The Fortune of War (1979)

The Fortune of War is the sixth historical novel in the Aubrey–Maturin series by British author Patrick O'Brian, first published in 1979. It is set during the War of 1812 and much of the story takes place in Boston, Massachusetts.

HMS Leopard has made its way to Botany Bay, left its prisoners, and sailed to Pulo Batang, where the ship is declared unfit for war. Captain Aubrey and some of his followers are put aboard the packet ship La Flèche to sail home for a new commission, but a shipboard fire ends the months of sweet sailing and brings them into the new war.

The Fortune of War contains lightly fictionalized accounts of two actual sea battles in the War of 1812.

Plot summary

HMS Leopard, her rudder now remounted, sails from Desolation Island to Port Jackson, New South Wales, where she drops off her few prisoners. Captain Bligh has already been handled, so she proceeds to the Dutch East Indies station and Admiral Drury at Pulo Batang. Drury relates that Jack Aubrey and his Leopards have been feared dead since the arrival of Grant's party at Cape Town. The badly damaged Leopard is declared unfit for guns due to wood rot and is destined to serve as a troop transport. Jack and several of his followers, including Stephen Maturin, are given passage aboard the courier ship La Flèche in order to travel to England, where Jack's next command, Acasta, awaits him. The rest of the crew is left with Admiral Drury. Stephen learns from Wallis the overwhelming success of his scheme to damage French intelligence sources, and relays the name of a probable spy in the Royal Navy who had been mentioned by Louisa Wogan. Jack and Stephen join a game of cricket, but it ends abruptly with the arrival of Captain Yorke and La Flèche, which also brings mail to them. Yorke had visited Sophia Aubrey before leaving England, bringing Jack a personal letter and gifts from her. Jack is moved upon hearing of his wife's refusal to believe the rumors of his death.

At Simon's Town, La Flèche learns that war has at last been declared between Britain and America. The war has opened with the defeat of two Royal Navy vessels in battles against the fledgling American Navy, which disheartens the sailors. In spite of the depressed atmosphere Jack spends this time of sweet sailing teaching the young midshipmen, while Stephen is engrossed in salvaging the numerous specimens he has collected from Desolation Island and New Holland alongside McLean, the ship's Scottish surgeon, though he is concerned by McLean's habitual smoking around the jars of preservative alcohol. One night in the Atlantic near Brazil a fire breaks out on board La Flèche and all abandon ship to the small boats. The survivors drift through tropical seas for a few hot weeks, some dying of thirst and exposure, before the boat carrying Aubrey and Maturin is rescued on Christmas Eve by HMS Java, headed for Bombay and commanded by Captain Henry Lambert.

The watch sees a ship hull-up on the horizon, USS Constitution, which Java immediately pursues. Jack and others from Leopard man two guns but the fight goes badly when Java's foremast gives way. The American commander makes few mistakes and soon Java strikes its colours, yet another major defeat for the Royal Navy. Constitution takes prisoners, sets fire to Java, and returns to Boston to refit. Captain Lambert is mortally wounded and Jack has been shot in his right arm and is too ill to be put ashore, so Stephen stays with his patient aboard Constitution. All of Stephen's collections, except what he noted in his diary by words or drawings, are lost. During the voyage Stephen talks with a French passenger, Pontet-Canet, and works beside the ship's surgeon, Dr Evans.

By the time they reach Boston, Jack is severely weakened by pneumonia. Stephen requests that Jack be allowed to convalesce ashore in Dr Choate's hospital, the Asclepia, while waiting for the next prisoner exchange. Jack is questioned in his sickbed by an officer of the US Navy Department, but Jack puts him off, realizing now why his exchange is taking so long: the Americans and their French allies suspect Jack is the agent responsible for Stephen's acts of espionage, among other war crimes. Stephen is reacquainted with Louisa Wogan and Michael Herapath (both still apparently ignorant of his espionage) and then meets their newborn daughter Caroline and Michael's father. George Herapath is a wealthy merchant and Loyalist whose trade with China has been interrupted by the present war, as a British fleet is blockading Boston harbour. He and Jack quickly take a liking to each other. Stephen also finally encounters his former love interest Diana Villiers, still the mistress of Harry Johnson, a wealthy American slave owner from Maryland who is active as a spy for his nation. Johnson visits Aubrey in hospital, who makes a comment about Stephen that reveals too much to the bluff spy. Stephen suddenly suspects that Johnson and the French agents, Pontet-Canet and Jean Dubreuil, have turned their attention away from Jack and towards himself. He asks George Herapath to bring Jack a pair of pistols.

Jack continually watches the harbour from his room in the Asclepia. Pontet-Canet tries and fails twice to abduct Stephen in the streets of Boston. After the second attempt, during which he is nearly shot, Stephen is concealed by Diana in the Franchon Hotel while Johnson is away with Wogan. While Stephen searches Johnson's hotel room, Pontet-Canet enters and Stephen clubs him from behind and slits his throat with a lancet, killing him, then shoots Dubreuil with a pistol when he too comes looking for Johnson. Stephen discovers that Johnson had intercepted a letter to him from Diana, and realizes he is now aware of their relationship: Diana wants away from Johnson, and Stephen offers to marry her to solve her problems of citizenship, to which Diana agrees.