Sagde, at vi endnu ikke er begyndt at kæmpe?
John Paul Jones
John Paul Jones
Kort efter kl. 19.00 begyndte slaget ved Flamborough Head. Serapis angreb Bonhomme Richard, og kort efter skød Alliance fra en betydelig afstand mod Countess. Jones erkendte hurtigt, at han ikke kunne vinde et slag med store kanoner, og da vinden var ved at dø, gjorde Jones alt for at låse Richard og Serapis sammen (hans berømte, om end muligvis apokryfe, citat "Jeg er endnu ikke begyndt at kæmpe!" blev fremsat som svar på et krav om at overgive sig i denne fase af slaget), og det lykkedes endelig efter ca. en time, hvorefter hans dækskanoner og hans marineskytter i riggen begyndte at rydde de britiske dæk. Alliance sejlede forbi og affyrede en bredside, der gjorde mindst lige så stor skade på Richard som på Serapis. I mellemtiden havde Countess of Scarborough lokket Pallas i medvind fra hovedkampen og indledte en separat kamp. Da Alliance nærmede sig denne kamp, ca. en time efter at den var begyndt, overgav den hårdt beskadigede Grevinde sig.
John Paul Jones
John Paul Jones
Shortly after 7 p.m. the Battle of Flamborough Head began. Serapis engaged Bonhomme Richard, and soon afterwards, Alliance fired, from a considerable distance, at Countess. Quickly recognizing that he could not win a battle of big guns, and with the wind dying, Jones made every effort to lock Richard and Serapis together (his famous, albeit possibly apocryphal, quotation "I have not yet begun to fight!" was uttered in reply to a demand to surrender in this phase of the battle), finally succeeding after about an hour, following which his deck guns and his Marine marksmen in the rigging began clearing the British decks. Alliance sailed past and fired a broadside, doing at least as much damage to Richard as to Serapis. Meanwhile, Countess of Scarborough had enticed Pallas downwind of the main battle, beginning a separate engagement. When Alliance approached this contest, about an hour after it had begun, the badly damaged Countess surrendered.
John Paul Jones