ALEXANDER, younger brother of Lord Viscount Hood, was born in the year 1728. On the 2nd of December, 1746, he became a lieutenant in the navy; and, on the 10th of June, 1756, he was promoted to the rank of postcaptain. In the succeeding year, being in the command of the Antelope, he signalized himself by attacking the Aquilon, of forty-eight guns and four hundred and fifty men, which he drove on shore, after a running fight of two hours' duration. On the following day he captured a French privateer, mounting sixteen swivel guns, which had been in company with the Aquilon, the day before her engagement with the Antelope. In 1758, with the Minerva frigate, of thirty-two guns, to which he had been removed, he took a privateer from Bayonne; and a few days after, re-captured the Warwick.

In August, 1761, his frigate formed part of the squadron appointed to convoy the Princess Charlotte of Mecklenburgh Strelitz to England. At the close of the same year, he obtained the command of the Africa, a newly-launched third-rate, of sixty-four guns, with which he served, under Sir Charles Saunders, in the Mediterranean, during the remainder of the war. In 1763, he was commissioned to the Thunderer, of seventy-four guns, a guard-ship at Portsmouth; and, in 1766, he became treasurer of Greenwich hospital. He was subsequently nominated to the Romney, of fifty guns, and employed as commodore on the North America station. In 1778, he removed to the Robuste, seventy-four, which, in the encounter with the French fleet, off Ushant, on the 27th of July, was one of the seconds to Sir Hugh Palliser, who commanded, under Keppel, the blue division of the fleet.

On the 26th of September, 1780, he attained the rank of rear-admiral of the white; in 1782, he was sent out under Lord Howe, to Gibraltar; and, at the conclusion of the war, he appears to have been second in command at Portsmouth. In 1784, he was returned

to parliament for Bridgewater, and, shortly after, for the town of Buckingham. In 1787, he became vice-admiral of the white; and, in the following year, a knight companion of the Bath. In 1790, he hoisted his flag in the London, of ninety guns, as fourth in command of the channel fleet. After having been made rear-admiral of England, he was promoted, on the 1st of February, 1793, to the rank of vice-admiral of the red, and, immediately afterwards, obtained a command under Earl Howe, in the main fleet. On the 12th of April, 1794, he was made admiral of the blue, and so highly distinguished himself in the battle of the 1st of the following June, that he was created an Irish peer, by the title of Baron Bridport.

On the 13th of June, 1795, he sailed from Spithead, with fourteen sail of the line, five frigates, two fire-ships, and a lugger, to cruise off the coast of France; and on the 22nd of the same month, descried an enemy's fleet, consisting of twelve ships of the line, eleven frigates, and some smaller vessels, to which he instantly gave chase, and, on the following day, after a smart action, captured the Alexander, the Formidable, and the Tigre, line-of-battle ships, almost under the batteries of Port L'Orient. Some days prior to this engagement, he had been made admiral of the white; and, on the 15th of March, 1796, he succeeded Lord Howe, as vice-admiral of Great Britain. On the 31st of May, in the same year, he was raised to the English peerage, by his former title; and, when Earl Howe retired, he became commander-in-chief of the channel fleet. In April, 1797, his flag was pulled down, during the mutiny at Spithead, by the disaffected seamen; who, however, wrote to him on the following day, disavowing all intention of personal offence, and styling him their father and friend. He then went on board his ship, carrying with him a compliance to the demands of the men, as well as the king's pardon. Upon this, they returned to duty, but, when the fleet

had reached St. Helen's, and the signal was made for sailing, the mutineers refused to proceed, alleging that the government did not intend to perform its promises. Matters were, however, soon after adjusted, by Lord Howe, and the fleet sailed on the 16th of May, in in pursuit of the enemy.

Lord Bridport subsequently became admiral of the red, a general of marines,

and, in 1801, a viscount. He was twice married: first, to a niece of Lord Cobham, and, on her decease, to a Miss Bray; but died without issue, on the 3rd of May, 1814. He appears to have been fully entitled to the honours and reputation he enjoyed for the general talent he displayed, when in chief command, and his courage and conduct as a subordinate.

SAMUEL, the fifth son of John, first Viscount Barrington, was born in the year 1729. In 1747, he commanded the Weasle, sloop-of-war, from which, on the 29th of May following, he was removed to the Bellona frigate, and, soon after, captured the Duc de Chartres, a French East India ship, carrying thirty guns, and one hundred and ninety-five men, after an action of two hours and a half duration. wards the close of the year, he was promoted to the Romney, of fifty guns, and, in 1750, had the command of the Seahorse, of twenty guns, employed in the Mediterranean. He was afterwards successively appointed to the Crown, the Norwich, and the Achilles; in the latter of which, he served in the unsuccessful expedition against Rochefort.

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In 1758, he was employed under Captain Pratten; and, early in 1759, after a close engagement of two hours' duration, off Cape Finisterre, he took a French ship, called the Count de St. Florentine, carrying sixty guns and four hundred men. In 1760, he sailed for Louisburg; and in the succeeding year, served under Commodore Keppel, in the expedition against Belleisle. Shortly before the conclusion of the war, he was removed from the Achilles to the Hero, of seventy-four guns, and placed under the command of Sir Thomas Hardy.

In 1761, he became captain of the Venus, of thirty-six guns, in which the late Duke of Cumberland was entered under him as midshipman. In October, Barrington left the ship for a short time, in order that his royal highness

might receive the rank of post-captain; and when the duke was promoted to the rank of rear-admiral of the blue, proceeded with him to Lisbon, as his captain. In 1771, he was appointed to the Albion; and, in 1777, to the Prince of Wales, of seventy-four guns, in which, he appears to have been very successful in distressing the Americans. On the 23rd of January, 1778, he was invested with the rank of rear-admiral of the white, and ordered to the West Indies, as commanderin-chief on that station, where, in the summer, he was joined by a small squadron, under Commodore Hotham, with the assistance of which, he reduced St. Lucia. On the 6th of January, 1779, he was superseded in his command by Admiral Byron; under whom he commanded the van division of the fleet, and received a wound, in the battle with Count D'Estaing, which took place in the following July.

He soon afterwards returned to England, and acted, for a short time, as second in command of the channel fleet. On the 16th of the following September, he was made vice-admiral of the white; and, in April, 1782, he hoisted his flag on board the Britannia, a first-rate, in which he was detached with a squadron, to intercept a French fleet, bound to the East Indies. these, the ships under his command succeeded in capturing eleven out of eighteen transports, and the Pegasse and Actionnaire men-of-war. In the following autumn, he commanded the van of the main fleet, sent out under Lord Howe, to relieve Gibraltar; in

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1785, he acted as a member of the board of land and sea officers, appointed to investigate and report on the best system of national defence; on the 24th of September, 1787, he attained the rank of admiral of the blue; and, in 1790, on the apprehension of a war with Spain, he was again nominated second in command of the main fleet, under Lord Howe. On the 12th of April, 1794, he became admiral of the white; on the 5th of August, 1798, general of the Chatham marines, and, in 1785, lieutenant-general of that

corps. He died at Bath, on the 16th of August, 1800.

Admiral Barrington was a man of high honour, undoubted courage, strict integrity, and admirable benevolence. He devoted himself with extraordinary zeal, when not engaged in active service, to the establishment of a society for the relief of indigent naval officers, their widows, and children; which, in spite of many difficulties, and without being aided by the public purse, arrived to an efficient and prosperous condition.

ADAM, the son of Alexander Duncan, was born in Scotland, on the 1st of July, 1731, and commenced his naval career, under Captain Haldane, of the Shoreham frigate. In 1749, he served, as a midshipman, in the Centurion, under Commodore Keppel, on the Mediterranean station; and, in 1755, became second lieutenant of the Norwich, a fourth-rate, one of the squadron sent out with the troops, under General Braddock, to North America. He was next employed on board the Torbay, of seventyfour guns, of which, after having been wounded in the attack on Goree, he was made first lieutenant. In 1759, he obtained the rank of commander, and in 1761, that of post-captain, on board the Valiant, seventy-four, with which he assisted in the expeditions against Belleisle and Havannah. At the latter place, he was intrusted, by Keppel, with the command of the boats employed in landing the military; and on the surrender of the town, was directed to take possession of the Spanish men-of-war in the harbour. Some discussion arising as to a few ships on the stocks, which the governor appears to have been desirous of saving, Duncan, it is said, "privately took a few persons on whom he could depend, and put an end to the controversy, by setting fire to the cause of it. This act," it is added, "was much approved by the besiegers, in both departments of the service, as the most expeditious mode of settling a troublesome dispute: for obvious reasons, however, the affair was kept

extremely quiet; and it was known only to a very few persons, by what means this apparent accident so fortunately and critically happened."

During the remainder of the war, he served on the Jamaica station, and, on the re-commencement of hostilities, was appointed to the Suffolk, seventy-four, from which he soon after removed to the Monarch, of the same rate. During the summer of 1779, he appears to have been employed in the channel fleet; and at the conclusion of the year, accompanied Rodney to the relief of Gibraltar. In the battle between the British and Spanish fleets, on the 16th of January, in the next year, he bore a conspicuous part. Although his ship, the Monarch, was not coppered, and was altogether unadapted for fast sailing, he pressed her a-head of her consorts, and commenced the action. After a short but animated encounter with the San Augustin, and two other line-of-battle ships, the latter sheered off, and the former struck to the Monarch; which, however, had been so damaged in the rigging, by the fire of her opponents, that Duncan found it impossible to hoist out a boat for the purpose of boarding his prize; and was, consequently, obliged to resign the honour of taking possession of her to another commander.

In 1782, he was appointed to the Blenheim, of ninety guns, in which he proceeded, with Lord Howe, to the relief of Gibraltar. He next obtained the command of the Foudroyant, from

which, in 1783, he was removed to the Edgar, one of the guard-ships at Portsmouth. In 1787, he became rear-admiral of the blue; in 1790, rear-admiral of the white; in 1793, vice-admiral of the blue; and, in 1794, vice-admiral of the white. Notwithstanding these promotions, and though urgent for employment, he was allowed to remain inactive until the month of February, 1795, when he received the command of a squadron stationed in the North Sea, to act against the Dutch, who had a fleet lying ready for service in the Texel. In the following June, he was made admiral of the blue; and in 1796, several Russian ships were added to his force. Early in the next year, the mutiny which had broken out in the channel fleet, spread to that under his command; and he was, for some time, left to blockade the Texel with only two ships, his own__(the Venerable) and the Adamant. While in this critical situation, by constantly making signals, as if there were ships in the offing, he led the Dutch admiral to believe that the whole of his squadron was at hand. At length, he received information that symptoms of mutiny had appeared among his own crew; the whole of whom he immediately ordered on deck, and firmly told them that he would, with his own hand, put to death the first man, who should presume to display the slightest symptom of rebellion. Then, addressing himself to one of the disaffected, he asked, "Do you, sir, want to take the command of the ship out of my hands?" The man immediately replied in the affirmative; and Duncan, would, as it is stated, have carried his threat into instant execution, had not his arm been arrested by the chaplain. He then exclaimed, in an agitated tone,-" Let those who will stand by me and my officers, pass over immediately to the starboard side of the ship, that we may see who are our friends, and who are our opponents." The whole crew obeyed, with the exception of six, who were immediately seized and put in irons, but restored to liberty, after a brief confinement, on expressing contrition for their conduct.

Shortly after, Duncan having retired to the Yarmouth Roads, De Winter, with his squadron, put to sea; and no

sooner had the intelligence of his departure from the Texel reached the British fleet, than all the refractory crews returned to their duty. Duncan immediately set sail in quest of the enemy, with whom he came in sight on the 11th of October, 1797, at about nine o'clock in the morning, off Camperdown, and after a pursuit of three hours' duration, succeeded in getting between them and the land. At halfpast twelve he passed through their line, and after a severe action, captured two frigates, and nine line-of-battle ships, including those of De Winter and his vice-admiral. For this brilliant victory, he was created a viscount, voted the thanks of parliament, and granted a pension of £3,000 per annum, for life, with reversion to his two immediate successors in the title.

On the 14th of February, 1799, he was made admiral of the white; early in the following year, he relinquished his command in the North Sea, and passed the brief residue of his life in retirement. He died at Cornhill, while on his way to Edinburgh, of gout in the stomach, on the 4th of August, 1804; leaving several children by his wife, a daughter of Lord President Dundas. In addition to his other honours, he had obtained the Russian order of St. Alexander Newsky.

The character of Duncan appears to have been truly admirable. He was patient under difficulties, energetic in action, and modest when victorious; a steady friend, an affectionate relative, and a kind commander. In him, the most lofty daring was associated with the purest spirit of piety: previously to the battle of Camperdown, when all on board were ready for action, he knelt on the deck, for the purpose of fervently commending the cause of his country to Almighty protection; and after the battle, he called his crew together, and returned thanks to heaven for the victory they had obtained.

At the age of eighteen, he is said to have been six feet four inches high. The Dutch admiral, De Winter, being almost as tall as himself, Duncan observed to him, after the engagement off Camperdown, "I wonder how you and I, sir, have escaped the balls in this hot battle!"

JOHN, second son of Swynfen Jervis, Esq., barrister at law, was born at Meaford, in Staffordshire, on the 9th of January, 1734, and received his elementary education at the grammarschool of Burton-upon-Trent. Although originally intended for the law, he entered the navy at the age of ten, under the command of Admiral Rodney. After the peace of Aix-la-Chapelle, he visited France, where he appears to have prosecuted his studies, until 1749, when he proceeded, as a midshipman, on board the Gloucester, to the Jamaica station. He was made a lieutenant, on the 19th of February, 1755; and, in the expedition against Quebec, served on board the flag-ship of Sir Charles Saunders, who soon afterwards advanced him to the rank of commander.

On his return to England, in 1760, he was made a post-captain, and appointed to the Gosport, in which ship he continued until 1769, without any opportunity of obtaining notice. In 1778, he captured the Pallas, a French frigate, of thirty-two guns, with the Foudroyant, to which he had been removed in 1774; and in the engagement that took place soon after between the French and English fleets, his ship was closely engaged with the enemy. April, 1782, while serving in the same ship, which then formed part of a squadron, under the command of Admiral Barrington, being separated from his companions, by a fog, he engaged, and captured, the Pegasse, a French ship of seventy-four guns. During the contest, Jervis was struck, by a splinter, on the temple, with such force as permanently to affect his powers of sight.

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The French commander, after he had been made prisoner, prepared an account of the battle, to transmit to the minister of marine, which he thought proper to submit to Jervis, who, upon being asked his opinion as to its merits, replied, "that it had but one fault, namely, that not one word of it was true." "But," replied the Frenchman, "I must justify myself." therefore forwarded the account, for

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which, however, soon after his arrival at Brest, he was ignominiously dismissed from the service.

On his return to England, Jervis was invested with the order of the Bath; and, on the 5th of June, 1783, he married his cousin, the daughter of Sir T. Parker. He subsequently represented High Wycombe, but vacated his seat in 1794, having, early in that year, accepted the command of a squadron, destined to assist Sir Charles Grey in the reduction of the West India islands. This service was performed with great spirit and perseverance; but, owing to the sickness of the British forces, they were unable to retain the whole of their conquests. An investigation as to the partial failure of the enterprise followed, which terminated honourably to both of the commanders, who were shortly afterwards presented with the freedom of the city of London, and the thanks of parliament.

On the 1st of June, 1795, Sir John Jervis attained the rank of admiral of the blue, and, although his health had severely suffered from the climate, while serving in the West Indies, he accepted the command in the Mediterranean. The Spanish admiral having put to sea from Cordova, on the 4th of February, 1797, Sir John Jervis immediately went in pursuit of him, with a squadron of only fifteen sail of the line, four frigates, a sloop of war, and a cutter, although the enemy's fleet consisted of eighteen seventy-fours, two eightyfours, six three-deckers, carrying one hundred and twelve guns each, and one four-decker, mounting one hundred and thirty-six. On the 5th, the Spaniards passed Gibraltar, and left three line-of-battle ships in the bay. few days after, they were discovered by one of the English frigates; and, on the night of the 13th, the two fleets were so close to each other, that their signal guns were mutually heard. On the morning of the 14th, the whole of the Spanish fleet was visible to the British. Some of their ships appearing to be separated from the main body,

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