Chesapeakeboldly approached, Broke called
his men to the quarterdeck and calmly ha-
rangued them, “Don’t cheer, go quietly to your
quarters. I feel sure you will all do your duty;
remember you have the blood of hundreds of
your countrymen to avenge.” At length, the
Chesapeake pulled alongside the Shannon,
missing an opportunity to assume a raking po-
sition, and prepared to receive the first British
broadside at only 50 yards. This was the mo-
ment of truth for Broke’s emphasis on gun-
nery. Shannon’s first broadside ripped through
the American vessel, inflicting 100 casualties.
The steering was also severely damaged, and
several officers killed or incapacitated.
Despite Lawrence’s best efforts, he quickly
lost control of events. Unable to steer, the
Chesapeake stopped its forward movement
and slowly drifted back onto its antagonist.
Meanwhile, Broke’s carefully aimed broad-
sides wreaked havoc among the Americans,
who returned heavy but inaccurate fire. At
this critical juncture, Lawrence was shot and
mortally wounded by a bullet and taken
below. Chaos reigned as nearly every officer
had been killed or wounded. At last the two
vessels fouled each other’s rigging, and Broke
ordered them lashed together. Calling for
boarders, he shouted, “Follow me who can!”
and leapt upon the Chesapeake’s deck. A brief
but bloody battle ensued between 60 British
sailors and the remaining American crewmen.
Broke, conspicuous in his tophat, was singled
out for combat and received a serious blow to
the head. However, the decks were soon
cleared of resistance and the Chesapeake
soon surrendered. The American flag was
struck, and the Union Jack hoisted, only 15
minutes after the first gun had been fired.
Broke’s victory was a stunning reversal of
fortunes that shattered the myth of American
invincibility. The battered Chesapeake had
been holed by 362 shot and sustained 67 dead
and 97 wounded—grim testimony to the ef-
fectiveness of Broke’s training. Shannon,by
comparison, had been hit 158 times with a
loss of 33 dead and 50 wounded—nearly a
two-to-one advantage. Once the prize was se-
cured, both vessels sailed for Halifax, where
they received a deliriously joyous reception.
Captain Lawrence died of his wounds at sea
and received all the military honors befitting a
worthy adversary. Broke was too severely in-
jured to partake in any festivities, but his un-
expected victory excited public imagination
and gratitude. Consequently, he was elevated
to a baronetcy, enrolled as a Knight in the
Order of Bath, England’s highest honor, and
received a gold medal struck in his honor.
Broke returned to England soon after to
convalesce, but his injuries prevented him
from holding an active command again. De-
spite extreme suffering, he managed to com-
pose several tracts on naval artillery and rose
to rear admiral on July 22, 1830. Broke even-
tually sired 11 children, but he endured con-
siderable physical disability for nearly three
decades. He then ventured to London for
some primitive brain surgery to relieve his
suffering on January 2, 1841. The brave Broke
died shortly after the operation. He was En-
gland’s greatest naval hero of the War of 1812,
a model of naval efficiency and courage.Bibliography
Brighton, John B. Admiral Sir Philip B. V. Broke, bart,
K.C.B.: A Memoir. London: S. Low, Son, and
Marston, 1866; Gardiner, Robert. Frigates of the
Napoleonic Wars.Annapolis, MD: Naval Institute
Press, 2000; Gardiner, Robert. The Naval War of
1812.Annapolis, MD: Naval Institute Press, 1998;
Graves, Rodney G. “When Courage Was Not
Enough.” Naval History3, no. 2 (1989): 36–41; Pad-
field, Peter. Broke and the Shannon.London: Hod-
der and Stoughton, 1968; Pullen, Hugh F. The Shan-
non and the Chesapeake.Toronto: McClelland and
Stewart, 1970.BROKE, PHILIPBOWESVERE