William Day (sea captain)
Encyclopedia
William Day was a Boston, Massachusetts
(United States
), sea captain who acted against America
's enemies in both the French and Indian War
and the American Revolutionary War
. In 1777 he received the first gun salute to an American fighting vessel in a European port.
(the long American conflict which spread to Europe as the Seven Years' War
) he reportedly served as a privateer
on behalf of the British American colonists against French shipping. At the start of the American Revolution he seems to have been a successful merchant captain, with a home in the historic port of Charlestown, Massachusetts
. In June 1775, during the "Battle of Bunker Hill
", much of Charlestown was destroyed, including Day's home, as he discovered when he returned from a voyage to the West Indies; the fate of his family is unclear.
of Boston in March 1776, the port became an important centre for activities against British shipping. The business house of Philip Moore & Co. financed a number of privateers, including Day. A 370-ton British merchant vessel, the Isaac of Liverpool, which had been captured on the way home from the West Indies by John Philips in the privateer sloop Warren, and taken to Salem
, was converted to a fighting frigate with twenty 9-pound guns and six 4-pounders, and rechristened the General Mifflin. On 1 November 1776, the Council of Massachusetts issued a State Navy
commission to Day as commander (the document also notes that his Second Lieutenant was William Day Jr.). For its first cruise, the Mifflin had a crew of 120, five tons of shot and two tons of powder, plus eight tons of bread and flour, and 120 barrels of meat.
(John Manley, squadron commander) and Boston
. For the first 25 days, the squadron worked together, sharing prize money equally. Two days before this period expired, Day captured a British cargo vessel bound from London to New York, laden with salt, sherry, dried fruit and bark- which, having safely arrived at an American-controlled port on 25 June, was also found to carrying an interesting letter from a London merchant firm to business partners in New York, observing that "we have no doubt (supposing the present campaign to be as ineffectual as the last) that the colonies will remain independent," and pondering future business prospects. Some of the privateers, without the escort vessels, then continued along the main New York- London shipping lane to cruise in British waters. Nearing Ireland, they were separated by bad weather (probably shortly after 24 June, when Day captured the Rebecca and Polly, which had left Cork in a convoy bound for New York two days earlier). One vessel, the Tartar sailed to the waters north of Scotland
and preyed with great success on the Baltic
shipping route, but Captain Day chose a bolder plan.
Mifflin sailed clockwise round Ireland
, capturing four more vessels along the north coast between 6 July and 8 July; one of these, a sloop without cargo, was sunk, and another, carrying salt, was given to the captured crews to get them home. Now the Mifflin was ready for the most dangerous part of the expedition, sailing through the narrow North Channel
into the Irish Sea. What Day did not know was that just over a fortnight earlier, between 19 June and 23 June, a little squadron led by Continental Navy captain Lambert Wickes
had done exactly the same. As a result, the valuable linen ships which would normally have been crossing between Ireland and England had adopted a convoy system, and were all waiting in port for their escorts. One small but useful prize was taken in the North Channel on 9 July- a sloop carrying wool, soap and skins. The next day, in the Irish Sea, Day found himself spoilt for choice; twice, as he was about to sink worthless vessels, potentially rich prizes were spotted, and Mifflin departed at once. This policy was rewarded by the capture of a ship carrying a very valuable cargo of deal timber from the Norway. Returning immediately to the last vessel intended for scuttling, Day then used it as another ferry for unwanted British crewmen. Finally, on 11 July, a smaller timber vessel was also taken, after which the Mifflin passed, without any interference from the Royal Navy
, through St. George's Channel into the Atlantic once more.
Some of the captives had gone to ports in Cumberland
, in the north-west of England, and the two newspapers published in Whitehaven
printed as much information as they could get. Thus the British public learned that Day was in his sixties or seventies, somewhat lame from gout, and walked with two sticks; that he had taken some personal possessions (gold and silver watches) from one of the captains who tried to conceal them on the advice of another captive; and that, having approached, as was then usual, under English colours, when ready to attack he raised a white flag with a pine tree and the words "Appeal to Heaven" (a Massachusetts naval ensign
). Express messages were sent to the Admiralty
in London, and received the reply that a battleship and a sloop had been sent in pursuit of the privateer; also that a frigate was being stationed in the area for future protection. The newspapers also reported, a week after the initial drama, that the Mifflin had met with the Royal Navy sloop of war Wolfe in the Bristol Channel, and surrendered after a three-hour battle.
a few days after leaving the Irish Sea, and fired a victory salute. Admiral du Chaffault, commander of the French naval forces based in the port, consulted for an hour and a half, then ordered the firing of an acknowledgement. Salutes are only returned from one sovereign state to another, so in effect, he was acknowledging, on behalf of France, the validity of the Declaration of Independence
. In theory, rebel colonial fighting vessels should not even have been allowed into French ports except for humanitarian reasons, let alone acknowledged by gun salutes, and when news of this event was conveyed by British representatives in the port to their Ambassador, Lord Stormont
, he threatened to break off diplomatic relations between Britain and France. The French, although they had first offered aid to America back in 1775, and had been supplying both matériel and military advisors since 1776, were not yet ready to form an open alliance, so the official line was that the Mifflin had put in at Brest for repairs, that the salute was a misunderstanding, and that France had vessels on patrol to keep privateers away- any then in port were ordered to leave. The first "official" salute of an American naval vessel thus ensued seven months later with the arrival of the USS Ranger
in France, 14 February 1778.
Day finished his "repairs" about the end of July, but his next destination (according to Lambert Wickes, who was also doing "repair" work at St. Malo) was to be another French port, L'Orient. He was allowed in, and at the beginning of September he was still there (or at least, in the neighbouring harbour of Port Louis
) when a French acquaintance offered to deliver a report of his cruise to Benjamin Franklin
at Versailles
, which the Captain happily provided. He left about the middle of the month, and was back in Boston by 29 November, but when the General Mifflin set out from America on another cruise in March 1778 (by which time France had signed treaties of alliance
with America), the captain was Daniel McNeill. So there, until further information can be found, William Day's story ends.
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
(United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
), sea captain who acted against America
Thirteen Colonies
The Thirteen Colonies were English and later British colonies established on the Atlantic coast of North America between 1607 and 1733. They declared their independence in the American Revolution and formed the United States of America...
's enemies in both the French and Indian War
French and Indian War
The French and Indian War is the common American name for the war between Great Britain and France in North America from 1754 to 1763. In 1756, the war erupted into the world-wide conflict known as the Seven Years' War and thus came to be regarded as the North American theater of that war...
and the American Revolutionary War
American Revolutionary War
The American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the...
. In 1777 he received the first gun salute to an American fighting vessel in a European port.
Life before 1776
Little is known of the life of William Day, beyond what was learned by those he captured in 1777. During the French and Indian WarFrench and Indian War
The French and Indian War is the common American name for the war between Great Britain and France in North America from 1754 to 1763. In 1756, the war erupted into the world-wide conflict known as the Seven Years' War and thus came to be regarded as the North American theater of that war...
(the long American conflict which spread to Europe as the Seven Years' War
Seven Years' War
The Seven Years' War was a global military war between 1756 and 1763, involving most of the great powers of the time and affecting Europe, North America, Central America, the West African coast, India, and the Philippines...
) he reportedly served as a privateer
Privateer
A privateer is a private person or ship authorized by a government by letters of marque to attack foreign shipping during wartime. Privateering was a way of mobilizing armed ships and sailors without having to spend public money or commit naval officers...
on behalf of the British American colonists against French shipping. At the start of the American Revolution he seems to have been a successful merchant captain, with a home in the historic port of Charlestown, Massachusetts
Charlestown, Massachusetts
Charlestown is a neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts, United States, and is located on a peninsula north of downtown Boston. Charlestown was originally a separate town and the first capital of the Massachusetts Bay Colony; it became a city in 1847 and was annexed by Boston on January 5, 1874...
. In June 1775, during the "Battle of Bunker Hill
Battle of Bunker Hill
The Battle of Bunker Hill took place on June 17, 1775, mostly on and around Breed's Hill, during the Siege of Boston early in the American Revolutionary War...
", much of Charlestown was destroyed, including Day's home, as he discovered when he returned from a voyage to the West Indies; the fate of his family is unclear.
Return to action
After the British troops were driven outSiege of Boston
The Siege of Boston was the opening phase of the American Revolutionary War, in which New England militiamen—who later became part of the Continental Army—surrounded the town of Boston, Massachusetts, to prevent movement by the British Army garrisoned within...
of Boston in March 1776, the port became an important centre for activities against British shipping. The business house of Philip Moore & Co. financed a number of privateers, including Day. A 370-ton British merchant vessel, the Isaac of Liverpool, which had been captured on the way home from the West Indies by John Philips in the privateer sloop Warren, and taken to Salem
Salem, Massachusetts
Salem is a city in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 40,407 at the 2000 census. It and Lawrence are the county seats of Essex County...
, was converted to a fighting frigate with twenty 9-pound guns and six 4-pounders, and rechristened the General Mifflin. On 1 November 1776, the Council of Massachusetts issued a State Navy
Massachusetts State Navy
The Massachusetts State Navy , a naval militia active during the American Revolutionary War was founded December 29, 1775, to defend the interests of Massachusetts from British forces....
commission to Day as commander (the document also notes that his Second Lieutenant was William Day Jr.). For its first cruise, the Mifflin had a crew of 120, five tons of shot and two tons of powder, plus eight tons of bread and flour, and 120 barrels of meat.
The 1777 cruise
The cruise authorised on 1 November may have been confined to American waters, but on 21 May 1777 the Mifflin left Boston with a squadron of about 14 privateers, escorted by the Continental Navy frigates HancockUSS Hancock (1776)
The second Hancock was one of the first 13 frigates of the Continental Navy. A resolution of the Continental Congress of British North America 13 December 1775 authorized her construction; she was named for John Hancock...
(John Manley, squadron commander) and Boston
USS Boston (1776)
The second USS Boston was a 24-gun frigate, launched 3 June 1776 by Stephen and Ralph Cross, Newburyport, Massachusetts, and completed the following year with Captain Hector McNeill in command....
. For the first 25 days, the squadron worked together, sharing prize money equally. Two days before this period expired, Day captured a British cargo vessel bound from London to New York, laden with salt, sherry, dried fruit and bark- which, having safely arrived at an American-controlled port on 25 June, was also found to carrying an interesting letter from a London merchant firm to business partners in New York, observing that "we have no doubt (supposing the present campaign to be as ineffectual as the last) that the colonies will remain independent," and pondering future business prospects. Some of the privateers, without the escort vessels, then continued along the main New York- London shipping lane to cruise in British waters. Nearing Ireland, they were separated by bad weather (probably shortly after 24 June, when Day captured the Rebecca and Polly, which had left Cork in a convoy bound for New York two days earlier). One vessel, the Tartar sailed to the waters north of Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
and preyed with great success on the Baltic
Baltic Sea
The Baltic Sea is a brackish mediterranean sea located in Northern Europe, from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from 20°E to 26°E longitude. It is bounded by the Scandinavian Peninsula, the mainland of Europe, and the Danish islands. It drains into the Kattegat by way of the Øresund, the Great Belt and...
shipping route, but Captain Day chose a bolder plan.
Mifflin sailed clockwise round Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
, capturing four more vessels along the north coast between 6 July and 8 July; one of these, a sloop without cargo, was sunk, and another, carrying salt, was given to the captured crews to get them home. Now the Mifflin was ready for the most dangerous part of the expedition, sailing through the narrow North Channel
North Channel (British Isles)
The North Channel is the strait which separates eastern Northern Ireland from southwestern Scotland...
into the Irish Sea. What Day did not know was that just over a fortnight earlier, between 19 June and 23 June, a little squadron led by Continental Navy captain Lambert Wickes
Lambert Wickes
Lambert Wickes was a Captain in the Continental Navy.-Revolutionary activities:Wickes was born sometime in 1735 in Kent County, Maryland. His home was on Eastern Neck Island, in the family home, Wickcliffe. Prior to the American Revolution, Wickes was captain of the merchant ships the Neptune and...
had done exactly the same. As a result, the valuable linen ships which would normally have been crossing between Ireland and England had adopted a convoy system, and were all waiting in port for their escorts. One small but useful prize was taken in the North Channel on 9 July- a sloop carrying wool, soap and skins. The next day, in the Irish Sea, Day found himself spoilt for choice; twice, as he was about to sink worthless vessels, potentially rich prizes were spotted, and Mifflin departed at once. This policy was rewarded by the capture of a ship carrying a very valuable cargo of deal timber from the Norway. Returning immediately to the last vessel intended for scuttling, Day then used it as another ferry for unwanted British crewmen. Finally, on 11 July, a smaller timber vessel was also taken, after which the Mifflin passed, without any interference from the Royal Navy
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
, through St. George's Channel into the Atlantic once more.
Some of the captives had gone to ports in Cumberland
Cumberland
Cumberland is a historic county of North West England, on the border with Scotland, from the 12th century until 1974. It formed an administrative county from 1889 to 1974 and now forms part of Cumbria....
, in the north-west of England, and the two newspapers published in Whitehaven
Whitehaven
Whitehaven is a small town and port on the coast of Cumbria, England, which lies equidistant between the county's two largest settlements, Carlisle and Barrow-in-Furness, and is served by the Cumbrian Coast Line and the A595 road...
printed as much information as they could get. Thus the British public learned that Day was in his sixties or seventies, somewhat lame from gout, and walked with two sticks; that he had taken some personal possessions (gold and silver watches) from one of the captains who tried to conceal them on the advice of another captive; and that, having approached, as was then usual, under English colours, when ready to attack he raised a white flag with a pine tree and the words "Appeal to Heaven" (a Massachusetts naval ensign
Flag of Massachusetts
The commonwealth of Massachusetts' flag in the United States has been represented by official but limited-purpose flags since 1776, though until 1908 it had no state flag per se to represent its government. A variant of the white flag with blue seal was carried by each of the Massachusetts...
). Express messages were sent to the Admiralty
Admiralty
The Admiralty was formerly the authority in the Kingdom of England, and later in the United Kingdom, responsible for the command of the Royal Navy...
in London, and received the reply that a battleship and a sloop had been sent in pursuit of the privateer; also that a frigate was being stationed in the area for future protection. The newspapers also reported, a week after the initial drama, that the Mifflin had met with the Royal Navy sloop of war Wolfe in the Bristol Channel, and surrendered after a three-hour battle.
A Great Day
The news of the capture was denied by a reliable source even as it was being written, and indeed it was not true. The Mifflin arrived in the French naval port of BrestBrest, France
Brest is a city in the Finistère department in Brittany in northwestern France. Located in a sheltered position not far from the western tip of the Breton peninsula, and the western extremity of metropolitan France, Brest is an important harbour and the second French military port after Toulon...
a few days after leaving the Irish Sea, and fired a victory salute. Admiral du Chaffault, commander of the French naval forces based in the port, consulted for an hour and a half, then ordered the firing of an acknowledgement. Salutes are only returned from one sovereign state to another, so in effect, he was acknowledging, on behalf of France, the validity of the Declaration of Independence
Declaration of independence
A declaration of independence is an assertion of the independence of an aspiring state or states. Such places are usually declared from part or all of the territory of another nation or failed nation, or are breakaway territories from within the larger state...
. In theory, rebel colonial fighting vessels should not even have been allowed into French ports except for humanitarian reasons, let alone acknowledged by gun salutes, and when news of this event was conveyed by British representatives in the port to their Ambassador, Lord Stormont
David Murray, 2nd Earl of Mansfield
David Murray, 2nd Earl of Mansfield KT, PC , known from 1748 to 1793 as The Viscount Stormont, was a British politician. He succeeded to both the Mansfield and Stormont lines of the Murray family, inheriting two titles and two fortunes.-Life:Mansfield was the son of David Murray, 6th Viscount of...
, he threatened to break off diplomatic relations between Britain and France. The French, although they had first offered aid to America back in 1775, and had been supplying both matériel and military advisors since 1776, were not yet ready to form an open alliance, so the official line was that the Mifflin had put in at Brest for repairs, that the salute was a misunderstanding, and that France had vessels on patrol to keep privateers away- any then in port were ordered to leave. The first "official" salute of an American naval vessel thus ensued seven months later with the arrival of the USS Ranger
USS Ranger (1777)
The first USS Ranger was a sloop-of-war in the Continental Navy, and received the second salute to an American fighting vessel by a foreign power The first USS Ranger was a sloop-of-war in the Continental Navy, and received the second salute to an American fighting vessel by a foreign power The...
in France, 14 February 1778.
Day finished his "repairs" about the end of July, but his next destination (according to Lambert Wickes, who was also doing "repair" work at St. Malo) was to be another French port, L'Orient. He was allowed in, and at the beginning of September he was still there (or at least, in the neighbouring harbour of Port Louis
Port-Louis, Morbihan
Port-Louis is a commune in the Morbihan department of Brittany in north-western France.-Demographics:Inhabitants of Port-Louis are called in French Port-Louisiens.-References:* * -External links:* * *...
) when a French acquaintance offered to deliver a report of his cruise to Benjamin Franklin
Benjamin Franklin
Dr. Benjamin Franklin was one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. A noted polymath, Franklin was a leading author, printer, political theorist, politician, postmaster, scientist, musician, inventor, satirist, civic activist, statesman, and diplomat...
at Versailles
Palace of Versailles
The Palace of Versailles , or simply Versailles, is a royal château in Versailles in the Île-de-France region of France. In French it is the Château de Versailles....
, which the Captain happily provided. He left about the middle of the month, and was back in Boston by 29 November, but when the General Mifflin set out from America on another cruise in March 1778 (by which time France had signed treaties of alliance
Treaty of Amity and Commerce (USA-France)
The Treaty of Amity and Commerce Between the United States and France, along with its sister document the Treaty of Alliance, was one of two treaties signed on February 6, 1778 at the Hôtel de Crillon in Paris, France between the United States and France...
with America), the captain was Daniel McNeill. So there, until further information can be found, William Day's story ends.