1791- USS Constitution Defeats the British Guerrier

The first major naval encounter of the War of 1812 took place between USS Constitution and the British Guerriere. The Constitution was commanded by Captain Isaac Hull while the Guerriere was commanded by Captain Dacres. The two ships were both rated as frigates and carried similar armaments. The British captain was sure of victory, and before the encounter is reported to have stated- "There is a Yankee Frigate: in fourty five minutes she is surely ours take her in 15 and I promise you four months pay."

As the two ships approached each other the British kept up a steady fire of of long range cannon fire. The early shell bounced off the hull of the constitution without causing any damage. It is said that a cry went up"hurrah- her sides are made of iron"- thus her name soon became "Old Ironside". While the two ships were only 25 feet apart Hull gave the order to open fire- he opened fire with both cannon and grape shot with devasting effect on the Gueerriere. With in a short time all the masts of the Guerriere were down and Dacres had no choice but to surrender. While the victory of the Constitution militarily was a modest success, its political effect was substantial. It helped solidfy support from New England for the war effort and counter the poor war news coming from the Canadian front.