Hull’s Victory
These two engraved pages of sheet music were at one point part of a larger volume of G. Willig’s Musical Magazine. The song “Hull’s Victory,” written in four verses by Joseph Hutton and with music composed by John Bray, praises Connecticut native Captain Isaac Hull, who commanded USS Constitution during the battle with HMS Guerriere August 19, 1812. The song lauds Hull’s stunning victory, which provided a much needed morale boost for the American public in the War of 1812. A version of this song is still played today as a contra-dance tune. Hull was born in 1773 to Sarah Bennett Hull and Revolutionary War officer Joseph Hull. He went to sea at an early age and, in 1798, accepted a commission as a lieutenant in the U.S. Navy. Hull served with distinction and rose through the ranks before becoming captain of Constitution in 1810. The defeat of HMS Guerriere showed Hull to be a skilled naval officer and represented the high point of his military career. He continued on in the Navy until his retirement in 1841 and for a time held command of the Boston (Charlestown) Navy Yard. Hull died in 1843.
Creator
John Bray
Date Created
1812-1822
Medium
Ink, Paper
Dimensions
[H]12 in. [W]9 1/4 in.
Catalog Number
2006.1
Credit Line
USS Constitution Museum Collection.
Terms of Use
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License
