The capture of the schooner ''Bravo'' was a naval battle fought in 1819 between

United States Revenue Cutter Service ) , colors= , colors_label= , march= , mascot= , equipment= , equipment_label= , battles= , anniversaries=4 August , decorations= , battle_honours= , battle_honours_label= , disbanded=28 January 1915 , flying_hours= , website= , commander1= , co ...

cutters and one of

Jean Lafitte Jean Lafitte ( – ) was a French pirate and privateer who operated in the Gulf of Mexico in the early 19th century. He and his older brother Pierre spelled their last name Laffite, but English language documents of the time used "Lafitte". Th ...

pirate Piracy is an act of robbery or criminal violence by ship or boat-borne attackers upon another ship or a coastal area, typically with the goal of stealing cargo and other valuable goods. Those who conduct acts of piracy are called pirates, v ...

ships. In early 1819, the two U.S.

Revenue Cutter A cutter is a type of watercraft. The term has several meanings. It can apply to the rig (or sailplan) of a sailing vessel (but with regional differences in definition), to a governmental enforcement agency vessel (such as a coast guard or bor ...

s and had just been constructed in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

at a cost of $4,500 each. The two sister ships, each equipped with a single

pivot gun A pivot gun was a type of cannon mounted on a fixed central emplacement which permitted it to be moved through a wide horizontal arc. They were a common weapon aboard ships and in land fortifications for several centuries but became obsolete aft ...

in the 9- to 18-pounder range, were dispatched to the

Gulf of Mexico The Gulf of Mexico ( es, Golfo de México) is an ocean basin and a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean, largely surrounded by the North American continent. It is bounded on the northeast, north and northwest by the Gulf Coast of the United ...

to conduct counter-

piracy Piracy is an act of robbery or criminal violence by ship or boat-borne attackers upon another ship or a coastal area, typically with the goal of stealing cargo and other valuable goods. Those who conduct acts of piracy are called pirates, v ...

patrols. ''Alabama'' was assigned to the

Mobile Squadron Mobile may refer to: Places * Mobile, Alabama, a U.S. port city * Mobile County, Alabama * Mobile, Arizona, a small town near Phoenix, U.S. * Mobile, Newfoundland and Labrador Arts, entertainment, and media Music Groups and labels * Mobile (b ...

and ''Louisiana'' assigned to the New Orleans Squadron. In August 1819, ''Alabama'' was temporarily assigned to

New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans

to help thwart the pirate incidents in those waters with ''Louisiana''. On 31 August, the two ships were sailing the Gulf off southern

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

when they sighted the schooner ''Bravo''. The Americans gave chase and eventually came within firing range. ''Bravo'' resisted and a brief gunnery duel occurred, in which the first officer and three crew members of ''Louisiana'' were wounded. The Americans then boarded ''Bravo'' and the pirates were captured. Jean La Farges, who commanded the suspected privateer, was a

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often ...

of French pirate

. Apparently no letter of marque was presented to the Americans, which explained why the pirates fled at the sight of the Revenue Cutter schooners. Jean La Farges was subsequently hanged in Louisiana. In the following years, more battles occurred between United States naval forces and pirates in the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean. On 19 April 1819, ''Alabama'' and ''Louisiana'' destroyed a pirate base at the Patterson's Town Raid on Breton Island,

Louisiana Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is borde ...

. Another action was fought on 10 July 1820 when the Captain of ''Louisiana'' captured four pirate ships off

Belize Belize (; bzj, Bileez) is a Caribbean and Central American country on the northeastern coast of Central America. It is bordered by Mexico to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and Guatemala to the west and south. It also shares a wate ...

. On 2 November 1822, ''Louisiana'' along with and the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against ...

schooner captured five pirate vessels off

Havana Havana (; Spanish: ''La Habana'' ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of the La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center.

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...

Fate

''Louisiana''s career was soon over. In March 1824 she was put up for public auction. ''Alabama'' eventually went on to fight the

slave trade Slavery and enslavement are both the state and the condition of being a slave—someone forbidden to quit one's service for an enslaver, and who is treated by the enslaver as property. Slavery typically involves slaves being made to perf ...

in the

Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe an ...

until she was sold in

on 6 August 1833.

References

Official U.S. Coast Guard history page
*Donald Canney. ''U.S. Coast Guard and Revenue Cutters, 1790-1935''. Annapolis, MD: Naval Institute Press, 1995. *U.S. Coast Guard. ''Record of Movements: Vessels of the United States Coast Guard: 1790 - December 31, 1933''. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1934–1989 {{DEFAULTSORT:Action Of 31 August 1819 Bravo History of Louisiana United States Revenue Cutter Service 19th-century military history of the United States August 1819 events

Fate

See also

References