Capture of USS Rattlesnake

The capture of USS Rattlesnake on 22 June 1814 off Cape Sable, Nova Scotia, by Captain George Collier’s HMS Leander was another demonstration of the tightening British grip on American naval operations. Rattlesnake was a successful commerce raider that had captured numerous British merchant vessels during her cruise — but success in the sea lanes could not prevent capture by a faster, heavier pursuer.

HMS Leander was one of the new class of powerful spar-decked frigates that the Admiralty had ordered specifically in response to the American heavy frigates. Carrying over fifty guns on two decks, she was designed to overpower any American frigate afloat. Collier, her captain, had been assigned to a squadron tasked with hunting the American super-frigates — Leander was, in effect, a purpose-built response to Constitution and her sisters.

Rattlesnake, under Lieutenant James Renshaw, was a much smaller vessel — a brig of approximately 280 tons, originally built as a privateer and purchased by the Navy in 1813. She was fast and had enjoyed considerable success as a commerce raider, but she was utterly outmatched by Leander in both armament and sailing qualities, particularly in the heavy weather that prevailed during the chase.

The pursuit was extended. Rattlesnake’s crew threw overboard every gun — all twenty-two of them, according to Collier’s report — along with anchors, cables, boats, and spare spars, in a desperate attempt to lighten the vessel and gain speed. It was not enough. Leander, with her superior sail area and hull form, gradually closed the distance. Rattlesnake was captured without a fight — she had nothing left to fight with.

The Royal Navy purchased Rattlesnake at the Vice Admiralty court in Halifax. The commerce raider that had caused significant damage to British merchant shipping was neutralised, and the American navy lost another vessel from its diminishing fleet. By mid-1814, the list of captured American warships was growing longer with each month: Chesapeake, Essex, Frolic, Rattlesnake — and President would follow in January 1815.