“DON’T GIVE UP THE SHIP!”
The ships were evenly matched in size and weapons, but the battle was far from a close contest
BRIDGEMAN IMAGES
For a British public accustomed to hearing regular reports of naval triumphs over the French, the opening year of the war against the young United States came as a profound shock. When the Americans declared war on Britain in 1812, they had no great ships of the line and instead relied on privateers and a small fleet of heavy frigates to take the war to the British.