Naval Operations in the American Revolutionary War
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In 1777, colonial privateers made raids into British waters capturing merchant ships, which they took into French and Spanish ports, although both were officially neutral. Seeking to challenge Britain, France signed two treaties with America in February 1778, but stopped short of declaring war on Britain. The risk of a French invasion forced the British to concentrate its forces in the English Channel, leaving its forces in North America vulnerable to attacks. France officially entered the war on 17 June 1778, and the French ships sent to the Western Hemisphere spent most of the year in the West Indies, and only sailed to the Thirteen Colonies from July until November. In 1779, the French fleet returned to assist American forces attempting to recapture Savannah from British forces, however failing leading the British victors to remain in control till late 1782. In 1780, another fleet and 6,000 troops commanded by Lieutenant-General Comte Jean-Baptiste de Rochambeau, landed at Newport, and shortly afterwards was blockaded by the British. In early 1781, General George Washington and the comte de Rochambeau planned an attack against the British in the Chesapeake Bay area coordinated with the arrival of a large fleet commanded by Vice-Admiral Comte François Joseph Paul de Grasse from the West Indies. British naval forces in North America and the West Indies were weaker than the combined fleets of France and Spain, and, after much indecision by British naval commanders, the French fleet gained control over Chesapeake Bay, landing forces near Yorktown.
The British were still able to sail in supplies from Nova Scotia, Providence, and other places because the harbor remained under British naval control. Colonial forces could do nothing to stop these shipments due to the naval supremacy of the British fleet and the complete absence of any sort of rebel armed vessels in the spring of 1775. Vice-Admiral Samuel Graves commanded the Royal Navy around occupied Boston under overall leadership of Governor General Thomas Gage. In August 1775, the Provincial Congress formally recognized their efforts, commissioning both Machias Liberty and Diligent into the Massachusetts Navy, with Jeremiah O'Brien as their commander. The community would be a base for privateering until the war's end. The Phoenix and the Rose engaged by the enemy's fire ships and galleys on 16 August 1776. The desperate shortage of gunpowder available to the Continental Army had led the Congress to organize a naval expedition, one of whose goals was the seizure of the military supplies at Nassau. On Lake Champlain, Benedict Arnold supervised the construction of 12 vessels to protect access into Hudson River's uppermost navigable reaches from advancing British forces. For its first major attempt at co-operation with the Americans, France sent Vice-Admiral Comte Charles Henri Hector d'Estaing, with a fleet of 12 ships of the line and some French Army troops to North America in April 1778, with orders to blockade the British North American fleet in the Delaware River.
Lord Howe's fleet was delayed departing New York by contrary winds, and he arrived off Point Judith on 9 August. Since d'Estaing's fleet outnumbered Howe's, the French admiral, fearful that Howe would be further reinforced and eventually gain a numerical advantage, reboarded the French troops, and sailed out to do battle with Howe on 10 August. As the two fleets prepared to battle and maneuvered for position, the weather deteriorated, and a major storm broke out. Any thought of the French fleet remaining at Newport was also opposed by d'Estaing's captains, with whom he had a difficult relationship because of his arrival in the navy at a high rank after service in the French army. The French departure prompted a mass exodus of the American militia, significantly shrinking the American force. The British Navy in New York had not been inactive. Vice-Admiral Sir George Collier engaged in a number of amphibious raids against coastal communities from Chesapeake Bay to Connecticut, and probed at American defenses in the Hudson River valley. In December 1780, General Clinton sent Brigadier General Benedict Arnold (who had changed sides the previous September) with about 1,700 troops to Virginia to carry out raiding and to fortify Portsmouth. In early February, after receiving reports of British ships damaged by a storm, Destouches decided to send a naval expedition from his base in Newport. The French fleet sailed from Brest on 22 March. The British fleet was busy with preparations to resupply Gibraltar, and did not attempt to oppose the departure.
News of de Barras' departure led the British to realize that the Chesapeake was the probable target of the French fleets. By 31 August Graves had moved his ships over the bar at New York harbor. Taking command of the combined fleet, now 19 ships, Graves sailed south, and arrived at the mouth of the Chesapeake on 5 September. His progress was slow; the poor condition of some of the West Indies ships necessitated repairs en route. Graves was also concerned about some ships in his own fleet; Europe in particular had difficulty maneuvering. The squadrons' clash started with Marseillois exchanging shots with the 64-gun HMS Intrepid, under Captain Anthony Molloy. The British retreat in disarray set off a flurry of panic among the Loyalist population. The news of the defeat was also not received well in London. The French success at completely encircling Cornwallis left them firmly in control of Chesapeake Bay. In addition to capturing a number of smaller British vessels, de Grasse and de Barras assigned their smaller vessels to assist in the transport of Washington's and Rochambeau's forces from Head of Elk, Maryland to Yorktown. Admiral de Grasse returned with his fleet to the West Indies. In a major engagement that suspended Franco-Spanish plans for the capture of Jamaica in 1782, he was defeated and taken prisoner by Rodney in the Battle of the Saintes. Despite the controversy over his conduct in this battle, Graves continued to serve, rising to full admiral and receiving an Irish peerage.
The British were still able to sail in supplies from Nova Scotia, Providence, and other places because the harbor remained under British naval control. Colonial forces could do nothing to stop these shipments due to the naval supremacy of the British fleet and the complete absence of any sort of rebel armed vessels in the spring of 1775. Vice-Admiral Samuel Graves commanded the Royal Navy around occupied Boston under overall leadership of Governor General Thomas Gage. In August 1775, the Provincial Congress formally recognized their efforts, commissioning both Machias Liberty and Diligent into the Massachusetts Navy, with Jeremiah O'Brien as their commander. The community would be a base for privateering until the war's end. The Phoenix and the Rose engaged by the enemy's fire ships and galleys on 16 August 1776. The desperate shortage of gunpowder available to the Continental Army had led the Congress to organize a naval expedition, one of whose goals was the seizure of the military supplies at Nassau. On Lake Champlain, Benedict Arnold supervised the construction of 12 vessels to protect access into Hudson River's uppermost navigable reaches from advancing British forces. For its first major attempt at co-operation with the Americans, France sent Vice-Admiral Comte Charles Henri Hector d'Estaing, with a fleet of 12 ships of the line and some French Army troops to North America in April 1778, with orders to blockade the British North American fleet in the Delaware River.
Lord Howe's fleet was delayed departing New York by contrary winds, and he arrived off Point Judith on 9 August. Since d'Estaing's fleet outnumbered Howe's, the French admiral, fearful that Howe would be further reinforced and eventually gain a numerical advantage, reboarded the French troops, and sailed out to do battle with Howe on 10 August. As the two fleets prepared to battle and maneuvered for position, the weather deteriorated, and a major storm broke out. Any thought of the French fleet remaining at Newport was also opposed by d'Estaing's captains, with whom he had a difficult relationship because of his arrival in the navy at a high rank after service in the French army. The French departure prompted a mass exodus of the American militia, significantly shrinking the American force. The British Navy in New York had not been inactive. Vice-Admiral Sir George Collier engaged in a number of amphibious raids against coastal communities from Chesapeake Bay to Connecticut, and probed at American defenses in the Hudson River valley. In December 1780, General Clinton sent Brigadier General Benedict Arnold (who had changed sides the previous September) with about 1,700 troops to Virginia to carry out raiding and to fortify Portsmouth. In early February, after receiving reports of British ships damaged by a storm, Destouches decided to send a naval expedition from his base in Newport. The French fleet sailed from Brest on 22 March. The British fleet was busy with preparations to resupply Gibraltar, and did not attempt to oppose the departure.
News of de Barras' departure led the British to realize that the Chesapeake was the probable target of the French fleets. By 31 August Graves had moved his ships over the bar at New York harbor. Taking command of the combined fleet, now 19 ships, Graves sailed south, and arrived at the mouth of the Chesapeake on 5 September. His progress was slow; the poor condition of some of the West Indies ships necessitated repairs en route. Graves was also concerned about some ships in his own fleet; Europe in particular had difficulty maneuvering. The squadrons' clash started with Marseillois exchanging shots with the 64-gun HMS Intrepid, under Captain Anthony Molloy. The British retreat in disarray set off a flurry of panic among the Loyalist population. The news of the defeat was also not received well in London. The French success at completely encircling Cornwallis left them firmly in control of Chesapeake Bay. In addition to capturing a number of smaller British vessels, de Grasse and de Barras assigned their smaller vessels to assist in the transport of Washington's and Rochambeau's forces from Head of Elk, Maryland to Yorktown. Admiral de Grasse returned with his fleet to the West Indies. In a major engagement that suspended Franco-Spanish plans for the capture of Jamaica in 1782, he was defeated and taken prisoner by Rodney in the Battle of the Saintes. Despite the controversy over his conduct in this battle, Graves continued to serve, rising to full admiral and receiving an Irish peerage.
