Capture of USS President - Aftermath

Aftermath

The damaged Endymion and President sailed in company to Bermuda. They encountered a violent storm that dismasted both. However, both reached safety. Official notification of the end of the war came soon afterwards. The British took the President briefly into the Royal Navy as HMS President but broke up the badly battered ship in 1818. They later built a Fourth Rate frigate, which they also named HMS President, as an exact copy of the American vessel.

The British press noted the good conduct of both British and American captains and sailors, though they caused some ill-feeling by claiming that Endymion had defeated President in a straightforward stand-up fight. President had had a crew of 447 and a broadside of 828 pounds against Endymion's crew of 346 and broadside of 664 pounds. In 1847 the British Admiralty authorized the issue to any still surviving crew from Endymion of the Naval General Service Medal with clasp "ENDYMION WH. PRESIDENT".

The British briefly held Decatur and his crew prisoner in Bermuda. After their release, a court martial board acquitted Decatur, his officers and his men of any wrongdoing in the surrender of President. Decatur was quickly appointed to command an American squadron dispatched to the Mediterranean to protect American merchant ships against corsairs. He was later mortally wounded in a duel, the cause of which lay in a pre-war quarrel.

The smaller American ships still in New York sortied before hearing of the capture of the President, and reached the rendevous off Tristan da Cunha.The Hornet sank the British brig of war HMS Penguin before Peacock joined her. The two American ships then mistook the British ship of the line HMS Cornwallis for an East Indiaman. The Hornet narrowly escaped after jettisoning all her guns and most of her stores. The Peacock subsequently captured several British merchant ships in the Indian Ocean until receiving confirmation that the War had ended.