Corrected entry: One of Aubrey's crew saw the Acheron, a French frigate, when it was under construction in Boston. This was carried over from the book in which the Surprise originally pursues an American frigate. The Americans did not build frigates for the French.
Correction: It is never insinuated that the ship was built FOR the French by the Americans. Ships changed owners and nationalities frequently. Wasn't Aubrey's first command a French-built ship?
Ioreth