Captain James Lawrence
American, 1781 - 1813
BiographyCaptain James Lawrence fought in the War of 1812. He was born in Burlington, New Jersey on 1 October 1781, the youngest child of John Brown Lawrence, a lawyer, and his second wife, Martha Tallman. James first studied law but preferred the sea and joined the Navy as a midshipman in 1798, where he fought against the Barbary pirates. In 1808, Lawrence married Julia Montaudevert, the daughter of a New York City merchant of French descent. They had two children, a daughter who later married a naval officer, and a posthumous son who died in infancy.
During the War of 1812, Lawrence commanded the U.S.S. Hornet, which captured the H.M.S. Peacock, and he was promoted to Captain. On 6 May 1813 Lawrence was made commmander of the frigate U.S.S. Chesapeake in Boston and he was instructed to go to sea to intercept the British ships bound for Canada. Before he could fullfill this objective, he accepted a challenge from Philip Bowes Vere Broke, captain of the H.M.S. Shannon, which was said to have had the best trained crew in the Royal Navy. In less than fifteen minutes, Lawrence's untrained crew was overwhelmed. Mortally wounded, Lawrence shouted, "Tell the men to fire faster and not to give up the ship; fight her till she sinks!" The crew of the Chesapeake fought until every officer was either killed or wounded, but the battle was lost in under an hour, the Chesapeake was captured, and Lawrence died four days later, leaving his wife and daughter. Lawrence's words "Don't give up the ship" became the motto of the U.S. Navy, which has named numerous ships in his honor.
During the War of 1812, Lawrence commanded the U.S.S. Hornet, which captured the H.M.S. Peacock, and he was promoted to Captain. On 6 May 1813 Lawrence was made commmander of the frigate U.S.S. Chesapeake in Boston and he was instructed to go to sea to intercept the British ships bound for Canada. Before he could fullfill this objective, he accepted a challenge from Philip Bowes Vere Broke, captain of the H.M.S. Shannon, which was said to have had the best trained crew in the Royal Navy. In less than fifteen minutes, Lawrence's untrained crew was overwhelmed. Mortally wounded, Lawrence shouted, "Tell the men to fire faster and not to give up the ship; fight her till she sinks!" The crew of the Chesapeake fought until every officer was either killed or wounded, but the battle was lost in under an hour, the Chesapeake was captured, and Lawrence died four days later, leaving his wife and daughter. Lawrence's words "Don't give up the ship" became the motto of the U.S. Navy, which has named numerous ships in his honor.
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