Jones, John Paul

A naval leader of the Revolutionary War, known for his attacks on British ships off the coast of England. When a British commander asked him to surrender his badly crippled ship during a battle, he allegedly replied, “I have not yet begun to fight” — and compelled the British ship to surrender. Two days later, his own ship sank.

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Example Sentences

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Jones, John Paul, appointment, 465; the Bonhomme Richard and Serapis, 518-519; at Texel, 520-521.

Jones, John Paul, x, xix, xx, xxi, xxviii, xlii, xliii, xliv, xlv, xlviii, 2, 41, 97, 112.

Jones, John Paul, 48, 57, 288, 295, 297.

Jones, John Paul, American naval captain, serves as a volunteer in French Fleet, 1782, 212.