As the two vessels continued to close, the Wasp collided with the bowsprit of the HMS Frolic. Jones immediately ordered his men to board the Frolic, where they overwhelmed the British crew and captured the ship.
It was all over in 45 minutes. Out of110 sailors aboard the Frolic, 90 had been killed or seriously wounded. The Americans suffered only five killed and five wounded.
The victory over the Frolic was complete, but just then the sails of another ship were seen, which turned out to be the HMS Poictiers, a 74-gun British ship-of-the-line, appeared on the horizon.
Under normal circumstances. Jones' ship could easily outsail the slower, more powerful Poictiers; but the rigging of the Wasp was in tatters. After the Poictiers fired a warning shot at the smaller American vessel, Jones was forced to surrender.
Regardless of the loss of his ship, Congress presented Jones with a gold medal for his action.
The Delaware native served four more decades in the U.S. Navy.
Jones had weathered a turbulent childhood and failure in several occupations before ge found himself a home in the Navy.
--Brock-Perry
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