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On the morning of September 10, 1813 the battle that would make Perry a American war hero began as his twelve ship squadron encountered the British squadron in a fierce battle on [[Lake Erie]]. In the battle, now known as the [[Battle of Lake Erie]], over 80% of the crewmen on Perry's flagship, the ''Lawrence'', were killed or wounded. The ship was in such bad condition in fact that in the middle of the battle, Perry transfered himself in a small rowboat to another vessel in his fleet the ''Niagara''. Now in command of a relatively unscathed ship, Perry attacked the weakened British fleet and after only 15 more minutes of fighting, the commander of the British fleet, Captain Robert Barclay, surrendered. The victory marked the first time in  history that an entire British squadron was captured and brought back to base as prizes. Perry is most remembered for his words that he wrote in a message to General William Henry Harrison immediately after the victory, "We have met the enemy and they are ours".

On the morning of September 10, 1813 the battle that would make Perry a American war hero began as his twelve ship squadron encountered the British squadron in a fierce battle on [[Lake Erie]]. In the battle, now known as the [[Battle of Lake Erie]], over 80% of the crewmen on Perry's flagship, the ''Lawrence'', were killed or wounded. The ship was in such bad condition in fact that in the middle of the battle, Perry transfered himself in a small rowboat to another vessel in his fleet the ''Niagara''. Now in command of a relatively unscathed ship, Perry attacked the weakened British fleet and after only 15 more minutes of fighting, the commander of the British fleet, Captain Robert Barclay, surrendered. The victory marked the first time in  history that an entire British squadron was captured and brought back to base as prizes. Perry is most remembered for his words that he wrote in a message to General William Henry Harrison immediately after the victory, "We have met the enemy and they are ours".

After the victory, in July of 1814, Perry was put in command of the then in construction, 44-gun frigate ''Java''. In 1815, the ''Java'' was deployed to the [[Mediterranean]] to deal with problems caused by Barbary pirates. After a number on strange incidents while in the Mediterranean, including two duels, President [[James Monroe]] put Perry in charge of a diplomatic mission to [[South America]]. It was while on this mission that he is believed to have been contacted with the fatal disease, [[Yellow Fever]]. After completing his diplomatic mission, Perry sailed to [[Spain]] where he died at the age of 34 on August 23, 1819 (his birthday) of [[Yellow Fever]] just two days after landing. He was buried in Port of Spain, Trinidad. In 1826, his remains where moved to Newport, [[Rhode Island]] where a monument honors his service to his country.

After the victory, in July of 1814, Perry was put in command of the then in construction, 44-gun frigate ''Java''. In 1815, the ''Java'' was deployed to the [[Mediterranean]] to deal with problems caused by Barbary pirates. After a number on strange incidents while in the Mediterranean, including two duels, President [[James Monroe]] put Perry in charge of a diplomatic mission to [[South America]]. It was while on this mission that he is believed to have been contacted with the fatal disease, [[Yellow Fever]]. After completing his diplomatic mission, Perry sailed to [[Spain]] where he died at the age of 34 on August 23, 1819 (his birthday) of Yellow Fever just two days after landing. He was buried in Port of Spain, Trinidad. In 1826, his remains where moved to Newport, [[Rhode Island]] where a monument honors his service to his country.

 

[[Category:Military Commanders]]

[[Category:Military Commanders]]

[[Category:American Revolutionary War]]

[[Category:American Revolutionary War]]