…one of the Largest French privateers in the Carribean.
"There are few moments in Naval History which better demonstrate how tenacity and skill can outweigh size and strength than the story of the Pickering and the L'Egypte Conquise. While a little-known story from an almost forgotten war, this nine-hour engagement, and the man who won it, helped to create a precedent for behavior in the fledgling United States Navy.
The story begins with the Brig Pickering, laid down in 1797 at Newburyport Massachusetts as a Cutter in the United States Revenue Marine. The Revenue Marine, predecessor of the Revenue Cutter Service and later Coast Guard, was a maritime law enforcement agency, tasked with collecting taxes and protecting shipping lanes. Much of their time was spent hunting small, coastal smugglers who could move quickly and dart in and out of shallow water with ease. This meant that all Revenue Marine ships called Cutters, had to be maneuverable and very fast under a good press of sail. When tensions mounted with the French in 1798, this small fleet of fast ships became indispensable.
In the late 1790s the French began to harass American shipping, in anger over the U.S.'s continued trade with England. The United States responded by allowing her fledgling Navy to openly fight French ships and privateers in what is today known as the "Quasi-War." During this time, the Revenue Marine combined with the Navy's fleet, which had just been reestablished in 1798, and began to attack the Privateers. The Cutters proved up to the task, and performed very well, even when facing a larger, heavier ship…"
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