Privateer
Taken prisoner at the fall of Charleston, Rathbun and the other American captains were paroled and allowed to return to New England. There, he found that the Continental Navy had dwindled and no commands were available. Thereupon, Rathbun, a true patriot, secured a commission from Congress on 4 August to command the Massachusetts privateer brig Wexford. About two weeks later, he set sail from Boston bound for St. George's Channel near Britain and, within another six weeks reached the coast of Ireland. There, less than 100 miles from Cape Clear, he ran afoul of the 32-gun frigate HMS Recovery. Following a 24-hour chase during which HMS Recovery fired at least one broadside, Rathbun and his ship were captured by the British warship.
Incarcerated first at Kinsale Prison near Cork, Ireland, Rathbun was later transferred to Mills Prison in Plymouth, England, where he died on 20 June 1782.
Read more about this topic: John Rathbun