Orders, Decorations, Medals and Militaria

A rare ‘Shannon With Chesapeake’ 2-clasp Naval General Service Medal awarded to Private G. Morris, Royal Marines, combining the Nile, Nelson's first annihilating Fleet Victory, with the Classic American Frigate Action, a Duel the Admiralty considers to be ‘The Finest Single-Ship Action in the Age of Sail’. After a furious exchange of multiple broadsides at very close range, Shannon’s Royal Marines joined their agile but less disciplined seamen comrades to board and capture U.S.S Chesapeake, overpowering their counterparts of the U.S. Marine Corps in vicious hand-to-hand combat

Naval General Service 1793-1840, 2 clasps, Nile, Shannon Wh Chesapeake (Griffiths Morris.) good very fine £14,000-£18,000

Spink, December 1965; Turl Collection, Spink, July 2010.

Approximately 42 ‘Shannon Wh. Chesapeake’ clasps issued. One of only two medals issued with this combination of clasps.
The name ‘Griffiths Morris’ is unique on the N.G.S. rolls, and his presence during the actions is verified by the muster rolls of both ships.

Griffiths Morris was born in Wrexham, Denbighshire, near the border of north-east Wales, in 1772/73. A carpenter by trade, he voluntarily enlisted at Warminster, Wiltshire and attested as a Private in the Marines on 24 February 1796, aged 23.
Marines were all volunteers, unlike the seamen, who included in their ranks reluctant-to-serve ‘pressed’ men, orphan boys sent by the Marine Society and ‘Quota men’ often collected from goals, hospitals and workhouses. In 1802 they were awarded the honour of becoming Royal Marines, which meant for Morris a new uniform with ‘royal’ blue cuffs and collar facings. Royal Marines were equipped with a shortened ‘sea service’ musket and were divided for administrative purposes into men with less than 7 years of service, those from 7-14 years and those who had served for over 14 years.
Marines were the ship’s security force. On punishment days the Marines would parade under arms in a location overlooking the proceedings, ready to intervene if the crew became mutinous; they took part in boarding, cutting-out and littoral expeditions; they performed ceremonial duties, guarded the sensitive parts of the ship such as the spirit room and the Captain’s quarters and provided extra ‘muscle’ when needed. Marines could be and often were used as crew members of a great gun or to assist in working the ship from the deck, but they could not be ordered onto the yards to work the sails. Some volunteered as topmen, becoming sailors to increase their pay, as even the least skilled seaman, rated as ‘landsman’, was paid £1 2s 6d a lunar month compared to £0 19s 3d for a Marine private. Even after 14 years of service, a private earned just £1 3s 4d per month.
When ‘Beat to Quarters’ was ordered, the Marines were stationed in detachments on the Foc’sle, Quarterdeck and in the fighting tops on the masts. Marines were trained to take cover behind the bulwarks and hammock netting while reloading their weapons, and then move to a different firing position. This involved “springing sideways with Life and Spirit”. The command “Marine Firing” allowed individual Marines to pick and engage their own target, then kneel for reloading. “The best marksmen shall be picked out, and ordered to Take Aim, and Fire at the Port-Holes; Two or Three expert Men killed at a Gun may silence it for half an hour.” In a boarding action, Marines fired volleys to clear the way for the agile but less disciplined seamen who were armed with hand-to-hand weapons such as boarding axes, cutlasses and pistols. Marines would help secure the enemy ship’s upper decks, mop up with their bayonets, secure prisoners below at musket point and guard them until they could be sent off the ship.

Battle of the Nile
Morris served as one of the 67 Marines on board H.M.S. Audacious during Nelson's action in Aboukir Bay, 1 August 1798, as verified by the ship’s muster. Audacious was the third of five battleships to pass the head of the line of French warships anchored close in-shore and then sail down its port side, trapping each of the leading French ships in a crossfire from two British vessels. Audacious anchored between Guerriere and Conquerant, the first and second in the French line of 74s, and engaged them for forty minutes with raking fire until the latter struck her colours, then used a spring to shift its fire onto Spartiate for another two hours. Audacious suffered casualties of one killed, thirty-five (including two marines) wounded. Audacious then took part in the blockades of Malta and Genoa for the rest of 1798 and into 1799. She escorted a convoy to Britain in late 1800, and on arrival was paid off.

Morris is recorded as having deserted on 30 June 1802, during the brief peace following the Treaty of Amiens and after six years of service. He re-joined 13 months later, on 28 July 1803, two months after the resumption of hostilities. It is unclear whether he returned of his own volition or was identified as a deserter and reclaimed by the Royal Marines. The desertion probably explains why he was still serving in the same rank after 16 years of service, although with the greater seniority of 2nd Class Private, Plymouth Division, in H.M.S. Shannon (38), during the historic capture of the American frigate Chesapeake (38) in Boston Bay on 1 June 1813.

Shannon with Chesapeake
In the 1790s the Americans had built six large, heavily armed frigates. When war broke out between Great Britain and the United States, these vessels won a series of single-ship actions; U.S.S. Constitution captured H.M.S. Guerriere and H.M.S. Java whilst U.S.S. United States overwhelmed H.M.S. Macedonian. In response, the Admiralty instituted a closer blockade of American ports. H.M.S. Shannon, commanded by Captain Philip Broke, was one of the ships patrolling the coast of the United States. During his seven years as her Captain, Broke had worked up his ship to a peak of fighting efficiency. His gun crews were trained to fire into the hull of the enemy ship to kill the crew; his Marines were skilful snipers and their government-issue muskets were supplemented with a number of rifled carbines privately purchased for them by their officers.

During a long patrol off Boston, Broke sent ashore a number of verbal messages to the Americans intended to provoke a battle, and followed up with a written message to Chesapeake’s Captain: “As the Chesapeake appears now ready for sea, I request you will do me the favour to meet the Shannon with her, ship to ship, to try the fortune of our respective flags...” In the early afternoon of 1 June 1813, the American frigate sailed out to challenge Shannon, accompanied by pleasure boats carrying spectators desirous of witnessing how quickly an American could 'whip' a British frigate.

Chesapeake was slightly bigger and heavier, displacing 1,244 tons compared to the 951 tons for Shannon. The broadside weight of their great guns was similar at 540lbs for Shannon compared to 580lbs for Chesapeake; although the Chesapeake carried a greater weight of heavy close-quarter guns, the Shannon’s close action armament was more versatile. The key difference lay in the crews - Broke had 330 men (including 43 Marines) to Chesapeake’s 390 (including 44 US Marines). His superiority in manpower should have given the American Captain an advantage in fighting his ship, but this was blunted because both the Captain and his diverse crew (which included a significant number of Royal Navy deserters) were new on board Chesapeake and had not got used to working together. In contrast, 300 of Shannon’s crew were a team of well-drilled veterans.

‘The ensuing battle between two closely-matched frigates was the finest single-ship action in the age of sail’
Shannon sailed eighteen miles off the coast and hove to, awaiting Chesapeake. By 4:00 p.m., the ships were seven miles apart. Captain Lawrence brought his ship down in fine style, aiming for Shannon’s quarter, just abaft of her line of fire. Unless she manoeuvred to avoid being raked, Shannon was a sitting duck, but Captain Broke, as a chivalrous challenger, felt it his duty to give Captain Lawrence every advantage. He waited anxiously to see what course Lawrence would take, ready to order his men to lie flat if the American ship crossed his stern.

The action began at 5.50 p.m., when Chesapeake ranged up on Shannon’s starboard side at less than fifty yards. The action became a furious cannonade at close range. Shannon’s guns were usually double-shotted, often with one of the rounds being grape-shot. At least two full broadsides were fired by both adversaries, but whereas 158 shot strikes were noted on Shannon’s hull, Chesapeake was hit by 362; the grape caused carnage on her upper decks.

Shot from Shannon severed Chesapeake's foretopsail tie. Under the resulting unbalanced spread of sail, she rotated and lost forward momentum, then gathered stern way, moving backwards. Soon her stern quarter collided with the starboard side of Shannon, where she was trapped by one of Shannon’s massive anchors. About half of Shannon’s great guns could fire freely diagonally into Chesapeake’s hull, while her carronades swept Chesapeake’s quarterdeck, killing the helmsman and sailing master, smashing her wheel and shooting away her tiller ropes. Captain Lawrence was shot by a Royal Marine and carried below, calling out “Don’t give up the ship!”

The two frigates were lashed together by the British, who followed up by boarding. Broke, at the head of 20 men, jumped onto the quarter-deck of Chesapeake and shouted 'Follow me who can'; reinforcements included the Marines - “Lieutenants Johns and Law, of the marines, bravely boarded at the heads of their respective divisions” (Broke’s despatch refers). Fierce and terrible hand-to-hand fighting took place, with Chesapeake’s force of US Marines fighting on until they had sustained 80% casualties.

Within fifteen minutes from the start of the action, Chesapeake surrendered. It was one of the bloodiest single-ship actions of the era, with heavy loss of life. Shannon lost 3 officers and 23 men killed, including four Marines (10% casualties, a corporal and three privates) with Captain Broke (severely wounded in the hand-to-hand fighting) and 58 men wounded (a casualty rate of 26%); Chesapeake had 146 casualties (a casualty rate of 37%), with her Captain, 7 officers and 53 men killed or mortally wounded, and nearly 90 officers and men wounded. Out of 44 US marines, 14 were killed and 20 wounded. As the Ministry of Defence website refers to the action 200 years later, ‘The ensuing battle between two closely-matched frigates was the finest single-ship action in the age of sail.’

Griffiths Morris was discharged on 8 July 1814, aged 42 or 43. He served just over 17 years (not counting his period of desertion) and the reason for discharge was given as “above age”.

Sold with copied muster rolls and other research.