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By "I have not yet begun to fight!" shouted John Paul Jones when the captain of the British ship Serapis asked him to surrender. Their ships were so close their cannons scraped and masts entangled, yet his American ship Bonhomme Richard, named for Ben Franklin's Poor Richard's Almanac, refused to give up. When two cannons exploded and his ship began sinking, John Paul Jones lashed his ship to the enemy's to keep it afloat. After 3 more hours of fighting, the British surrendered. This was SEPTEMBER 23, 1779. Called the "Father of the American Navy," John Paul Jones commanded the...

Unpublished BiographyJohn Paul (afterwards known as John Paul Jones) was born at Arbigland, in the Parish of Kirkbean, and in the stewartry of Kirkcudbright, Scotland, on 6 July 1747. Born John Paul, his father of the same name was a gardener; his mother's name was Jean MacDuff, the daughter of a small farmer in the neighboring parish of New-Abbey. Of this marriage there were seven children. John was the fourth child. The first-born was William Paul, who went abroad early in life and settled and married in Fredericksburg, Virginia. Of the three daughters, only two will be noted; Janet, who...

They all pledged their “lives, fortunes and sacred honors,” and it was more than just an idle boast. The Founding Fathers were committing treason against the most powerful empire that the world to date had ever seen. It was also their Mother Country, to which many of their friends, family, and neighbors were still loyal. And while they certainly, in the words of Patrick Henry, “made the most” of their treason, the idea that they would establish the most free and powerful nation in the history of mankind was not the most likely outcome. So in singling out these 7...

"I have not yet begun to fight" Today, the most recognizable name of a naval officer of the American Revolutionary War is that of John Paul Jones. John Paul was born at Arbigland, Kirkbean, Kirkcudbright, Scotland, 6 July 1747. Apprenticed to a merchant at age 13, he went to sea in the brig Friendship to learn the art of seamanship. At 21, he received his first command, the brig John. After several successful years as a merchant skipper in the West Indies trade, John Paul emigrated to the British colonies in North America and there added "Jones" to his name....

"I am glad that the new constitution will be, as you tell me, adopted by the nine states. I hope, however they will alter some parts of it; and particularly that they will divest the President of all military rank and command; for though General Washington might be safely trusted with such tempting power as chief command of fleet and army, yet depend on it, in some other hands it could not fail to overset the liberties of America. The President should be only the first civil Magistrate, let him command the military with the pen; but deprive him of...

ANNAPOLIS, Md. Four Naval Academy midshipmen and a professor, along with Navy scientists, head to the North Sea on Wednesday to search for the remains of Capt. John Paul Jones' ship, Bonhomme Richard. This search for one of the most famous ships of the American Revolution will combine oceanography, historical analysis and naval engineering and employ cutting-edge technology. A multibeam sonar, for example, will give researchers three-dimensional pictures of objects on the ocean floor, and a gradiometer, a mine-sweeping tool, can detect objects buried under sediment. If the researchers on this two-week expedition find the remains of Jones' ship, which...

The Americans will be taking to the high seas off the Yorkshire coast this summer in search of their nautical "Holy Grail". Martin Hickes reports on an expensive obsession. THIS August, a flotilla of American scientists will mount a £175,000 expedition off Flamborough Head in search of a wreck, more than 200 years after it sank. Two US teams will plunge into the North Sea in search of the flagship of a Scottish captain, known to the Brits as little more than a pirate, but to the Americans as a hero of the American Revolution and the "Father of the...

Lord, Keep our Troops forever in Your care Give them victory over the enemy... Grant them a safe and swift return... Bless those who mourn the lost. . FReepers from the Foxhole join in prayer for all those serving their country at this time. ...................................................................................... ........................................... U.S. Military History, Current Events and Veterans Issues Where Duty, Honor and Countryare acknowledged, affirmed and commemorated. Our Mission: The FReeper Foxhole is dedicated to Veterans of our Nation's military forces and to others who are affected in their relationships with Veterans. In the FReeper Foxhole, Veterans or their family members should feel...

U.S. Military History, Current Events and Veterans Issues Where Duty, Honor and Countryare acknowledged, affirmed and commemorated. Our Mission: The FReeper Foxhole is dedicated to Veterans of our Nation's military forces and to others who are affected in their relationships with Veterans. We hope to provide an ongoing source of information about issues and problems that are specific to Veterans and resources that are available to Veterans and their families. In the FReeper Foxhole, Veterans or their family members should feel free to address their specific circumstances or whatever issues concern them in an atmosphere of peace, understanding, brotherhood...

According to prosecutors, Ryan Sawyer Mays was a young, arrogant sailor angry about being assigned to deck duty after failing to become a Navy SEAL — and he made the Navy pay in a big way. But the prosecution has presented no physical evidence proving that Mays, 21, set the USS Bonhomme Richard on fire, a fact defense lawyers plan to highlight at the sailor’s court martial that is scheduled to start Monday at Naval Base San Diego. The July 2020 blaze burned for nearly five days and sent an acrid smoke over San Diego, damaging the amphibious assault ship...

The U.S. Navy's leadership has drawn a lot of criticism for its wokester focus as its mission goes fallow. Now we're seeing this report: Just before a fire started on a warship that burned for nearly five days in San Diego last summer, a witness told investigators he saw a fellow sailor — known to his leadership for showing disdain toward the Navy — walking to the spot where the blaze first ignited. Ryan Sawyer Mays, a 20-year-old from Kentucky, carried a metal bucket into the vessel’s lower storage area, according to new court documents identifying him as the person...

The Navy will scrap the USS Bonhomme Richard after a fire burned aboard the amphibious assault ship for nearly five days in July and rendered it unsalvageable, the service announced Monday. After “thorough consideration,” the Navy has decided to decommission the ship “due to the extensive damage” from the blaze, the service said in a statement. “We did not come to this decision lightly,” Navy Secretary Kenneth Braithwaite said in the release. “Following an extensive material assessment in which various courses of action were considered and evaluated, we came to the conclusion that it is not fiscally responsible to restore...

A Navy sailor is being eyed in connection to the massive four-day fire on the USS Bonhomme Richard that investigators suspect may have been set intentionally. Navy investigators searched the unidentified sailor’s home to look for any links to the blaze that caused substantial damage to the ship, multiple sources told ABC 10News. Despite the development, Navy officials have kept mum on the status of their probe.

The Navy's top officer says that the fires that burned for four days on the Wasp class amphibious assault ship USS Bonhomme Richard last week left 11 of its 14 decks damaged and its island effectively gutted. Meanwhile, there has been a rash of other fire incidents aboard other U.S. Navy ships undergoing work in recent days. A shipyard in Virginia where Navy ships are repaired has resumed normal operations after halting work following a thankfully much less severe fire on Bonhomme Richard's sister ship, USS Kearsarge. Another fire broke out on the future USS John F. Kennedy, a Ford...

He is as familiar to American maritime students as Admiral Lord Nelson is to ours – not least for having uttered the immortal words, “Surrender? I have not yet begun to fight” as his ship sank off the Yorkshire coast. But while John Paul Jones went down in history as the father of the US Navy, the final secret of the stricken Bonhomme Richard is only now beginning to emerge from its watery grave.

British satellite historians claim to have discovered the true location of an iconic American revolutionary ship which defeated the Royal Navy off the Yorkshire coast. The famous vessel, the USS Bonhomme Richard, was the first US ship to beat the Royal Navy in British waters before she sank on September 24, 1779. The location of the wreck has long been a mystery, but now a British satellite historian from Harrogate claims to have found it. Tim Akers, 60, used pioneering satellite radar techniques alongside British satellite firm Merlin Burrows to track down the buried vessel.

July 18, 1792 is the date of John Paul Jones' death in France, following his service to the United States during the Revolutionary War (along with brief service to Russia afterward). During the Revolutionary War, he commanded Ranger in the defeat of HMS Drake, then later commanded Bonhomme Richard in the battle with HMS Serapis. Although Jones captured Serapis, the Richard sank following the battle, and Jones sailed the Serapis to Holland. To help Jones avoid charges of piracy, the "Serapis Flag" was entered into Dutch records as the flag he flew when he captured the ship, and it became...

PACIFIC OCEAN (NNS) -- The Bonhomme Richard Expeditionary Strike Group (BHRESG) entered the 7th Fleet area of responsibility (AOR) Oct. 7, after nearly four months of operations in the Persian Gulf. The strike group proved their capability and versatility by completing multiple operations and participating in training with Coalition forces during their time in the Gulf. “Throughout our deployment, the Sailors and Marines of the BHRESG have shown great flexibility and distinguished themselves with great tactical sense and unwavering focus to the task at hand,” said Capt. Bradley D. Martin, BHRESG and Amphibious Squadron (PHIBRON) 7 commander. “The crews of...

Navy identifies sailors killed in San Diego helicopter crash Associated Press SAN DIEGO - Military officials on Sunday released the identities of a female sailor from Southern California and the three other members of a combat squadron killed when a helicopter crashed in the ocean off the San Diego coast. Lt. j.g. Laura J. Mankey of West Hills, in northern Los Angeles County, died in Friday's crash during a training mission, according to a Navy statement. Also killed were Lt. Adam A. Dyer, 28, of Lafayette, La.; Petty Officer 1st Class Cory J. Helman, 27, of New Richmond, Wis.; and...

The Bonhomme Richard sank in about 180ft of water Experts have expressed confidence that they can find the sunken wreck of the ship made famous by legendary Solway born sailor John Paul Jones next month. The Bonhomme Richard went down in 1779 off Flamborough Head in East Yorkshire as Jones famously said: "Surrender - I have not yet begun to fight." Several bids have been made to recover the ship captained by a man credited as the founding father of the US Navy. Now underwater archaeology experts will use hi-tech methods to try to find it. Dr Robert Neyland,...