The Battle of Cape Ortegal.

Battle of Cape Ortegal
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Bringing Home the Prizes - aftermath of the battle by Francis Sartorius
Date 4 November 1805 Location Cape Ortegal Result British victory
Belligerents
British Empire	French Empire
Commanders and leaders
Sir Richard Strachan	Pierre le Pelley
Strength
4 ships of the line, 4 frigates	4 ships of the line
Casualties and losses
24 killed, 111 wounded	730 killed or wounded, 4 ships captured

The Battle of Cape Ortegal was the final action of the Trafalgar Campaign, and was fought between a squadron of the Royal Navy and a remnant of the fleet that had been destroyed earlier at the Battle of Trafalgar. It took place on 4 November 1805 off Cape Ortegal, in north-west Spain and saw Captain Sir Richard Strachan defeat and capture a French squadron under Rear-Admiral Pierre Dumanoir le Pelley. It is sometimes known as Strachan's Action.
Dumanoir had commanded the van of the line at Trafalgar, and had managed to escape the battle having suffered relatively little damage. He initially attempted to continue the fleet's mission and enter the Mediterranean, but fearful of encountering strong British forces, changed his mind and headed north to skirt round Spain and reach the French Atlantic ports. On his journey he encountered two British frigates but drove them off, but shortly afterwards came across a single British frigate and chased it. The frigate led Dumanoir within range of a British squadron under Strachan, who was patrolling the area in search of a different French squadron. Strachan immediately gave chase, while Dumanoir fled from the superior force he had been lured towards. Strachan's squadron took time to form up, but he was able to use the frigates attached to it to harass and slow the French, until his larger ships of the line could catch up.
There then followed several hours of fierce fighting, before Strachan was able to outmanoeuvre his opponent and double his line with frigates and ships of the line. The French ships were then overwhelmed and forced to surrender. All four ships were taken back to Britain as prizes and commissioned into the Navy. Strachan and his men were handsomely rewarded by a public who viewed the successful outcome as completing Nelson's victory at Trafalgar.

Prelude.

Dumanoir escapes.

Four French ships of the line stationed towards the head of the combined fleet's line escaped the Battle of Trafalgar under Rear-Admiral Pierre Dumanoir le Pelley, and sailed southwards. Pelley's initial intention was to carry out Villeneuve's original orders, and make for Toulon. The day after the battle he changed his mind, remembering that a substantial British squadron under Rear-Admiral Thomas Louis was patrolling the straits. With a storm gathering in strength off the Spanish coast, Pelley sailed westwards to clear Cape St Vincent, prior to heading north-west, and then swinging eastwards across the Bay of Biscay, aiming to reach the French port at Rochefort. His squadron represented a still-considerable force, having suffered only slight damage at Trafalgar. In escaping from Trafalgar Dumanoir's flagship, Formidable had jettisoned twelve 12-pounder guns from her quarterdeck in order to lighten her load and effect her escape. Dumanoir doubled Cape St Vincent on 29 October and made for Île-d'Aix, entering the Bay of Biscay on 2 November.

Baker sights the French.

There were a number of British ships and squadrons already in the bay, and on the lookout for French ships. Zacharie Allemand, commander of the Rochefort squadron, had sailed from the port in July 1805, and was currently cruising in the Atlantic, raiding British shipping. One of the British ships sent out on patrol was the 36-gun HMS Phoenix, under the command of Captain Thomas Baker. Baker had orders to patrol west of the Scilly Isles, but in late October he received news from several neutral merchants that Allemand's squadron had been sighted in the Bay of Biscay. Baker immediately left his station and sailed southwards, reaching the latitude of Cape Finisterre on 2 November, just as Dumanoir was entering the bay. Baker sighted four ships steering north-north-west at 11 o'clock, and immediately gave chase. The ships, which Baker presumed to be part of the Rochefort squadron, but were actually Dumanoir's ships, bore up at noon and began to chase Phoenix, which fled south. In doing so Baker hoped to lure the French onto a British squadron under Captain Sir Richard Strachan that he knew to be in the area.
Baker kept ahead of the pursuing French, and at 3 o'clock that afternoon he sighted four sails heading south. Dumanoir's forces also saw them, and stood to the east, while Baker, no longer pursued, kept the French sails under observation. Having ascertained the strength and disposition of the French ships, Baker resumed sailing to the south-east, firing guns and signalling to the four ships he had seen and supposed to be British. Dumanoir's forces had already had a run-in with the British, having been chased by two frigates, the 38-gun HMS Boadicea under Captain John Maitland, and the 36-gun HMS Dryad under Captain Adam Drummond.^[5] Boadicea and Dryad sighted Phoenix and the four sails to the south at 8.45 that evening, and made signals to them. Baker was suspicious of the new sails, standing between him and the French ships, and so did not stand towards them, instead continuing on to the sails in the south. By now it was clear on Boadicea and Dryad that a substantial force was gathering, as Phoenix closed with four ships of the line, and three other sails were also sighted in the vicinity. They eventually drew to within two miles of the weather-most ship, the 80-gun HMS Caesar, but received no reply to their signals, and drew away at 10.30pm, where after they lost sight of both the French and British ships, and took no further part in the battle.
Strachan gives chase.

Attachment 32762

0h 55m pm.

By 11pm Baker had finally reached the ships, and passing under the stern of Caesar received confirmation that the ships were Strachan's squadron, as he had initially surmised. Baker informed Strachan that he had sighted a part of the Rochefort squadron to leeward, and Strachan immediately determined to seek an engagement. Strachan's squadron was however badly scattered by this stage, and after setting sail to intercept the French, sent Baker to round up the remaining ships and order them on to support him. Strachan's squadron consisted at this time of the 80-gun Caesar, the 74-gun Hero, Courageux, Namur and Bellona, and the frigates the 36-gun Santa Margarita and 32-gun Aeolus.^[ Strachan began the chase with only Caesar, Hero, Courageux and Aeolus, and chased the French, who were by now pressing on sail for the north west, until losing them in hazy weather at 1.30 in the morning. They then shortened sail to await the rest of the squadron, and were joined at daylight on 3 November by Santa Margarita. The chase began again in earnest, and at 7.30 am Cape Ortegal was sighted, 36 miles to the southeast. The French ships were again sighted at 9am, and at 11am the lead British ships sighted Namur and Phoenix astern, and hurrying to catch up. With them was another frigate, the 38-gun HMS Révolutionnaire, under Captain Hon. Henry Hotham, who had stumbled across the chase. The chase continued throughout the day and into the night, by which time the faster Santa Margarita and Phoenix were well ahead of the main British force. The Bellona had been unable to rejoin the squadron, and took no part in the battle.
Action.

Attachment 32763

Strachan's Action on November 4, 1805.

The battle began at 5.45 on the morning of 4 November, when Santa Margarita closed on the stern of the rear-most French ship, Scipion, and opened fire, being joined by Phoenix at 9.30. At this stage the French were sailing roughly in line abreast, with Phoenix and Santa Margarita snapping at Scipion's heels. Strachan was about six miles behind the French with Caesar, Hero and Courageux, accompanied by Aeolus, while Namur and Révolutionnaire were some way astern of them. The British continued to overhaul the French, while Scipion exchanged fire with the harassing frigates from her stern-chasers. At 11.45 with an action now unavoidable Dumanoir ordered his ships to form line ahead on the starboard tack, as Strachan likewise lined his ships up and approached from windward on the French ships' starboard side.


Attachment 32764

3h 35m pm

By noon all four British frigates were in action, harassing Scipion on the port side, while Namur had nearly joined the ships of the line, who were firing on the rear-most French ships' starboard side.^[7] Dumanoir had ordered his ships to tack in succession in 11.30, and so bring his leading ship, Duguay-Trouin into the action to support his centre. The Duguay-Trouin made no move to obey the signal until 12.15, and the French line began to turn towards the British ships of the line, and to pass down alongside them. Dumanoir had planned to carry out this manoeuvre at 8 that morning, but had cancelled it before it could be carried out. The two lines passed alongside each other, with Dumanoir finding that Strachan had doubled his line, with frigates on one side and ships of the line on the other. His ships suffered heavy damage as the two British lines and the French one passed by on opposite tacks, with Dumanoir aiming to isolate Namur before she could join the British line.


Attachment 32765

The Battle of Cape Ortegal by Thomas Whitcombe


The damage his ships had sustained rendered them slow and unmanoeuvrable, and Strachan was able to order his ships to tack themselves, to keep them alongside the French, while adding Namur to his line. Under heavy fire from the frigates on the starboard side and the ships of the line on their port, the French ships were worn down and by 3.10 Scipion and Formidable had been forced to strike their colours. Seeing their fate Mont Blanc and Duguay-Trouin attempted to escape but were chased down by Hero and Caesar and battered into submission by 3.35.

Aftermath.

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Strachan's triumph completed the rout of the French that Nelson had begun at Trafalgar. With the four ships taken at Cape Ortegal only five ships remained of the French portion of the combined fleet, and they were bottled up at Cadiz. All four captured ships were taken back to Britain and commissioned into the Royal Navy, with their crew transferred to prison camps. One of the ships, the former Duguay-Trouin served with the British for the next 144 years under the name HMS Implacable. The British crews who had fought at Cape Ortegal were included in the large scale rewards made for the victory at Trafalgar. Captain Sir Richard Strachan was promoted to rear-admiral of the blue, while all first-lieutenants were advanced to commander. In addition Strachan was admitted to the Order of the Bath and his captains received gold medals.
Dumanoir was less fortunate than his opponent. He and other French officers were quartered at Tiverton, where they were given considerable freedom, only required to be within the turnpike gates by 8pm in summer and 4pm in winter. While there he wrote to The Times to protest against unflattering comments made about his conduct at Trafalgar. He was released from captivity in 1809 and returned to France, where he faced not one but two courts of enquiry, one for his conduct at Trafalgar, and another for his defeat at Cape Ortegal. In the first he was accused of disobeying Villeneuve's instructions, not doing enough to support his admiral, and then fleeing the battle instead of fighting on. After the examination of various pieces of evidence, Dumanoir was acquitted of all charges. At the second court of enquiry Dumanoir was convicted of having failed to engage Strachan's squadron while it was still disorganised on the morning of 4 November, of having allowed the British frigates to harass his rear without trying to engage them, and for only turning to engage Strachan as his rear was being overwhelmed. The court concluded that he had been too indecisive. The verdict was passed to the Minister of Marine, Denis Decrès, in January 1810 but Decrès hesitated to order a court-martial. Napoleon wanted Dumanoir to be made an example of, but Decrès attempted to shield Dumanoir, and when he finally convened a court-martial at Napoleon's insistence, its orders were vague and it eventually acquitted Dumanoir and the surviving captains.

Order of battle.

Captain Strachan's squadron
Ship	Rate	Guns		Commander	Casualties			Notes
Killed	Wounded	Total
HMS Caesar	Third rate	80		Captain Sir Richard Strachan	4	25	29
HMS Hero	Third rate	74		Captain Hon. Alan Gardner	10	51	61
HMS Courageux	Third rate	74		Captain Richard Lee	1	13	14
HMS Namur	Third rate	74		Captain Lawrence Halsted	4	8	12
HMS Santa Margarita	Fifth rate	36		Captain Wilson Rathbone	1	1	2
HMS Aeolus	Fifth rate	32		Captain Lord William FitzRoy	0	3	3
HMS Phoenix	Fifth rate	36		Captain Thomas Baker	2	4	6
HMS Révolutionnaire	Fifth rate	38		Captain Hon. Henry Hotham	2	6	8
Casualties: 24 Killed, 111 Wounded, 135 Total

Navy
Ship	Rate	Guns		Commander	Casualties			Notes
Killed	Wounded	Total
Formidable	Third rate	80[b]		Rear-Admiral Pierre Dumanoir le Pelley	-	-	c. 200	Captured, commissioned as HMS Brave
Scipion	Third rate	74		Captain Charles Berrenger	-	-	c. 200	Captured, commissioned as HMS Scipion
Duguay-Trouin	Third rate	74		Captain Claude Touffet †	-	-	c. 150	Captured, commissioned as HMS Implacable
Mont Blanc	Third rate	74		Captain Guillaume-Jean-Noël de Lavillegris	-	-	c. 180	Captured, commissioned as HMS Mont Blanc
Casualties: 730 killed and wounded

Captain Sir Richard Strachan.

Attachment 32778
Strachan went on to serve aboard HMS Actaeon off the coast of Africa, and in the West Indies. On the death of his uncle on 26 December 1777, he succeeded to the baronetcy. He was promoted to lieutenant on 5 April 1779 and was then appointed to HMS Hero in early 1781, under the command of Captain James Hawker. Aboard Hero Strachan was part of Commodore George Johnstone's squadron, and was present at the Battle of Porto Praya against the Bailli de Suffren on 16 April 1781. After this action, Hero moved on to the East Indies, where Strachan moved to take up a post, first aboard HMS Magnanime and then aboard HMS Superb. It was whilst aboard Superb that Strachan was present at the first of four actions that took place between Sir Edward Hughes and de Suffren, the Battle of Sadras on 17 February 1782.

First commands.

After acquitting himself well, Strachan was promoted by Hughes in January 1783 to the command of the cutter HMS Lizard, and then again on 26 April 1783 to be captain of the frigate Naiad. Strachan's next appointment was in 1787 to HMS Vestal. He sailed in the spring of 1788 for China, carrying the ambassador, the Hon. Charles Alan Cathcart. Cathcart died during the journey, as Vestal passed through the Strait of Banca, and the ship returned to England. Strachan and Vestal were then ordered to the East Indies again, to join a squadron under the command of Commodore William Cornwallis. On arrival, Strachan was reassigned to HMS Phoenix. In November 1791 she was ordered to stop and search the French frigate Résolue, which was escorting a number of merchant ships believed to be carrying military supplies to support Tippu Sultan. Résolue resisted Phoenix and a brief fight ensued before Résolue struck her colours. The French captain insisted on considering his ship as a British prize, so Cornwallis ordered Strachan to tow her into Mahé and return her to the French commodore.

Off the French coast.

Strachan returned to England in 1793, and was appointed to command the frigate HMS Concorde and in spring 1794 joined a squadron patrolling off Brest, under the command of Sir John Borlase Warren. The squadron engaged a rival squadron of four French frigates on 23 April 1794 and succeeded in capturing three of them. Strachan and Concorde had forced the surrender of one of them, the frigate L'Engageante.
Strachan was then appointed to the 42-gun HMS Melampus which was attached in the summer to the main British fleet. In spring 1795 Strachan was dispatched in command of a squadron of five frigates to cruise off the Normandy and Brittany coasts. He was highly successful at this, capturing or destroying a considerable number of French coastal craft, many laden with military stores and conveyed by armed French warships. On 9 May 1795, he captured Crache-feu, a French three-gun vessel.

Command of the Diamond and the Captain.

In 1796 Strachan was appointed to command HMS Diamond, after her previous captain, Sir Sidney Smith had been captured during a cutting-out expedition. On 31 December 1796, Strachan captured the French 12-gun brig Amaranthe,^[3] which the Royal Navy took into service as HMS Amaranthe.
Strachan commanded Diamond until 1799, when he took command of the 74-gun third rate HMS Captain. He took her off the west coast of France, at times operating as part of a squadron, and at other times alone. On 5 November 1800 he came to the assistance of the stranded and sinking HMS Marlborough, which had struck a ledge of rocks near Isle Grouat during the previous night's gale. Captain’s boats were pushed through the surf and were able to take off Marlborough’s officers and crew.
Later that month, on 17 November, Captain chased a French convoy through the Teignouse Passage between Quiberon and the Ile de Houat, and tried to keep them from reaching safety in the Gulf of Morbihan. Despite his efforts, the convoy reached the cover of a 20-gun corvette, and a number of coastal forts the next day. The situation changed when the hired armed cutter Nile attacked the corvette and forced her aground in Port Navalo. The corvette struck her colours, at which point boats from HMS Magicienne attempted to board and capture her. They were driven off by fire from the corvette and returned to Magicienne. Strachan meanwhile devised a plan to attack the French.
Later that day, Magicienne was ordered to approach, to draw the fire of the batteries. Strachan ordered Lieutenant Hannah and a party of seamen and marines into four boats, which were towed into the harbour by Suwarrow; while Nile and HMS Lurcher towed another four more boats manned by Marlborough’s men who had been rescued by Strachan three weeks previously. Under heavy fire of grape, round and musket-balls from the shore battery high above, they boarded the corvette, and set her on fire. They then re-embarked and began heading back towards Captain, when the corvette blew up with a tremendous explosion. The British lost only one man killed, when a shot hit the fluke of Suwarrow’s anchor, ricocheted, and struck the head of a sailor. Seven others were injured.

In January 1801, Strachan almost died when Captain struck a rock off Ushant with such force that she started taking on water at almost 3 inches a minute, which constantly increased. The damage was so severe that the incoming water nearly overloaded the pumps. She eventually made it into the Sound on 11 January attended by HMS Fisgard and the cutter from HMS Lord Nelson. Captain fired distress guns until she reached the narrows, when all the boats from the dock and the fleet came out to assist her. Captain eventually made it to the Hamoaze, and went back into Cawsand Bay on 5 May.

Command of the Donegal.

In 1802 Strachan was appointed to command HMS Donegal. Whilst serving aboard her, he was made senior officer at Gibraltar and ordered to watch the combined French and Spanish fleet at Cadiz, under the orders of Nelson. Whilst on this station, she spotted and gave chase to the large 42-gun Spanish frigate Amfitrite in November 1804. After pursuing her for 46 hours, Amfitrite lost her mizzen-top-mast and was subsequently overhauled by Donegal.
A boat was dispatched from Donegal and the Spanish captain was brought aboard. Sir Richard did not speak Spanish and the captain did not speak English, so it was with difficulty that Sir Richard attempted to inform him that his orders were to return the Amfitrite back to Cadiz. Sir Richard allowed the captain three minutes to decide whether he would comply with the order, but after waiting for six minutes without an answer, opened fire on Amfitrite. The engagement lasted only eight minutes, and resulted in a number of deaths, including the Spanish captain, who fell to a musket ball. Amfitrite surrendered and after being searched, was found to be laden with stores and carrying dispatches from Cadiz to Tenerife and Havana. She was taken over and later commissioned into the Navy as HMS Amfitrite. Donegal would later make another capture off Cadiz, taking a Spanish vessel carrying a cargo reputed to be worth £200,000.

After Trafalgar.

On 23 April 1804 Strachan was made a colonel of marines, and returned to England in HMS Renown. On arrival he was immediately appointed to HMS Caesar and placed in command of a detached squadron including three ships of the line and four frigates in the Bay of Biscay. Whilst sailing off Cape Finisterre on 2 November 1805, the squadron encountered four French ships of the line that had escaped from the Battle of Trafalgar under the command of Rear-Admiral Dumanoir le Pelley. Sir Richard pursued them, bringing them to battle on 4 November. After a short engagement, known as the Battle of Cape Ortegal he captured all of them, completing the destruction of the French fleet. Strachan was promoted to the rank of Rear-Admiral of the Blue on 9 November 1805. When, on 28 January 1806, the thanks of both Houses of Parliament were voted to those who had fought at Trafalgar, Strachan and his command was specially included. He was also (by special Act of Parliament) rewarded with a pension of £1,000 a year. On 29 January he was created a Knight Companion of the Order of the Bath (KB), and the City of London voted him the freedom of the city, and awarded him a sword of honour.

Later career.

Strachan was soon back in service, being dispatched early in 1806 to search for a French squadron reported to have sailed for America. After searching for some time, he failed to locate it and instead returned to watch the port of Rochefort. Thick fog and poor weather covered the port in January 1808, and allowed the French to sail out undetected and escape to the Mediterranean. Strachan gave chase, joining Admiral Collingwood's forces, but the French were able to gain the safety of Toulon. Strachan was ordered to return home, where, in 1809, he became Commander-in-Chief, North Sea watching the Dutch coast.
On 9 June 1809, he was appointed as the naval commander of an expedition, consisting of 264 warships and 352 transports carrying 44,000 troops, to attack the island of Walcheren and destroy the French arsenals in the Scheldt. Strachan was ill-qualified for the position, lacking both the experience and the temperament to hold a joint command in such a complex combined operation. Whilst he was careful to attend to the details of the problems that the Navy might encounter, he failed to consider the army's problems. Relations with the army's commander, Lord Chatham, quickly became strained and the ambitious Walcheren Campaign ended up being abandoned, having only achieved the capture of Flushing. A period of angry recriminations followed the withdrawal, with Chatham presenting a narrative to King George III in 1810, blaming Strachan for the expedition's failure. Strachan defended himself, declaring that the ships had done all that had been required of them. He nevertheless became the scapegoat for the failure, and was not given any more assignments.
The confusion and conflicting accounts led to the following doggerel verse:
Great Chatham, with his sabre drawn,
Stood waiting for Sir Richard Strachan;
Sir Richard, longing to be at 'em,
Stood waiting for the Earl of Chatham.

Later life and death.

Despite these controversies, promotion being entirely on the basis of seniority, he was made a Rear-Admiral of the Red on 25 October 1809, a Vice-Admiral of the Blue on 31 July 1810, Vice-Admiral of the White on 12 August 1812, Vice-Admiral of the Red on 4 June 1814, and Admiral of the White on 19 July 1821. After the defeat of Napoleon, and his temporary incarceration aboard HMS Bellerophon in 1815, Strachan set out to see the man he had spent most of his career fighting to defeat. Napoleon himself was apparently aware of Strachan's deeds.
On Thursday he (Napoleon Bonaparte) gratified the spectators with his appearance frequently on the poop and gangway, on which occasions the British, as well as the French officers, stood uncovered and apart! One of his officers intimating to him, that Sir Richard Strachan was in a barge alongside, Bonaparte instantly took off his hat, and bowed to him with a smile.
The Order of the Bath was reorganised on 2 January 1815, with surviving Knights Companion becoming the first Knights Grand Cross (GCB). Sir Richard Strachan died at his house in Bryanston Square, London, on 3 February 1828. He had married Louisa Dillon, Marchioness of Salsa in 1812, and together they had three daughters, but no son. The baronetcy became extinct upon his death.

Assessment.

Strachan became famous during his career for his ungovernable temper and violent cursing. This eventually earned him the nickname of ‘Mad Dick’ among his men, but he remained a popular and sought-after commander. Captain Graham Moore, the brother of Sir John Moore, described him on the eve of the Walcheren expedition as
one of those in our service whom I estimate the highest. I do not believe he has his fellow among the Admirals, unless it be Pellew, for ability, and it is not possible to have more zeal and gallantry.
Despite the failure of the venture, he was later to declare that
It is my wish to serve with Strachan, as I know him to be extremely brave and full of zeal and ardour, at the same time that he is an excellent seaman, and, tho' an irregular, impetuous fellow, possessing very quick parts and an uncommon share of sagacity and strong sense.

Captain Hon. Alan Gardner.


Attachment 32790


Born the son of Admiral Alan Gardner, 1st Baron Gardner, he followed his father into the Royal Navy. In 1796 he was captain of the frigate HMS Heroine. In 1802 he was captain of Resolution, and in 1805 of the 74-gun HMS Hero – in the latter he was present at the action off Ferrol in 1805, and led the vanguard at the Battle of Cape Finisterre later that year.

In 1815 it was announced that he was to be created a viscount, but he died before the patent had passed the Great Seal. He passed on the title of Baron Gardner to his son, Alan.


Marriage and issue.


His first marriage was on 9 March 1796 to Maria Elizabeth Adderley, the daughter of Thomas Adderley and his wife Margaretta Bourke, later Baroness Hobart (d. 1796), and stepdaughter since 1792 of Robert, Baron Hobart, the future Secretary of State for War and the Colonies 1801–04. The couple divorced in 1805, after Lord Gardner discovered his wife's adultery and secret delivery of a child in June 1803, and brought about an ecclesiastical suit followed by an Act of Parliament, citing her adultery with a Henry Jadis (the father of her son born in 1803, Henry Fenton Gardner, who was declared illegitimate by the House of Lords in 1825). According to the Treatise on Adulterine Bastardy, the divorced Mrs Gardner married her lover immediately afterwards, and they raised Henry Fenton as their own child and with the Jadis surname.

His second marriage (as 2nd Baron Gardner) was on 10 April 1809 to Charlotte Elizabeth Smith (d. 27 March 1811), third daughter of Robert Smith, 1st Baron Carrington, and his wife Anne Boldero-Barnard. The couple had one son Alan (29 January 1810 – 2 November 1883) and one daughter, Hon. Charlotte Susannah Gardner (29 December 1810.

Captain Richard Lee.


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Richard Lee was born in approximately 1765, entering the Royal Navy at the age of just 12 as a midshipman on the sloop HMS Speedwell, then captained by Commander John Harvey. Lee later transferred to the ship of the line HMS Triumph, which was attached to the fleet under Admiral Sir George Rodney. With Rodney, Triumph participated in the victory over the Spanish at the Battle of Cape St Vincent and the inconclusive Battle of Martinique against the French during 1780. Later in the year, Rodney's fleet sailed to New York City and en route seized the captured armed Jamaica ship Lion. Lee was made master of Lion and cruised the coastline near Sandy Hook, on one occasion fighting a brief engagement with the American privateer Retaliation, which was driven into Neversink. For his services, Lee was promoted to lieutenant and awarded a large financial reward from the merchants of New York.

In 1781, Lee returned to Britain and joined first HMS Recovery and then HMS Raisonnable, in which he participated in the relief of Gibraltar during the Great Siege. With the fleet under Lord Howe, Lee subsequently participated in the indecisive Battle of Cape Spartel. Lee remained in service during the peace that followed, initially on HMS Swallow and then on the fourth rate HMS Centurion in the West Indies under Rear-Admiral Philip Affleck. Under Affleck's patronage, Lee received a promotion to commander in HMS Serpent and acted as a convoy escort during the opening months of the French Revolutionary Wars, for which service he was given substantial financial rewards by the convoy's merchants and insurers. Serpent was subsequently deployed in support of allied forces during the siege of Nieuwpoort, returning in June 1794 when Lee was promoted to post captain.

Lee's first full command was HMS Hind in the English Channel, followed by HMS Greyhound in the Caribbean and the HMS Assistance in the Channel once more. In 1802, Lee survived the loss of Assistance in a shipwreck off Dunkirk, when two hired maritime pilots grounded the vessel on a sandbar. Two men were drowned in the wreck, and Lee was subsequently admonished for placing too much trust in hired pilots. The pilots were each imprisoned for six months. After three years unemployed, Lee returned to service in early 1805, taking over the 74-gun HMS Courageux and joining the squadron under Sir Richard Strachan in the Bay of Biscay. On 4 November 1805, Courgueux was heavily engaged at the Battle of Cape Ortegal, in which four French ships of the line that had escaped from the Battle of Trafalgar were defeated and captured.

In 1806, Lee took command of HMS Monarch, and again took part in an important action while serving with the blockade squadron under Sir Samuel Hood off Rochefort. At the Action of 25 September 1806, seven French ships attempted to break out the port for the West Indies. Intercepted within hours by Hood's squadron of ships of the line, the French fled, only Monarch managing to keep in touch. In the ensuing engagement, four French frigates were captured although Monarch suffered considerable damage to her masts and rigging. Over the next several years, Lee was employed in the blockade of the Tagus, assisting the flight of the Portuguese Royal family in 1807 and negotiating peace with the Spanish forces in the Rio de la Plata. In 1809, after his return to Britain, Lee joined the disastrous Walcheren Expedition, and remained in Monarch in the North Sea until 1812, when his ship was deemed no longer serviceable and broken up.

Advanced to rear-admiral, Lee was unable to secure a commission at sea and effectively retired from the service, although he continued to rise in rank and stature: in 1815 he was made a Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath and in 1816 was awarded the Order of the Tower and Sword by the Portuguese Royal family in recognition of her services towards them. He became a vice-admiral in 1821 and a full admiral in 1830.

He died on 5 August 1837, at his home in Walmer, Kent.

Captain Wilson Rathbone.

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The son of Richard Rathborne, a clergyman, he was born near Loughrea, co. Galway, on 16 July 1748.

In September 1763 he was entered as an ‘able seaman’ on board the Niger, with Sir Thomas Adams, on the Newfoundland station. As able seaman and midshipman he served for six years in the Niger. He then followed Adams to the Boston, and ten months later to the Romney, in which he returned to England in 1770.

In 1773 he joined the Hunter sloop as able seaman, in which rating he continued for a year. He was then a midshipman for some months, and, seeing no prospect of promotion, accepted a warrant as master of the Hunter. It was not till 1780 that he was allowed to return to England, and, having obtained an introduction to the Earl of Sandwich, passed his examination on 16 March; two days later he was promoted to be lieutenant of the Bedford, with Commodore (afterwards Sir Edmund) Affleck.

The American Revolution.

In the Bedford he was present in the actions off the Chesapeake on 16 March and 5 Sept. 1781, at St. Kitts in January, and in the actions under the lee of Dominica on 9 and 12 April 1782.

In the summer of 1783 the Bedford returned to England and was paid off. In the armament of 1787 Rathborne was in the Atlas, carrying Affleck's flag, and was afterwards appointed to the Colossus, one of the Channel fleet, in which he remained till 1791.


The French Revolution.

In December 1792 he was appointed to the Captain, in which in the following year he went out to the Mediterranean, took part in the occupation of Toulon, in the reduction of Corsica, and in the action of 14 March 1795, when he was severely wounded in the right arm, and lost his right eye. He was invalided for the recovery of his health, and on 9 Nov. 1795 was promoted to the rank of commander.

In 1797 he had command of the Good Design armed ship, convoying the trade from Leith to the Elbe, or to Elsinore. In December 1799 he was appointed to the Racoon brig, which he commanded in the Channel, the Mediterranean, and the West Indies, where, on 18 Nov. 1802, he was posted to the Santa Margarita.


Napoleonic wars.

He returned to England in the course of 1803, and, remaining in the Santa Margarita, was attached to the Channel fleet. On 4 Nov. 1805 he was in company with Sir Richard John Strachan, when he fell in with the French ships which, under Dumanoir, had escaped from Trafalgar, but now, hampered by the frigates Santa Margarita and Phœnix, were brought to action and all taken. Rathborne almost immediately afterwards received his appointment to the Foudroyant, much to his disgust, as he conceived that a cruising frigate was likely to give him greater opportunities of distinction and prize-money. He appealed to the admiralty, and Captain John Wentworth Loring who was appointed to succeed him in the Margarita, amiably held back his commission till the pleasure of the admiralty could be known. In the end Loring was appointed to the Niobe, and Rathborne remained in the Santa Margarita till December 1807, when the ship, being quite worn out, was paid off.

For the next two years Rathborne commanded the sea fencibles of the Essex coast, and from 1810 to 1813 had charge of the impress service in the Tyne.

In 1810 he was granted a pension for the loss of his eye, and this was afterwards increased to £300. a year. In 1815 he was nominated a C.B. In 1822 he was appointed superintendent of the ordinary at Chatham, a post which he held till his death in the summer of 1831.

He married, in 1805, a daughter of John French of Loughrea,

Captain Lawrence Halsted.


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Halsted was born in Gosport on 2 April 1764, the son of naval officer Captain William Anthony Halsted, and his wife Mary, née Frankland. Three of Lawrence's brothers had naval careers; Charles Halsted became a lieutenant and was lost with HMS Blanche in 1780, John Halsted became a captain, and George Halsted rose to be a commander. The elder Halsted was appointed commander of the former 60-gun HMS Jersey in March 1776. Jersey had been fitted out as a hospital ship and assigned to Lord Howe's fleet for service off North America, and Halsted took his son with him as a midshipman Lawrence served with his father for the next two years, and participated in a number of naval operations along the American coast before his transfer into Captain Richard Onslow's 64-gun HMS St Albans on 25 May 1778. Halsted's father died shortly after this, but Onslow took on the role of patron, and the two sailed to the West Indies with Commodore William Hotham's squadron to join Admiral Samuel Barrington.

Halsted was aboard St Alban's during Barrington's clashes with the Comte d'Estaing including at St Lucia on 15 December 1778 before his ship was ordered back to England with a convoy. St Albans was paid off shortly after her arrival, and her crew were transferred to the 74-gun HMS Bellona. Halsted was rated master's mate during his time on the Bellona, and was present at the battle with the 54-gun Dutch ship Princess Caroline on 30 December 1780. The Princess Caroline was captured and taken into the Royal Navy as HMS Princess Caroline. Lawrence's good service was rewarded with his lieutenant's commission dated 8 December 1781 and an appointment to the newly commissioned Princess Caroline, now under Captain Hugh Bromedge.


Lieutenancy.


Princess Caroline went out to the West Indies as a convoy escort, after which Halsted moved aboard the 74-gun HMS Canada under Captain the Honourable William Cornwallis.

With Cornwallis, Halsted saw action at the Battle of the Saintes on 9–12 April 1782, during which battle Canada was heavily engaged with the French Ville de Paris, flagship of the Comte de Grasse. Ville de Paris was captured by the British and Canada was one of the ships assigned to escort a convoy of captured French ships and damaged British ships back to Britain. The ships were caught in a hurricane during the voyage across the Atlantic, and the Ville de Paris and HMS Centaur foundered, while HMS Ramillies had to be abandoned and burnt. Canada survived the storm and made it back to England to be paid off in January 1783.

Halsted's next appointment was to the 74-gun HMS Ganges, still serving under Captain Cornwallis. He remained aboard Ganges for the next five years, with Ganges initially employed as a guardship, before moving to Gibraltar and finally paying off in December 1787. Halsted now entered a brief period of unemployment, which lasted until 18 November 1788 when he joined Cornwallis's new ship, the 64-gun HMS Crown, as his first-lieutenant and went with him to the East Indies. Cornwallis was commodore in the East Indies, and after continued good service under his command, Halsted was promoted to commander on 20 October 1790 and given command of the sloop HMS Atalanta.


First commands.


Halsted was at first engaged in surveying off the Indian coast, before being promoted to post-captain and given command of Crown. He remained in Crown for a brief period, before resuming his command of Atalanta in order to complete his survey work, also using the sloop HMS Swan for the purpose. He returned to England aboard Swan in early 1793 and paid her off in May.


The French Revolution.


The French Revolutionary Wars had by now broken out, and Halsted was quickly appointed as acting-captain of HMS Invincible under Rear-Admiral John MacBride. He was soon moved aboard HMS Flora and remained in her until April 1794, when he joined the 74-gun HMS Hector as flag-captain to Rear-Admiral George Montagu. Halsted and Montagu took part in the naval manoeuvres of the Atlantic campaign of May 1794, but were not directly engaged at the Glorious First of June, where the British fleet under Lord Howe defeated the French under Villaret de Joyeuse. Halsted followed Montagu when he shifted his flag to the 98-gun HMS London, and the two served with the Channel Fleet until 1795. Halsted was appointed to command the 32-gun HMS Venus in February 1795, and went on to serve in the Channel and in the North Sea. He took over the 36-gun HMS Phoenix in October that year, and spent the rest of the French Revolutionary wars in command.


HMS Phoenix.


Phoenix was at first attached to the fleet under Admiral Adam Duncan, operating in the North Sea. In May 1796 news reached Duncan that a Dutch squadron consisting of the 36-gun Argo and three brigs and a cutter had departed Flickerve, Norway, bound for the Texel. Duncan despatched a squadron of his own to intercept them, consisting of Phoenix, the 50-gun HMS Leopard, the 28-gun HMS Pegasus and the brig-sloop HMS Sylph, and under the overall command of Halsted. The Dutch were intercepted at 5am of 12 May, with Phoenix and Leopard chasing Argo, while Pegasus and Sylph made after the brigs. Leopard eventually fell some way behind, and consequently it was Phoenix alone which brought Argo to action at 8am. After twenty minutes of fighting Halsted forced Argo to strike her colours. Phoenix had suffered one man killed and three wounded, while Argo had six killed and 28 wounded. Meanwhile, Pegasus and Sylph forced two of the brigs aground and took the small vessel accompanying the Dutch, which turned out to be a former British vessel, Duke of York. They then captured the third brig, the 16-gun Mercury. The Royal Navy took Argo and Mercuryinto service, Argo became HMS Janus and Mercury became HMS Hermes.

After this success Halsted was assigned to operate off the Irish coast, where he captured a number of privateers including the 4-gun Espiègle off Waterford on 18 May 1797, the 1-gun Brave off Cape Clear on 24 April 1798, the 20-gun Caroline on 31 May 1798, and the 20-gun Foudroyant on 23 January 1799.


Mediterranean.


Phoenix then went out to the Mediterranean and continued to be active against French privateers. On 11 February 1799 she and the fireship HMS Incendiary captured the 10-gun Éole off Cape Spartel, while on 3 June 1800 Phoenix and HMS Port Mahon took the 14-gun Albanaise. The 4-gun Revanche was taken on 17 June, but she capsized the following day. Phoenix went on to join the fleet under Rear-Admiral Sir Richard Bickerton, and Halsted was appointed to command a squadron blockading Elba.

While sailing off Elba on the afternoon of 3 August Halsted's squadron, consisting of Phoenix, the 40-gun HMS Pomone under Captain Edward Leveson Gower and the 32-gun HMS Pearl under Captain Samuel James Ballard, intercepted a French convoy sailing off the west of the island. The convoy, which was bound from Porto Ercole to Porto Longone, was carrying ordnance stores and provisions, and was escorted by the 40-gun frigate Carrère, herself carrying 300 barrels of gunpowder. The British gave chase, ranging up on Carrère shortly after 8pm and opening fire. After 10 minutes of exchanging fire with Pomone Carrère surrendered. She was subsequently taken into the navy as HMS Carrere.

Phoenix continued off Elba, and on 31 August was observed alone anchored off Piombino, causing French General François Watrin to order the two French frigates anchored at Leghorn the Succès and Bravoure, to put to sea to attempt to capture her. The French ships did so, but early in the morning of 2 September they came across the 38-gun HMS Minerve under Captain George Cockburn, and chased her. Cockburn fled, signalling to Phoenix, which quickly got underway, accompanied by Pomone. Realising the situation the two French frigates attempted to flee, now pursued by their former quarry, Minerve.^] The Succès was unable to keep up with Bravoure, and ran aground off Vada. Minerve fired a shot at her as she passed by in pursuit of Bravoure, at which Succès promptly surrendered. Pomone ranged alongside to take possession of her, while Phoenix and Minerve chased Bravoure. The changing wind prevented the French vessel from regaining the safety of Leghorn, and she ran aground four miles south of the port. She was soon dismasted and wrecked. The British were able to get Succès off without much damage however. She had previously been HMS Success, and had been captured on 13 February 1801 by a French squadron under Honoré Ganteaume. She was duly readded to the navy under her old name. Halsted remained in the Mediterranean until paying off Phoenix in June 1802.

He married Emma Mary Pellew (1785-1835), eldest daughter of Sir Edward Pellew, on the 7th Sep 1803 at Mylor parish church, Cornwall.


Atlantic and Namur.


Halsted was left unemployed during the Peace of Amiens, and did not receive another command until 16 March 1805, when he took command of HMS Namur, a former 90-gun ship that had been razeed to a 74-gun. She was assigned to Sir Richard Strachan's squadron, and while sailing off Cape Finisterre on 2 November, the squadron was joined by Halsted's old ship, Phoenix, now under Captain Thomas Baker. Baker reported that he had been chased by a squadron of four French ships of the line, and had lured them within range of Strachan's force. These four ships, under Rear-Admiral Pierre Dumanoir le Pelley, had escaped from the Franco-Spanish defeat at the Battle of Trafalgar on 21 October and were making their way to Rochefort. Strachan immediately took the bulk of his force in pursuit. The British eventually closed on the fleeing French on 4 November, though Namur took some time to come into action. She eventually joined the British line astern of HMS Courageux and ahead of Strachan's flagship HMS Caesar. In the ensuing Battle of Cape Ortegal several frigates attacked one side of the French line, while the ships of the line engaged the other, until the French were forced to surrender. Namur had four men killed and eight wounded in the action.

Halsted and Namur were then assigned to Sir John Borlase Warren's squadron during the Atlantic campaign of 1806, until Namur was paid off in July 1807. In December 1807 he became Captain of the Fleet to the commander of the Lisbon station, Vice-Admiral Sir Charles Cotton, serving aboard Cotton's flagship HMS Minotaur. The British fleet were engaged in blockading a Russian fleet under Admiral Dmitry Senyavin in the Tagus after the outbreak of the Anglo-Russian War, but the Convention of Sintra allowed them to sail to Portsmouth. Cotton moved his flag to HMS Hibernia in December 1808, taking Halsted with him.


Flag rank and later life.



Halsted was promoted to rear-admiral on 31 July 1810, advanced to vice-admiral on 4 June 1814 and was nominated Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath on 2 January 1815. He was appointed commander-in-chief in the West Indies in December 1824, succeeding Commodore Edward Owen in the post. Flying his flag during his time on the station aboard HMS Isis, he became a popular commander, and was rewarded with the thanks of the Jamaican House of Assembly and a service of plate from the merchants of the island at the end of his tenure. Halsted was promoted to admiral of the blue on 22 July 1830 and advanced to a Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath on 24 February 1837, at the same time as being placed on the 'good service pension' list.

His wife Emma died in March 1835, leaving behind a large family. Sir Lawrence Halsted died at Stoke, Devon on 22 April 1841.

Captain Lord William Fitzroy.


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FitzRoy was the third son of Augustus FitzRoy, 3rd Duke of Grafton, by his second wife, Elizabeth, the daughter of the Reverend Sir Richard Wrottesley, Bt.; he was also an uncle of Vice-Admiral Robert FitzRoy.

Naval career.

FitzRoy entered the Navy on 21 April 1794, on board the frigate Phaeton, firstly serving under Captain William Bentinck, and following the battle of the Glorious First of June, under Captain Robert Stopford. He then served abroad the 74-gun Leviathan, under Lord Hugh Seymour, following him into the 80-gun Sans Pareil, and seeing action at the Battle of Groix on 23 June 1795.
After serving in the frigates Niger, Captain Edward Foote; Phoenix, Captain Lawrence Halsted; and Cambrian, Captain the Hon. Arthur Kaye Legge, in February 1798 he rejoined Captain Foote on board Seahorse, and was present at the action of 27 June 1798 when Seahorse captured the French frigate Sensible in the Strait of Sicily.
FitzRoy was promoted to lieutenant on 13 May 1800 into the frigate Penelope, Captain the Honourable Henry Blackwood, in which he witnessed the surrender of Malta in September, and took part in the Egyptian Campaign in mid-1801. On 31 October 1801, he was appointed acting-commander and captain of the sloop HMS Salamine, and after confirmation on 7 January 1802 of his promotion, commanded Mutine. He returned to England, and from 26 January 1803 commanded Fairy. FitzRoy was promoted to post-captain on 3 March 1804, taking command of the frigate Aeolus, and was present at the battle of Cape Ortegal on 4 November 1805, and at the invasion of Martinique in February 1809.
In June 1810 he commissioned the frigate Macedonian to serve on the Lisbon station. On 7 April 1811 FitzRoy was dismissed from the Navy after a court-martial found him guilty of "False Expense of Stores" and "Tyranny & Oppression". FitzRoy was charged with falsifying the reports of the ships stores and selling the surplus for his own profit. He also sentenced a seaman to 48 lashes for drunkenness, four times the legal maximum. Furthermore, when challenged, FitzRoy accused the master of "contempt" and had him clapped in irons, also in breach of naval law.
Despite being declared incapable of ever serving again as an officer, FitzRoy was restored to his former rank and seniority by the Prince Regent the following August, though he received no further employment in the Navy. Nevertheless, he was made a Companion of the Order of the Bath on 4 June 1815, promoted to rear admiral on 10 January 1837, and made a Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath on 4 July 1840.

Political career.

Fitzroy was still on active service in Aeolus when he was elected as Member of Parliament for the family seat of Thetford in the 1806 election, and so did not make first appearance in the house until 1810, as a supporter of the Whigs. He was replaced as MP by his brother Lord John FitzRoy at the 1812 election.

Personal life.

On 9 August 1816 he married Georgiana, the second daughter of Thomas Raikes, and had a son and three daughters.
Admiral FitzRoy died at East Sheen, London, on 13 May 1857, and is buried in Old Mortlake Burial Ground, Mortlake, London.

Captain Thomas Baker.


Attachment 32874


Baker was born in 1771 in Kent, where his family were residents of Walmer. His naval career began on 23 August 1781 when he joined the storeship HMS Dromedary as a midshipman, serving in the Downs under Captain John Stone. He remained with the Dromedary until 26 June 1782, and joined HMS Kite under Captain John Peyton on 17 October that year, also on the Downs station. He and Peyton left Kite on 21 January 1783, as Peyton had been given command of the 74-gun HMS Carnatic, serving with the Channel Fleet. Baker returned to serve under his original commander, Captain Stone, on 15 March 1783, Stone by now commanding the 32-gun fifth rate HMS Hermione. He sailed out to Halifax with her, and left Hermione on 5 October 1785 when she was paid off. The end of the American War of Independence left Baker without a ship, but he was able to gain employment sailing on the ships of the East India Company. This occupation lasted for the next two and half years, until he rejoined the navy on 22 March 1788, serving aboard the 28-gun HMS Dido. He and the Dido sailed to Halifax, where Baker transferred aboard the 24-gun sloop HMS Brisk on 22 July 1790 in order to sail home.

Baker spent the winter of 1790 ashore, but returned to sea on 18 May 1791 when he joined the 100-gun HMS Royal Sovereign at Plymouth. He left the Royal Sovereign on 24 September 1791 to join Captain William Bligh's 64-gun HMS Dictator, but by October he had transferred aboard the 32-gun HMS Winchelsea. Baker and the Winchelsea served in the English Channel until February 1792, when he came ashore. His next posting was in August, when he joined the 38-gun HMS Minerva under Commodore William Cornwallis for service in the East Indies. While serving in the East Indies Baker was commissioned lieutenant, on 13 October 1792, and on 17 October he was appointed to the 10-gun Swan. He returned to England and left her on her being paid off on 23 December 1793. Baker was then appointed as acting-commander of the hired armed cutter Lion.

Command.

Baker served in the Channel as part of the forces under Rear-Admiral John MacBride, before moving into the hired armed lugger Valiant on 20 May 1794, and then to HMS Fairy in November as her acting-captain. He was promoted to commander on 24 November 1795 after good service in conveying despatches to the West Indies.

He spent between 1796 and 1797 in the North Sea, after which he was appointed flag captain aboard the 98-gun HMS Princess Royal, the flagship of Sir John Orde. On 12 July he was appointed to command the 28-gun HMS Nemesis, serving in the Downs under Vice-Admiral Joseph Peyton. He was active against French privateers while in command of Nemesis, capturing the 14-gun Renard in the Channel on 12 January 1800, followed by the Modéré some time later. The Nemesis's boats participated in a fireship attack on the French frigates in the Dunkirk Roads on 7 July 1800, but an event of international significance occurred on 25 July 1800.


Baker and Copenhagen.


Baker and the Nemesis had been assigned to enforce the blockade of naval stores to the French and Dutch dockyards, with a small squadron under his command. On 25 July he approached a convoy of six merchantmen off Ostend, that was being escorted by the 40-gun Danish frigate Freja, and announced his intention to search the merchants, as he suspected them of carrying stores to be used by the French. The commander of the Freja, Captain Krabbe, announced that he would fire on any boat that Baker sent to carry this out. Baker did so anyway and the Danish opened fire, but missed the boat. The shot hit the Nemesis and killed a man. Incensed, Baker ordered a general action and after 25 minutes fighting, subdued the Freja. The Freja and the convoy were escorted into the Downs, where the commander of the station, Vice-Admiral Skeffington Lutwidge, ordered that the Freja continue to fly the Danish colours while the matter was investigated. The heart of the dispute centred over the right of British ships to stop and search merchants. The Danes insisted that a convoy escorted by one of their ships flying a neutral flag, was a guarantee of the cargoes being shipped, except in the approaches to a blockaded port. The British had no reason to trust or fear the Danes and were not inclined to alter this policy, and a diplomatic mission was sent to Copenhagen under Lord Whitworth, accompanied by a fleet under Vice-Admiral Archibald Dickson. The negotiations resulted in the British agreeing to repair and return the Freja, leaving the matter of the rights of searching vessels to be determined later. The incident caused the Russian Tsar, Paul I, to place an embargo on British goods, though this was lifted three weeks later. Simmering discontent over the unresolved matter of British rights in enforcing the blockades led to the Danes, Swedes and Russians forming the Second League of Armed Neutrality. In response the British despatched a fleet under Sir Hyde Parker and Horatio Nelson to force the Danes to withdraw from the League, which resulted in the Battle of Copenhagen. Baker's actions were approved of by the Admiralty, and on 26 May 1801 he was appointed to command the 36-gun HMS Phoebe. The Phoebe was assigned to the Irish station, where Baker remained until 27 May 1802.


Baker and Trafalgar.


The Peace of Amiens temporarily left Baker without a ship, but he returned to active service with the resumption of hostilities, taking command of the 36-gun HMS Phoenix on 28 April 1803. He was assigned to the Channel Fleet under Admiral William Cornwallis, and on 10 August 1805 he came across the 40-gun French frigate Didon off Cape Finisterre. Prior to the sighting the Phoenix had intercepted an American merchant, en route from Bordeaux to the United States. The American master had been invited onto the Phoenix, sold the British some of his cargo of wine, and had toured the Phoenix before being allowed to continue on his way. The Phoenix had at this time been altered to resemble from a distance a large sloop of war. The Didon, which was carrying despatches instructing Rear-Admiral Allemand's five ships of the line to unite with the combined Franco-Spanish fleet under Vice-Admiral Pierre-Charles Villeneuve, intercepted the American merchant and from him received news that a 20-gun British frigate was at sea and might be foolish enough to attack the Didon. The Didon's commander, Captain Milius, decided to await the arrival of the British ship, and take her as a prize. The Phoenix was therefore able to approach and engage the Didon before the French realised that she was a larger frigate than they had anticipated. After a sharp action lasting several hours, with Baker on one occasion having his hat shot off his head, the French surrendered. The Phoenix had 12 killed and 28 wounded, the French sustained losses of 27 killed and 44 wounded. By intercepting the ship carrying the despatches for Allemand, Baker had unwittingly played a role in bringing about the battle of Trafalgar, but he was to play an even greater role a few days later, possibly even staving off an invasion of England.

While sailing to Gibraltar with his prize in tow, Baker fell in with the 74-gun HMS Dragon on 14 August. The following day the three ships were sighted by the combined fleet under Villeneuve, heading for Brest and then on to Boulogne to escort the French invasion forces across the Channel. Villeneuve mistook the British ships for scouts from the Channel Fleet, and fled south to avoid an action. A furious Napoleon raged 'What a Navy! What an admiral! All those sacrifices for nought!' Villeneuve's failure to press north was a decisive point of the Trafalgar Campaign as far as the invasion of England went, for abandoning all hope of fulfilling his plans to secure control of the Channel Napoleon gathered the Armée d'Angleterre, now renamed the Grande Armée, and headed east to attack the Austrians in the Ulm Campaign. The British ships altered their course and made for Plymouth, where they arrived on 3 September, having prevented an attempt by their French prisoners to capture the Phoenix and retake the Didon.


Baker and Cape Ortegal.


Baker resumed his service in the Bay of Biscay, and on 2 November he was discovered off Cape Finisterre by four French ships of the line under Pierre Dumanoir le Pelley, that had escaped from the destruction of the Franco-Spanish fleet at Trafalgar two weeks previously. They chased the Phoenix southwards, with Baker trying to lure them towards a British squadron he knew to be in the area, under Captain Sir Richard Strachan. He made contact with Strachan's forces later that day, and was sent by Strachan to round up the rest of the scattered squadron while Strachan took the bulk of his force in pursuit. The British eventually closed on the fleeing French on 4 November, whereupon Phoenix joined the other frigates in harassing the French, until Strachan could bring his larger ships in action. The frigates then attacked one side of the French line, with the ships of the line engaging the other, until the French were forced to surrender. The Phoenix was one of the ships taking possession of Scipion.


Rewards and later commands.


Baker was rewarded for his good services by being given command of his prize, now commissioned as HMS Didon, on 17 November. He transferred to HMS Tribune in May 1806, in which he served in the Bay of Biscay until 1808. A posting as flag captain to Rear-Admiral Thomas Bertie aboard the 74-gun HMS Vanguard came on 21 May 1808, and involved service in the Baltic. While on leave in Sweden he met and married a daughter of Count Routh, and the couple returned to England in 1811. Baker continued in active service through the rest of the Napoleonic Wars, commanding the 74-gun HMS Cumberland from 22 November 1811 until 2 August 1815. By the end of 1815 he could reflect that his active career had included playing a significant role in bringing about three of the decisive actions of the Napoleonic Wars, Copenhagen, Trafalgar, and Cape Ortegal.

Further rewards followed after the end of the war; he was appointed a Companion of the Bath on 4 June 1815, nominated a Colonel of the Royal Marines on 12 August 1819 and promoted to Knight Commander of the Bath on 8 June 1831. The Dutch nominated him a Knight of the Military Order of Wilhelm in 1816. Baker became a rear-admiral on 19 July 1821, and took up the position of commander-in-chief on the South American station in 1829. During his period of command, the second voyage of HMS Beagle took place, carrying the naturalist Charles Darwin. The Beagle came under his orders as the senior officer of the station, and he was requested by the Admiralty to supply any of the needs of the surveying mission. Baker remained in command of the station until 1833. The Baker River (Chile) bears his name. He returned home, was promoted to vice-admiral on 10 January 1837, and died at Walmer on 26 January 1845, at the age of 74.

Captain Hon. Henry Hotham.

Attachment 32875


He was the youngest surviving son of Beaumont Hotham (2nd Baron Hotham from 1813) and Susanna, daughter of Sir Thomas Hankey. He joined the Navy in 1790 (aged 13) serving aboard Princess Royal, the flagship of his uncle Rear-Admiral William Hotham. He went on to serve aboard Lizard, Lapwing, Victory and Aigle, and finally once again with his uncle, now a Vice-Admiral, aboard Britannia in the Mediterranean.

Hotham was present as a midshipman at the Siege of Bastia in April–May 1794. He was subsequently commissioned as a lieutenant on 6 June 1794 (aged just 17) and was given command of the prize sloop Fleche in November 1794. He was promoted to captain on 13 January 1795, in the prize frigate Mignonne, and later commanded the sixth-rate Dido and the fifth-rate Blanche.

Hotham was in command of Blanche on 5 February 1797 when she and Inconstant, Captain Thomas Fremantle, captured the ship Fortune of Philadelphia. On 20 November 1797 he captured the French privateer brig Le Coureur, of 14 guns and 90 men, after a three-hour chase. On 27 December 1797, about 170 nmi (310 km; 200 mi) west of Porto, he captured the Bayonnois, a French privateer brig of six guns and 40 men, after a 16-hour chase. The brig had sailed from Bayonne 31 days previously and had made no captures.

Blanche was paid off in August 1798, and Hotham was appointed to the frigate Immortalité in early 1800. He operated in the Bay of Biscay, taking several prizes. Late on the evening of 12 September 1800 he captured a small Spanish vessel laden with stone, but while boarding her observed two French privateer ships, Brave and Bellone coming out of the Gironde. He was obliged to scuttle the Spaniard to make chase. The French attempted to evade him during the night, but Hotham anticipated their movements, and was still following the next day. Unfortunately he lost them the second night, having pursued them for 259 miles. However, on 20 September, he recaptured the English ship Monarch, of 645 tons, laden with timber, which had been taken by Bellone four days earlier. On the 22 September, off Cordouan Lighthouse, he chased a French brig, and by 9.30 p.m., had come within musket-shot, when both vessels unexpectedly grounded near Noirmoutier. The brig was wrecked; but Immortalite refloated herself the next morning, suffering nothing more serious than the loss of an anchor, cable, and boat. On the morning of the next day, the 24th, he spotted the French letter of marque schooner Constance, carrying a cargo of coffee and sugar from Guadaloupe to Bordeaux, but the privateer lugger Cynthia from Guernsey, captured her before he could intervene. On 26 October 1800 Immortalite, in company with Thames and Beaulieu, captured the French privateer Diable à Quatre, of 16 guns and 150 men, and on the 29th a letter of marque schooner, sailing from Guadaloupe to Bourdeaux, with a cargo of coffee. Hotham was also present in Immortalite at the capture of the French frigate Dédaigneuse on 27 January 1801. He then, on 14 April 1801, captured the French privateer brig Laure, of 14 guns and 78 men. She was 15 days out of St. Malo, and had captured a Portuguese vessel sailing Bristol to Lisbon, and had made 17 other captures in previous cruises. On 27 July, assisted by the presence of the frigate Arethusa, he captured the Invention, an unusual privateer designed and commanded by M. Thibaut. She was 147 feet (45 m) long, but only 27 feet (8.2 m) wide, with four masts, and carried 24 guns on a flush deck, and a crew of 210. She had sailed from Bordeaux nine days before on her first cruise. Towards the close of the war in 1802, the Immortalite was blockading the port of Brest.


Napoleonic Wars.


Soon after the renewal of hostilities in May 1803, Hotham obtained command of the 40-gun frigate Imperieuse, and in the same year he recaptured a South Sea whaler, homeward bound in the Channel.

He was appointed to the frigate Revolutionnaire in April 1804, conveying Prince Augustus Frederick, Duke of Sussex from Lisbon to Portsmouth in August. In September he escorted an outward bound East India fleet, before proceeding to Halifax. On 1 December 1803 Imperieuse recaptured the ship Britannia, and on 4 November 1805 he assisted at the capture of four French ships by Sir Richard Strachan in the Battle of Cape Ortegal.

In March 1806 Hotham took command of the 74-gun Defiance, in the squadron of Rear-Admiral Robert Stopford. On 23 February 1809 Stopford's squadron fought three French frigates in the Battle of Les Sables-d'Olonne. The three French ships were anchored off the port under the protection of coastal batteries, but Defiance, Caesar and Donegal closed in, and fired on the French ships until forced to withdraw by the ebbing of the tide, damaging them to the extent the one was subsequently broken up, and the other two declared unfit for naval service and sold. Defiance was much cut up and had two men killed and 25 wounded. In 1807, Hotham was employed on the coast of Spain, co-operating with Spanish forces. On 24 June, shortly after the French withdrawal from the north-western ports of Ferrol and Corunna, Hotham landed a detachment of seamen and marines to destroy various batteries commanding the bay, and also captured the castle of San Felipe, still under the command of French sympathizers. On 23 December 1809 Defiance recaptured the ship Ellison from the French. On 1 June 1810 he captured the French chasse-marées Syrene, Eugene, and St. Yves.

Hotham then took command of the ship Northumberland. On 5 November 1810 he recaptured the Zodiac, and on the 9th captured the Venus. On 22 November 1810, he captured the French privateer ketch Glaneuse, of 14 guns and 85 men, after a two-day pursuit, after preventing her from capturing a British packet ship. On 4 April 1811 he destroyed two chasse-marées, but not before removing 63 casks of wine from them. In 1812 Hotham was serving under Rear-Admiral Sir Harry Neale off Ushant, and was sent by him to cruise off l'Orient, to intercept three expected French vessels. In the ensuing action on 22 May Northumberland, assisted by the gun-brig Growler, encountered the French frigates Ariane and Andromaque, both of 44 guns and 450 men, and the brig Mameluke, of 18 guns and 150 men, near the island of Groix. Hotham skilfully manoeuvred his ship so as to force the enemy to ground themselves. Northumberland then opened a steady fire at point-blank range until the ships were abandoned and burning.


War of 1812.


In December 1812 Hotham was appointed Captain of the Fleet to Admiral Sir John Borlase Warren on the North American Station. On 4 December 1813, he was promoted to rear-admiral, and nominated a Colonel of Marines. From 4 June 1814 he served under Vice-Admiral Sir Alexander Cochrane. On 17 December 1814, he submitted to the Admiralty a list of 82 American vessels captured, burnt, and destroyed by his the squadron between 6 August and 9 October 1814. This does not include the frigate USS President, captured by four ships of his squadron on 15 January 1815.

Hotham was made a Knight Commander of the Most Honourable Military Order of the Bath on 2 January 1815, having his investiture on 12 April.



The Hundred Days.


On the renewal of the war in Europe, following Napoleon's return from Elba in March 1815, Hotham commanded a division of the Channel Fleet, flying his flag in Superb. In July 1815 Hotham was stationed in Quiberon Bay, from where he sent Captain Frederick Maitland in Bellerophon to blockade the port of Rochefort. Reinforced by Myrmidon and Slaney, Maitland prevented Napoleon from fleeing to the United States, and took him to England, from where he was sent to his final exile in Saint Helena.


Post-war career.


On 25 March 1818 Hotham was appointed a member of the Board of Admiralty, his position being renewed in March 1819 and February 1822, serving until March 1822. On 28 May 1825 he was promoted to vice-admiral, and returned to serve on the Board of Admiralty in September 1828, renewed in June 1829 and July 1830, until November 1830. He was appointed Commander-in-Chief in the Mediterranean on 30 March 1831, and on 4 July 1831 was made a Knight Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George.

One of Hotham's more notable acts as Commander-in-Chief was claiming a new territory for Britain. In July 1831 Commander Charles Henry Swinburne of Rapid reported a volcanic eruption and a column of vapour rising from the sea, some 26 miles off Sciacca, Sicily. Within a month it had grown into a roughly circular island of black volcanic sand about 3 miles (4.8 km) in circumference, and 74 feet (23 m) above sea level at its highest point. Hotham, in his flagship St Vincent, sailed to the new island and on 1 August sent his flag-captain Humphrey Fleming Senhouse ashore with a landing party to raise the Union Flag, and claim the island for Britain under the name "Graham Island", after the First Lord of the Admiralty, Sir James Graham. Later the Sicilians also landed, hoisted a flag, and claimed the island under the name "Ferdinandea", after King Ferdinand II of the Two Sicilies. The French made a claim to the island under the name "Julia", as did the Spanish. Diplomatic arguments continued until December 1831, by which time the island had been washed away leaving only a seamount 26 feet (7.9 m) below the waves.

Hotham died suddenly of an intracranial hemorrhage in Valletta, Malta, on 19 April 1833, and was buried at Msida Bastion Cemetery in Floriana on 24 April.


Personal life.


On 6 July 1816 Hotham married Lady Frances Anne Juliana Rous, the only child of John Rous, 1st Earl of Stradbroke, and his first wife Frances Juliana Warter-Wilson. They had three sons:

Rear-Admiral Pierre Dumanoir le Pelley.


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Dumanoir joined the Navy in 1787 as an élève de port and served in America until 1790. He was then promoted to ensign and served on the frigates Pomone and Néréide, cruising off Africa. He then embarked on the fluyt Dromadaire, bound for Cayenne.
Promoted to lieutenant in 1790, he was appointed to the staff of Admiral Martin. He served on Sans-Culotte.

Promoted to captain, Dumanoir took command of the Berwick in Richery's squadron, raiding commerce in the Mediterranean and in Newfoundland.

In 1796, Dumanoir commanded a division under Admiral Bouvet during the Expédition d'Irlande, with his flag on Révolution. Upon his return to France, he encountered the Scévola, badly damaged in a storm, and rescued her crew.

In 1798, Dumanoir took part in the preparation for the invasion of Egypt, and was tasked with supervising the harbour of Alexandria afterwards. The next year, he commanded the frigate Carrère, ferrying Lannes, Murat, Marmont and Parceval-Grandmaison to France, and sailing with the Muiron which carried ferrying Bonaparte, Gantheaume, Berthier, Andréossi, Monge, Berthollet, Denon, Lavalette et Bourienne.
Dumanoir was promoted to contre-amiral on 21 November 1799, commanding a division of the squadron of Brest. During the Battle of Algeciras Bay, he was tasked with commissioning activities in Cadix, and after the battle, he was reprimanded for failing to reinforce Linois.

In 1805, he was in command of a division in the French fleet commanded by Admiral Pierre-Charles Villeneuve. He took part in the Battle of Trafalgar on 21 October 1805, flying his flag on the Formidable and commanding the six-ship vanguard of the French fleet; cut off from most of the fighting, he gave the signal for his ships to flee the battle, and four of them did (although the Spanish Valdes defied the order and had rowboats tow him back into battle); Dumanoir was chased down and captured by a squadron under Richard Strachan at the Battle of Cape Ortegal on 3 November and reached England in disgrace.

He later was given commands in Danzig in 1811 and in Marseilles in 1815. He was promoted to vice-admiral on 27 January 1819.

Honours.

Légion d'honneur.

Captain Charles Berrenger.


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Berrenger started sailing in 1775, alternating between merchantmen, ships of the French Royal Navy and privateers. In 1780, he was second lieutenant on a privateer, and was admitted in the Navy as an auxiliary frigate lieutenant the next year.
Serving on the aviso Chien de chasse, he took part in a fight against a British corvette.
Returned to France in 1784, Berrenger obtained a licence of merchantman captain. In 1787, he obtained a commission of sub-lieutenant in the Navy, but stayed with the merchant navy.

In 1792, he joined the Navy and was given command of a gunboat at Le Havre. The next year, he captained the corvette Suffisante. Promoted to lieutenant in 1794, he was awarded command of the brand new Sirène in September 1795. In March 1796, he was promoted to commander. He took part in the Expédition d'Irlande, and to various missions in Santo Domingo.

Berrenger was promoted to captain in 1799 and appointed to command the Républicain. In 1800, he moved to Redoutable, and to Jean-Jacques Rousseau the next year.

In 1802, he was transferred to Scipion, serving in the Mediterranean under admiral Leissègues, and in Villeneuve's fleet from 1805. He took part in the Battle of Cape Finisterre, and fought at the Battle of Trafalgar under Vice Admiral Pierre Dumanoir le Pelley.

He managed to escape the battle, but fell upon Admiral Sir Richard Strachan's squadron on 4 November 1805, leading to the Battle of Cape Ortegal. Berrenger sustained a serious injury at the leg, and the French ships had to strike their colours.
Released and returned to France, Berrenger commanded the Aréthuse and the Majesteux.

Honours.

Officer in the Legion of honour.
Knight of the Order of Saint Louis.

Captain Claude Touffet †


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Born to a family of sailors, Touffet started sailing in the merchant Navy before joined the Navy as an auxiliary ensign in 1792. He served on the 74-gun Téméraire, the frigate Junon, the 74 Aquilon and the Généreux in Brueys' fleet.

On Généreux, Touffet took part in the Battle of the Nile, escaping to Courfu. In March, Généreux set sail to escort a convoy bound for Corfu, but her captain, Commodore Louis-Jean-Nicolas Lejoille, decided to attack Brindisi on the way. He was killed in the ensuing exchange of fire, and Touffet, taking over, forced the city to surrender after a two-hour gunnery battle. He was consecutively promoted to captain.

He later served as first officer on Patriote, and took part in the Battle of Algeciras Bay on Indomptable, again taking over command after his captain was killed. After the battle, he was maintained as captain of Indomptable and promoted.

In 1802, he commanded the Héros and, from 1805, the Dugay-Trouin in Vice Admiral Pierre Dumanoir le Pelley's squadron. He took part in the Battle of Cape Finisterre, and in the Battle of Trafalgar.

He managed to escape the battle, but fell upon Admiral Sir Richard Strachan's squadron on 4 November 1805, leading to the Battle of Cape Ortegal. Touffet was killed during the fight, while Dugay-Trouin lost 150 men.

Captain Guillaume-Jean-Noël de Lavillegris.


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Lavillegris was born to a captain of the East India Company. He started sailing with the Company in 1767 and rose to captain. In 1779, he joined the Navy as a reserve officer, taking part in the naval operations in the American Revolutionary War.

In 1792, he was made a lieutenant and appointed to command the frigate Précieuse. In March 1794, he was promoted to captain, and given command of the Achille; he took part in the Glorious First of June, where Achille was captured and he was taken prisoner.

In 1797, Lavillegris was promoted to commodore and appointed to the Quatorze Juillet, which was being completed. Quatorze Juillet burnt in an accident before her commissioning, and Lavillegris was suspended for not having been aboard at the time. Reinstated in September 1799, he was appointed to the Annibal in 1804, and to Mont-Blanc in 1805.

Lavillegris took part in the Trafalgar campaign. He was wounded at the Battle of Cape Finisterre, took part in the Battle of Trafalgar, and was eventually taken prisoner at the Battle of Cape Ortegal.

Lavillegris died of consequences of the wound sustained at the Battle of Cape Finisterre in Paris on 21 January 1807.