A set of four plates, this is plate 2 of a view of the USS 'Chesapeake' (1799) and the HMS 'Shannon' (1806) engaged in battle during the War of 1812. The American frigate, identified by the stars and stripes flag, is in the forefront and her stern is enveloped in a cloud of smoke. The British frigate in the background is mostly obscured by the smoke; her stern and the British flag are visible. On the 'Chesapeake,' men shoot guns from platforms positioned above the yards for the lower mast sails.
On 1 June 1813, the HMS 'Shannon' captured the USS 'Chesapeake.' The British frigate pulled up to the broadside of the American ship, and masked in the smoke of a grenade explosion in an open chest of musket charges, the British boarded the 'Chesapeake.' The fight was over within a few minutes. The 'Chesapeake-Shannon' incident was the bloodiest naval battle of the war with 280 men dead and wounded, including mortally wounding the American Captain James Lawrence.
