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Events on Thursday 23 September 1779 1
1779Battle of Flamborough HeadJohn Paul Jones captures HMS SerapisJohn Paul Jones, commanding the Bonhomme Richard, fought HMS Serapis off the Yorkshire coast in a long close-range battle. Jones captured the Serapis, and his own badly damaged ship sank two days later. The battle is the source of the phrase attributed to Jones, "I have not yet begun to fight."