The USS Constitution is the oldest commissioned warship in the world. She was one of the original six frigates authorized by Congress on 27 March, 1794 for the infant U.S. Navy.  Designed by Joshua Humphreys for a standard rating of 44 guns, she was intended to surpass in size and strength all other contemporary frigates of equal rate, and embodied a number of revolutionary improvements such as diagonal hull framing and iron strapping. She was launched on 21 October, 1797 from Hartt's Shipyard in Boston's North End and was commissioned in July, 1798 just in time to participate in the brief undeclared war against France, which ended the following year.

Sail Plan, USS Constitution

                                                                                                                                                                                       

 

It was not until the Tripolitan War of 1803-07 that Constitution was to achieve lasting fame as the flagship of Commodore Edward Preble, sent to end the depredations of the Barbary pirates against American shipping in the Mediterranean.  Between August and September, 1804, Constitution led repeated bombardments of the forts defending the harbor of Tripoli, but was recalled before a satisfactory treaty could be won.

Bombardment of Tripoli, 1804

                                                                                                                                                                                      

Impressment of American seamen by Royal Navy warships on the high seas was one of the causes of the War of 1812, which broke out on 18 June. Off the New Jersey coast on 16 July, Constitution under Capt. Isaac Hull fell in with a British squadron that pursued her over two days in a dead calm until a sudden squall carried the swift Constitution over the horizon, leaving her pursuers behind.  Heading northeast after reprovisioning at Boston, Constitution on 19 August encountered HMS Guerriere, 38 guns, en route to Halifax.  In a brisk 90 minute fight, during which an American seaman observing the enemy's round shot striking Constitution's sides without effect is said to have cried "Huzzah! her sides are made of iron!", the American frigate battered Guerriere to a mastless hulk.  Guerriere sank within minutes of striking her colors, denying Hull his trophy of the battle, but upon her triumphant return to Boston on 30 August, "Old Ironsides" became a household name.

Constitution vs Guerriere

                                                                                                                    

Though her battle with the Guerriere secured Constitution's place in history, more triumphs were to come.  Under William Bainbridge, Constitution fought and sank HMS Java 38 on 29 December, 1812, off the coast of Brazil, and in a night battle off Madiera on 20 February, 1815, Capt. Charles Stewart led her to victory over HM sloops Cyane 22 and Levant 18, two months after peace was declared.  Thanks largely to the exploits of Constitution in the War of 1812, the United States was now a recognized naval power.

Constitution vs Java

                                                                                                                                                                                       

 

Apart from an uneventful deployment to the Mediterranean (1820-23) Constitution lay inactive at Boston during the years following the War of 1812.  Rumors of her impending disposal by the Navy Department spurred the young Oliver Wendell Holmes to publish his famous poem "Old Ironsides" on 16 September, 1830, rallying public opinion to her defense.  Extensively rebuilt in the 1830's, she served another tour in the Mediterranean and on the African slave patrol before sailing around the world under "Mad Jack" Percival from 1844 to 1847.  After another refit in the 1850's, she spent the Civil War in semi retirement as a Naval Academy training ship.

Under refit at Portsmouth, 1858

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                

 

In 1881, Constitution seemed to have reached the end of her active service life, housed over as a receiving ship at Portsmouth, N.H.  Again, public opinion came to her rescue, and she was brought back to Boston for restoration as a museum ship in 1907.  A more extensive rebuild followed in 1925, thanks in part to pennies donated by the nation's school children, and, from 1931 to 1934 she proved her seaworthiness in a tour of ports along the Atlantic and Pacific coasts.

Receiving ship at Portsmouth, 1890's

                                                                                                                                                                                       

 

Periodic refits, continuous maintenance and another major restoration from 1992 to 1995 have brought Constitution into the 21st century with colors flying.  On 21 July, 1997, she celebrated her 200th birthday by sailing under her own power for the first time in over a century.  Restoration work still progresses toward bringing her back toward her 1812 appearance.  Today, Constitution survives as the most tangible link to our seafaring past and an enduring reminder of the customs and traditions of our naval service

Under sail again, 1997