coast of the middle states after the United States went to war with Britain in June 1812.〔Roosevelt, 1883 p.100〕 Her single action came in October. On 13 October, she sailed from the Delaware River and two days later encountered a heavy gale that tore away her jib boom and also washed two crewmen overboard. The following evening, ''Wasp'' encountered a squadron of ships and, in spite of the fact that two of their number appeared to be large men-of-war, made for them straight away. She finally caught the enemy convoy the following morning and discovered six merchantmen under the protection of a 22-gun sloop-of-war, HMS ''Frolic''.〔Roosevelt, 1883 pp.104-106〕〔U.S.Navy, DANFS, Wasp prgh.3〕 At half past eleven in the morning of 15 October, ''Wasp'' and ''Frolic'' closed to do battle, commencing fire at a distance of . In a short, sharp, fight, both ships sustained heavy damage to masts and rigging, but ''Wasp'' prevailed over her adversary by boarding her. Unfortunately for ''Wasp'', a British 74-gun ship-of-the-line, , appeared on the scene. ''Frolic'' was crippled and ''Wasp''s rigging and sails were badly damaged. At 4:00 PM Jones had no choice but to surrender ''Wasp''; he could neither run nor fight such an overwhelming opponent.〔〔Malcomson, 2006 p.429〕 (詳細はウィキペディア(Wikipedia)』 ■ウィキペディアで「USS Wasp (1807)」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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