Pellew at Batavia.

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The Raid on Batavia of 27 November 1806 was an attempt by a large British naval force to destroy the Dutch squadron based on Java in the Dutch East Indies that posed a threat to British shipping in the Straits of Malacca. The British admiral in command of the eastern Indian Ocean, Rear-Admiral Sir Edward Pellew, led a force of four ships of the line, two frigates and brig to the capital of Java at Batavia (later renamed Djakarta), in search of the squadron, which was reported to consist of a number of Dutch ships of the line and several smaller vessels. However the largest Dutch ships had already sailed eastwards towards Griessie over a month earlier, and Pellew only discovered the frigate Phoenix and a number of smaller warships in the bay, all of which were driven ashore by their crews rather than engage Pellew's force. The wrecks were subsequently burnt and Pellew, unaware of the whereabouts of the main Dutch squadron, returned to his base at Madras for the winter.

The raid was the third of series of actions intended to eliminate the threat posed to British trade routes by the Dutch squadron: at the Action of 26 July 1806 and the Action of 18 October 1806, British frigates sent on reconnaissance missions to the region succeeded in attacking and capturing two Dutch frigates and a number of other vessels. The raid reduced the effectiveness of Batavia as a Dutch base, but the continued presence of the main Dutch squadron at Griessie concerned Pellew and he led a second operation the following year to complete his defeat of the Dutch. Three years later, with the French driven out of the western Indian Ocean, British forces in the region were strong enough to prepare an expeditionary force against the Dutch East Indies, which effectively ended the war in the east.

Background.

In early 1806, Pellew was relieved by the news that a large French squadron under Rear-Admiral Charles Linois had sailed out of the Indian Ocean and into the Atlantic. The departure of Linois after three years of operations in eastern waters freed Pellew's small squadron based at Madras for operations against the Dutch East Indies. Pellew's particular target was the island of Java, where the principal Dutch squadron and their base at Batavia were located. The Dutch Kingdom of Holland was a French client state under Emperor Napoleon's brother Louis Bonaparte and Batavia had been used by Linois in his preparations for the Battle of Pulo Aura, in which a valuable British convoy came under attack, and its position close to the Straits of Malacca threatened British trade with China.

Pellew's departure for the East Indies was delayed by the Vellore Mutiny in the spring, and instead he sent frigates to reconnoitre the situation of the Dutch forces in the region. In July, HMS Greyhound under Captain Edward Elphinstone cruised in the Molucca Islands and captured a Dutch convoy at the Action of 26 July 1806 off Celebes. Three months later another frigate, HMS Caroline under Captain Peter Rainier, cruised successfully in the Java Sea and managed to capture a Dutch frigate at the Action of 18 October 1806 from the entrance to Batavia harbour. Shortly before Rainier's engagement, the principal ships of the Dutch squadron, the two ships of the line Pluto and Revolutie, had sailed westwards towards the port of Griessie, Rear-Admiral Hartsinck seeking to divide his forces in preparation for the coming British attack to prevent their complete destruction.

Pellew sailed from Madras in the early autumn of 1806, expecting the full Dutch squadron to be present and preparing accordingly with the ship of the line HMS Culloden under Captain Christopher Cole as his flagship, accompanied by HMS Powerful under Captain Robert Plampin, HMS Russell under Captain Thomas Gordon Caulfield and HMS Belliqueux under Captain George Byng. The ships of the line were accompanied by the frigate HMS Terpsichore under Captain Fleetwood Pellew, Admiral Pellew's son, as well as the brig HMS Seaflower under Lieutenant William Fitzwilliam Owen.

Pellew's attack.

By 23 November, Pellew's squadron was approaching the Sunda Strait from the southwest when he encountered the British frigate HMS Sir Francis Drake, which he attached to his force. Three days later, the squadron passed the port of Bantam and seized the Dutch East India Company brig Maria Wilhelmina, continuing on to Batavia during the night. At the approaches to the port, the squadron separated, with the frigates and brig passing between Onrust Island and the shore while the ships of the line took a longer route through deeper water. Although Terpsichore was able to surprise and capture the corvette William near Onrust Island, the main body of the squadron was spotted by Dutch lookouts from a distance, who initially mistook the approaching vessels for a French squadron. The Dutch officers, led by Captain Vander Sande on the frigate Phoenix, decided that resistance against such a large British squadron was useless: the only warships remaining in the harbour were the Phoenix and six small armed ships, none of which could contend with the approaching British force. In an effort to dissuade the British from pressing their attack, the Dutch captains all drove their vessels ashore, joined by the 22 merchant vessels that were anchored in the harbour.

Determined to prevent the Dutch from refloating the grounded ships, Admiral Pellew ordered landing parties to assemble in the boats of his squadron alongside Terpsichore. From there, under distant covering fire from the British frigates, Fleetwood Pellew led the boats against Phoenix, coming under fire from the grounded vessels and gun batteries ashore. Passing through the bombardment from the shoreline, Pellew's men boarded Phoenix to find that the Dutch crew had just abandoned the vessel, scuttling the frigate as they departed. Although now useless as a ship, Phoenix's guns were turned on the other beached vessels to cover the British boats as they spread out to board and burn them. This operation was followed by the destruction of 20 grounded merchant ships in the harbour, although two others were successfully refloated and captured. In a final act before withdrawing to the squadron offshore, Captain Pellew set fire to the wreck of Phoenix, burning the ship to the waterline. The entire operation was conducted under heavy fire from the shore, but British casualties were only one Royal Marine killed and three men wounded.

Without sufficient troops to attempt a landing at Batavia itself, Admiral Pellew withdrew from the harbour. Preparing his prizes for the return to Madras, he ordered all prisoners taken from the captured and burnt ships returned to shore under condition of parole. The captured William was found to be in such a poor state of repair that it was not worth keeping the corvette and Admiral Pellew ordered the ship burnt, noting in his official report that Lieutenant Owen, who as senior lieutenant would otherwise have been placed in command, should be recompensed with another command as reward for his services in the engagement. With his preparations complete, Pellew then ordered his squadron to disperse, Culloden sailing to Malacca.

Aftermath.

The British raid on Batavia had destroyed 28 vessels. In addition to Phoenix, William and the merchant ships, Pellew's squadron had burnt the 18-gun brigs Aventurier and Patriot, the 14-gun Zee-Ploeg, the 10-gun Arnistein, the 8-gun Johanna Suzanna and the 6-gun Snelheid. Just three ships were captured: two merchant vessels and Maria Wilhelmina. The elimination of the smaller vessels of the Dutch squadron was an important victory for Pellew, leaving only the larger ships of the line at large. These ships were old and in poor condition, limiting the threat they posed to British trade routes. Nevertheless, Pellew returned to the Java Sea in 1807 in search of the warships, destroying them at the Raid on Griessie in November, a year after the success at Batavia. A lack of resources in the region and the threat posed by the French Indian Ocean island bases delayed larger scale British operations against the East Indies until 1810, when a series of invasions rapidly eliminated the remaining Dutch presence in the Pacific.

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Date 27 November 1806 Location Batavia, Java, Dutch East Indies Result British victory
Belligerents
United Kingdom	Kingdom of Holland
Commanders and leaders
Rear-Admiral Sir Edward Pellew	Rear-Admiral Hartsinck
Strength
Four ships of the line, two frigates and a brig	Frigate Phoenix, eight small warships and support from gun batteries on shore
Casualties and losses
One killed, four wounded	Casualties unknown, Phoenix, seven small warships and 20 merchant ships destroyed. One brig and two merchant ships captured.

GREAT BRITAIN.

HMS Culloden- Captain Christopher Cole.

HMS Powerful- Captain Robert Plampin.

HMS Russell- Captain Thomas Gordon Caulfield.

HMS Belliqueux- Captain George Byng.

Frigate HMS Terpsichore- Captain Fleetwood Pellew.

Brig HMS Seaflower- Lieutenant William Fitzwilliam Owen.

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Captain Christopher Cole.



Christopher Cole was born in June 1770, the son of Humphrey and Phillis Cole, in Marazion, Cornwall. In May 1780 at age nine, Cole was sent to sea to accompany his brother John, chaplain on the Royal Navy ship of the line HMS Royal Oak under Captain Sir Digby Dent. Royal Oak was stationed off North America at the time, participating in the American Revolutionary War, and Cole subsequently accompanied Dent to HMS Raisonnable and then HMS Russell, the flagship of Commodore Sir Samuel Drake in the West Indies. While serving on Russell, Cole was engaged at the Battle of Fort Royal in April 1781. In June 1781, Cole moved ships again, joining HMS Princessa with Drake. Princessa served in numerous actions over the following year, including the Battle of the Chesapeake in September 1781, the Battle of St. Kitts in January 1782 and the Battle of the Saintes in April 1782. Following the Treaty of Versailles that ended the war, Cole remained in service aboard his brother Commander Francis Cole's 14-gun brig-sloop HMS Trepassey at Halifax. In May 1783, Cole moved to HMS Atalanta under Captain Thomas Foley and remained on board until February 1785 when he moved to the frigate HMS Winchelsea under the command of Captain Edward Pellew. Pellew and Cole were to have a lengthy and close working relationship over the next twenty years. Cole was in Winchelsea for three years before moving to HMS Crown at the recommendation of Drake. Crown was sent to the East Indies under Commodore William Cornwallis later in 1789, and Cole, who had passed his lieutenant's examination in January was frustrated by the lengthy delay in his promotion, occasioned by distance and the death of Drake in November.

War with France.

Cole remained in the East Indies for the next four years, moving from Crown to HMS Minerva under Cornwallis and in June 1793 becoming an acting lieutenant aboard HMS Bien Aime under Captain Richard King. In September 1793, more than four years after passing his examinations, Cole was finally promoted to lieutenant and the following year joined HMS Cerberus off Ireland under Captain John Drew, at the direct order of Lord Chatham who ensured that Cole was the most senior lieutenant aboard despite his recent promotion. In June 1795, Cole moved to HMS Sans Pareil in the West Indies under Captain Lord Hugh Seymour and in 1799 took part in the invasion of Surinam, for which service Seymour awarded him promotion to commander in the prize ship HMS Surinam.

During his time in command of Surinam, Cole achieved a number of successful cruises, including the capture of two privateers and the recapture of a merchant schooner in March 1800, and introduced new regulations aboard his ship that kept his men in good health in the Caribbean Sea. In 1801, Seymour died from a fever, but Cole's activities had already been noticed by Sir John Thomas Duckworth who replaced Seymour and Cole was made a post captain on 30 June 1801 in Duckworth's flagship HMS Leviathan, followed by command of the frigate HMS Southampton the following year. Shortly after taking command of Southampton the Peace of Amiens brought the Revolutionary Wars to an end and the frigate was paid off.

Within a year the Napoleonic Wars had begun, and Cole was returned to active service, chosen by Pellew, now a rear-admiral, to command his flagship HMS Culloden. Pellew was sent out to the Indian Ocean in 1804, and Cole remained with him there for three years, participating in the Java campaign of 1806–1807. The stress of service in the Far East caused the relationship between the two men to break down, and in March 1807 Cole took command of the new frigate HMS Doris.

In 1808, Doris was detached from Pellew's command to escort a diplomatic mission under John Malcolm to Fath Ali Shah, the ruler of Persia. Throughout the mission, Cole remained at Bushire in the Persian Gulf and was rewarded for his service with the thanks of the Governor General of India and a £500 award, but his conduct was publicly criticised by Pellew.

Following Pellew's replacement by Rear-Admiral William O'Bryen Drury, Doris was sent to serve in the Strait of Malacca, on a mission to obtain a working relationship with the Spanish government in the Philippines. For his successful efforts he was given command of the frigate HMS Caroline in 1809 and the following year was given command of a squadron with which to attack the Molucca Islands on a free commission. Sailing to the well-defended island of Banda Neira, Cole planned an audacious attack on 10 August 1810, his troops storming the fortress and successfully capturing it. The following year he took a leading role in the planning of the invasion of Java, which was successfully completed under Rear-Admiral Robert Stopford. For his services, he was knighted in May 1812, awarded a specially minted medal and given an honorary doctorate by the University of Oxford.

In 1813, Cole returned to Europe and took command of the ship of the line HMS Rippon in the Channel Fleet. In October 1813 he captured the damaged French frigate Weser, and in February 1814 he recaptured an extremely valuable Spanish treasure ship previously seized by a French warship. On 1 September 1814, Rippon was decommissioned and Cole's career at sea came to an end after 34 years on continual service.

Politics and retirement.

As a reward for his services, Cole was made a Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath in 1815 and at the conclusion of the Napoleonic Wars in the same year, was presented with the Order of Maria Theresa by the Austrian Empire and the Order of St George by the Russian Empire. He also married Mary Lucy, daughter of Lord Ilchester and widow of Welsh landowner Thomas Mansel Talbot, with whom he had long been connected. The couple had no children, although Mary had six surviving children from her first marriage.

His fame in Britain for the Banda Neira operation was enough to see him elected as a member of parliament in 1817 for the Glamorganshire seat, although he lost the seat the following year. In 1820 he was elected again, retaining the seat until 1830 when he made way for his stepson Christopher Rice Mansel Talbot.

The Navy honoured his service with command of the royal yacht HMY Royal Sovereign in 1828 and a position as a colonel of Royal Marines in 1830.

He died in August 1836 at his home in Killoy near Cardiff, Wales. His wife survived until 1855, and his stepson spent sixty years in parliament.

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Captain Robert Plampin.





Plampin was born in 1762, the son of naval officer John Plampin of Chadacre Hall, in Suffolk. Intended for a career at sea, Plampin joined the Navy in 1775, aged 13, and served aboard HMS Renown under Captain Francis Banks off the coast of North America during the American Revolutionary War. In 1778, Plampin moved to HMS Panther at Gibraltar and subsequently moved in 1780 to HMS Sandwich, the flagship of Admiral Sir George Rodney. In Sandwich Plampin participated in the Battle of Martinique in April 1780, and subsequent operations, earning a promotion to lieutenant aboard HMS Grafton and returning to Britain. In 1781, he operated in HMS Leocadia off Newfoundland, remaining on the station for the remainder of the war.

Placed in reserve following the end of the war in 1783, Plampin traveled widely in Europe, making specific studies of the French language in 1786 and the Dutch language in 1787. At the Spanish Armament in 1790, Plampin became a lieutenant on the new ship of the line HMS Brunswick under Sir Hyde Parker. Parker was impressed by his subordinate's language skills and intelligence and, in 1793, suggested Plampin for a mission to the Netherlands, at that time allied to Britain in the French Revolutionary Wars. Plampin assumed command of a flotilla of gunboats based in the Dutch harbour of Willemstad, then under siege by a French army under General Charles François Dumouriez. When the French withdrew from Willemstad later in the year, Plampin was awarded a gold medal and chain by the Dutch government. Plampin subsequently became a lieutenant in HMS Princess Royal and sailed for the Mediterranean, joining the British fleet assisting the Royalist forces at the Siege of Toulon. Plampin became an interpreter for Rear-Admiral Samuel Goodall and then for Lord Hood until the end of the siege, when Plampin was promoted to commander and sent home with despatches.

Independent command.

In February 1794, Plampin was given command of the small sloop Albion and then the floating battery Firm, operating off the Scheldt and the Dutch coast. In April 1795, he returned to the Mediterranean as a post captain in the sixth rate HMS Ariadne, acting as a scout for Captain Horatio Nelson at the Battle of Genoa and present but not engaged at the Battle of the Hyères Islands. In September 1795, Plampin took command of the frigate HMS Lowestoft, which was soon after struck by lightning and badly damaged. After repairs, Plampin returned to Britain where Lowestoft was paid off.

In November 1798, Lowestoft returned to service with Plampin in command for operations in the West Indies. After three years on convoy escort duty in the Caribbean, Lowestoft was wrecked in the Windward Passage with three merchant ships. As the frigate was carrying a large quantity of specie, Plampin summoned the small ship HMS Bonetta and successfully transferred the money and all of the frigates crew into the tiny vessel. For saving the specie, Plampin was paid the reward he had originally been promised for bringing it safely to Britain and was subsequently cleared of any wrongdoing in the loss of his ship.

After the outbreak of the Napoleonic Wars in 1803, Plampin was briefly given command of HMS Antelope before moving to the ship of the line HMS Powerful attached to the Channel Fleet. In the autumn of 1805, he was sent to Cadiz to join the squadron under Sir John Thomas Duckworth that was observing the remains of the Franco-Spanish fleet destroyed at the Battle of Trafalgar in the autumn.^[1] In November, Duckworth received accounts of a French squadron raiding off North Africa and sailed to investigate. Although the squadron he pursued escaped, Duckworth did encounter another force under Jean-Baptiste Willaumez on 25 December. Although he pursued the French for two days, Duckworth could not bring Willaumez to battle and eventually gave up the pursuit, ordering his squadron to sail for the Caribbean (where they later encountered another French squadron at the Battle of San Domingo), but detaching Plampin to the Indian Ocean in case Willaumez was intending to raid there.

Arriving in the Indian Ocean, Plampin found no sign of Willaumez (who had remained in the Atlantic), but did discover that British trade was under constant attack from French frigates and privateers based on Île de France, which particularly targeted the large East Indiamen. On 13 June 1806, Plampin captured the small privateer Henrietta off Trincomalee, but was especially concerned by the depredations of the large privateer frigate Bellone, which carried 34 guns. Disguising Powerful as an East Indiaman, Plampin cruised off Ceylon in search of the enemy and on 9 July discovered Bellone under pursuit by the Royal Navy sloop HMS Rattlesnake. Moving to cut Bellone off, Powerful was hampered by light winds and Bellone almost slipped between Plampin's ship and shore. However, the breeze gradually increased and Plampin was able to close with the privateer. The French ship defended itself and a running fight began that lasted for 105 minutes before Bellone surrendered, having caused greater casualties on Powerful than had been suffered herself.

Napoleon's gaoler.

After a brief voyage to Java, disease spread aboard Powerful and Plampin himself was taken ill, returning to Britain to recuperate. Rejoining the service in 1809, Plampin commanded HMS Courageux at the disastrous Walcheren Expedition and in 1810 commanded the squadron at Basque Roads near Brest in HMS Gibraltar. In 1812, he commanded the 98-gun HMS Ocean off Toulon and in 1814 was promoted to rear-admiral. In 1816, following the end of the wars, Plampin was appointed commander at the Cape of Good Hope Station. Part of Plampin's duties was to observe the former French Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte, who was kept prisoner in a house on the island of Saint Helena, deep in the Atlantic Ocean. Plampin regularly visited his prisoner and the two had a number of conversations that were recorded by the naval historian James Ralfe.

On his return to Britain in September 1820, Plampin applied to become a Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath, but was informed by Lord Melville that such awards could only be made for service in the face of the enemy. Melville did however praise Plampin's war record in his reply. In 1825, Plampin was again recalled to service, commanding the Irish squadron based at Cork, until 1828, by which time he was a vice-admiral. He retired to his country home near Wanstead and managed his estates in Essex. He also travelled in Europe and it was on one such journey, in February 1834, that Plampin died in Florence. His remains were brought back to England and buried at Wanstead. He was survived by his wife Fanny, who died in 1864, but the couple had no children.

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Captain George Byng.




The eldest son of John, fifth Viscount (great-grandson of the first peer), formerly a Colonel in the 3d regiment of Guards, and afterwards a Commissioner of the Stamp Office, by Bridget, daughter of Commodore Arthur Forrest, was born in 1768.

His first appointment as midshipman was to the Active. one of the squadron afterwards detached by the Commodore to escort a fleet of transports and merchant ships to the East Indies; and on her arrival there, Mr. Byng was received on board the Superb, of 74 guns, bearing the flag of Sir Edward Hughes, the gallant protector of India; under whom he served in two severe actions with de Suffrein, one of the ablest officers that the French marine has ever produced. In the last of these conflicts Byng had a very narrow escape, all the men at the gun at which he was stationed being either killed or badly wounded by the destructive effects of a single shot, whilst he himself received no material injury, although struck by a splinter.

Soon after this the Commander-in-Chief sailed for Europe, and Mr. Byng was removed into the Defence, 74, bearing the broad pendant of Commodore, afterwards Sir Andrew Mitchell, with whom he returned to England in the month of Dec. 1785. On his arrival, he passed the usual examination for a Lieutenant; soon after which he joined the Jupiter, of 50 guns, the flag-ship of the late Sir William Parker, on the Leeward Island station, and served under that officer during a period of three years.
Commodore Parker was succeeded by the late Sir John Laforey, and Mr. Byng was received by the latter on board the Trusty, 50. At length, in the month of Sept. 1790, he returned home in the Shark sloop of war.

Early in the ensuing year Byng was appointed to the Illustrious, of 74 guns, Captain (now Sir C. M.) Pole; from that ship he removed into the Druid frigate, as first Lieutenant, and in her assisted at the capture of several privateers, merchantmen, and smugglers. His next appointment appears to have been to the Impregnable, a second rate, bearing the flag of Rear-Admiral Caldwell; but ill health compelling him to go to sick-quarters, he was thereby unfortunately prevented from sharing in the glories of the memorable first of June, 1794. He however rejoined his ship on her return to port, and in the month of Oct. following was advanced to the rank of Commander, in the Ferret sloop, employed in the North Sea.

On the 18th June, 1795, Captain Byng was made post, into the Redoubt, of 20 guns, stationed as a floating battery in the river Tyne.
His next appointment was to the Mercury, of 28 guns, attached to the squadron on the Newfoundland station, under the orders of Sir James Wallace. In 1796, when the French Admiral Richery invested that settlement with seven ships of the line and three frigates, having 2,000 troops on board, the Vice-Admiral defended it with one ship of 50 guns, two frigates, and two sloops; and, aided by the bravery and vigilance of Captain Byng and the other officers of his small squadron, ultimately succeeded in compelling the enemy to abandon their project of subjugating the colony.

In the following year, 1797, Captain Byng was appointed to the Galatea, of 32 guns, in which frigate he cruized during the remainder of the revolutionary war, on the coasts of France and Ireland, and captured several armed vessels, one of which was le Ranger, a French corvette of 14 guns; he also recaptured the Kenyon, a British West-Indiaman, valued at 40,000l.

Subsequent to the treaty of Amiens, the Galatea was stationed on the S.W. coast of Ireland, for the suppression of smuggling; and Captain Byng continued on that service until the month of May, 1802, when he was compelled to relinquish his command, in consequence of ill health, occasioned by long and severe cruizes during the preceding winter.

On the renewal of the war with the French republic, Captain Byng, then in a state of convalescence, tendered his services, and was immediately appointed to the Texel, of 64 guns, as commanding officer of the block-ships stationed in the Medway.

In the month of August, 1804, Byng was appointed to the Malabar, of 50 guns, and commanded that ship until Mar. 1805, when he removed into the Belliqueux, of 64 guns; and in the following autumn, accompanied the late Sir Home Popham on an expedition against the Cape of Good Hope. The squadron, having on board a body of troops under Major-General Sir David Baird, arrived in Table Bay, Jan. 4, 1806; and on the 18th of the same month, the Dutch Governor (Janssens) having signed a capitulation for a general surrender, England became once more possessed of one of the most important settlements in the world, and which has since been permanently annexed to the British empire.
In the course of the same year, the Belliqueux formed part of Sir Edward Pellew’s squadron at the capture and destruction of a Dutch frigate, seven brigs of war, and about twenty armed and other merchant-vessels, in Batavia Roads. During the operations, the Commander-in-Chief publicly expressed his satisfaction at Captain Byng’s activity and good conduct, by the telegraphic signal, “Your zeal I have noticed.” From this period nothing material occurred until 1809, when Byng hoisted a broad pendant on being appointed to conduct an armament sent from Bombay to occupy the island of Roderiguez, and thus pave the way for the reduction of the isles of Mauritius and Bourbon, which was successfully accomplished; and Captain Byng received the thanks of the Government of Bombay, together with a present of 300l.

The Belliqueux continued on the East India station until the month of June, 1810, at which time Captain Byng received orders to proceed to China, for the purpose of affording protection to the homeward-bound trade. On the 14th Feb. 1811, he sailed from Macao Roads, in company with seven of the Hon. Company’s ships; and, after encountering very tempestuous weather in the vicinity of the Cape of Good Hope, arrived with his charge at St. Helena (May 15), where he was joined by the Menelaus and Chiffonée frigates, five Indiamen, and several South-Sea-whalers, the whole of which reached the Downs in safety, on the 8th of August following. Some time after this event, he received a letter from the Secretary of the India House, communicating the thanks of the Court of Directors “for his care and attention to the fleet recently under his convoy 5 and informing him, that in consideration of the zeal and attention to the Company’s interests, evinced by him on various occasions, the Court of Directors had resolved to present him with the sum of 1,000 guineas for the purchase of a piece of plate, as an acknowledgement of his services.”

Captain Byng succeeded to the title of Viscount Torrington on the demise of his father, Jan. 8, 1813.

The Belliqueux was paid off at Chatham, soon after her arrival; and the Right Hon. Charles Yorke, then at the head of the Admiralty, immediately offered Captain Byng the command of either of the new 74’s about to be commissioned; but he, preferring a ship of the old construction, made choice of the Warrior, to which he was accordingly appointed.

The Warrior was principally employed in the Baltic and North Seas, under the Admirals Young, Foley, and Hope, and in the year 1813, when, the Dutch, having thrown off the yoke of Napoleon Buonaparte, recalled the ancient House of Nassau to rule over them, he was selected to convey William Frederick, Prince of Orange back to his native country,
Lord Torrington subsequently convoyed a fleet of merchantmen to the West Indies; and during his absence was advanced to the rank of Rear-Admiral, by commission dated June 4, 1814.

An impaired state of health, obliged him, in 1818, to decline the offer of any further foreign command.

He died in 1831.

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Captain Fleetwood Pellew.



Fleetwood Pellew was born on 13 December 1789, the second son and fourth child of Captain Edward Pellew and his wife Susan Frowde. He was educated briefly at Blundell's School, Tiverton. His father was promoted through the ranks of the service during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, and used his influence to find positions at sea for Fleetwood and his elder brother Pownoll. Fleetwood joined his father's ship, the 74-gun HMS Impetueux, as a midshipman in March 1799, and followed him to HMS Tonnant and then to HMS Culloden. The two sailed for the East Indies aboard the Culloden, where on 8 September 1804 Sir Edward made Fleetwood a lieutenant aboard HMS Sceptre.

Fleetwood was soon back aboard the Culloden, where he distinguished himself in 1806 by leading an attack on the Dutch anchored at Batavia. Sir Edward, writing to his friend Alex Broughton in England recorded:

He led the squadron with the greatest judgement ... He placed his ship ag't the Dutch frigate and batteries with equal skill and led in the boats to Boarding ... I assure you, a prettier exploit I never saw. You will say Aye, Aye, here is the Father. I have done - but I assure you I say not half of what others say of him. My heart swelled when I heard a general shout on board Culloden - Well done Fleetwood, well done, bravo - was the cry all around me. What Father could have kept his Eyes dry? I was obliged to wipe them again before I looked thro' the glass.
— Sir Edward Pellew to Alex Broughton,

Sir Edward promoted Fleetwood to his first command, that of the 18-gun sloop HMS Rattlesnake in 1807. He was just 17 at the time. Service on the frigates HMS Terpsichore and HMS Psyche followed. Fleetwood was described by his father during this time as being 'beyond comparison the finest youth of the Squadron, universally beloved', 'a real treasure' and 'the flower of my flock and the flower of my fleet'. He was confirmed in the rank of commander by his father on 12 October 1807, and was appointed acting commander of the 74-gun HMS Powerful, followed by command of HMS Cornwallis in 1808.

He moved to the 38-gun HMS Phaeton in July 1808. He caused a brief incident in Nagasaki harbour when he anchored there in October, captured several Dutch officials and demanded supplies for his ship. The Japanese were unable to resist him, and sent the supplies. Fleetwood was confirmed in his rank of post captain on 14 October 1808, and went on to see action in the Invasion of Île de France in 1810 and the reduction of Java in 1811. Fleetwood sailed the Phaeton home in August 1812, escorting a convoy of East Indiamen. For his services he received a present of 500 guineas and the thanks of the East India Company.

The Mediterranean.

Fleetwood was given command of the 36-gun HMS Iphigenia and sailed her to the Mediterranean. He left the Iphigenia to take command of the 46-gun HMS Resistance in January 1813 and in October that year was part of an attack that silenced the batteries around Port d'Anzo and captured a convoy of 29 merchants that had taken refuge there.^] By February 1814 though the Resistance had been ordered to return to Britain. A mutiny had broken out, which though it was quashed, led to several of the crew being condemned to death or to be flogged. The proceedings eventually broke down on a technicality, but it was widely commented on that Fleetwood's harshness had provoked the men. This marked the beginning of the decline of Pellew's career. He was appointed a Companion of the Bath in June 1815, and went on to command HMS Révolutionnaire in the Mediterranean from August 1818 to June 1822. After that, he was not given an active command, and spent the next thirty years on half-pay.

Later years.

Pellew continued to receive promotions and awards according to his seniority. He was given a knighthood and was appointed a Knight Commander of the Royal Guelphic Order in January 1836. He was made a naval aide-de-camp to the Queen, promoted to rear-admiral on 9 November 1846, and in December 1852 he finally returned to active service with his appointment as commander-in-chief of the East Indies and China Station. His appointment caused some concern, with questions raised over the suitability of sending Pellew, considering his age and past background, and the unhealthy climate and tense diplomatic situation following the outbreak of the Second Anglo-Burmese War.
Pellew raised his flag aboard HMS Winchester in April 1853, and by September 1854 he was off Hong Kong. Here he seems to have decided that he would not allow shore leave until the dangerous season for fevers and infections had passed, but neglected to make his reasoning known to his men. The crew were apparently in a mutinous mood, so Pellew ordered them to beat to quarters. When they refused, he sent the officers onto the lower deck to force them up at sword point. Several of the crew were wounded and the nascent mutiny was quashed. The news of these events was poorly received in Britain, The Times included several leading articles drawing attention to the mutiny on the Winchester, and the one on the Resistance many years before. Pellew was duly recalled by the Admiralty, never to serve at sea again. He had been promoted to vice-admiral on 22 April 1853, and a full admiral on 13 February 1858.

Sir Fleetwood Pellew died at Marseilles on 28 July 1861 at the age of 71.
Admiral Pellew was buried with his first wife, Harriet née Webster, in the English Cemetery, Florence

[Bligh]

Lieutenant William Fitzwilliam Owen.





William Fitzwilliam Owen (17 September 1774 – 3 November 1857), was a British naval officer and explorer. He is best known for his exploration of the west and east African coasts, discovery of the Seaflower Channel off the coast of Sumatra and for surveying the Canadian Great Lakes.

The illegitimate son of Captain William Owen he was orphaned at the age of four, however, his father’s friend Rear-Admiral Sir Thomas Rich, kept an eye on both William and his elder brother Edward, in 1788 at age 13 he embarked as a midshipman in Rich’s ship, HMS Culloden, and from that time the Royal Navy was his life. Self-willed and boisterous, he had not infrequent difficulties early in his naval career.

He served at home and on ships in the East Indies. He was commissioned as a lieutenant in 1797. In 1801 he took command of the fireship HMS Nancy. In late 1801 the hired armed cutter King George, under the command of a Mr. Yawkins, served under Nelson at his failed attack on Boulogne. On 25 August Nelson came aboard King George to conduct a reconnaissance of the French fleet. In October Nelson gave Owen command over the King George as well, with secret instructions to launch a burning Nancy at the French fleet. The fire attack did not occur and Nancy was sold in December.

After the resumption of war with France in 1803, Owen was given command of the 16-gun brig HMS Seaflower, which sailed to the East Indies. There he served under Rear-Admiral Sir Edward Pellew, Commander-in-Chief East Indies.

He explored the Maldive Islands in 1806, and in the same year discovered the Seaflower Channel, between the islands of Siberut and Sipora off the west coast of Sumatra.

He fought the Dutch in the East Indies, but in on 28 September 1808 the French frigate Manche captured Seaflower. The French held Owen from 1808 to 1810 in Mauritius, during which time he was promoted to commander. After his release Owen was promoted to post captain in May 1811, before returning to England in 1813.

From 1815 to 1816, he surveyed the upper Canadian Great Lakes with Lieutenant Henry Wolsey Bayfield, naming an inlet in southern Georgian Bay "Owen's Sound" in honour of his elder brother, Admiral Sir Edward William Campbell Rich Owen. Between 26 October 1815 and 31 May 1816 he was the senior Royal Navy Officer on the Great Lakes.

Owen mapped the entire east African coast from the Cape to the Horn of Africa between 1821 and 1826 in the sloop Leven and in company with the brig Barracouta. During this period, Owen established a one-man protectorate of Mombasa with the aim of disrupting the 'hellish trade' in slaves; but Owen was forced to shut down under orders from the Crown after only three years. When he returned in 1826, with 300 new charts, covering some 30,000 miles of coastline, over half of his original crew had been killed by tropical diseases.

In 1827 he was in charge of settling a colony at Fernando Po. During the first year, he was joined by Lieutenant James Holman who was famous in his time as "the Blind Traveller".

In the mid-1830s, having little hope of further naval appointment, he removed with his family to New Brunswick. He secured title to Campobello Island, which had been granted to his grandfather and was lord proprietor of the same as well being involved in other investments in New Brunswick. From 1841 he served as a justice of the peace as well as concurrently as judge of the Inferior Court of Common Pleas.

Between 1837 and 1842 he was a very visible member of the New Brunswick House of Assembly for Charlotte County. Following his defeat for reelection, he was appointed in December 1843 to the New Brunswick Legislative Council of which he was an active member through 1851. He was elected an Associate Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 1844.

In the final action of his naval career, between September 1842 and December 1847, he conducted the definitive survey of the Bay of Fundy for the Admiralty. Indeed, some charts of the area are still based upon his surveys.