Combat· American Revolutionary War
Ranger vs HMS Drake
A day after St. Mary's Isle, Jones brought the Ranger to battle against the British sloop-of-war HMS Drake in the North Channel off the Irish coast. Continental Marine sharpshooters in Ranger's tops were decisive, their aimed fire cutting down Drake's captain and her first lieutenant early in the action and stripping the enemy of leadership. After roughly an hour of close, hammering combat, Drake struck her colors. The Marines' marksmanship had helped turn a hard fight into the first capture of a Royal Navy warship by a Continental vessel in British home waters, an achievement that electrified Europe and made Jones a celebrated figure. The victory was not without cost: Ranger's Marine officer, Lieutenant Samuel Wallingford, was killed by a musket ball to the head, and Sergeant John Ricker took charge of the detachment. The triumph cemented Jones's reputation for daring.
Podcast episodes on American Revolutionary War
Record no. 140