In 1779, an American naval squadron under the command of John Paul Jones took the fight to Great Britain. The size of the Continental navy peaked in 1777 with a total of 31 ships.
The first American squadron was launched on February 18, 1776. The committee also drafted subsequent naval legislation and prepared rules and regulations to govern the organization. In addition, Congress established a naval committee responsible for purchasing, outfitting, manning and operating the first ships of the new navy. Congress voted to properly equip sailing vessels in order to prevent enemy vessels from bringing supplies to the British Army in America. In a letter read to Congress on October 13, 1775, General Washington notified them of his actions and urged them to form a navy. Massachusetts sailors on army duty manned these makeshift warships. While waiting for Congress to authorize a navy, George Washington took matters into his own hands by commanding three schooners to cruise off the coast of Massachusetts and intercept enemy supply lines. On October 3, 1775, the Continental Congress (the governing body consisting of delegates from each of the 13 American colonies, and later from the 13 states) received information about two unarmed English brigs, departing England bound for Quebec, which were carrying munitions for British troops. The British held superiority at sea prior to the formation of the Continental navy, threatening the disruption of colonial trade and the destruction of coastal settlements. In the absence of a national navy, the American colonies relied extensively on privateers (a private ship authorized by government to attack enemy ships) to harass British shipping. Photo courtesy of Battleship Cove, Created by Congress in April 1798, the Department of the Navy has its earliest roots in the Continental navy formed in 1775 by General George Washington to defend the American colonies from British attack.
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