USS Constellation vs L’Insurgente, or the Action of 9 February 1799, was a single-ship action fought between frigates of the French Navy and the United States Navy during the Quasi-War. French privateering attacks against American vessels, begun a year prior, caused the conflict between the U.S. and France. The battle resulted in USS Constellation’s capture of L’ Insurgente after an intense firefight in which both sides exchanged heavy broadsides and musket fire.
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USS Constellation vs L’Insurgente, or the Action of 9 February 1799, was a single-ship action fought between frigates of the French Navy and the United States Navy during the Quasi-War. French privateering attacks against American vessels, begun a year prior, caused the conflict between the U.S. and France. An American squadron under Commodore Thomas Truxtun had been sent to patrol the Caribbean waters between Puerto Rico and Saint Kitts with orders to engage any French forces they found in the area. The battle resulted in USS Constellation’s capture of L’ Insurgente after an intense firefight in which both sides exchanged heavy broadsides and musket fire. The French sustained heavy casualties in the action, while the numbers of American dead and wounded were low. After the battle, L’insurgente was taken to Saint Kitt’s and commissioned into the United US Navy as USS Insurgent. The action was one of several victories that boosted American morale during the undeclared war, which lasted from 1798 to 1800.
It was also the last battle of the American War of Independence, which ended in 1815. The United States government decided to go on the offensive by sending four naval squadrons to the Caribbean to seize armed French vessels and prevent privateers from attacking American ships. At noon on 9 February, while cruising independently, Truxt un’s men sighted a frigate off the coast of Nevis. Upon approach it was evident that the vessel was flying American colors, and Constellation attempted to move closer to investigate. Unknown to Truxt Un, the frigate was the still-identified French frigate L’ insurgente under Michel-Pierre Barreaut. Not knowing the correct American signals, L’insurgent fired a gun and replaced the American colors with a French one. As a result of the storm, the two vessels ran into a gale and L’INSurgente lost her mainmast and was severely damaged. The American ship gave chase, but was hampered by a 30-pale storm and was unable to evade his assailant.
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This page is based on the article USS Constellation vs L’Insurgente published in Wikipedia (as of Nov. 21, 2020) and was automatically summarized using artificial intelligence.
