Event Brief
John Paul Jones quote “I have not yet begun to fight”
By The BriefBrief · Sources (1)
Filed: Sep 20, 2026 at 12:00 PM ET
Summary: The article recounts a naval exchange off Flamborough Head on 23 September 1779, when Captain Richard Pearson of HMS Serapis asked whether the American ship had struck her colors. It says John Paul Jones replied, “I have not yet begun to fight,” while Bonhomme Richard was burning and taking on water, based on Lieutenant Richard Dale’s later recollection.
WHO: John Paul Jones; Lieutenant Richard Dale; Captain Richard Pearson (HMS Serapis)
WHAT: John Paul Jones is said to have answered Pearson’s question with the quote “I have not yet begun to fight” during the exchange off Flamborough Head.
WHEN: Sep 20, 2026
WHERE: Flamborough Head
WHY: Pearson asked whether the American ship had struck her colors during the encounter.
How this brief is built: The BriefBrief uses multi-source information fusion to correlate reporting across sources, identify related developments, and continuously update a structured WHO, WHAT, WHEN, WHERE and WHY event picture. Pattern arcs, source analysis, and velocity indicators provide deeper analysis in our MI Console.
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