The French Assault on American Shipping, 1793-1813

During the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic eras, France was plagued by war and crop failures and was desperately in need of supplies. Legally and illegally, French privateers and cruisers took cargo from merchant vessels of every nation, perhaps the United States more than any other. At least 6,479 U.S. claims involving more than 2,300 vessels were filed and these claims give a close approximation of American goods lost to the French.