ROY BRIDGE, Scotland, Nov. 18, 2009 — In his debut biography, “John Paul Jones: Father of the United States Navy” (published by iUniverse), Wallace Bruce revisits the legendary and internationally renowned life of John Paul Jones, one of the original founders of the U.S. Navy and the naval fighter who perhaps changed the course of history with his integral contribution to the American victory of the Revolutionary War.
Born in Scotland in the year 1747, Jones ventured to the sea and excelled in maritime studies despite his parents’ protests. Still a young boy, he traveled to the booming part of the British Empire, namely America, where after working a few odd bookkeeping and sailing jobs, Captain Jones was soon given command of a ship called the John. Later, he would become captain on much larger vessels before arriving in Philadelphia one fateful afternoon and offering his services to the budding American Navy. Not long after his admission, he would become the ablest, most dashing sea commander in history, now known as “The Father of the United States Navy.”
During his command of the USS Alfred, he was the first to raise the Old Glory to its jackstaff with his own hands while sailing down the Delaware River. On the USS Ranger, he sailed across the Atlantic and attacked Whitehaven, the very first port from which he sailed as a mere cabin boy off to his adopted country, America. Of course, he would endeavor to fight (and win) many battles at sea that would prove instrumental to the founding of the U.S. and its liberation from British tyranny.
In fact, one such battle includes the memorable time when he encountered the HMS Serapis and other escorting merchant ships from the Baltic Sea. When he engaged the HMS Serapis, a raging battle ensued. All odds against him, Captain Pearson on the HMS Serapis demanded Jones’ surrender, to which Commodore Jones replied, “I have not yet begun to fight,” a statement that echoes in the American consciousness event today. Naturally, Captain Pearson lost that day to the unrelenting determination of Jones, who then transferred his flag to the HMS Serapis as its crew watched with tears in their eyes — yet another win for liberty and justice for all.
And many more battles and victories await readers in the pages Bruce’s “John Paul Jones,” a book that tests the very limits of the American dream. Follow this legend from his humble beginnings as a gardener’s son to his untimely death at 45 years old en route to France to his late exhumation (ordered by President Roosevelt himself) and honorary burial in the crypt of the Cathedral of the Navy at the U.S. Naval Academy.
About the Author
Bruce was born on Vatersay, the Isle of Barra, Western Isles, Scotland. He had lectured on social studies at Springburn College in Glasgow. The research for this historical novel took him to the Solway Firth, Whitehaven, Flamborough Head, the Texel, Harvard and the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis. He is now retired and currently lives in Roy Bridge near Fort William in Scotland. “John Paul Jones” is his first published book. He is currently retired and lives in the Highlands of Scotland.
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