The line is most famously attributed to Union Admiral David Glasgow Farragut during the Battle of Mobile Bay in 1864. Reports from various accounts say Farragut shouted or signaled the command in a fuller form, with a version like: “Damn the torpedoes! Four bells, Captain Drayton, go ahead! Jouett, full speed!” The exact phrasing has been debated, and early contemporary sources differ on the exact words and the sequence, but the conventional quotation most people reference today is the abbreviated form: “Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead!” [historical summaries and naval histories].
Key points:
- Context: The phrase emerged during the 1864 Battle of Mobile Bay, when Farragut was directing Union ships against Confederate defenses, including underwater mines then called torpedoes.
- Exact wording: Multiple contemporaneous and later sources preserve slightly different renditions, with the fuller version including “Four bells, Captain Drayton, go ahead” and “Jouett, full speed,” but the widely cited shorthand is “Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead.”.
- Legacy: The quote has become one of the most famous naval one-liners in American history, often cited in popular culture and educational contexts, though historians note that precise verbatim authenticity is challenging due to reporting practices of the era..
If you’d like, I can pull and summarize primary-source citations or provide a brief timeline of the Battle of Mobile Bay to place the quote in its nautical and historical context.
