valuable cargo. In November, he was returned as representative for the boroughs of Plympton and Fowey; but took his seat for the latter place. In 1751, he had the command of the Monmouth, and was sent to Gibraltar, as senior officer of a small squadron, to shift part of the garrison, and bring home two of the regiments. In the following year, the captain removed into the Deptford, of sixty guns, and was soon after appointed commander, with the nominal rank of commodore, of a small squadron, with which he proceeded to the Mediterranean, where he remained on the station, until 1756. In 1758, he served in America, under Admiral Boscawen; and, in 1759, shared in the glory of defeating, off Belleisle, in the month of November, the last effort of the naval power of France. At the general election, in 1761, he was a third time returned for the borough of Fowey; and, on the 21st of October, 1762, was made rear-admiral of the blue; having, in the interim, succeeded to the peerage, by the death of his elder brother. The next month he took the oaths as lord-lieutenant of the county of Cornwall; and in June, the year following, resigned the situation of clerk of the council of the Duchy of Lancaster, which he had for some time held. In the year 1764, he was appointed port-admiral, at Plymouth; and, in 1770, he was made viceadmiral of the blue. On the occasion of his majesty's visit to Spithead, to review a division of the fleet, Lord Mount Edgecumbe was promoted to the rank of vice-admiral of the white. In the month of July following, he attended Lord North, on his installation as chancellor of the University of Oxford; and received, in consequence, the honorary degree of doctor of laws. On the 3rd of February, 1776, he was advanced to the rank of vice-admiral of the red; on the 29th of January, 1778, to that of admiral of the blue; and lastly, was made admiral of the white, on the 8th of April, 1782. On the 17th of February, 1781, he was created Viscount Mount Edgecumbe and Valletort; and, on the 18th of August, 1789, Earl of Mount Edgecumbe. His civil appointments kept pace with his promotions in the navy. In 1765, he was made a privy-counsellor, and appointed trea

surer of the household. In 1771, he was made one of the joint vice-treasurers of Ireland; but gave up this office, in 1773, on being appointed captain of the band of gentlemenpensioners. This station he resigned on the change of ministry, in 1782, and filled no office till February, 1784, when he was again named one of the vice-treasurers of Ireland. He held this appointment until his decease, which happened in the month of February, 1795. The Earl of Mount Edgecumbe, though he rose to the highest honours of his profession, was not distinguished by any brilliant exploits; and for his important civil appointments, he was more indebted to party connexions, than to the services which he performed.

DIGBY, (Honourable ROBERT,) grandson of the fifth Lord Digby, was born about the year 1720; became captain of the Solebay frigate, on the 5th of August, 1755; and, subsequently, served, in 1757, on board the Dunkirk, a sixty-gun ship, at the unsuccessful expedition against Rochefort. He was present, in 1758, with Admiral Keppel, in his expedition against Goree, and afterwards with Hawke, when he defeated the Marquess de Conflans. In 1760, he was ordered to the Mediterranean, where he served for some time; and, on the 4th of April, 1775, he was constituted a colonel of marines. In 1778, he was appointed to the Ramillies, seventy-four, in which he was engaged, under Admiral Keppel, in his encounter with the French fleet off Ushant. the 19th of March, 1779, he was advanced to the rank of rear-admiral of the blue; and, as commander of one of the divisions of the channel fleet, hoisted his flag on board the Prince George, where he was joined by the Duke of Clarence, then Prince William Henry, who commenced his naval career under Admiral Digby. His subsequent services were of minor importance; and, after his return to England, he rose gradually to the rank of admiral of the white, which he obtained in June, 1795. He was married, on the 17th of August, 1784, to Mrs. Jauncy, eldest daughter of Andrew Elliott, Esq.; and, about the year 1761, he was returned to parliament for the city of Wells.

On

PARKER, (Sir PETER,) the son of Rear-admiral Christopher Parker, was born in 1723, and entered the navy under the auspices of his father. In 1743, he was appointed lieutenant of the Russel; and, in 1747, promoted to the command of the Margate; from which he removed, in 1749, to the Lancaster. In 1757, he was employed in the Woolwich, of fifty guns, on the West India station; in 1758, he commanded the Montagu, with which he took a number of prizes in the channel; and, in 1761, he served in Admiral Keppel's squadron, in the Buckingham, off Belleisle, where he acquired much reputation in a successful encounter with some of the enemy's craft; which, being low in the water, and adapted for carrying heavy metal, were deemed particularly formidable. In 1762, he removed from the Buckingham to the Terrible, a new seventy-four; which, however, at the conclusion of the war, was put out of commission. In 1774, he was appointed to the Barfleur, of ninety guns; and, in 1775, hoisted his broad pendant on board the Bristol, of fifty guns; in which he proceeded, with a squadron under his command, to the American station. On account of bad weather, and other impediments, he did not reach Cape Frate until May, 1776. In the following month, he made an unsuccessful attack on Charlestown, in South Carolina. Shortly afterwards, he joined Lord Howe, the commander-in-chief, at New York; whence he was despatched, with the Asia, Renown, and Preston, to distract the attention of the enemy, while the army attacked the lines on the Long Island. Towards the close of the same year, he proceeded, in command of a small squadron, to make an attempt on Rhode Island, of which he obtained possession without loss. He was now advanced to the rank of rear-admiral of the blue; and, a few months after, appointed to the chief command on the Jamaica station, where he served with signal success until 1782, in which year he returned with a convoy to England. In the interim he had been made, successively, rear-admiral of the white, vice-admiral of the blue, and vice-admiral of the white. On the 26th of December, in the last-mentioned year, he was created a baronet; and, sub

sequently, became commander-in-chief at Portsmouth; member of parliament for Maldon; admiral of the blue; and, finally, admiral of the white. He died in 1811, leaving two sons and two daughters, by his wife, whose maiden name was Nugent.

RODDAM, (ROBERT,) was born about 1724, and, after having served for some time as a midshipman, was taken into the ship of Sir Chaloner Ogle, whom he accompanied in the expedition, under Admiral Vernon, to the Spanish settlements; on which service, he behaved with great bravery. On the 3rd of November, 1741, Mr. Roddam was made third lieutenant of the Superb; and, by his skill, was twice the means of saving the vessel, on her return to England. He was, on the 7th of September, 1742, commissioned third lieutenant of the Monmouth, and, while cruising off Cape Teneriffe, captured a Spanish ship, worth £100,000. He was next promoted to the command of the Viper sloop, in which he was sent, by Sir Peter Warren, who headed the western squadron, to attack thirty vessels, laden with naval stores, and lying in Sidera Bay, near Cape Ortugal. The attempt was successful: the young officer took the battery, destroyed all the vessels in the bay, and, with three or four prizes, he, in three days, rejoined his admiral. For this service, he was promoted to the Greyhound frigate, with the rank of post-captain; and on his arrival at Portsmouth, he was solicited, by the inhabitants, to become their representative in parliament, an honour which he, however, thought proper respectfully to decline. In 1755, he proceeded, in the Greenwich, to the Jamaica station, and while cruising off Hispaniola, on the 16th of March, 1757, he was compelled to strike his colours to a French force, but resolutely refused to leave his ship in one of his own boats; declaring, that he would rather fight the unequal battle, than give up his sword, till it was, according to custom, regularly sent for by the enemy. His demand was, after some delay, complied with; and after his release, being tried by a court-martial at Jamaica, he was declared to have reflected honour on the British navy. In 1759, whilst in command of the

Colchester, being ordered to relieve Captain Duff, off Belleisle, he carried his ship between the Saints and the shore, into Andieme Bay; and is said to have been the first English navigator who ever made the perilous attempt. In 1770, Captain Roddam was appointed to the Lenox; and, about eight years afterwards, he was made rear-admiral of the white, and ordered to Chatham, as commander-in-chief at the Nore and in the river Medway. On the 19th of March, 1779, he received the rank of vice-admiral of the blue; and was promoted to be vice-admiral of the white, September 26th, 1780; and vice-admiral of the red, September 24th, 1787. He was appointed, April 20th, 1789, commander-in-chief at Portsmouth; and continued, for three years, to perform the duties of that office, with zeal, despatch, and ability. Among other instances, he got the guard-ships ready for sea in five days; and, in a fortnight, had five sail more ready at Spithead. This extraordinary expedition so astonished the French nation, that their newspapers noticed that British ships of war sprung up like mushrooms. He struck his flag at Portsmouth, in 1792; was promoted to be admiral of the blue, in the February of the following year; admiral of the white, on the 12th of April, 1794; and, in 1805, admiral of the red; at the head of which he stood, at his death, which took place in April, 1808, at Newcastle. He was an able and enterprising commander; and, though he would not have risked the lives of his men, by an unequal engagement, so zealous was he of the honour of the British flag, that, in his own words, "he would have fought as long as he could swim, rather than have submitted to its receiving an indignity."

SCHOMBERG, (Sir ALEXANDER,) was, on the 11th of December, 1747, promoted to the rank of lieutenant; and, having served in that capacity on board the Intrepid, was, on the 5th of April, 1757, made a post-captain, and appointed to the Richmond frigate; from which he removed, at the end of the year, to the Diana. In the spring of 1760, he accompanied Commodore Swanton on the expedition undertaken for the relief of Quebec; and, on the

16th of May, in company with Captain Deane, in the Lowestoffe, successfully attacked a small French force which lay above the town, consisting of two frigates, two armed ships, and some inferior vessels. Captain Schomberg returned to England; and, soon after his arrival, was appointed to the Essex, of sixty-four guns; in which he continued during the remainder of the war. In 1762, he was one of the officers employed in occasionally cruising in the channel, to watch the small remnant of the French naval force which had escaped destruction at the time of the defeat of the Marquess de Conflans. Peace ensuing, the Essex was put out of commission; but, in 1771, Captain Schomberg was appointed to the Prudent, of sixty-four guns, in consequence of the apprehended rupture with Spain; and, in the month of December following, he took the command of his majesty's yacht, the Dorset, stationed in the port of Dublin; which appointment he held until his decease. In the year 1777, he received the honour of knighthood; and died, on the 19th of March, 1804, at his house in Ely Place, Dublin. He was an experienced and gallant officer, with a thorough knowledge of naval tactics. At the time of his decease, he had been nearly fifty years a captain, and was the oldest officer of that rank in the royal navy. He was in high esteem amongst his brother officers, whose respect for his memory was manifested by the circumstance of six admirals being his pall-bearers.

MIDDLETON, (CHARLES, Lord Barham,) the youngest son of Robert Middleton, Esq., was born at Leith, in October, 1726. Having entered the navy, he, in 1761, commanded the Emerald frigate, of thirty-two guns, on the West India station; where he distinguished himself so highly by his activity in protecting the commerce of that part of the world, that the assembly of Barbadoes voted him their thanks, and presented him with a gold-hiited sword, as a token of the high sense they entertained of his important services. Before the conclusion of the war, he removed from the Emerald into the Adventure, in which he served on the home station until peace was effected. His next command was in

1775, when he was appointed to the Augusta, of sixty guns, which was stationed at Chatham, as a guard-ship. He quitted that ship in the year 1777, and in August of the following year, was constituted comptroller of the navy; an office which he held until 1790. On

the 24th of September, 1787, he was promoted to the rank of rear-admiral of the white; and, at the general election in 1784, was returned to parliament for the city of Rochester. On the 1st of September, 1790, he was made rear-admiral of the red; on the 1st of February, 1793, vice-admiral of the white; on the 12th of April, in the succeeding year, vice-admiral of the red; and, on the 1st of June, 1795, admiral of the blue. As a flag officer he never held any command. He was created a baronet on the 4th of September, 1781; and in the year 1806, was raised to the dignity of the peerage, by the title of Baron Barham, of Barham Court. He was a member of the privy-council; one of the elder brethren of the Trinity House; and first lord of the admiralty during the important victories of Sir R. Calder, Lord Nelson, Sir R. Strachan, and Sir J. Duckworth. He held other public appointments, besides being one of the vice-presidents of the Lock Hospital, and of other charitable institutions. Lord Barham died at his seat in Kent, on the 17th of June, 1813, in the eighty-seventh year of his age. He married Margaret, daughter of James Gambier, Esq., barrister-at-law, and had, by his wife, one daughter. Admiral Lord Barham was more distinguished for his civil than his naval services; the latter of which were small in number and importance, but honourable on account of the skill with which they were performed.

OGLE, (Sir CHALONER,) was born about the year 1727; and, in 1761, at which time he was captain of the Aquilon, distinguished himself by taking, at different times, five of the enemy's privateers. In 1770, he was nominated chief officer of the Elizabeth, of seventyfour guns; and, about the same time, received the honour of knighthood. In 1774, he was appointed to the Resolution; and, in 1779, accompanied Sir George Rodney, to the relief of Gibraltar; but, being placed in the rear, had

no opportunity of distinguishing himself in the action. Returning to England, he fell in with a French convoy bound to the East Indies; and, after an action of half an hour, succeeded in capturing a sixty-four-gun ship, without the loss of even one of his crew. He afterwards, under the command of Admiral Rodney, went out to the West India station; and, on the 26th of September, 1780, was promoted to the rank of rear-admiral of the blue. In the February following he came home in the Greyhound; and did not afterwards hold any command, but, on the 24th of September, 1787, was made vice-admiral of the blue; on the 1st of February, 1793, vice of the red; and on the 12th of April, 1794, admiral of the blue squadron. He married, on the 7th of September, 1761, Miss Esther Thomas, youngest daughter of the Bishop of Winchester, by whom he had issue. He died on the 28th of August, 1816, at his seat, in the county of Hants, in his eighty-ninth year; and, at the time of his decease, was senior admiral in the royal navy.

ELLIOTT, (JOHN,) was born about the year 1730; and, in 1760, being on the Irish station, had the charge of three frigates, with which he captured a small squadron under the French commander, Thurot, lying off the Isle of Man. For their conduct in this affair, Captain Elliott and two other officers received from the Irish parliament a vote of thanks, and had also the freedom of the city of Cork presented to them in silver boxes. He afterwards successively commanded the Bellona and the Trident; was made a commodore, in 1777; and, in the following year, accompanied Sir George, Brydges Rodney's expedition undertaken for the relief of Gibraltar. On his return, Captain Elliott was employed in the channel fleet, as commander of the Edgar, until June, 1782, when he quitted that ship; but, during the remainder of the war, was not engaged in any matters of importance. 1786, he was nominated governor of Newfoundland, and retained the appointment for the usual period of three years. On the 24th of September, 1787, he was made rear-admiral of the red; and, on the 21st of February, 1790, vice of the blue; soon after

In

which, he was appointed to a command in the fleet intended to be sent against Spain, on the apprehension of hostilities concerning Nootka Sound. The time of his death is not known.

DOUGLAS, (CHARLES,) of Scotch descent, is reputed to have been in the Dutch service, before he entered the British navy. He was made an English lieutenant on the 4th of December, 1753; and commander, on the 24th of February, 1759; was appointed captain of the Syren, of twenty guns, on the 13th of March, 1761; and, in September, 1762, proceeded, under Lord Colville, to Newfoundland, in order to disperse the French squadron, under M. De Ternay. In this ship, he attended the transports, and covered the landing of Lieutenant-colonel Amherst, and his troops; a duty he very diligently performed. In 1767, he commanded the Emerald frigate, of thirty-two guns, on a cruising expedition; and, towards the end of the year 1770, was commissioned to the St. Albans, of sixtyfour guns; and, in 1775, became captain of the Isis, of fifty guns, in which he proceeded to North America. After having, with incredible difficulty, forced his way through large fields of thick ice, for the space of nearly sixty leagues. he reached the river St. Lawrence, and proceeded to the relief of the capital of Canada, then closely besieged by the North American army; and, on his arrival, drove the opposing army up the river in great confusion. He remained on this station for a short time, and returned home at the close of the year. As a testimony of his services, he was created a baronet, on the 28th of December, 1776; and, in 1777, was employed on the home station, with the command of the Stirling Castle, of sixty-four guns, which vessel was considered the slowest sailer in the fleet, being called, according to a quaint term used amongst seamen, a haystack. He, however, contrived to get it up, so as to take a prominent part in the action off Ushant, on the 27th of July; and was, soon after, promoted to the Duke, of ninety-eight guns; and employed in the channel fleet, until the year 1781, when he became first captain of the Formidable, the flag-ship of Sir George Rodney, commander-in-chief

on the West India station. As captain of the fleet, he distinguished himself in the engagements of the 9th and 12th of April, 1782, with the Count de Grasse. Rodney himself is said to have acknowledged to his private friends, that his success was, in a great degree, attributable to the advice and assistance of Douglas; and, in his public despatches, he pays him this tribute :-" My own captain, Sir Charles Douglas, merits every thing I can possibly say: his unremitted diligence and activity greatly eased me in the unavoidable fatigue of the day." In October, 1783, he hoisted his broad pendant, as an established commodore, on board the Assistance, of fifty guns, in which ship he proceeded to assume the chief command on the Nova Scotia station. He retained this appointment until 1786, when he was recalled, as it would appear, at his own request, in consequence of some disgust he had taken. He was promoted to the rank of rear-admiral of the blue, on the 24th of September, 1787; and, in January, 1789, is said to have been re-appointed to the North American station; but died, at Edinburgh, of apoplexy, early in the following month. Sir Charles Douglas was distinguished, as an officer, by perseverance and courage; and, having a taste for mechanical pursuits, he turned it to account, whenever it might, in any degree, benefit the service. The locks introduced into the navy, in 1758. as a substitute for matches, were revised and improved upon by him; and were adopted with success in his own and other ships. It is said that he was acquainted with six European languages, and could speak them correctly.

KINGSMILL, (Sir ROBERT BRICE,) whose original name was Brice, was born about the year 1731, at Belfast; and, at an early age, entered the naval service, for which he had evinced a predilection. Having filled, with credit, the previous subordinate stations, he was, in 1762, made a post-captain, and appointed to the Crescent; but he did not come into action until 1778, in which year he commanded the Vigilant, in the engagement between Admiral Keppel and Count D'Orvilliers. In the year 1790, Kingsmill was appointed to the Duke, of ninety guns; on the 1st of