Capture of HMS Cyane and HMS Levant facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Capture of HMS Cyane and HMS Levant
Part of the War of 1812
USS Constitution captures HMS Cyane and HMS Levant
Date February 20, 1815 Location mid-Atlantic Porto Praya, Cape Verde Islands Result American victory
Belligerents
United States	United Kingdom
Commanders and leaders
Charles Stewart Archibald Henderson	Gordon Falcon (POW) George Douglas (POW)
Strength
1 frigate 450 crew	2 sixth-rates 175 men on Cyane 135 men on Levant 310 in total
Casualties and losses
6 killed 9 wounded	19 killed 42 wounded 249 prisoners 2 ships captured (1 recaptured)

The capture of HMS Cyane and HMS Levant was an important naval battle at the very end of the War of 1812. On February 20, 1815, two British warships, HMS Cyane and HMS Levant, fought against the American frigate USS Constitution. This fight happened about 100 miles east of the Madeira Islands.

After a fierce exchange of cannon fire and musket shots, both British ships surrendered. What's interesting is that the war had actually ended a few days before this battle. The Treaty of Ghent, which officially ended the war, had already been agreed upon. However, the ships at sea didn't know the war was over yet.

After the battle, the Constitution and the two captured ships sailed to Porto Praya in the Cape Verde islands. Later, a British squadron appeared, and the Levant was recaptured.

Preparing for Battle: The Ships Meet

The American frigate Constitution, led by Captain Charles Stewart, had left Boston late in 1814. A big storm had pushed the British ships blocking the port away. Captain Stewart then began a journey to attack enemy merchant ships. His journey took him near Bermuda, the Madeira Islands, and the coast of Portugal.

On February 20, 1815, at 1:00 pm, Captain Stewart's crew spotted two ships to the south. The Constitution quickly set all its sails to chase them. These two ships were the British HMS Cyane, commanded by Captain Gordon Thomas Falcon, and HMS Levant, commanded by Captain George Douglass.

Comparing the Warships

The Cyane was armed with 22 heavy 32-pounder carronades and other guns. The Levant was slightly lighter, with 18 32-pounder carronades and other guns. Together, the two British ships had about 310 crew members.

The Constitution was a larger ship. It carried 30 heavy 24-pounder long guns and 20 or 22 32-pounder carronades. It had a crew of about 450 sailors and Marines.

Here's a quick look at how the ships compared:

The Battle Begins

At first, the two British ships were far apart. The Cyane sailed closer to the Levant, and by 5:30 pm, they were close enough to talk to each other. The two British captains decided to fight together instead of trying to escape separately. They tried to wait until nightfall, but the Constitution was coming too fast. They lined up, with the Levant slightly ahead of the Cyane.

The British ships had a slightly heavier total weight of cannonballs they could fire at once. However, most of their guns were short-range carronades. The Constitution's long-range 24-pounder guns were much more effective at the starting distance of about 250 yards.

At 6:10 pm, the battle began. The Constitution was positioned well, with the Levant to its front-left and the Cyane to its back-left. After about 15 minutes of firing, the smoke from the cannons became so thick that it hid the British ships. Captain Stewart ordered his crew to stop firing.

Clearing the Smoke and Clever Maneuvers

When the smoke cleared, the American crew saw the Cyane trying to cross behind the Constitution to fire along its length (a "rake"). Captain Stewart quickly ordered his ship's sails to be pulled back. This made the Constitution stop and then move backward, allowing it to "rake" the Cyane instead.

As the Levant then tried to cross in front of the Constitution, Stewart ordered the sails forward again. This allowed the Constitution to rake the Levant from behind. The Levant's rigging was badly damaged, and it drifted away. The Constitution then turned back to fight the Cyane. At 6:50 pm, the Cyane surrendered.

Lieutenant Hoffman from the Constitution took command of the captured Cyane. At 8:00 pm, Captain Stewart went after the Levant. At 8:50 pm, he found the British ship trying to sail back into the fight, not knowing that the Cyane had already given up. The two ships exchanged cannon fire as they passed each other. Captain Douglass then tried to escape, but by 9:30 pm, the Levant was caught and forced to surrender as well.

Everyone agreed that the British crews fought bravely and skillfully. However, Captain Stewart's handling of the Constitution was perfect, which led to the American victory.

Battle Losses

The American side had 6 men killed and 9 wounded. On the Cyane, 12 men were killed and 26 wounded. Some of the wounded later died. On the Levant, 7 men were killed and 16 wounded.

The Levant is Recaptured

After the battle, the Constitution and its two captured ships sailed to Porto Praya in the Cape Verde islands. These islands were neutral Portuguese territory. They arrived on March 10. While the ships were being repaired, a large ship was spotted heading towards the harbor. Then, two more heavy ships appeared. Captain Stewart realized this was too strong a force for the Constitution to fight. He believed the Portuguese wouldn't be able to keep their neutrality, so his three ships quickly left the harbor.

The approaching ships were a British squadron led by Captain Collier. They were HMS Leander (50 guns), HMS Newcastle (50 guns), and HMS Acasta (40 guns). The Leander and Newcastle were built specifically to match the large American frigates like the Constitution.

As the British chased them, the Constitution had to cut loose the smaller boats it was towing. The Cyane fell behind, and Captain Stewart ordered her to turn around. She did, and managed to escape, as Collier's frigates ignored her. The Levant, commanded by Lieutenant Ballard from the Constitution, also fell behind and turned back towards Porto Praya.

All three British frigates chased the Levant into the harbor and began firing. At the same time, British prisoners from the Cyane and Levant who were on shore took control of a Portuguese shore battery and also fired at the Levant. Even though the cannon fire wasn't very effective, the odds were too great, and Lieutenant Ballard surrendered the Levant.

After stopping at a port in Brazil, where Captain Stewart released his remaining prisoners, the Constitution reached Porto Rico. There, Stewart finally learned that the war had ended several days before his famous battle. The Cyane safely reached New York. Later, the Portuguese government paid money to the United States because they failed to protect their neutrality, which allowed the Levant to be recaptured.