Editing John Paul Jones (section)

===Revolutionary War command===

====Early command====
Jones sailed from the [[Delaware River]] in February 1776 aboard ''Alfred'' on the Continental Navy's maiden cruise. It was aboard this vessel that Jones took the honour of hoisting the first U.S. ensign, the [[Continental Union Flag]], over a naval vessel.<ref name="Balderston1969">{{cite journal| last1=Balderston| first1=Marion| title=The Flag John Paul Jones Really Fought Under| journal=Huntington Library Quarterly| volume=33| issue=1| year=1969| pages=77–83| issn=0018-7895| doi=10.2307/3817016| jstor=3817016}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |author-link=Francis Wharton |last=Wharton |first=Francis |title=Chapter XIX John Paul Jones-Sayre ~ John Paul Jones Public Services & Effect of his Cruises |url=http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/ampage?collId=lldc&fileName=001/lldc001.db&recNum=642 |journal=Journals of the Continental Congress, 1774–1789 |trans-title=The Revolutionary Diplomatic Correspondence of the United States |volume=1 |issue=August 13, 1888 |pages=611–614}}</ref>

The fleet had been expected to cruise along the coast but was ordered instead by Commodore [[Esek Hopkins]] to sail for The Bahamas, where [[Raid of Nassau|Nassau was raided]] for military supplies. The fleet had an [[Battle of Block Island|unsuccessful encounter]] with a British [[Packet boat|packet ship]] on their return voyage. Jones was then assigned command of the [[sloop-of-war|sloop]] {{ship|USS|Providence|1775|6}}. Congress had recently ordered the construction of thirteen frigates for the American Navy, one of which was to be commanded by Jones. In exchange for this prestigious command, Jones accepted his commission aboard the smaller ''Providence''. Over the summer of 1776 as commander of ''Providence'', Jones performed various services for the Continental Navy and Congress. These services included the transport of troops, the movement of supplies, and the escort of convoys. During this time, Jones was able to assist a 'brig from Hispaniola' that was being chased by [[HMS Cerberus (1758)|HMS ''Cerberus'']] and laden with military stores. The brig was then purchased by Congress and put in commission as {{USS|Hampden}} with Captain Hoysted Hacker commanding.<ref>Naval Documents of the American Revolution, vol 6, p. 210</ref> During a later six-week voyage to Nova Scotia, Jones captured sixteen [[Prize (law)|prizes]] and inflicted significant damage in the [[Raid on Canso (1776)|Raid on Canso]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://archive.org/details/unitedstatesnava00gold_0|title=The United States' Naval Chronicle. Vol. 1|first=Charles W. (Charles Washington)|last=Goldsborough|date=May 21, 1824|publisher=Printed by James Wilson|via=Internet Archive}}</ref>

Jones's next command came as a result of Commodore Hopkins's orders to liberate hundreds of American prisoners forced to labour in coal mines in Nova Scotia, and also to raid British shipping. On November 1, 1776, Jones set sail in command of ''Alfred'' to carry out this mission. Winter conditions prevented freeing the prisoners, but the mission did result in the capture of ''Mellish'', a vessel carrying a vital supply of winter clothing intended for General [[John Burgoyne]]'s troops in Canada.<ref>{{cite book| title=John Paul Jones: A Sailor's Biography| edition=1964| last1=Morison| first1=Samuel Eliot| publisher=Time| location=New York| page=78| year=1959| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=L4twAAAAMAAJ&q=mellish}}</ref>

====Command of ''Ranger''====
[[File:Coat of Arms of John Paul Jones.svg|upright|thumb|The [[coat of arms]] of John Paul Jones<ref>{{cite book| title=John Paul Jones: Sailor, Hero, Father of the American Navy| first=Evan| last=Thomas| publisher=Simon and Schuster| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8rQSAU63pr0C&q=%22Evan+Thomas%22+%22coat+of+arms%22+%22Father+of+the+American+Navy%22&pg=PA92| year=2010| isbn=978-1451603996| access-date=2020-10-15}}</ref>]]

Despite his successes at sea, Jones' disagreements with those in authority reached a new level upon arrival in Boston on December 16, 1776. While at the port, he began feuding with Commodore Hopkins, as Jones believed that Hopkins was hindering his advancement by talking down his campaign plans. As a result of this and other frustrations, Jones was assigned the smaller command of the newly constructed {{USS|Ranger|1777|6}} on June 14, 1777, the same day that the new [[Flag of the United States|Stars and Stripes flag]] was adopted.<ref>{{Cite book|title=John Paul Jones: A Sailor's Biography|edition=1964|last1=Morison|first1=Samuel Eliot|publisher=Time|location=New York|page=101|date=1959}}</ref>

After making the necessary preparations, Jones sailed for France on November 1, 1777, with orders to assist the American cause however possible. The American commissioners in France were Benjamin Franklin, [[Silas Deane]], and [[Arthur Lee (diplomat)|Arthur Lee]], and they listened to Jones's strategic recommendations. They promised him the command of {{ship||Indien|1778|2}}, a new vessel being constructed for America by the Netherlands in Amsterdam. Britain, however, was able to divert ''L'Indien'' away from American hands by exerting pressure to ensure its sale to France instead (which had not yet allied with America).<ref>{{Cite book|title=John Paul Jones's Locker|edition=1st|last1=Feld|first1=Jonathan|publisher=Naval History and Heritage Command|location=Washington, D.C.|page=23|date=2017}}</ref> Jones was again left without a command, an unpleasant reminder of his stagnation in Boston from late 1776 until early 1777. It is thought that during this time Jones developed his close friendship with Franklin, whom he greatly admired.

On February 6, 1778, France signed the [[Treaty of Alliance (1778)|Treaty of Alliance]] with America, formally recognizing the independence of the new American republic. Eight days later, Captain Jones's ''Ranger'' became the first American naval vessel to be formally [[Gun salute#Naval cannon fire|saluted]] by the French, with a nine-gun salute fired from Captain [[Toussaint-Guillaume Picquet de la Motte|La Motte-Piquet]]'s flagship. Jones wrote of the event: "I accepted his offer all the more for after all it was a recognition of our independence and in the nation". On April 10, Jones set sail from [[Brest, France]], for the western coasts of Great Britain.

====''Ranger'' attacks the British====
[[File:Matthias Read - Whitehaven, Cumbria, Showing Flatt Hall - Google Art Project enhanced.jpg|thumb|A portrait of [[Whitehaven]], on the northwest coast of [[England]], by Matthias Read completed between 1730 and 1735]]
[[File:US Navy 050626-N-9565D-005 Capt. Michael Gordon, receives from Chairman of Whitehaven Harbour Commissioners, Gordon Thomson, a copy of the local newspaper from April 1778.jpg|thumb|Captain Michael Gordon of the [[United States Navy|U.S. Navy]] receives a copy of the local newspaper from April 1778 from the [[Whitehaven]] Harbour Commission chairman in June 2005]]

Jones had some early successes against British merchant shipping in the [[Irish Sea]]. He persuaded his crew on April 17, 1778, to participate in an assault on [[Whitehaven]], the town where his maritime career had begun.<ref>[[#Paullin|Paullin, 1906]] p. 293</ref> Jones later wrote about the poor command qualities of his senior officers (having tactfully avoided such matters in his official report): "'Their object', they said, 'was gain not honor'. They were poor: instead of encouraging the morale of the crew, they excited them to disobedience; they persuaded them that they had the right to judge whether a measure that was proposed to them was good or bad".<ref name="jpj1785">{{Citation|title=Extracts from the Journals of my Campaigns|last=Jones|first=John Paul|year=1785|url=http://www.americanrevolution.org/jpj.html|access-date=2007-10-27}}</ref> Contrary winds forced them to abandon the attempt and drive ''Ranger'' towards Ireland, causing more trouble for British shipping on the way.

On April 20, Jones learned from captured sailors that the Royal Navy sloop of war {{HMS|Drake|1777|6}} was anchored off [[Carrickfergus]], Ireland. According to the diary of ''Ranger''{{'}}s surgeon,<ref>{{Citation|title=Diary of Ezra Green M.D.|last=Green|first=Ezra|year=1875|url=http://www.public.coe.edu/~theller/soj/ttl/jpj/green.html|access-date=2007-10-27|archive-date=February 18, 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070218025721/http://www.public.coe.edu/~theller/soj/ttl/jpj/green.html|url-status=dead}}</ref> Jones's first intention was to attack the vessel in broad daylight, but his sailors were "unwilling to undertake it", another incident omitted from the official report. Therefore, the attack took place just after midnight, but the mate responsible for dropping the anchor to halt ''Ranger'' right alongside ''Drake'' misjudged the timing in the dark (Jones claimed in his memoirs that the man was drunk), so Jones had to cut his anchor cable and run. The wind shifted, and ''Ranger'' recrossed the Irish Sea to make another attempt at raiding Whitehaven.

Jones led the assault with two boats of fifteen men just after midnight on April 23, hoping to set fire to and sink all of the ships anchored in Whitehaven's harbor, which numbered between 200 and 400 wooden vessels and consisted of a full merchant fleet and many coal transporters. They also hoped to terrorize the townspeople by lighting further fires. As it happened, the journey to shore was slowed by the shifting wind, as well as a strong ebb tide. They successfully [[Touch hole#Spiking the guns|spiked]] the town's big defensive guns to prevent them being fired, but lighting fires proved difficult, as the lanterns in both boats had run out of fuel. To remedy this, some of the party were sent to raid a [[Pub|public house]] on the quayside, but the temptation to stop for a quick drink led to a further delay. Dawn was breaking by the time they returned and began the arson attacks, so efforts were concentrated on the coal ship ''Thompson'' in the hope that the flames would spread to adjacent vessels, all grounded by the low tide. However, in the twilight, one of the crew slipped away and alerted residents on a harbourside street. A fire alert was sounded, and large numbers of people came running to the quay, forcing the Americans to retreat, and extinguishing the flames with the town's two fire-engines. The townspeople's hopes of sinking Jones's boats with cannon fire were dashed because of the prudent spiking.<ref>{{Citation|title=news report from Whitehaven|newspaper=Cumberland Chronicle|url=http://www.pastpresented.info/cumbria/chron78ma.htm|date=April 25, 1778}}</ref>

[[File:John Paul Jones seizing the silver plate of Lady Selkirk (1).jpg|thumb|A 1903 illustration of John Paul Jones seizing Lady Selkirk's silverware]]
Jones next crossed the [[Solway Firth]] from Whitehaven to Scotland, hoping to hold for ransom [[Dunbar Douglas, 4th Earl of Selkirk]], who lived on St Mary's Isle near Kirkcudbright. The earl, Jones reasoned, could be exchanged for American sailors [[Impressment|impressed]] into the Royal Navy. The earl was discovered to be absent from his estate, so his wife entertained the officers and conducted the negotiations. Canadian historian [[Peter C. Newman]] gives credit to the governess for protecting the young heir to the [[Earl of Selkirk|Earldom of Selkirk]], [[Thomas Douglas, 5th Earl of Selkirk|Thomas Douglas]], and to the butler for filling a sack half with coal and topping it up with the family silver, in order to fob off the Americans.<ref>{{cite book |last=Newman |first=Peter C. |title=The Empire of the Bay: The Company of Adventurers that Seized a Continent |publisher=Penguin |date=2000 |page=383 |isbn=978-0-14029-987-8}}</ref> Jones claimed that he intended to return directly to his ship and continue seeking prizes elsewhere, but his crew wished to "pillage, burn, and plunder all they could". Ultimately, Jones allowed the crew to seize a silver plate set adorned with the family's emblem to placate their desires, but nothing else. Jones bought the plate when it was later sold off in France, and he returned it to the Earl of Selkirk after the war.

The attacks on St Mary's Isle and Whitehaven resulted in no prizes or profits which would be shared with the crew under normal circumstances.<ref>{{Citation|title=Paul Jones: His Exploits in English Seas during 1778–80|last=Seitz|first=Don|year=1917|url=https://archive.org/stream/pauljoneshisexpl00seituoft/pauljoneshisexpl00seituoft_djvu.txt|access-date=2009-03-06}}</ref> Throughout the mission, the crew acted as if they were aboard a [[privateer]], not a warship, led by Lieutenant Thomas Simpson, Jones's second-in-command.

====Return to Ireland====
[[File:John Paul Jones by Moreau le Jeune 1780.jpg|thumb|A 1781 illustration of Jones by Moreau le Jeune]]

Jones led ''Ranger'' back across the Irish Sea, hoping to make another attempt at ''Drake'', still anchored off [[Carrickfergus]]. Late in the afternoon of April 24, the ships, roughly equal in firepower, engaged in combat. Earlier in the day, the Americans had captured the crew of a reconnaissance boat and learned that ''Drake'' had taken on dozens of soldiers with the intention of grappling and boarding ''Ranger'', so Jones made sure that did not happen, capturing ''Drake'' after an [[North Channel Naval Duel|hour-long gun battle]] in which British captain George Burdon was killed. Lieutenant Simpson was given command of ''Drake'' for the return journey to Brest. The ships separated during the return journey as ''Ranger'' chased another prize, leading to a conflict between Simpson and Jones. Both ships arrived at port safely, but Jones filed for a [[court-martial]] of Simpson, keeping him detained on the ship.

Partly through the influence of John Adams, who was still serving as a commissioner in France, Simpson was released from Jones's accusation. Adams implies in his memoirs that the overwhelming majority of the evidence supported Simpson's claims. Adams seemed to believe Jones was hoping to monopolize the mission's glory, especially by detaining Simpson on board while he celebrated the capture with numerous important European dignitaries.<ref>{{Citation|title=autobiography part 2, 'Travels, and Negotiations'|last=Adams|first=John|publisher=Massachusetts Historical Society|year=1778|url=http://www.masshist.org/digitaladams/aea/cfm/doc.cfm?id=A2_36|access-date=2007-10-27|archive-date=February 6, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110206204549/http://www.masshist.org/digitaladams/aea/cfm/doc.cfm?id=A2_36|url-status=dead}}</ref> Even with the wealth of perspectives, including the commander's,<ref name="jpj1785" /> it is difficult to determine what occurred. It is clear, however, that the crew felt alienated by their commander, who might well have been motivated by his pride. Jones believed his intentions were honorable and his actions were strategically essential to the Revolution. Regardless of any controversy surrounding the mission, ''Ranger''{{'}}s capture of ''Drake'' was one of the Continental Navy's few significant military victories during the Revolution. ''Ranger''{{'}}s victory became an important symbol of the American spirit and served as an inspiration for the permanent establishment of the [[United States Navy|U.S. Navy]] after the revolution.

====''Bonhomme Richard''====
[[File:John Adams reviews Jones' Irish Marines, 13 May 1779 by Charles H. Waterhouse.jpg|thumb|[[John Adams]] reviews Jones' Irish Marines at [[Lorient]] on 13 May 1779]]
[[File:The action between the Serapis, capt. Pearson, the Countess of Scarborough, and Paul Jones’s Squadron. R.Paton - K325.jpg|thumb|''Action Between the Serapis and Bonhomme Richard'' a 1780 portrait by [[Richard Paton]]]]
[[File:Serapis Flag.svg|thumb|The "[[Serapis flag|John Paul Jones flag]]" was entered into [[Netherlands|Dutch]] records to help Jones avoid charges of piracy when he captured the ''Serapis'' under an "unknown flag."]]
[[File:Paul Jones the pirate.jpg|thumb|"Paul Jones the Pirate", a British caricature of John Paul Jones]]

In 1779, Captain Jones took command of the 42-gun {{USS|Bonhomme Richard|1765|6}},<ref>{{Citation|title=Log of the 'Bon Homme Richard', 1779|publisher=John Paul Jones Cottage Museum|url=http://www.jpj.demon.co.uk/bhrlog.pdf|access-date=2007-10-27|archive-date=September 19, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110919191408/http://www.jpj.demon.co.uk/bhrlog.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref> a merchant ship rebuilt and given to America by the French shipping magnate, [[Jacques-Donatien Le Ray de Chaumont|Jacques-Donatien Le Ray]]. On August 14, as a vast [[Armada of 1779|French and Spanish invasion fleet]] approached England, he provided a diversion by heading for Ireland at the head of a five-ship squadron including the 36-gun {{USS|Alliance|1778|6}}, 32-gun USS ''Pallas'', 12-gun {{USS|Vengeance|1779|6}}, and ''Le Cerf'', also accompanied by two privateers, {{HMS|Monsieur|1780|2}} and ''Granville''. When the squadron was only a few days out of [[Groix]], ''Monsieur'' separated because of a disagreement between her captain and Jones. Several Royal Navy warships were sent towards Ireland in pursuit of Jones, but on this occasion, he continued right around the north of Scotland into the [[North Sea]]. Jones's main problems, as on his previous voyage, resulted from insubordination, particularly by Pierre Landais, captain of ''Alliance''. On September 23, the squadron met a large merchant convoy off the coast of [[Flamborough Head]], [[East Riding of Yorkshire|East Yorkshire]]. The 44-gun British frigate {{HMS|Serapis|1779|6}} and the 22-gun [[Hired armed vessels|hired armed ship]] {{ship||Countess of Scarborough|1777 ship|2}} placed themselves between the convoy and Jones's squadron, allowing the merchants to escape.

Shortly after 7 p.m. the [[Battle of Flamborough Head]] began. ''Serapis'' engaged ''Bonhomme Richard'', and ''Alliance'' fired from a considerable distance at ''Countess''. After sustaining significant damage from the Serapis and Alliance's bombardment, Jones quickly recognized that he could not win a battle of big guns, and with the wind dying, made every effort to lock ''Richard'' and ''Serapis'' together (his famous, albeit apocryphal, quotation, "I have not yet begun to fight!" was said to have been uttered in reply to a demand to surrender in this phase of the battle). After about an hour, he succeeded, and he began clearing the British decks with his deck guns and his [[Continental Marines|Marine]] marksmen in the rigging. ''Alliance'' sailed past and fired a broadside, doing at least as much damage to ''Richard'' as to ''Serapis''. Meanwhile, ''Countess of Scarborough'' had enticed ''Pallas'' downwind of the main battle, beginning a separate engagement. When ''Alliance'' approached this contest, about an hour after it had begun, the badly damaged ''Countess'' surrendered.

With ''Bonhomme Richard'' burning and sinking, it seems that her [[Ensign (flag)|ensign]] was shot away; when one of the officers shouted a surrender, believing his captain to be dead, the British commander asked, seriously this time, if they had [[Striking the colors|struck their colors]]. Jones later remembered saying something like "I am determined to make you strike", but the words allegedly heard by crew-members and reported in newspapers a few days later were more like: "I may sink, but I'll be damned if I strike". An attempt by the British to board ''Bonhomme Richard'' was thwarted, and a grenade thrown by an American sailor caused the explosion of a large quantity of gunpowder on ''Serapis''{{'s}} lower gun-deck. ''Alliance'' returned to the main battle, firing two broadsides. Again, these did at least as much damage to ''Richard'' as to ''Serapis'', but the tactic worked to the extent that ''Serapis'' was unable to move. With ''Alliance'' keeping well out of the line of his own great guns, Captain Pearson of ''Serapis'' accepted that prolonging the battle could achieve nothing, so he surrendered. Most of ''Bonhomme Richard''{{'}}s crew transferred to other vessels, and after a day and a half of frantic repair efforts, it was decided that the ship could not be saved. ''Bonhomme Richard'' was allowed to sink, and Jones took command of ''Serapis'' for the trip to the island of [[Texel]] in neutral (but American-sympathizing) Holland.

In the following year, King [[Louis XVI]] of France honored Jones with the title "[[Knight|Chevalier]]". Jones accepted the honor and desired the title to be used thereafter: when the [[Continental Congress]] in 1787 resolved that a medal of gold be struck in commemoration of his "valor and brilliant services" it was to be presented to "Chevalier John Paul Jones".<ref>{{Cite book |last=Sherburne |first=John Henry |title=Life and character of the Chevalier John Paul Jones, a captain in the navy of the United States, during their revolutionary war. |date=1825 |publisher=City of Washington; New-York, Wilder & Campbell |location=[Pdf] Retrieved from the Library of Congress}}</ref> He also received from Louis XVI a decoration of "l'Institution du Mérite Militaire" and a sword. By contrast, in Britain at this time, he was usually denigrated as a pirate.

Jones was also admitted as an original member of The [[Society of the Cincinnati]] in the state of Pennsylvania when it was established in 1783.<ref>Metcalf, Bryce (1938). ''Original Members and Other Officers Eligible to the [[Society of the Cincinnati]], 1783–1938: With the Institution, Rules of Admission, and Lists of the Officers of the General and State Societies.'' Strasburg, VA: Shenandoah Publishing House, Inc., p. 181.</ref>