Biddle (DLG 34) - Naval Cruise Book

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the Delaware. days. the trouble quickly Violent storms dismasted his ship off the Delaware Capes, but BIDDLE's equally superb seamanship brought her into Charleston for repairs. He sailed again for the West Indies and on 4 September 1777, captured HMM TRUE BRITON along with her three-ship convoy. Captain BIDDLE took his four prizes back to Charleston, and was blockaded there until late in February 1778, when he successfully eluded the British patrol and escaped the open sea. On 7 March 1778, BIDDLE, in RANDOLPH, 32 guns, engaged HMS Yarmouth, 64 guns. Despite his firepower disadvantage and a severe wound received early in the action, Captain BIDDLE brilliantly directed the cannon fire of his ship. HMS YARMOUTH's Commanding Officer, Captain Nicholas Vincent, later reported that BIDDLE fired three accurate broadsides to YARMOUTH's one. Tragically however, fire penetrated the powder magazines of the outgunned RANDOLPH and the ship exploded and sank instantly. Captain Nicholas BIDDLE and his 315 man crew perished leaving only four survivors. Thus ended the brief but illustrious career of Captain Nicholas BIDDLE, Continental Navy. His life may have ended short of its twenth-eighth year, but the spirit lives on in this Nation, this Navy, and this ship which bears his name. CAPTAIN NICHULAS Bllllllf Captain Nicholas BIDDLE was born 10 September 1750 in Philadelphia. At the age of 13 he went to sea in the Merchant Service, and in 1772 entered the British Navy as a Mldshlpman As tension mounted between the colonies and the Crown BIDDLE resigned his commission and returned to Amerlca volunteering his services to his state of Pennsylvania On 1 August 1775 he became Commanding Officer of the armed galley FRANKLIN which had been fitted out by the Pennsylvania Co nmittee of Safety to defend In December 1775 with the rank of Captain BIDDLE took command of the 14 gun brig ANDREW DORIA and 3 ' subsequently joined the Fleet commanded by Esek Hopkins in the expedition against New Providence In th1s action BIDDLE captured numerous armed merchantmen Later in the spring of 1776, he seized two armed transports carrying 400 reinforcements for the British Army 1n North America a sizeable force in those - Later in 1777, Captain BIDDLE assumed command of the speedy Randolph, which was manned in part by paroled Br1t1sh prisoners of war. These prisoners mut1n1ed shortly after the ship sailed, but the superb leadership of the 27 year old Captain ended

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B !' + , ' CQMMANDING OFFlCER. U s s BIDDLE into 34, At Sea ll December 1974 To 'I'he Officers and Men of BIDDLE: A man's real possession is his memory. In nothing else is he rich, in nothing else is he poor. This Cruise Book is a record of that memory - BIDDLE's first cruise to the Mediterranean. It is rich in that it for- ever captures and logs the people, places, events and daily happenings of a group of men---strangers at the beginning, comrades at the end---who in response to a call of duty met every coxrmitment and satisfied every demand. It is poor only in that it can't fully record the range of personal dedication and sacrifice, of time and effort in material and equipment maintenance, which enabled BIDDLE to be always prepared, always ready, always responsive. Like all Navy ships, this ship is made up of people and teans operating in a joint effort to maintain combat readiness. Displayed within these covers are the people and teams which made this inanimate steel beauty come to life. They are its heartbeat, its lifeblood. Without them the ship is nothing. In the Navy, there is only one hallmark of excellence and accomplis1'ment--professionalism. The manner in which you approach, pursue and execute the task before you. During this cruise, BIDDLE was often tried but never found wanting. To every BIDDLEMAN: to every professional, a sincere ...Levi-' 5 F i . 'Q 5 . . L CAREILI CAPTAIN U.S. NAVY COMMANDING OFFICER

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-dsx! - THE SI-IIP'S INSIGNE - USS BIDDLE's insigne is based on the BIDDLE family crest and incorporates a nautical motif within the circular fieldfl' he innner crest displays the demi-heraldic tiger with a ducal coronet about the neck. Within the shield are the hooked devices known as biddles . These symbolic forms are found in the BIDDLE family crest. Behind the shield stands the ancient trident of King Neptune signifying seapower. The four stars represent each of the four U.S. Navy ships to bear the name BIDDLE. USS BIDDLE CDLG-345 has also adopted the family motto: DEUS CL YPEUS ME US ---- GOD IS MY SHIELD