Naval officer; born in Kirkbean,
Scotland.
July 6, 1747.
Before he was eighteen years old he commanded a vessel that traded with the
West Indies.
Jones came to
Virginia in 1773, inheriting the estate of his brother, who died there.
Offering his services to Congress, he was made first lieutenant in the navy in December, 1775, when, out of gratitude to
General Jones, of
North Carolina, he assumed his name.
Before that he was
John Paul.
He was a bold and skilful sea-rover, gathering up many prizes.
Made captain in the fall of 1776, he raised the first flag ever displayed on a United States ship-of-war the
Alfred.
He destroyed the
Port Royal (N. S.) fisheries, capturing all the vessels and freight.
In the summer of 1777 he sailed in the
Ranger to
Europe, and in February, 1778, received from a French commander the first salute ever given to the
American flag by a foreign man-of-war.
In April he scaled the walls of
Whitehaven, in
England, on the borders of the
Irish Sea, and spiked thirty-eight cannon.
In 1779, while cruising up and down the east coast of
Scotland, between the Solway and the
Clyde, he tried to capture the
Earl of
Selkirk, in order to secure a notable prisoner for exchange.
He had been an early friend of
Jones's father.
His seat was at the mouth of the Dee.
Jones anchored his vessel, the
Ranger, in the Solway at noon, and with a few men, in a single boat, he went to a
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wooded promontory on which the earl's fine estate lay, where he learned that his lordship was not at home.
Disappointed, he ordered his men back to the boat, when his lieutenant, a large and fiery man, proposed to go to the mansion and plunder it of the family plate.
Jones would not listen to the proposition, for the memory of old associations made his heart tender towards
Lady Selkirk, who had been very kind to him. Again he ordered his men back, but they and the lieutenant, eager for prize-money, in defiance of his expostulations, went to the house and demanded the plate.
The frightened
Lady Selkirk surrendered it with her own hands.
When the prizes of the
Ranger were sold
Jones bought this plate, and sent it back to
Lady Selkirk with a letter in which he expressed his regret because of the annoyance she had suffered.
During the
spring and
summer of 1779, American cruisers were very active, both in American and
European waters.
At the middle of August
Jones was sent out from the
French port of
L'Orient, with five vessels, to the coast of
Scotland.
His flag-ship was the
Bon Homme Richard.
As he was about to strike some armed British vessels in the harbor of
Leith a storm arose, which drove him into the
North Sea.
When it ceased, he cruised along the
Scottish coast, capturing many prizes and producing great alarm.
Late in September, while
Jones's squadron lay a few leagues north of the mouth of the Humber, he discovered the Baltic fleet of forty merchantmen (convoyed by the
Serapis, a 44-gun ship, and the
Countess of Scarborough, of twenty-two guns), stretching out from
Flamborough Head.
Jones signalled for a chase, and all but the
Alliance,
Captain Landais, obeyed.
While the opposing war-ships were manoeuvring for advantage, night fell upon the scene.
At seven o'clock in the evening of Sept. 23, 1779, one of the most desperate of recorded sea-fights began.
the
Bon Homme Richard and
Serapis,
Captain Pearson, came so close to each other that their spars and rigging became entangled, and
Jones attempted to board his antagonist.
A short contest with pike, pistol, and cutlass ensued, and
Jones was repulsed.
The vessels separated, and were soon placed broadside to broadside, so close that the muzzles of their guns touched each other.
Both vessels were dreadfully shattered; and, at one time, the
Serapis was on fire in a dozen places.
Just as the moon rose, at half-past 9 o'clock, the
Richard, too, caught fire.
A terrific hand-to-hand fight now ensued.
Jones's ship, terribly damaged, could not float much longer.
The flames were creeping up the rigging of the
Serapis, and by their light
Jones saw that his double-headed shot had cut the mainmast
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The hand-to-hand fight on the deck of the Serapis. |
of the
Serapis almost in two.
He hurled another, and the tall mast fell.
Pearson saw his great peril, hauled down his flag, and surrendered.
As he handed his sword to
Jones he said, in a surly tone, “It is painful to deliver up my sword to a man who has fought with a rope around his neck!”
（
Jones had been declared a
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pirate by the
British government.) The battle ceased, after raging three hours. The vessels were disengaged, and the
Richard soon went to the bottom of the
North Sea.
For this victory Congress gave
Jones the thanks of the nation, a gold medal and a commission as commander of
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Jones raising the first flag ever displayed on a United States ship-of-war. |
the
America, which ship was soon presented to
France.
The
King of
France made
Jones a knight of the Order of Merit, and presented him with a gold sword.
Jones entered the service of
Russia as rear-admiral in 1787, and, in consequence of a victory over the Turks, was made vice-admiral and knighted.
As he was unable to obtain an independent command he resigned front the
Russian service.
He was appointed consul of the
United States at
Algiers in 1792, but he died before the commission reached him. On his death in
Paris, July 18, 1792, the National Assembly decreed him a public funeral.
