Captain Blakeley and the Wasp: The Cruise of 1814

Filling an important gap in the literature of early U.S. naval history, this book focuses on the Wasp's historic cruise of 1814, when Blakeley defeated a force larger than any of his more famous contemporaries--Decatur, Bainbridge, and Hull--and with fewer resources, in waters closer to English soil, and with less sea time than any other British or American commander. Blakeley was the only officer to take two enemy vessels of similar size in a single cruise, one a hard-fought boarding action and the other at night. But Blakeley eventually paid the ultimate price because, unlike his fellow ship captains, he followed orders and pressed the attack.

Relying almost exclusively on primary sources, Duffy debunks many myths about Blakeley's battle exploits, early career, and untimely end. His use of uncataloged pension and accountant records as well as British court-martial records, official correspondence, logs, and unpublished journals contribute to an unparalleled examination of the lives of junior officers, warrant officers, and able seamen. The result is one of the best descriptions ever written of life aboard ship under sail. In addition, Duffy's research unearthed new details about the design and building of the 22-gun corvette and Wasp's sister ships, as well as their operational contributions to the fledgling American Navy's legacy of victory. With the publication of this landmark study, the shamefully neglected Blakeley, takes his proper place in the pantheon of American military honor and establishes Stephen Duffy as a bold new voice in historical scholarship.

It has been said that a biographer must have a personal liking for his subject for the labor in writing the book to be anything other than a burden, and certainly Duffy has a great admiration for Johnston Blakeley. His assessment of his hero as America's most accomplished naval commander during the age of sail perhaps errs on the side of hyperbole, but the book leaves no doubt that Blakeley deserves greater fame than he is usually accorded. Duffy was handicapped by the paucity of primary source accounts from Blakeley and his close associates, so he frequently was forced to resort to speculation about the thoughts of the young officer regarding various situations. At the very least, Duffy presents a valuable and interesting study of a junior officer in the small American navy at the beginning of the 19th Century.


Clear For Action!   March 13, 2001
 1 out of 1 found this review helpful

This little gem of a book is exactly what every enthusiast of the age of fighting sail is looking for: engaging characters, beautifully designed tall ships, and plenty of action. It reads like a novel, is full of larger than life characters, and the ship to ship actions are better than anything you'll read in the novels of Alexander Kent, Richard O'Brien, and CS Forrester.

Captain Blakeley (his naval rank as commander of the USS Wasp, a sloop of war, was actually Master Commandant) is proclaimed by the author as the most accomplished US Navy captain in the War of 1812. In his single cruise with the Wasp, he sank two British ships of war of near-equal strength in hull to hull fights and captured and destroyed a slew of merchantmen as he prowled the sea lanes. He had been on successful cruises with the Enterprise and the Argus, and continued his professional successes on the newly built and commissioned USS Wasp, the last ship so named in the War of 1812. Sadly, after her last victory, she sailed off into legend and was lost at sea from unknown causes, the families of the crew never knowing what happened to their loved ones.

This is a most valuable addition to the literature of the period and a definite must for the historian and enthusiast. The author has done a masterful job here. It is carefully researched, is a very quick read, as you can't put it down, and is accurate. This book is highly recommended and I couldn't help thinking that it would make an outstanding motion picture.