Rarest Naval Autograph James Lawrence “Don’t give up the ship On " U.S. Ship Hornet June 19th 1812

Very Rare James Lawrence American naval officer who served as a commander of the USS Chesapeake during the War of 1812. He is perhaps best known for his dying command, 'Don't give up the ship! This is rare not only that it is from Lawrence but written on the ship "Hornet".it is a summons to an unnamed officer to serve on a court martial. “Dated U.S. Ship Hornet June 19th 1812.” Born in 1781, he served in the quasi-war with France and against the Tripolitans in the Mediterranean. Just a year after this note, he was mortally wounded while commanding the frigate Chesapeake on June 1, 1813, uttering the phrase “Don’t give up the ship” as he was carried below.

Promoted to the rank of Master Commandant in November 1810, he took command of the sloop of war USS Hornet a year later and sailed her to Europe on a diplomatic mission. From the beginning of the War of 1812, Lawrence and Hornet cruised actively, capturing the privateer Dolphin in July 1812. Later in the year Hornet blockaded the British sloop HMS Bonne Citoyenne at Bahia, Brazil, and on February 24, 1813 captured HMS Peacock..

CONDITION: Excellent. The recipient’s name was likely trimmed away at the bottom, highlighting Lawrence’s bold signature at lower right. James Lawrence (1781-1813) was born in New Jersey and was raised by his half-sister, after his loyalist father fled to Canada during the American Revolution. He studied law but entered the U.S. Navy as a midshipman in 1798. He rose through the ranks to command a small gunboat by 1805 in actions off Tripoli. He also served as second-in-command to Stephen Decatur in the daring destruction of the captured USS Philadelphia. As a first lieutenant, he commanded the USS Vixen, the USS Wasp, and the USS Argus. Promoted to commandant in November 1810, Lawrence commanded the USS Hornet on a diplomatic mission to Europe in 1811. In 1812 and 1813, he captured several British ships during the War of 1812. When he returned to the United States in March 1813, he learned of his promotion to Captain and took command of the USS Chesapeake at Boston. Leaving port on June 1, he immediately engaged the HMS Shannon in a fierce battle. Wounded by small arms fire from the Shannon, Lawrence ordered his officers, “Don’t give up the ship.” His men carried him below deck, but a British boarding party soon took control of the Chesapeake. Lawrence died of his wounds three days later, while the Chesapeake was bound for Halifax, Nova Scotia, as a British prize of war. Lawrence was honored with a Congressional Gold Medal and the Thanks of Congress. Provenance: from the Latimer collection.

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