The Battle of San Domingo.

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6th of February 1806.






The Battle of San Domingo was the last fleet engagement of the Napoleonic Wars, contested off the Southern coast of the Spanish colonial Captaincy General of Santo Domingo, then under French occupation, on 6 February 1806. A British squadron of seven ships of the line under Vice-Admiral Sir John Thomas Duckworth surprised and destroyed a French squadron of five ships of the line led by Contre-Admiral Corentin Urbain Leissègues as the French sailed westwards along the San Domingo coast.



Using his superior numbers and speed, Duckworth struck at the head of the French line with his leading ships while the slower eastern division of his squadron intercepted and captured the French stragglers. The only French ships to escape were two frigates and a corvette – three ships of the line were captured and two destroyed, including Leissègues' flagship, the 120-gun Impérial.



French casualties were estimated as more than 1,500 men killed and wounded and the British suffered nearly 350 casualties in the engagement, which lasted for just over two hours.
Leissègues' squadron had escaped from Brest on 13 December 1805, taking advantage of a lapse in the British blockade. Sailing with another squadron under Contre-Admiral Jean-Baptiste Willaumez, Leissègues separated from Willaumez after two days and passed north of the Azores, where his ships were damaged and scattered by winter storms. Sailing for Santo Domingo to reconstitute his squadron and make urgent repairs, Leissègues arrived on 20 January 1806.
Duckworth had been tasked with watching the remnants of the French and Spanish fleets in Cádiz following the Battle of Trafalgar in October 1805, but in November had gone hunting to the south in search of a French raiding squadron and on his route back to his station had encountered a frigate that reported the escape of Leissègues and Willaumez. Sailing in pursuit, Duckworth encountered Willaumez on 25 December but refused battle and instead sailed for the West Indies to replenish his supplies before making the journey back to European waters. News reached him of the French arrival while anchored at Basseterre on 1 February and he immediately sailed to investigate, joined by part of the West Indies squadron under Rear-Admiral Alexander Cochrane.

British squadron.



Duckworth's squadron was principally formed from his original Cádiz squadron, except for HMS Powerful which had been sent to the Indian Ocean in December 1805, and with the addition of two ships from the West Indies squadron under Cochrane, HMS Northumberland and HMS Atlas. Frigates and smaller craft joined the fleet as it sailed north through the Leeward Islands, but none were engaged during the battle itself except to act as tows for the more seriously damaged ships of the line. As he approached the French line, Duckworth separated his force into two divisions: a western force to windward under Duckworth himself and a slower eastern force led by Duckworth's second in command Rear-Admiral Thomas Louis. During the engagement the divisions became separated and as a result Duckworth's division fought the strongest French forces at the head of the line. Louis was initially engaged with the French rear, but later assisted his commander against the huge Impérial during the final stages of the battle. British casualties were recorded in detail in Duckworth's despatches, based on the returns of each ship, although they were not evenly distributed: HMS Agamemnon arrived late in the battle and suffered minimal losses, while Northumberland was heavily engaged with the French flagship and suffered correspondingly severe casualties.
French squadron.

Contre-Admiral Leissègues' squadron was unchanged from the force that left Brest on 13 December. All ships however, especially Jupiter and Diomède, had been badly damaged by storms off the Azores in late December and repairs were incomplete by the time of Duckworth's attack, most the fleet still undergoing caulking at Santo Domingo.
Recognising that if he was caught at anchor he would be destroyed, Leissègues sent orders from his offices in Santo Domingo for the fleet to sail, joining them later by small boat. Trapped against the land with the wind from the west, Leissègues had no option but to form a line of battle and wait to meet the British squadron.
Although his ships fought hard, they were unable to mutually support one another and were rapidly overwhelmed: three surrendered, while Diomède and Impérial were driven ashore and wrecked to prevent their capture. The only ships to escape were the two frigates and a corvette that and slipped between the French line and the land early in the battle and made sail to the west, eventually reaching France.



French casualties are hard to calculate, as the best available source is the vague totals submitted by Duckworth in his account to the Admiralty. He estimates, apparently based on reports by the senior remaining French officers on Alexandre, Jupiter and Brave, that those three ships suffered 760 casualties in total.
These accounts were subsequently called into question by historian William James, who considered them too high. James also criticised the assumed totals for Impérial and Diomède, which are even less certain but reportedly totalled 500 and 250 respectively.
In addition to those killed and wounded, the entire surviving crews of Alexandre, Jupiter and Brave were taken prisoner, as were 150 men from Diomède and six from Impérial seized by British boarding parties on 8 February.




Rob.

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Vice-Admiral Duckworth's squadron.
Duckworth's division.
Ship	Rate	Guns	Commander	Casualties			Notes
Killed	Wounded	Total
HMS Superb	Third rate	74	Vice-Admiral Sir John Thomas Duckworth Captain Richard Goodwin Keats	6	56	62	Lightly damaged
HMS Northumberland	Third rate	74	Rear-Admiral Alexander Cochrane Captain John Morrison	21	79	100	Mainmast collapsed and hull, rigging and remaining masts badly damaged
HMS Spencer	Third rate	74	Captain Robert Stopford	18	50	68	Severe damage to hull, but masts and rigging largely intact
HMS Agamemnon	Third rate	64	Captain Sir Edward Berry	1	13	14
Louis' division
HMS Canopus	Third rate	80	Rear-Admiral Thomas Louis Captain Francis Austen	8	22	30	Lightly damaged
HMS Donegal	Third rate	74	Captain Pulteney Malcolm	12	33	45	Fore yard shot away, otherwise lightly damaged
HMS Atlas	Third rate	74	Captain Samuel Pym	8	11	19	Bowsprit lost in collision with Canopus and tiller damaged by shot. Otherwise lightly damaged
Minor warships
HMS Acasta	Fifth rate	40	Captain Richard Dalling Dunn	0	0	0	Not engaged in the battle
HMS Magicienne	Fifth rate	32	Captain Adam Mackenzie	0	0	0	Not engaged in the battle
HMS Kingfisher	Brig	16	Commander Nathaniel Day Cochrane	0	0	0	Not engaged, sent to Britain with dispatches after the battle
HMS Epervier	Brig	14	Lieutenant James Higginson	0	0	0	Not engaged in the battle
Total casualties: 74 killed, 264 wounded, 338 total.

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Vice-Admiral Sir John Thomas Duckworth.

Born in Leatherhead, Surrey, England, Duckworth was one of five sons of Sarah Johnson and the vicar Henry Duckworth A.M. of Stoke Poges, County of Buckinghamshire. The Duckworths were descended from a landed family, with Henry later being installed as Canon of Windsor. John Duckworth went to Eton College, but began his naval career in 1759 at the suggestion of Edward Boscawen, when he entered the Royal Navy as a midshipman on HMS Namur. Namur later became part of the fleet under Sir Edward Hawke, and Duckworth was present at the Battle of Quiberon Bay on 20 November 1759. On 5 April 1764 he joined the 50-gun HMS Guernsey at Chatham, after leaving HMS Prince of Orange, to serve with Admiral Hugh Palliser, then Governor of Newfoundland. He served aboard HMS Princess Royal, on which he suffered a concussion when he was hit by the head of another sailor, decapitated by a cannonball. He spent some months as an acting lieutenant, and was confirmed in the rank on 14 November 1771. He then spent three years aboard the 74-gun HMS Kent, the Plymouth guardship, under Captain Charles Fielding. Fielding was given command of the frigate HMS Diamond in early 1776, and he took Duckworth with him as his first lieutenant. Duckworth married Anne Wallis in July 1776, with whom he had a son and a daughter.

American Revolution.

After some time in North America, where Duckworth became involved in a court-martial after an accident at Rhode Island on 18 January 1777 left several men dead, the Diamond was sent to join Vice-Admiral John Byron's fleet in the West Indies. Byron transferred him to his own ship, HMS Princess Royal, in March 1779, and Duckworth was present aboard her at the Battle of Grenada on 6 July 1779. Duckworth was promoted to commander ten days after this and given command of the sloop-of-war HMS Rover. After cruising off Martinique for a time, he was promoted to post captain on 16 June 1780 and given command of the 74-gun HMS Terrible. He returned to the Princess Royal as flag-captain to Rear-Admiral Sir Joshua Rowley, with whom he went to Jamaica. He was briefly in command of HMS Yarmouth, before moving into HMS Bristol in February 1781, and returned to England with a trade convoy. In the years of peace before the French Revolution he was a captain of the 74-gun HMS Bombay Castle, lying at Plymouth.

French Revolutionary wars service.

Fighting against France, Duckworth distinguished himself both in European waters and in the Caribbean. He was initially in command of the 74-gun HMS Orion from 1793 and served in the Channel Fleet under Admiral Lord Howe. He was in action at the Glorious First of June. Duckworth was one of few commanders specifically mentioned by Howe for their good conduct, and one of eighteen commanders honoured with the Naval Gold Medal, and the thanks of both Houses of Parliament. He was appointed to command the 74-gun HMS Leviathan in early 1794, and went out to the West Indies where he served under Rear-Admiral Sir William Parker. He was appointed commodore at Santo Domingo in August 1796. In 1798 Duckworth was in command of a small squadron of four vessels. He sailed for Minorca on 19 October 1798, where he was a joint commander with Sir Charles Stuart, initially landing his 800 troops in the bay of Addaya, and later landing sailors and marines from his ships, which included HMS Cormorant and HMS Aurora, to support the Army. He was promoted to rear-admiral of the white on 14 February 1799 following Minorca's capture, and "Minorca" was later inscribed on his coat of arms. In June his squadron of four ships captured Courageux.
In April 1800 was in command of the blockading squadron off Cadiz, and intercepted a large and rich Spanish convoy from Lima off Cadiz, consisting of two frigates (both taken as prizes) and eleven merchant vessels, with his share of the prize money estimated at £75,000. In June 1800 he sailed to take up his post as the newly appointed Commander-in-Chief at Barbados and the Leeward Islands Station, succeeding Lord Hugh Seymour.
Duckworth was nominated a Knight Companion of the most Honourable Military Order of the Bath in 1801 (and installed in 1803), for the capture of the islands of St. Bartholomew, St. Martin, St. Thomas, St. John and St. Croix and defeat of the Swedish and Danish forces stationed there on 20 March 1801. Lieutenant-General Thomas Trigge commanded the ground troops, which consisted of two brigades under Brigadier-Generals Fuller and Frederick Maitland, of 1,500 and 1,800 troops respectively. These included the 64th Regiment of Foot (Lieutenant-Colonel Edward Pakenham), and the 2nd and 8th West Indies Regiments, two detachments of Royal Artillery, and two companies of sailors, each of about 100 men. The ships involved, in addition to Leviathan, included HMS Andromeda, HMS Unite, HMS Coromandel, HMS Proselyte, HMS Amphitrite, HMS Hornet, the brig HMS Drake, hired armed brig Fanny, schooner HMS Eclair, and tender Alexandria. Aside from the territory and prisoners taken during the operation, Duckworth's force took two Swedish merchantmen, a Danish ship (in ballast), three small French vessels, one privateer brig (12-guns), one captured English ship, a merchant-brig, four small schooners, and a sloop.

Service against Napoleon.

West Indies.

From 1803 until 1804, Duckworth assumed command as the commander-in-chief of the Jamaica Station, during which time he directed the operations which led to the surrender of General Rochambeau and the French army, following the successful Blockade of Saint-Domingue.
Duckworth was promoted to vice-admiral of the blue on 23 April 1804, and he was appointed a Colonel of Marines He succeeded in capturing numerous enemy vessels and 5,512 French prisoners of war. In recognition of his service, the Legislative Assembly of Jamaica presented Duckworth with a ceremonial sword and a gold scabbard, inscribed with a message of thanks. The merchants of Kingston provided a second gift, an ornamental tea kettle signifying Duckworth's defence of sugar and tea exports Both sword and kettle were subsequently gifted to the National Maritime Museum in Greenwich.
Duckworth remained in Jamaica until 1805, returning to England that April aboard HMS Acasta. On his return to England again, he was called to face court-martial charges brought by Captain James Athol Wood of HMS Acasta, who claimed that Duckworth had transgressed the 18th Article of War; "Taking goods onboard other than for the use of the vessel, except gold & etc." Duckworth had apparently acquired some goods, and in wishing to transport them home in person reassigned Captain Wood to another vessel on Jamaica station knowing that the vessel was soon to be taken under command by another flag officer. Consequently, Duckworth was able to take the goods to England as personal luggage, and Wood was forced to sail back as a passenger on his own ship. The court-martial was held on board HMS Gladiator in Portsmouth on 25 April 1805, but the charge was dropped on 7 June 1805.

Atlantic.

In 1805 the Admiralty decided that Duckworth should raise his flag aboard HMS Royal George and sail to join Vice-Admiral Horatio Nelson off Cadiz. However, the Plymouth Dockyards could not make Royal George ready to sail in time, and Duckworth was directed to raise his flag in HMS Superb, with Captain Richard Keats as his flag-captain. By the time of his arrival on 15 November, the Battle of Trafalgar had been fought. Duckworth was ordered to take command of the West Indies squadron involved in the blockade of Cadiz, with seven sail of the line, consisting of five 74-gun ships, the 80-gun HMS Canopus and the 64-gun HMS Agamemnon, and two frigates.
Although known for a cautious character, he abandoned the blockade and sailed in search of a French squadron under Admiral Zacharie Allemand, which had been reported by a frigate off Madeira on 30 November, on his own initiative. While searching for the French, which eventually eluded him, he came across another French squadron on 25 December, consisting of six sail of the line and a frigate. This was the squadron under Contre-Admiral Jean-Baptiste Willaumez, heading for the Cape of Good Hope, and pursued by Rear-Admiral Sir Richard Strachan. Duckworth gave chase, but with his squadron scattered, decided not to risk engaging with his one ship, and gave it up.

Return to the West Indies.

Duckworth then set sail for the Leeward Islands to take on water, dispatching the 74-gun HMS Powerful to reinforce the East Indies squadron. There, at Saint Kitts, he was joined on 21 January 1806 by the 74-gun ships HMS Northumberland and HMS Atlas commanded by Sir Alexander Cochrane,^[18] and on 1 February a brig Kingfisher commanded by Nathaniel Day Cochrane, which brought news of French at San Domingo. The French had a squadron of five ships: the 120-gun Imperial, two 84-gun and two 74-gun ships and two frigates, under the command of Vice-Admiral Corentin Urbain Leissègues which escaped from Brest and sought to reinforce the French forces at San Domingo with about 1,000 troops. Arriving at San Domingo on 6 February 1806, Duckworth found the French squadron with its transports anchored in the Occa bay. The French commander immediately hurried to sea, forming a line of battle as they went. Duckworth gave the signal to form two columns of four and three ships of the line.

Battle of San Domingo.

Duckworth at once made the signal to attack and "with a portrait of Nelson suspended from the mizzen stay of the Superb with the band playing 'God Save the King' and 'Nelson of the Nile', bore down on the leading French ship Alexandre of 84 guns and engaged her at close quarters. After a severe action of two hours, two of the French ships were driven ashore and burnt with three others captured. Only the French frigates escaped.
Despite this, it is thought that Duckworth used his own ship cautiously, and the credit for the victory was due more to the initiative of the individual British captains. Duckworth nearly grounded his own ship as he attempted to board Impérial.
His victory over the French Admiral Leissègues off the coast of Hispaniola on 6 February together with Admiral Alexander Cochrane's squadron was a fatal blow to French strategy in the Caribbean region, and played a major part in Napoleon's eventual sale of Louisiana, and withdrawal from the Caribbean. It was judged sufficiently important to have the Tower of London guns fire a salute. San Domingo was added to Duckworth's coat of arms as words; a British sailor was added to the supporters of the Arms in 1814.
A promotion to vice-admiral of the white in April 1806 followed, along with the presentation of a sword of honour by the House of Assembly of Jamaica, while his naval feats were acknowledged with several honours, including a sword of honour by the corporation of the City of London. A great dinner was also held in his honour as the Mansion House. On his return to England, Duckworth was granted a substantial pension of £1,000 from the House of Commons, and the freedom of the city of London.
Santo Domingo was the last significant fleet action of the Napoleonic Wars which, despite negative claims made about his personality, displayed Duckworth's understanding of the role of naval strategy in the overall war by securing for Britain mastery of the sea, and thus having sea-oriented mentality having placed a British fleet in the right strategic position. Duckworth also displayed the willingness of accept changing tactics employed by Nelson, and maintained the superiority of British naval gunnery in battle.

Mediterranean.

Duckworth was appointed second in command of the Mediterranean Fleet primarily on consideration by the Admiralty of having a senior officer in the forthcoming operations with the Imperial Russian Navy. Sailing in the 100-gun first-rate HMS Royal George with eight ships of the line and four smaller vessels, he arrived at the island of Tenedos with orders to take possession of the Ottoman fleet at Constantinople, thus supporting Dmitry Senyavin's fleet in the Dardanelles Operation. Accompanying him were some of the ablest Royal Navy officers such as Sidney Smith, Richard Dacres and Henry Blackwood but he was in doubt of having the capability to breach the shore batteries and reach the anchored Ottoman fleet. Aware of Turkish efforts to reinforce the shore artillery, he nevertheless took no action until 11 February 1807 and spent some time in the strait waiting for a favourable wind. In the evening of the same day Blackwood's ship, HMS Ajax accidentally caught fire while at anchor off Tenedos, and was destroyed, although her captain and most of the crew were saved and redistributed among the fleet.
Finally on 19 February at the Action at Point Pisquies (Nagara Burun), a part of the British force encountered the Ottoman fleet which engaged first. One 64-gun ship of the line, four 36-gun frigates, five 12-gun corvettes, one 8-gun brig, and a gunboat were forced ashore and burnt by the part of the British fleet.
The British fleet consisted of HMS Standard, under Captain Thomas Harvey, HMS Thunderer, under Captain John Talbot, HMS Pompee, under flag captain Richard Dacres, and HMS Repulse, under Captain Arthur Kaye Legge, as well as the frigate HMS Active, under Captain Richard Hussey Mowbray, under the command of Rear-Admiral Sir Sidney Smith, commanding the rear division. They took one corvette and one gunboat, and the flags of the Turkish Vice-Admiral and Captain Pasha in the process, with adjacent fortifications destroyed by landing parties from HMS Thunderer, HMS Pompée, and HMS Repulse, while its 31 guns were spiked by the marines. The marines were commanded by Captain Nicholls of HMS Standard who had also boarded the Turkish ship of the line. There were eight 32 lb and 24 lb brass guns and the rest firing marble shot weighing upwards of 200 pounds.
On 20 February the British squadron under Duckworth, having joined Smith with the second division of ships under command of Rear-Admiral Sir Thomas Louis, reached the Ottoman capital, but had to engage in fruitless negotiations with the Sultan's representatives, advised by Napoleon's ambassador Sébastiani, and with the accompanying British ambassador Charles Arbuthnot and Russian plenipotentiary Andrey Italinski, the latter being carried aboard on HMS Endymion, under the command of Captain Thomas Bladen Capel, due to the secret instructions that were issued as part of his orders for the mission, and therefore losing more time as the Turks played for time to complete their shore batteries in the hope of trapping the British squadron.
Smith was joined a week later by Duckworth, who observed the four bays of the Dardanelles lined with five hundred cannon and one hundred mortars as his ships passed towards Constantinople. There he found the rest of the Turkish fleet of twelve ships of the line and nine frigates,^] all apparently ready for action in Constantinople harbour. Exasperated by Turkish intransigence, and not having a significant force to land on the shore, Duckworth decided to withdraw on 1 March after declining to take Smith's advice to bombard the Turkish Arsenal and gunpowder manufacturing works. The British fleet was subjected to shore artillery fire all the way to the open sea, and sustaining casualties and damage to ships from 26-inch calibre (650 mm) guns firing 300-800 pound marble shot.
Though blamed for indecisiveness, notably by Thomas Grenville, the First Lord of the Admiralty, Duckworth announced that
"I must, as an officer, declare to be my decided opinion that, without the cooperation of a body of land forces, it would be a wanton sacrifice of the squadrons to attempt to force the passage."
After his departure from Constantinople, he commanded the squadron protecting transports of the Alexandria expedition of 1807, but that was forced to withdraw after five months due to lack of supplies. Duckworth summed up this expedition, in reflection on the service of the year by commenting that:-
"Instead of acting vigorously in either one or the other direction, our cabinet comes to the miserable determination of sending five or six men-of-war, without soldiers, to the Dardanelles, and 5000 soldiers, without a fleet, to Alexandria."
Soon after, he married again, on 14 May 1808 to Susannah Catherine Buller, a daughter of William Buller, the Bishop of Exeter. They had two sons together before his death, she survived him, dying on 27 April 1840.

The Channel Fleet.

Duckworth's career however did not suffer greatly, and in 1808 and 1810 he went on to sail in HMS San Josef and HMS Hibernia, some of the largest first-rates in the Royal Navy, as commander of the Channel Fleet, One of the least pleasant duties in his life was his participation in the court-martial of Admiral Lord Gambier, after the Battle of the Basque Roads.

Newfoundland and War of 1812.

Probably because he was thought of as irresolute and unimaginative, on 26 March 1810 Duckworth was appointed Governor of Newfoundland and Commander-in-Chief of the Newfoundland Squadron's three frigates and eight smaller vessels.^[48] Although this was a minor command in a remote station spanning from Davis Strait to the Gulf of St Lawrence, he also received a promotion to admiral of the blue, flying his flag aboard the 50-gun HMS Antelope.
While serving as Governor he was attacked for his arbitrary powers over the territory, and retaliated against the pamphleteer by disallowing his reappointment as surgeon of the local militia unit, the Loyal Volunteers of St John, which Duckworth renamed the St John’s Volunteer Rangers, and enlarged to 500 officers and militiamen for the War of 1812 with the United States.
Duckworth also took an interest in bettering relationship with the local Beothuk Indians, and sponsored Lieutenant David Buchan's expedition up the Exploits River in 1810 to explore the region of the Beothuk settlements.
As the governor and station naval commander, Duckworth had to contend with American concerns over the issues of "Free Trade and Sailor's Rights." His orders and instructions to captains under his command were therefore directly concerned with fishing rights of US vessels on the Grand Banks, the prohibition of United States trade with British colonials, the searching of ships under US flag for contraband, and the impressment of seamen for service on British vessels. He returned to Portsmouth on 28 November in HMS Antelope after escorting transports from Newfoundland.

Semi-retirement.

On 2 December 1812, soon after arriving in Devon, Duckworth resigned as governor after being offered a parliamentary seat for New Romney on the coast of Kent. At about this time he found out that his oldest son George Henry had been killed in action while serving in the rank of a Colonel with the Duke of Wellington, during the Peninsular War. George Henry had been killed at the Battle of Albuera at the head of the 48th (Northamptonshire) Regiment of Foot. Sir John was created a baronet on 2 November 1813, adopting a motto Disciplina, fide, perseverantia (Discipline, fidelity, perseverance), and in January 1815 was appointed Commander-in-Chief, Plymouth 45 miles from his home; a post considered one of semi-retirement by his successor, Lord Exmouth. However, on 26 June that year it became a centre of attention due to the visit by HMS Bellerophon bearing Napoleon to his final exile, with Duckworth being the last senior British officer to speak with him before his departure on board HMS Northumberland.
Duckworth died at his post on the base in 1817 at 1 o'clock, after several months of illness; after a long and distinguished service with the Royal Navy. He was buried on 9 September at the church in Topsham, where he was laid to rest in the family vault, with his coffin covered with crimson velvet studded with 2,500 silvered nails to resemble a ship's planking.

Rob.

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Captain Richard Goodwin Keats.

Keats was born at Chalton, Hampshire the son of Rev. Richard Keats, Rector of Bideford and King's Nympton in Devon and Headmaster of Blundells School, Tiverton, by his wife, Elizabeth. His formal education was brief. At the age of nine, in 1766, he entered New College School and was then admitted briefly to Winchester College in 1768 but lacked scholastic aptitude and determined on a career in the Royal Navy.
Early naval career.
Keats entered the navy as a midshipman in 1770 aboard the 74-gun HMS Bellona under Captain John Montagu and followed Montagu when he was promoted rear-admiral, given command of the North American Station and the governorship at Halifax. He served in a number of ships on the Newfoundland station under his patron and his patron’s son Captain James Montagu.
In April 1777 he was promoted to Lieutenant under Captain Robert Digby in HMS Ramillies in which he took part in the First Battle of Ushant on 27 July 1778. As one of Digby’s followers he was moved with him to the second-rate, ninety-gun HMS HMS Prince George. His Royal Highness Prince William Henry, later William IV served aboard the Prince George as a midshipman for almost two years during this time.
In 1780 Keats was on Prince George with Admiral Rodney’s fleet at the Moonlight Battle that culminated in the relief of Gibraltar. Keats was with the fleet once more when it again relieved the beleaguered rock in 1781. In September 1781 Keats returned to the North American station with Digby in HMS Lion.

Command.

On 18 January 1782 Keats was put in command of the store ship HMS Rhinoceros which was later fitted out as a floating battery in the defense of New York City. By May 1782 he had been transferred to HMS Bonetta sloop in which he was part of the squadron that captured a French squadron including the 38-gun Aigle which was bought into British service. The Bonetta was paid off in 1785 and between that time and 1789 Keats lived in France.
On 24 June 1789 he was promoted to post-captain in HMS Southampton, possibly at the behest of the Duke of Clarence (Prince William Henry) as a royal favour to a friend. Between 1790 and 1793 Keats commanded the HMS Niger frigate on the Channel Station. He commissioned HMS London in 1793 as the newly appointed flag-captain to the Duke of Clarence but was to be disappointed when the Board of Admiralty determined that it would be dangerous for the Prince and recalled him to London.

Western Frigate Squadron.

In 1794 Keats was in Sir John Borlase Warren’s squadron in the Channel in command of the 32-gun frigate HMS Galatea. In her he took part in the running battles along the French, English and Irish coasts that became highly publicized and exemplified the romantic image of naval warfare as it was perceived by the general public. In 1795 Galatea captured La Revolutionnaire.
In the same year the Galatea took part in the failed landing of an invasion force at Quiberon Bay. The invasion force consisted of French Royalist émigré, counter-revolutionary troops in support of the Chouannerie and Vendée Revolt. They were landed by the Royal Navy on 23 June. The aim of the invasion was to raise the whole of western France in revolt, bring an end to the French Revolution and restore the French monarchy. The Landing of the émigrés at Quiberon was finally repulsed on 21 July, dealing a disastrous blow to the royalist cause.
On 23 August 1795 Keats in the Galatea drove the French frigate Andromaque ashore and set her alight to stop the French refloating her.
In May 1797 Galatea was at the Nore anchorage and Keats along with several other captains was put ashore during the fleet mutiny.
Subsequently he commissioned the newly built 40-gun HMS Boadicea. Under Keats she served on the Channel station for several years during which time she captured at least three prizes. The first was the 22-gun Spanish ship Union, which she captured on 14 August 1797. On 9 December 1798 Boadicea captured the 20-gun French privateer L´Invincible General Bonaparte. The Admiralty took this vessel into service as the 18-gun sloop HMS Brazen. On 1 April 1799 Keats also captured L'Utile, a Brig of 16-Guns. During this time Keats was stationed mainly off Brest. He continued there until 1800 when he was reassigned by Earl St. Vincent to Ferrol.

HMS Superb and the Battle of Algeciras Bay.

By March 1801 Keats was placed in command of the ship with which he is most associated. HMS Superb was a 74-gun third-rate ship-of-the-line ordered in 1795 and completed in 1798.
In July 1801 she was stationed off Cadiz and took part in the second Battle of Algeciras Bay. During the French and Spanish retreat Admiral Sir James Saumarez hailed the Superb and ordered Keats to catch the allied fleets rear and engage. The Superb was a relatively new ship and had not been long on blockade duty. As a consequence she was the fastest sailing ship-of-the-line in the fleet. As night fell Keats sailed the Superb alongside the 112-gun Real Carlos on her starboard side. Another Spanish ship, the 112-gun San Hermenegildo, was sailing abreast, on the port side, of the Real Carlos. Keats fired into the Real Carlos and some shot passed her and struck the San Hermenegildo. The Real Carlos caught fire and Keats disengaged her to continue up the line. In the darkness the two Spanish ships confused one another for British ships and began a furious duel. With the Real Carlos aflame the captain of the Hermenegildo determined to take advantage and crossed the Real Carlos’ stern in order to deal a fatal broadside that would run the length of the ship through the unprotected stern. A sudden gust of wind brought the two ships together and entangled their rigging. The Hermenegildo also caught fire and the two enormous three-deck ships exploded. The Superb continued on relatively unscathed and engaged the French 74-gun St. Antoine under Commodore Julien le Roy. The St. Antoine struck after a brief exchange of broadsides.^{[a] [11][12]} The action came to an end with the intervention of Captain Amable Troude aboard the Formidable. Troude placed his ship, which had been damaged in the earlier engagement and could not keep up with the main allied fleet, between the escaping allied fleet and the British. He fought off four ships before escaping into Cadiz.
Both Troude and Keats were highly praised by their commanders and the general public. Troude received an audience with Napoleon. Nelson said of Keats in a letter to the Duke of Clarence: “Our friend Keats is quite well in his own person he is equal in my estimation to an additional Seventy-four; his life is a valuable one to the State, and it is impossible that your Royal Highness could ever have a better choice of a Sea friend, or Counsellor, if you go to the Admiralty.”
After the Treaty of Amiens in 1802 Keats and Superb remained in the Mediterranean under Admiral Sir Richard Bickerton. When Nelson relieved Bickerton and took command of the fleet in the Mediterranean Keats remained with him off Toulon and accompanied the fleet to the West Indies in 1805 in the famous chase of Admiral Villeneuve that culminated in the Battle of Trafalgar.^[14] After the fleets return to the European waters Superb was sent to Portsmouth to re-fit. Unfortunately she did not rejoin the fleet off Cadiz until November 1805 missing the Battle of Trafalgar by less than a month.
On 9 November 1805 Keats was made an honorary Colonel of Marines, received the thanks of Parliament and a presentation sword from the Lloyd's Patriotic Fund.

The West Indies and the Battle of San Domingo.

Admiral Duckworth took Superb as his flagship in 1806. Duckworth took the fleet blockading Cadiz and chased Contre-Admiral Jean-Baptiste Willaumez to the West Indies. Vice-Admiral Corentin Urbain Leissègues had separated from Willaumez in the Atlantic and made for Santo Domingo to resupply and refit. Duckworth was in the process of resupplying his ships at St. Kitts when he learned of the French squadron anchored in Santo Domingo. Duckworth took his squadron of seven line-of-battle ships and attacked Leissègues' five ships of the line. The Battle of San Domingo was the last open sea fleet action of the Napoleonic War. During the battle Superb suffered 62 casualties in what became an almost total victory for the Royal Navy. Of the five French line-of-battle ships engaged two were captured and three driven on shore and later destroyed. The British did not lose a single ship.

The Baltic and the Second Battle of Copenhagen.

By 1807 Superb had returned to the Channel and Keats was relieved by Sir Richard Strachan. Keats then took command of HMS Ganges and was promoted commodore with Admiral Gambier’s squadron in the Baltic where between 16 August and 7 September he took part in the Second Battle of Copenhagen. During the battle Keats placed a portrait of Nelson on the mizzen mast. It was later said that the portrait had encouraged and inspired the officers and men aboard.
Keats was promoted rear-admiral on 2 October 1807 and moved into HMS Mars. He led the expedition with Lieutenant General Sir John Moore to the aid of the Swedish at Gothenburg. As a reward for his services he made a Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath.
Keats moved his flag to the Superb in early 1808. After convoying the Swedish trade from Gothenburg to England he joined Sir Richard Strachan on his expedition to the Scheldt river. On the Superb’s return to Portsmouth in 1809 she was paid off and Keats was promoted to rear-admiral of the blue squadron.
On 26 December 1809 was given the post of His Majesty's Commissioner for the Civil Affairs of Malta. In 1810 after a nearly twenty one year’s continuous service took leave ashore.

Governor of Newfoundland.

After only a few months however Keats hoisted his flag in HMS Implacable and took command of naval forces off Cadiz. On 1 August 1811 Keats was promoted vice-admiral and joined Sir Edward Pellew off Toulon.
Keats was forced to haul down his flag in 1812 due to ill health and in recognition of his service on 9 March 1813 he was made Governor and Commander-in-Chief of Newfoundland. During his term as governor the British government agreed for the first time to let Newfoundland settlers lease land for cultivation. Keats granted 110 leases around St. John's in the first year alone. In 1816 he returned to England and was succeeded as Governor of Newfoundland by Francis Pickmore.
On 7 May 1818 Keats was promoted to the honorary title of Major-General of His Majesty's Royal Marine Forces. On 12 August 1819 Keats was promoted Admiral of the Blue.

Governor of Greenwich Hospital, death and funeral.

In 1821 he was further honoured by his appointment as governor of Greenwich Hospital and investiture as Knight Grand Cross of the Most Honourable Military Order of the Bath.
Keats died in Greenwich on 5 April 1834 and his funeral was held at the hospital chapel with the Admiralty Board in attendance. His coffin was borne by six admirals as pall-bearers.
William IV ordered a bust of his friend to be erected in the chapel and it remains there, under the organ loft on the left hand side of the main entrance. The right hand side is occupied by a bust of Sir Thomas Hardy.

Family.

In 1816 Keats married Mary, eldest daughter of the late Francis Hurt of Alderwasley in Derbyshire. There were no children from the marriage.

Rob.

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Admiral Sir Alexander Inglis Cochrane.

Naval career.


Alexander Inglis Cochrane was born a younger son of the Scottish peer Thomas Cochrane, the eighth Earl of Dundonald, and his wife.^. He joined the Royal Navy as a boy and served with British naval forces in North America. He served during the American War of Independence.^.
Cochrane also participated in the Egyptian operations in 1801.^. When Alexandria fell, Cochrane, in the 74-gun third-rate HMS Ajax, with the sixth-rate HMS Bonne Citoyenne, the HMS Cynthia, the brig-sloops HMS Port Mahon and HMS Victorieuse, and three Turkish corvettes, were the first vessels to enter the harbour.
About 1802/3 Cochrane's actions alienated the Spanish Governor of Ferrol, and then incited an attack on Spanish treasure ships returning from South America, the effect of which was to bring Spain back into the war on France side in 1804. Cochrane had been incensed that the brilliant Sir Edward Pellew a tarpaulin officer, had preferred as Admiral of the White, to the East Indies station to himself, a well connected aristocrat. Cochrane tried to implicate Sir Edward Pellew, who had good relations with the Governor of Ferrol, in fraud. then making seriously damaging and unfounded allegations against Sir Edward Pellew's secretary Fitzgerald which were never substantiated and which destroyed Fitzgerald's career but didn't accomplish the destruction of its target, Sir Edward Pellew, later to become Viscount Exmouth. Exmouth papers
In 1805 he was made commander of the Leeward Islands Station.^. He conducted operations against the French and Spanish on 6 February 1806 at the Battle of San Domingo during the Napoleonic Wars.^. A cannonball blew his hat off his head while he was on the deck of his flagship, HMS Northumberland. He was knighted and appointed KCB on 29 March 1806 in recognition of his service.^. Other rewards included thanks from both Houses of Parliament, freedom of the city of London, and a sword valued at 100 guineas.^.
In Barbados, Cochrane met with General Francisco de Miranda, who had been defeated by Spanish naval forces in an attempt to liberate Venezuela. As Spain was then at war with Britain, Cochrane and the governor of Trinidad agreed to provide some support for an unsuccessful second attempt to invade Venezuela.
Following the concern in Britain that neutral Denmark was entering an alliance with Napoleon, with the rank of Rear-Admiral, in 1807 he sailed in HMS Belleisle (74 guns) as commander of the squadron of ships that was sent to occupy the Danish West Indies. In 1809 he commanded naval forces in the conquest of Martinique.
From April 1814, during the War of 1812 against the United States, Cochrane, then a Vice Admiral, served as Commander-in-Chief of both the North American Station, based at the new dockyard in Bermuda, and the Jamaica Station, based at Port Royal. He landed the force under Major-General Robert Ross that burned Washington and pushed successful naval forays at the same time. Initially he wanted to attack Rhode Island in New England after the success at Washington, but he was dissuaded by Ross and Admiral Cockburn, who wanted to go after the bigger prize of Baltimore, Maryland.
During the Battle of Baltimore, Cochrane directed the bombardment of Fort McHenry in Baltimore, which proved ineffectual. He resisted calls by his junior officers to attack the fort more aggressively with frigates at close range. He ordered a diversionary raid by boats to assist the army encamped near Baltimore in their proposed attack on Hampstead hill (which they cancelled and withdrew), but this diversion had no success. In the bombardment of Fort McHenry, Cochrane's fleet used bomb vessels and a rocket ship for a long-range bombardment to minimize casualties and damage to the fleet from the fort's return fire, which inspired Francis Scott Key's poem that became "The Star-Spangled Banner," the US national anthem.
Cochrane led the British force that won the Battle of Lake Borgne in December 1814, in Louisiana. His forces built a hard short road to New Orleans for use by British armed forces. But, the British army was defeated at the Battle of New Orleans on January 8, 1815. News that Britain had ratified the peace treaty (the Treaty of Ghent) had not reached the combatants at the Battle of New Orleans. The peace treaty was being carried to Washington, D.C., for ratification by the U.S. Congress.
The Duke of Wellington held that the failure of the New Orleans campaign was largely the fault of Cochrane. In a eulogy to General Edward Pakenham -- Wellington's brother-in-law, killed at New Orleans, he said:
I cannot but regret that he was ever employed on such a service or with such a colleague. The expedition to New Orleans originated with that colleague.... The Americans were prepared with an army in a fortified position which still would have been carried, if the duties of others, that is of the Admiral (Sir Alexander Cochrane), had been as well performed as that of he whom we now lament.
Despite the lack of success at New Orleans, the British nonetheless went on to force the surrender of Mobile, Mississippi Territory, and to capture the flagship, U.S.S. President and its commodore Stephen Decatur, outside the New York Harbor.
Cochrane was thence promoted to admiral in 1819. From 1821 to 1824, he was Commander-in-Chief, Plymouth. He died in Paris on 26 January 1832.
Political career

Cochrane was a Member of Parliament (MP) for Stirling Burghs from 1800 to 1802, and from 1803 to 1806.^[6][7]
Family.

In 1788 he married Maria Shaw; they had three sons and two daughters.^[1] His son Thomas John Cochrane was entered in the Royal Navy at the age of seven; he rose to become governor of the colony of Newfoundland, and Admiral of the Fleet; he also received a knighthood in the Order of the Bath.

Rob.

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Captain Robert Stopford.


Stopford was the third son of James Stopford, 2nd Earl of Courtown, and his wife Mary (née Powys). He joined the Royal Navy in 1780 and became a Lieutenant in 1785. Commander Stopford was captain of Ferret between December 1789 and October 1790. In 1790 he was promoted to captain at the age of 22 and was briefly captain of HMS Lowestoffe.

The Glorious First of June.

Stopford fought at the Battle of the Glorious First of June in 1794, commanding the frigate HMS Aquilon (32). During the battle Aquilon had the task of standing off and repeating the signals from the flagship. Aquilon also towed the Marlborough out of the line of fire when she was dismasted, for which Lord Howe thanked him personally. One of Stopford's officers on Aquilon was Francis Beaufort, the inventor of the Beaufort Wind-Scale.
On 10 March 1796, Stopford was captain of the fifth rate frigate HMS Phaeton, of 38 guns, when she engaged and captured the 20-gun French corvette Bonne Citoyenne of Cape Finisterre. Stopford took her back to England as his prize. The Royal Navy then bought her in as HMS Bonne Citoyenn, a sixth rate sloop of war. During his service in the Channel, Phaeton captured in all some 13 privateers and three vessels of war, as well as recovering numerous vessels that the French had taken.

In 1799, Stopford was appointed captain of the 74-gun third rate HMS Excellent in the Channel Fleet. He sailed Excellent to the West Indies where he hoisted a commodore's pennant and served for eight months as the Commander-in-Chief of the Leeward Islands Station in 1802.

In 1803, Stopford became captain of the ship of the line HMS Spencer (74), in Horatio Nelson's fleet.

San Domingo.

He became a Colonel of Marines in November 1805 and received a gold medal for his conduct at the Battle of San Domingo in 1806, while still in command of Spencer. Stopford was wounded during the battle; he recovered, but the wound would plague him for the rest of his life.

He took part in the British invasions of the Río de la Plata and Battle of Copenhagen of 1806-07, and attacked Rochefort in 1808. Stopford played an important part in the Battle of the Basque Roads. He was appointed to command HMS Caesar (80), with a squadron of two ships of the line and five frigates. On 23 February 1809 he fell in the four French frigates under the batteries of Sable d'Olonne, an action which left them disabled. Stopford continued his blockade until Lord Gambier chased a fleet of ten French sail of the line into the Basque Roads and assumed command. After the battle Stopford was called on to give evidence at Gambier's trial in which he was exonerated.

In 1810, he sailed to South Africa to become Commander-in-Chief of the Cape of Good Hope Station. He directed the operations that resulted in the capture of Java when on 8 August 1811, the Dutch settlement of Batavia capitulated to the British under Stopford and Lieutenant-General Sir Samuel Auchmuty. The British fleet consisted of some 100 vessels, including eight cruisers belonging to the East India Company. He was appointed Commander-in-Chief, Portsmouth in 1827.

Stopford became Rear-Admiral of the United Kingdom in 1834. His last active post, in his early seventies, was as commander-in-chief of the Mediterranean fleet during the Syrian War against the forces of Mehemet Ali. As Vice Admiral on board HMS Princess Charlotte (100) and subsequently HMS Phoenix, he was in command of the combined British, Turkish, and Austrian fleet during the bombardment of Acre on 3 November 1840. For his services in the Syrian War, Stopford was given the Freedom of the City of London. The ornate silver and oak box is part of the collection of the National Maritime Museum, Greenwich. The following year he became Governor of the Greenwich Hospital, with the rank of Admiral.

Death.

He died on the 25th of June 1847 (aged 79)and is buried in Greenwich Hospital Cemetery. The cemetery was largely made into a pocket park in the late 19th century but his name is listed on the west face of the Officers in the centre of the park.

Rob.

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Captain Edward Berry.

Berry was born in 1768, the son of a London merchant who died at an early age leaving a widow, 5 daughters and 2 sons in perilous financial circumstances. His early education was provided by his uncle, the Rev. Titus Berry, in Norwich. It was under the patronage of one of Titus Berry's former pupils Lord Mulgrave, that in 1779 Berry entered the Navy as a volunteer aboard the Burford, at the age of 10.

Service in the French Revolutionary Wars.

As a reward for his gallantry in boarding a French ship, Berry was promoted to Lieutenant on 20 January 1794 and in May 1796 was appointed to HMS Agamemnon with Captain Nelson, whom he followed upon his move to HMS Captain in June. He was soon to win his commander's esteem, and in a letter to Admiral Sir John Jervis, Nelson wrote, 'I have as far as I have seen every reason to be satisfied with him [Berry], both as a gentleman and an officer'. On sending Nelson's report to the Admiralty, Jervis added 'Lieutenant Edward Berry, of whom the Commodore writes so highly, is a protégé of mine and I know him to be an officer of talents, great courage and laudable ambition'. Indeed, whilst Nelson was ashore during the siege of Porto Ferrajo, Berry commanded the ship in such a way as to make him the subject of his captain's 'fullest approbation', and he received the rank of Commander on 12 November 1796.
Whilst awaiting a posting he remained aboard HMS Captain during the Battle of Cape St Vincent in February 1797. Although Berry had no specific duties during the battle, he again displayed his courage when Nelson came alongside the Spanish ship San Nicholas and gave orders to board her. Wrote Nelson, 'The first man who jumped into the enemy's mizzen-chains was Captain Berry, late my first lieutenant; he was supported from our spritsail-yard, which hooked in the mizzen-rigging... Having pushed on to the quarter-deck, I found Captain Berry in possession of the poop, and the Spanish Ensign hauling down'.
In October of the same year Nelson was invested as a Knight of the Bath, accompanied on the occasion by Berry. When the King remarked upon the loss of Nelson's right arm, he wittily replied, indicating Berry, "But not my right hand, your majesty". It was agreed between them that when Nelson next hoisted his flag, Berry would be his Flag Captain.
With word of French plans to occupy Egypt, Nelson wrote to Berry in late 1797, 'If you mean to marry, I would recommend your doing it speedily, or the to-be Mrs. Berry will have very little of your company, for I am well, and you may expect to be called for every hour'. On 12 December Berry was indeed married to his cousin, Louisa Forster, and a week later appointed as Flag Captain of HMS Vanguard.

The Battle of the Nile and afterward.

On 1 August 1798, the campaign culminated in the explosive Battle of the Nile, at Aboukir Bay. During this, Nelson was struck on the head by a piece of flying langrage and fell, bleeding heavily, only to be caught by Captain Berry, to whom he uttered the words "I am killed. Remember me to my wife". His wound was slight, however, and he escaped with mild concussion. He was well enough that evening to witness the shattering explosion of the French battleship L'Orient. Only 4 of the 17 major French ships escaped destruction or capture and with French losses six times greater than those of the British, it was a triumphant victory.
After the battle, Hardy was promoted to Flag Captain and Berry embarked for Britain in HMS Leander, carrying Nelson's despatches. During the voyage, however, the Leander was accosted and captured by one of the two surviving French ships, the 74-gun Généreux, and Berry was severely wounded by a flying fragment of another man's skull, which was "driven through his arm". It was a bloody and courageous battle, as described by one of the main-deck gunners, Tim Stewart, "We fired everything at [the French] we could get hold of - crow-bars, nails, and all sorts... We killed nearly three hundred of them before we surrendered, and our brave captain ordered our colours to be hauled down."
As a result of his capture, Berry did not reach England until December, at which point the news of the Nile had already been received. However, he wrote in a letter that upon his return to Norwich, "the people received me with mad joy. In short, I'm so great a man that I'm very in and out everywhere to the great annoyance of my pocket and distress of my feelings." Berry's account of the Battle, titled Authentic Narrative of the proceedings of his Majesty's squadron under the command of the Rear-Admiral Sir Horatio Nelson... drawn up from the minutes of an officer of rank in the squadron was subsequently published in The Sun and The True Briton newspapers, and became a bestseller in pamphlet form. Britain revelled in Nile memorabilia, including ceramic jugs embossed with reliefs of Nelson and Berry - 'Heroes of the Nile'. On 12 December he was knighted and given the Freedom of the City of London. The ornate gold and enamel presentation box is part of the collection of the National Maritime Museum, Greenwich.
In the spring of 1799 he was appointed to HMS Foudroyant and sent to assist in the blockade of Malta. Here he assisted in the capture of Guillaume Tell and Généreux, the two French ships that escaped the Battle of the Nile, the latter being his own former captor.
On 30 March, Berry wrote to Nelson from the Foudroyant, "My very dear Lord, had you been a partaker with me of the glory, every wish would have been gratified. How very often I went into your cabin, last night, to ask if we were doing right; for, I had nothing to act upon!..." This goes some way towards illustrating Berry's dependence upon Nelson and perhaps helps to explain his failure to cultivate a more successful later career. Nelson himself confided in a letter to his wife Frances a few months earlier, "I shall be worn to death by being obliged to fag and think of those things which... excellent Captain Hardy takes entirely from me." There is no doubting Berry's supreme gallantry and general amiability, but he had a certain reputation for blustering foolhardiness. It was Thomas Hardy and not Berry who would become Nelson's indispensable right-hand man.
The following June, the Foudroyant carried the Queen of Naples from Palermo to Livorno, but a short time later Berry returned to England.

Later actions.

It was five years before Berry again took significant command. His failure to obtain a posting had left him feeling restless and somewhat slighted by the Admiralty, "A man's standing in the Service and his reputation all goes for nought," he wrote bitterly. It fell to Nelson to placate him, "It is vexing to be unemployed at such a moment, but it is useless to fret oneself to death when the folks aloft don't care a pin about it." It took a change of leadership in the Admiralty to present Berry with the chance of another commission. Nelson: "I sincerely hope, now that a change has taken place, that you will get a ship. I attribute none of the tyrannical conduct of the late Board to Lord St Vincent... he was dreadfully ill-advised."
The end to Berry's yearnings came on his arrival at Trafalgar in 1805, captain of HMS Agamemnon. "Here comes that fool Berry! Now we shall have a battle," exclaimed Nelson. Berry had rather a reputation as a fighter, though perhaps not as a master tactician, "Captain Codrington of HMS Orion found some wry amusement in seeing Berry in the Agamemnon blazing away for all he was worth, apparently at friend and foe alike", notes Oliver Warner in A Portrait of Lord Nelson. "It was typical of Berry's luck that, having long and restlessly awaited a new ship, he should have been given the Agamemnon, before having the infinite happiness of joining Nelson on the eve of his greatest battle." After a close escape from capture on her outward voyage, the Agamemnon had no particular opportunities for distinction at Trafalgar, and escaped the mêlée without heavy losses, engaging with the Santissima Trinidad and Admiral Dumanoir's division in the closing stages of the fight. At the battle's close, Berry took to his ship's boat in order to speak to Nelson on the Victory but by the time he arrived Nelson had just died, an unfortunate piece of timing which Berry would regret for the rest of his life.

San Domingo.

In 1806 Captain Berry fought in the Agamemnon at the battle of San Domingo, being highly praised for his actions. That same year he became a baronet and he remained in sea service throughout the war, subsequently commanding Sceptre during 1811, Barfleur the following year and one of the Royal Yachts.

Later career and last years.

He bought a house in Norwich in 1814. On 2 January 1815 he was made a Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath and on 19 July 1821 he became a Rear Admiral. During these years, despite constant entreaties to the Admiralty, he never took up further important postings. However, his record is exceptional. He was the only officer in the Royal Navy at the time, except Collingwood, to have had three medals, having commanded a line-of-battle ship in the Battle of the Nile, Trafalgar and San Domingo. Following several years of severe illness and extreme debility, he died on 13 February 1831 at his residence in Bath and was buried in a nearby churchyard where his grave can still be seen. Since he left no children, his baronetcy became extinct with his death.
Rob.

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Rear-Admiral Sir Thomas Louis.

Thomas Louis was born in 1758 to John and Elizabeth Louis. John was a schoolmaster in Exeter, and family legend maintained that his grandfather had been an illegitimate son of King Louis XIV, although this cannot be verified. Louis joined the Navy in 1769 aged eleven, and first went to sea aboard the sloop HMS Fly. In 1771 he moved to the larger HMS Southampton and under her captain John MacBride he subsequently moved to first HMS Orpheus and subsequently the ship of the line HMS Kent. In 1775 he gained his first experience of foreign service, joining HMS Martin on the Newfoundland Station.

War with America.

In 1776, at the outbreak of the American Revolutionary War, Louis joined the frigate HMS Thetis and in her returned to Europe, there joining the ship of the line HMS Bienfaisant. In this ship he was promoted to lieutenant the following year, and in 1778 participated at the First Battle of Ushant, a British victory in the Atlantic under Augustus Keppel. In 1780, Bienfaisant was engaged at the Battle of Cape St Vincent, where the ship was badly damaged in a bitter exchange with the larger Spanish battleship Phoenix. During the storm which followed the battle, Louis took command of the captured Phoenix and saw her safely to Gibraltar. A week before, at the Action of 8 January 1780, he had performed a similar feat with another captured Spanish ship of the line, the Guipuzcoana.
After repairs, Louis commanded Phoenix on her return to Britain and was rejoined there by the Bienfaisant. In this ship, Louis was subsequently involved in the capture of the large French privateer Comte d'Artois, which mounted 60 guns. In 1781, Louis moved with his captain to the frigate HMS Artois and was then given his first independent command, the small armed vessel HMS Mackworth and escorted coastal shipping off Plymouth. In 1782 he was posted to the impress service in Sligo and Cork and in early 1783 was made post captain. During the peace, Louis lived on his half-pay in reserve near Torquay. He married Jacquetta Belfield in early 1784 and the couple had seven children. His eldest son, John Louis would later become an admiral in his own right, and his third son fought with the Royal Horse Artillery at the Battle of Waterloo.

Captaincy.

In 1793 the French Revolutionary Wars broke out and Louis was immediately recalled to service to command HMS Cumberland in the Channel Fleet. In 1794 he moved to the new HMS Minotaur under the command of Admiral MacBride, and participated in the Atlantic campaign of May 1794, narrowly missing the Glorious First of June. In 1796 he convoyed supplies to the West Indies and then joined the Mediterranean fleet under Horatio Nelson. Two years later, Louis and Minotaur were present at the Battle of the Nile on 1 August 1798. At the battle, Minotaur fought a two-hour duel against Aquilon, ultimately forcing her surrender and there is a possibly apocryphal story that Louis was personally thanked by the seriously wounded Nelson, who is reported to have said "Farewell dear Louis, I shall never forget the obligation I am under to you for your brave and generous conduct; and now, whatever may become of me, my mind is at peace".
During 1799, Louis, under the command of Thomas Troubridge, participated in operations to disrupt the French invasion of Italy, seizing Civitavecchia and Louis personally entering Rome and raising the Union Flag over the city. In 1800, Minotaur was Lord Keith's flagship at the Siege of Genoa and the following year Louis commanded her at the invasion of Egypt. Following the Peace of Amiens, Louis briefly took command of HMS Conqueror. Less than a year later he was promoted to rear-admiral, raised his flag in the fourth rate HMS Leopard, commanded by Francis Austen, and oversaw 40 small craft seeking to disrupt French invasion preparations at Boulogne.

Trafalgar and San Domingo.

In 1805, Louis and Austen joined Nelson's fleet in the Mediterranean, taking over HMS Canopus. Canpous participated in the chase across the Atlantic after Villeneuve's fleet and the ensuing blockade of Cadiz. On 2 October, Nelson dispatched Canopus to Gibraltar to collect supplies for the fleet, despite strenuous objections from Louis that they would miss the forthcoming battle. Despite Nelson's assurances that they would not, on 21 October the Franco-Spanish fleet sallied out and was destroyed at the Battle of Trafalgar without Louis.
Disappointed at these events, Louis was sent under John Thomas Duckworth in late 1805 to pursue a French squadron that had reached the West Indies. The British force reached the French in February 1806 off the coast of San Domingo and in a lengthy battle drove the French flagship and another ship of the squadron ashore in flames and captured the rest. In reward of his service at this action, Louis was presented with a gold medal (his second after the Nile) and made a baronet. He returned to the Mediterranean later in the year, but had contracted an illness and spent sometime convalescing.
This period was disturbed in November 1806 however when Duckworth was sent by Lord Collingwood to reconnoitre the Dardanelles.
Three months later Louis led a division of Duckworth's force in a major attempt to force passage of the channel in what later became known as the Dardanelles Operation. Although Duckworth's force reached Constantinople they were heavily battered by enemy fire and were forced to withdraw soon afterwards, Canpous suffering severely from massive stone shot fired from Turkish cannon. For his service in this operation, Louis was highly praised by Duckworth.

Louis returned with the fleet to rejoin British forces in Alexandria, Egypt, but the unidentified sickness that had plagued him in the West Indies returned and he became gravely ill. He died in May 1807 and his body was transferred to Malta for burial, being interred at Manoel Island. His death was widely mourned in the fleet, particularly among the common sailors, with whom he had always been popular.

Rob.

[Bligh]

Captain Francis William Austen.

Born the son of the Reverend George Austen and Cassandra Austen (the daughter of the Reverend Thomas Leigh), and the brother of the novelist Jane Austen, Francis Austen joined the Royal Navy in April 1786. After graduating at the Royal Naval Academy at Portsmouth, he was appointed to the fifth-rate HMS Perseverance on the East Indies Station. Promoted to midshipman in December 1789, he joined the third-rate HMS Crown and then transferred to the fifth-rate HMS Minerva in November 1791. In HMS Minerva he took part in a blockade of the coast of Mysore.
Promoted to lieutenant on 28 December 1792, Austen transferred to the sloop HMS Despatch and then returned to England at the end of 1793. In March 1794 he joined the sloop Lark, a brig that was part of a fleet that evacuated British troops from Ostend and Nieuwpoort after the French captured the Netherlands during the French Revolutionary Wars. In March 1795 HMS Lark was part of a squadron that escorted Princess Caroline of Brunswick to England. Austen transferred to the fifth-rate HMS Andromeda in May 1795 and to the second-rate HMS Glory in Autumn 1795. In HMS Glory he escorted the troops of General Ralph Abercromby destined for the West Indies in December 1795. He moved to the fifth-rate HMS Shannon in early 1796, to the fifth-rate HMS Triton in September 1796 and to the fifth-rate HMS Seahorse in March 1797. He then joined the second-rate HMS London in February 1798 and took part in the blockade of Cádiz. After securing the patronage of Admiral Lord Gambier, he was promoted to commander on 3 January 1799 and became commanding officer of the sloop HMS Peterel in February 1799. In HMS Peterel he captured some 40 ships, was present at the capture of a French squadron in June 1799 and led an operation when the French brig Ligurienne was captured and two others were driven ashore off Marseille in March 1800. He also took part in the blockade of Genoa in May 1800 and, having been promoted to captain on 13 May 1800, was present at the blockade of Abu Qir in August 1800.
Austen became Flag Captain to Lord Gambier, in the second-rate HMS Neptune in August 1801 and earned a reputation for seeing to the welfare and health of his men. On the outbreak of Napoleonic Wars he was appointed to raise and organise a corps of Sea Fencibles at Ramsgate to defend a strip of the Kentish coast. He went on to be commanding officer of the fourth-rate HMS Leopard, flagship of Rear Admiral Sir Thomas Louis, in May 1804 and then took part in the blockade of Boulogne. He next became commanding officer of the third-rate HMS Canopus, a French ship of the line captured in the Battle of the Nile (as the Franklin), early in 1805. In HMS Canopus he took part in the pursuit of the French Fleet, under the command of Admiral Pierre-Charles Villeneuve, to the West Indies and back in Summer 1805.

San Domingo.

Austen was temporarily detached from the fleet for convoy duty in the Mediterranean and missed the Battle of Trafalgar. However, he did command HMS Canopus at the Battle of San Domingo, leading the lee line of ships into the battle, in February 1806. He went on to be commanding officer of the third-rate HMS St Albans in March 1807. On 13 July 1808, the East India Company gave Austen £420 with which to buy a piece of plate: this was a substantial gift (perhaps the equivalent of a year's salary) in thanks for his having safely convoyed to Britain from Saint Helena seven of their Indiamen, plus one extra (voyage chartered) ship. In HMS St Albans he observed the Battle of Vimeiro from the deck of his ship in August 1808 and then embarked British troops retreating after the Battle of Corunna in January 1809.
Austen became Flag Captain to Lord Gambier, Commander-in-Chief of the Channel Squadron, in the first-rate HMS Caledonia in September 1810. He went on to be commanding officer of the third-rate HMS Elephant in the North Sea in 1811 and took part in a blockade of the Scheldt. In HMS Elephant he captured the United States privateer Swordfish in December 1812 during the War of 1812. He was appointed a Companion of the Order of the Bath on 4 June 1815.

Senior command.


Promoted to Rear Admiral on 22 July 1830, Austen was advanced to Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath on 28 February 1837 and promoted to vice admiral on 28 June 1838. He became Commander-in-Chief, North America and West Indies Station, with his flag in the third-rate HMS Vindictive, in December 1844. His main role was to protect British commercial interests during the Mexican–American War, which broke out in 1846, and to disrupt the activities of slave traders. Promoted to full admiral on 1 August 1848, he was advanced to Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath on 18 May 1860 before being appointed Rear-Admiral of the United Kingdom on 5 June 1862 and then Vice-Admiral of the United Kingdom on 11 December 1862. He was promoted to Admiral of the Fleet on 27 April 1863.
Austen died at his home Portsdown Lodge at Widley in Hampshire on 10 August 1865 and was buried in the churchyard at St Peter and St Paul, Wymering, Portsmouth.

Family.


In July 1806 Austen married Mary Gibson (eldest daughter of John Gibson); they had ten children. Following the death of his first wife, he married Martha Lloyd (eldest daughter of the Reverend Noyes Lloyd) in July 1828; they had no children. Austen's siblings included Jane Austen, the novelist, Cassandra Austen, the watercolor painter, and Charles Austen, another naval officer.

Rob.

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Captain Pulteney Malcolm.


1778–1793, Midshipman to Lieutenant.

He entered the navy in 1778, during the American Revolutionary War, on the books of the Sibyl, commanded by his uncle, Captain Pasley. With Pasley he afterwards served in the Jupiter, in the squadron under Commodore George Johnstone, and was present at the action in Porto Praya and at the capture of the Dutch Indiamen in Saldanha Bay. In 1782 the Jupiter carried out Admiral Pigot to the West Indies. Malcolm was thus brought under the admiral's notice, was taken by him into the flagship, and some months later, on 3 March 1783, was promoted to be lieutenant of the Jupiter.
He continued serving during the peace, and in 1793, at the beginning of the French Revolutionary Wars, was first lieutenant of the Penelope frigate on the Jamaica stationn, under the command of Captain Bartholomew Rowley. The Penelope's service was peculiarly active. In company with the Iphigenia she captured the French frigate Inconstante, on the coast of San Domingo, on 25 November 1793; she captured or cut out many privateers or merchant vessels; and Malcolm, as first lieutenant, commanded her boats in several sharp conflicts.

1794–1804, Post-Captain.

Early in 1794 Commodore Ford took him into his flagship the Europa, and on 3 April promoted him to the command of the Jack Tar, which he took to England. On 22 October he was posted, and a few days later appointed to the Fox frigate. In February 1795 he convoyed a fleet of merchant ships to the Mediterranean; thence he went to Quebec, and afterwards was employed for some time in the North Sea. Later on he was sent out to the East Indies, and towards the end of 1797 into the China Seas, under the command of Captain Edward Cooke, in whose company he entered Manila Bay under false colours, on 14 January 1798 in the bloodless Raid on Manila, and carried off three Spanish gunboats. After some further cruising among the islands the Fox returned to India, where, on 18 June, Malcolm was appointed by Rear-Admiral Rainier to be his flag captain in the Suffolk, and afterwards in the Victorious. He continued to serve in this capacity during the war. On her homeward passage, in 1803, the Victorious proved exceedingly leaky, and, meeting with heavy weather in the North Atlantic, was with difficulty kept afloat till she reached the Tagus, where she was run ashore and broken up. Malcolm, with the officers and crew, returned to England in two vessels which he chartered at Lisbon.

1804–1805, Battle of Trafalgar.

In February 1804 Malcolm went out to the Mediterranean in the Royal Sovereign, in which, on her arrival, Sir Richard Bickerton hoisted his flag, and Malcolm was appointed to the Kent, then with Nelson blockading Toulon. He was, however, almost immediately sent to Naples, where, or in the neighbourhood, he remained during the year. His transfer to the Renown in July did not change his station. It was not till the beginning of 1805 that he was permitted to rejoin the flag, and to exchange into the Donegal, in time to take part in the celebrated pursuit of the French fleet to the West Indies (see Horatio Nelson). On the return of the fleet to the Channel, the Donegal, with others, was sent to reinforce Collingwood off Cadiz, and was still there when Nelson resumed the command on 28 September.
On 17 October Donegal was sent to Gibraltar for water and a hurried refit. On the 20th Malcolm learnt that the combined fleet was coming out of Cadiz. His ship was then in the Mole, nearly dismantled; but by the greatest exertions he got her out that night, and on the 22nd she sailed from Gibraltar with her foreyard towing alongside. It was blowing a gale from the westward, but she succeeded in getting through the Straits, and on the morning of the 24th rejoined the fleet, too late for the battle of Trafalgar, fought on the 21st, but in time to render most valuable assistance to the disabled ships and more disabled prizes. She captured the Rayo, which had made a sally from Cadiz on the 23rd; and in the night of the 24th, when some of the prisoners on board the French ship Berwick cut the cable and let her go on shore, on which she almost immediately broke up, the Donegal's boats succeeded in saving a considerable number of her men. She afterwards took charge of the Spanish prize Bahama, and brought her to Gibraltar. Writing to Sir Thomas Pasley on 16 December Collingwood said: "Everybody was sorry Malcolm was not there [sic. at Trafalgar], because everybody knows his spirit, and his skill would have acquired him honour. He got out of the Gut when nobody else could, and was of infinite service to us after the action."

1806–1816, Captain to Rear-admiral.

San Domingo.

The Donegal continued off to cruise off Cadiz till the close of the year, when she sailed for the West Indies with Sir John Duckworth, and took an important part in the battle of San Domingo, 6 February 1806. Malcolm was afterwards sent home in charge of the prizes, and in a very heavy gale rescued the crew of the Brave as she was on the point of foundering. He received the gold medal for St. Domingo, and was presented by the Patriotic Fund with a vase valued at a hundred guineas. In 1808 he was engaged in convoying troops to the Peninsula, and in 1809, still in the Donegal, was attached to the Channel Fleet, then commanded by Lord Gambier, and took part in the battle of the Basque Roads. In November 1810 Malcolm led an attack on a French frigate squadron anchored at Saint-Vaast-la-Hougue at the Action of 15 November 1810, which ultimately led to the destruction of the Elisa.
The Donegal was paid off in 1811, and Malcolm was appointed to the Royal Oak, which he commanded off Cherbourg till March 1812, when he accepted the post of captain of the fleet to Lord Keith, his uncle by marriage. He was promoted to be rear-admiral on 4 December 1813, but remained with Keith till June 1814, when, with his flag in the Royal Oak, he convoyed a detachment of the army from Bordeaux to North America, and served during the war with the United States as third in command under Sir Alexander Cochrane and Rear-admiral (afterwards Sir) George Cockburn. On 2 January 1815 he was nominated a K.C.B., and during "The Hundred Days' War" commanded a squadron in the North Sea, in co-operation with the army under the Duke of Wellington.

1816–1838, Commander-in-chief.

In 1816–17 he was Commander-in-chief on the Saint Helena station, specially appointed to enforce a rigid blockade of the island and to keep a close guard on Napoleon Bonaparte. He was advanced to vice-admiral on 19 July 1821, and Commander-in-Chief, Mediterranean Fleet from 1828 to 1831. In 1832 he commanded on the coast of Holland, with the fleets of France and Spain under his orders; and in 1833–4 was again commander-in-chief in the Mediterranean. He was nominated a G.C.M.G. on 21 January 1829, and a G.C.B. on 26 April 1833.
In the final years of his life, he became Chairman of the Oriental Club which had been founded by his brother General Sir John Malcolm.

Death.

He attained the rank of Admiral of the Blue in 1837. He died at East Lodge, Enfield, London, on 20 July 1838.

Rob.

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Captain Samuel Pym.

He was brother to Sir William Pym.

Early Career.

In June 1788, Pym joined the Royal Navy as captain's servant of the frigate Eurydice. He was promoted to lieutenant of the sloop Martin, under Captain William Grenville Lobb, and served under Lobb aboard the Babet and the Aimable.

From November 1798, Pym served aboard the Ethalion (36), taking part in the capture of the Spanish Thetis and Santa-Brigida in 1799. The Ethalion was wrecked on the Penmarks on Christmas Day.

San Domingo.

From April 1804, Pym served aboard the Mars, and from June on the 74-gun Atlas, under the overall command of Sir John Thomas Duckworth. Pym was decorated after the Battle of San Domingo, on 6 February 1806.
In October 1808, Pym took command of the 36-gun frigate Sirius, in the squadron of Commodore Rowley.
In 1810, Pym was sent to the Isle de France (now Mauritius) to lead a squadron consisting of the frigates Sirius, Iphigenia, Nereide, and the brig Staunch. On 13 August, the squadron captured the Île de la Passe which commanded the entrance of Grand Port, and moved to blockade Port Louis. On 21 August, the squadron seized the East Indiaman Wyndham, previously captured by the French, and learnt that a French frigate squadron had arrived at Grand Port.

The British squadron attempted to attack the French squadron at anchor and moved into the harbour. Entering it, the Sirius and Magicienne ran aground and became unmanoeuverable. The Nereide struck her colours before the French frigates, and the Sirius and Magicienne were scuttled by fire. The last ship of the squadron, the Iphigenia, surrendered two days later. Pym, then at the Île de la Passe, was taken prisoner along with the whole garrison. The Battle of Grand Port became the only defeat of a British squadron against Napoleonic France. Pym was released in December when Sir Albemarle Bertie recaptured the Île de la Passe. He was court-martialled and found innocent of the defeat.

In February 1812, Pym was in command of the 74-gun ship Hannibal, off Cherbourg, in May of the Niemen, and in 1830 of HMS Kent.

Pym was made a Rear Admiral in 1837. He served as Admiral-Superintendent at Devonport from 1841 to 1846, and in the autumn of 1845 commanded the experimental squadron in the Channel. He was promoted to vice-admiral in 1847 and to full admiral in 1851.
He died in 1855.
Rob.

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Captain Richard Dalling Dunn.

He was Baptised at St Michael Queenhythe on the 6th of Aug 1767 the son of James and Elizabeth Dunn.
He entered the Navy on the 9th of December 1779, as a Supernumerary, on board the Sybil.
Appointed Midshipman or Master's Mate on 26 September 1781. His Examination for Lieutenant took place on 1 October 1788, at Somerset House, Westminster, followed by his
Promotion to that rank on the 22nd of November 1790.


Advanced to Commander on the 24th of December 1798, he was appointed to Aurore,32 as Commanding Officer.
It was Nelson himself who gave him his first ship, although he almost always served under Admiral Duckworth.
Hence his son being Richard Duckworth Dunn.
During the period 1799 to 1801 he also commanded the Fireship Incendiary and later the Sloop Fairy.
He faced court-martial after he surrendered the fire ship Incendiary to Adm. Ganteaume, after a long chase, but was exonerated when evidence showed that she was only carrying 7 guns at the time (apart from being totally out-classed).

He gained the rank of Post-Captain : on 29 October 1801. and became Commanding Officer of the Fifth Rate Frigate HMS Southampton, From 1802 to the end of 1803 he took command of Leviathan 74, and then transferred to the Second Rate Formidable from 1804/09 until 1805/05, when he took command of the Acasta 40, a post which he held until September 1806.

San Domingo.

He took part in the battle of San Domingo in Acasta as a support but was not engaged.

Then led the capture of Curacao, and commanded the flagship Royal George, in the attempt to force a passage at the Dardanelles.
From 1810 to 1812 he commanded the Frigate Armide and his final command was the Third Rate HMS Dublin 74. from 1812 to 1813.

He had a quite remarkable career, and at least two of his exploits were used in the Hornblower books.

However he disgraced himself in some way and Charlotte seems to have distanced herself from her husband.

Dunn died at Stonehouse, Plymouth, Devon on the11th of June,1813 and was buried at Teigngrace 24 June 1813.
The careful wording on his memorial in the church, has no mention of his young wife or son inscribed upon it, but carries the armorials of John Dun of Perth, which were granted in 1803.

It is possible that he may have taken his own life.

The circumstances of his death appear to have been deliberately covered up.

Rob.

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Captain Adam Mackenzie.

He was an officer of the British Royal Navy who served during the American, French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, being present at numerous fleet actions, as well as serving as successful ship captain.

Early career.

Mackenzie was present as a midshipman in several actions between the British and French during the American War: under Augustus Keppel at Ushant in 1778; under John Byron at Grenada in 1779; under Rodney at Cape St. Vincent and Martinique in 1780; and the relief of Gibraltar under Earl Howe in 1782. He was eventually commissioned as a lieutenant on 3 March 1790, and was present as the first lieutenant of the frigate Southampton at the Glorious First of June in 1794.

HMS Pylades.

Promoted to commander on 22 June 1796, he appointed to command of the 16-gun sloop Pylades. In May 1797 he was sent by the Port Admiral at Sheerness to negotiate with the mutineers at the Nore, and also assisted in securing the dockyard from any attempt by the mutineers to capture it.
Pylades was then stationed principally off the Dutch coast, where Mackenzie greatly distinguished himself.

In July 1797 he recaptured the Thetis, Ocean, John, and Swan.
In April and May 1798 he captured the fishing vessels Staadt Altona and De Hoop.
On 27 March 1799 he captured the Noyt Gedacht and Goode Hoop.
On 12 May 1799 Pylades and Ranger captured the Vrow Etje.
Pylades was part of a squadron led by Captain Frank Sotheron in the frigate Latona, composed of the frigate Astraea, the brig-sloop Cruizer, the sloops Ranger and Busy, the hired cutters Courier, Fox and Diligent, and the hired lugger Speculator, that captured six Dutch ships between March and May 1799. Pylades received a share of the prize money paid for three of them; Vinnern (5 May), Jonge Picter (7 May) and Ferwagting (14 May), but after deductions for the cases of six other ships (presumably disallowed by the prize court), Mackenzie's share came to only £31 13s 0d.

On 10 July 1799, he led an attack by boats near the island of Ameland, bringing out three valuable merchantmen, and burnt a galliot, loaded with ordnance stores.

Mackenzie's most notable action during this time took place on 11 August 1799, when Pylades, accompanied by the 14-gun sloop Espiegle, under Captain James Boorder, and the 12-gun hired cutter Courier, under Lieutenant Thomas Searle, reinforced with men and boats from the frigates Latona and Juno, were sent to recapture the Crash, a former British gun-brig, which lay moored between the island of Schiermonnikoog and the mainland of Groningen. The Courier, faster and smaller than her companions, was sent ahead to engage the Crash, despite being heavily outgunned, with Courier mounting only twelve 4-pounder guns, while Crash was armed with eight 18-pounders, two 24-pounders and two 32-pounders, all carronades. Sailing into the wind in the narrow and shallow channel delayed the arrival of Pylades and Espiegle, however they eventually arrived to within pistol-shot of Crash, which surrendered after a determined resistance. At the same time the boats of Pylades, Latona and Juno pursued a large armed schooner, forcing her to run ashore to avoid capture, before capturing a schuyt. Lieutenant James Slade of the Latona was given command of Crash, and Lieutenant Salusbury Pryce Humphreys of Juno that of the schuyt, which Mackenzie armed with two 12-pounder carronades and named Undaunted.

Two days later, on the afternoon of the 13th, the British returned to attack a shore battery of six guns on Schiermonnikoog, and the schooner Vengeance, armed with two long 24-pounders, four guns of smaller calibre, and 70 men, which was lying with a large row-boat, and several merchant vessels, near the island. Crash and Undaunted, accompanied by the launches of the Latona and Pylades, each mounting a 12-pounder carronade, and several smaller boats armed with swivels and muskets, all under the command of Lieutenant Slade, approached to attack. Unfortunately, Crash grounded too far out to aid to Lieutenant Humphreys in Undaunted, who steered towards the Vengeance, arriving alongside just after her crew had abandoned her. The strong tide, and the tumblehome of both ships prevented Humphreys jumping aboard, so he attempted to swim across with a rope, but was defeated by the strong current and was hauled back to the Undaunted. This was fortunate, for he had only just returned to his own ship when the Vengeance exploded, her crew having left a fuze burning in the magazine. In the meantime the boats had landed on Schiermonnikoog, captured the battery and spiked the guns. Assisted by Undaunted they then brought off two brass field pieces, the row-boat, and twelve schuyts. In 1847 the Admiralty authorised the issue to the surviving claimants of the Naval General Service Medal with clasp "Schiermonnikoog 12 Augt. 1799".

Frigate captain.

Mackenzie was then present at the capture of the Dutch fleet of Vice-Admiral Samuel Story on 30 August 1799, and was promoted to post-captain on 2 September. He remained on half-pay until October 1801, when was appointed to the 28-gun Brilliant, commanding her until March 1802, when the Treaty of Amiens brought a temporary peace.

At the renewal of the war in May 1803, Mackenzie was given command of the frigate Magicienne, and was employed in the blockade of the enemy's coast into the following year. He then escorted vessels taking 10 troops of horse and 1,000 infantry to the West Indies, where he had several skirmishes with the enemy's batteries, and destroyed many vessels. On 25 January 1806, in the Mona Passage, Magicienne and the sloop Penguin captured the Spanish packet El Carmen after a chase lasting 12 hours. The Spaniard was pierced for 14 guns, but mounted only two, and had a crew of 18 men.

San Domingo.

Magicienne also formed part of the squadron under Sir John T. Duckworth at the Battle of San Domingo on 6 February 1806. Mackenzie was subsequently ordered to escort a convoy from Jamaica to England. Soon after leaving the Gulf of Mexico, a hurricane struck, sinking twenty vessels, and obliging him to sail for Bermuda to repair damage.

Ship of the line.

In 1807 Mackenzie was 2nd Captain of the Prince of Wales, the flagship of Admiral James Gambier, at the Second Battle of Copenhagen. On his return he was appointed to the frigate President, and soon after ordered to Brazil; from where Sir W. Sidney Smith sent him to negotiate with the Viceroy of Buenos Aires Santiago de Liniers for the opening of the South American ports to English commerce. On his return, he served under Rear-Admiral Michael de Courcy, who sent his ship to Rio de Janeiro, to attend upon and afford protection to the Portuguese royal family. Before his departure, Mackenzie received the insignia of the Portuguese Order of the Tower and Sword. From August 1810 until January 1812 he commanded the 74-gun Armada in the Channel and North Sea.

Post-war career.

On 13 May 1820, Mackenzie was appointed to command of the frigate Creole, and in January 1821 to the ship Superb to serve on the coast of South America. He rounded Cape Horn into the Pacific a few months later, during the southern winter, to protect British interests and property during the Wars of Independence. Superb was stationed as a guard ship at Plymouth by mid-1822.

Death.

Mackenzie died in November 1823 and was buried at Stoke, his funeral attended by over 300 sailors and Royal Marines. The event was controversial, as after his death a woman had emerged claiming to be Mackenzie's secret wife and laying claim to his inheritance. The local vicar, Mr. Ley, carried out an investigation and determined that the woman had once been a mistress of Captain Mackenzie. Upon the end of their relationship she had conducted a marriage with a shipwright named George Condy, who had posed as Captain Mackenzie. Condy was confronted about the accusations and committed suicide, while the woman was arrested for attempting to fraudulently lay claim to Mackenzie's military pension.

Rob.

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Commander Nathaniel Day Cochrane.

He was born in Québec, and (baptized on the. 22nd of November 1780 , the illegitimate son of Paymaster Hon. John Cochrane, third (surviving) son of Thomas Cochrane, 8th Earl of Dundonald, and Geneviève Dulan.
Nathaniel had a sister, Angelica, a brother, Colonel James Johnson Cochrane of the 3rd Guards, and a half-brother (probably) John Cochrane, a lawyer. This John Cochrane may have been John Cochrane the well-known chess master.
Cochrane entered the Navy in 1794 and received a promotion to Lieutenant in 1800. In 1805 he was promoted to Commander and assumed command of Kingfisher.

San Domingo.

While on the West Indies Station he captured several vessels before bringing news to Sir John Thomas Duckworth's squadron that three French ships of the line had been sighted sailing towards Santo Domingo.
He was posted with date of seniority of 26 March 1806, on his return to England with the news of the Battle of San Domingo in which his uncle Admiral Alexander Cochrane had fought.
He subsequently commanded the frigates Alexandria and Orontes on the North Sea and Cape of Good Hope stations.
In 1812 he took command of the 74-gun third-rate ship of the line Asia, and remained her commander until 1814.
On 23 November 1841 he was promoted to Rear-Admiral of the Blue.
Rear Admiral Cochrane died on 16 November 1844 at his brother's house at Bathford, Somerset. He never married, but had an illegitimate daughter, Emily (born 1825; died a spinster 1919).

Rob.

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Lieutenant James Higginson.

Event History

Date from	Date to	Event
1779/08/05		Lieutenant
1799/10	1799	Princess of Wales, as Commanding Officer
1806/01/22	1807/03/23	Epervier, as Commanding Officer
1806/02/06		Action of San Domingo

Lieutenant James Higginson (acting) assumed command of Epervier in January 1806. On 6 February Epervier was with the squadron under Vice Admiral, Sir John Duckworth in Superb, which took or destroyed five sail of the line in the Battle of San Domingo. Higginson's Brig was too small to take part in the battle but she did share in the prize money. In 1847 Her crew also qualified for the Naval General Service Medal with clasp "St. Domingo".

Rob.

[TexaS]

The French squadron:

http://sailsofglory.org/showthread.p...rench-Squadron

[TexaS]

My variant of the ships as used for the battle, before the release of 80s and 64s.

http://sailsofglory.org/showthread.p...le-San-Domingo

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Thanks for the link Jonas.
That will certainly help anyone wishing to have a go at this action.
Rob.