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Richard Byron (Royal Navy Officer)
Rear-Admiral Richard Byron (1769–1837) was an officer in the British Royal Navy. He served in the American Revolutionary War where he saw action at the Battle of the Saintes, the French Revolutionary Wars where he fought at the Glorious First of June and the Battle of Groix, and the Napoleonic Wars where he served in North-American waters. Byron was in command of HMS ''Belvidera'' when she was attacked by a squadron of heavy frigates in one of the first actions of the 1812 Anglo-American War. Personal life Richard Byron was born in 1769 to the Honourable Richard Byron, rector of Haughton, and Mary, née Farmer. He was the nephew of Admiral John Byron. On 23 September 1803, he married Sarah Sykes, the daughter of a navy agent and the sister of John Sykes (1773–1858), later to be Vice-admiral John Sykes. They had four sons. Byron died in Leatherhead on 2 September 1837, aged 68. His wife outlived him by several years, passing in August 1861.Tracy (p.68) Early career ...
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Companion Of The Most Honourable Order Of The Bath
The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate medieval ceremony for appointing a knight, which involved bathing (as a symbol of purification) as one of its elements. The knights so created were known as "Knights of the Bath". George I "erected the Knights of the Bath into a regular Military Order". He did not (as is commonly believed) revive the Order of the Bath, since it had never previously existed as an Order, in the sense of a body of knights who were governed by a set of statutes and whose numbers were replenished when vacancies occurred. The Order consists of the Sovereign (currently King Charles III), the Great Master (currently vacant) and three Classes of members: *Knight Grand Cross ( GCB) ''or'' Dame Grand Cross ( GCB) *Knight Commander ( KCB) ''or'' Dame Commander ( DCB) *Companion ( CB) Members belong to either the Civil or the Military Division.''Statutes'' 1925, arti ...
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HMS Andromache (1781)
''HMS Andromache'' was a 32-gun fifth-rate frigate of the Royal Navy. She was launched in 1781 and served for 29 years until she was broken up in 1811. Construction ''Andromache'' was ordered on 1 February 1780 and was laid down on June 1780 by William Barnard of Deptford Dockyard. She was launched on 17 November 1781 and was completed by February of the following year. The ship is named after Andromache in Greek mythology. Career West Indies In 1782 under the command of Captain George Anson Byron, ''Andromache'' headed a look-out squadron during the Battle of Saintes. Alongside and , they provided vital information to Admiral Sir George Rodney by reporting all of Comte de Grasse's movements at Fort Royal. Thirteen years later in 1795, ''Andromache'' sailed through a hurricane off Bermuda where she was completely dismasted and suffered severe damage. Mediterranean In 1796 under the command of Charles Manfield, ''Andromache'' engaged a 24-gun Algerine corsair ...
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Master%27s Mate
Master's mate is an obsolete rating which was used by the Royal Navy, United States Navy and merchant services in both countries for a senior petty officer who assisted the master. Master's mates evolved into the modern rank of Sub-Lieutenant in the Royal Navy, while in the merchant service they evolved into the numbered mates or officers. Royal Navy Originally, a master's mate was an experienced petty officer who assisted the master but was not in line for promotion to lieutenant. By the mid-eighteenth century, he was far more likely to be a superior midshipman, still waiting to pass his examination for lieutenant or to receive his commission, but taking rather more responsibility aboard ship. Six master's mates were allowed on a first rate, three on a third rate, and two on most frigates. Duties Master's mates were experienced seamen, and were usually selected from the ranks of the quartermasters, who they supervised, or from the ranks of midshipmen who wanted more responsib ...
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Tippoo Sahib
Tipu Sultan (born Sultan Fateh Ali Sahab Tipu, 1 December 1751 – 4 May 1799), also known as the Tiger of Mysore, was the ruler of the Kingdom of Mysore based in South India. He was a pioneer of rocket artillery.Dalrymple, p. 243 He introduced a number of administrative innovations during his rule, including a new coinage system and calendar, and a new land revenue system, which initiated the growth of the Mysore silk industry. He expanded the iron-cased Mysorean rockets and commissioned the military manual ''Fathul Mujahidin''. He deployed the rockets against advances of British forces and their allies during the Anglo-Mysore Wars, including the Battle of Pollilur and Siege of Srirangapatna. Tipu Sultan and his father used their French-trained army in alliance with the French in their struggle with the British, and in Mysore's struggles with other surrounding powers: against the Marathas, Sira, and rulers of Malabar, Kodagu, Bednore, Carnatic, and Travancore. Tipu's ...
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East Indies
The East Indies (or simply the Indies), is a term used in historical narratives of the Age of Discovery. The Indies refers to various lands in the East or the Eastern hemisphere, particularly the islands and mainlands found in and around the Indian Ocean by Portuguese explorers, soon after the Cape route was discovered. Nowadays, this term is broadly used to refer to the Malay Archipelago, which today comprises the Philippine Archipelago, Indonesian Archipelago, Malaysian Borneo, and New Guinea. Historically, the term was used in the Age of Discovery to refer to the coasts of the landmasses comprising the Indian subcontinent and the Indochinese Peninsula along with the Malay Archipelago. Overview During the era of European colonization, territories of the Spanish Empire in Asia were known as the Spanish East Indies for 333 years before the American conquest. Dutch occupied colonies in the area were known for about 300 years as the Dutch East Indies till Indonesian indepen ...
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HMS Phoenix (1783)
HMS ''Phoenix'' was a 36-gun fifth-rate frigate of the Royal Navy. The shipbuilder George Parsons built her at Bursledon and launched her on 15 July 1783. She served in the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars and was instrumental in the events leading up to the battle of Trafalgar. ''Phoenix'' was involved in several single-ship actions, the most notable occurring on 10 August 1805 when she captured the French frigate ''Didon'', which was more heavily armed than her. She was wrecked, without loss of life, off Smyrna in 1816. Active service She was commissioned in October 1787 under Captain John W. Payne, and paid off in December. Recommissioned in October 1788, she sailed for the East Indies in November under Captain George A. Byron. East Indies In the beginning of November 1791, , Commodore William Cornwallis, ''Phoenix'', Captain Sir Richard Strachan, and , Captain Isaac Smith, were off Tellicherry, a fort and anchorage situated a few leagues to the south of Mangalo ...
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Cornwall
Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a historic county and ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people. Cornwall is bordered to the north and west by the Atlantic Ocean, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, with the River Tamar forming the border between them. Cornwall forms the westernmost part of the South West Peninsula of the island of Great Britain. The southwesternmost point is Land's End and the southernmost Lizard Point. Cornwall has a population of and an area of . The county has been administered since 2009 by the unitary authority, Cornwall Council. The ceremonial county of Cornwall also includes the Isles of Scilly, which are administered separately. The administrative centre of Cornwall is Truro, its only city. Cornwall was formerly a Brythonic kingdom and subsequently a royal duchy. It is the cultural and ethnic origin of the Cornish dias ...
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Devon
Devon ( , historically known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South West England. The most populous settlement in Devon is the city of Plymouth, followed by Devon's county town, the city of Exeter. Devon is a coastal county with cliffs and sandy beaches. Home to the largest open space in southern England, Dartmoor (), the county is predominately rural and has a relatively low population density for an English county. The county is bordered by Somerset to the north east, Dorset to the east, and Cornwall to the west. The county is split into the non-metropolitan districts of East Devon, Mid Devon, North Devon, South Hams, Teignbridge, Torridge, West Devon, Exeter, and the unitary authority areas of Plymouth, and Torbay. Combined as a ceremonial county, Devon's area is and its population is about 1.2 million. Devon derives its name from Dumnonia (the shift from ''m'' to ''v'' is a typical Celtic consonant shift). During the Briti ...
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HMS Druid (1783)
HMS ''Druid'' was a 32-gun ''Hermione''-class fifth-rate frigate of the British Royal Navy, launched in 1783 at Bristol. She served in the French Revolutionary Wars and the Napoleonic Wars, capturing numerous small prizes. One of her commanders, Captain Philip Broke, described ''Druid'' as a "point of honour ship", i.e., a ship too large to run but too small to fight. He and his biographer's view was that it was a disgrace to use a ship like her as a warship. She was broken up in 1813, after a thirty-year career. Career ''Druid'' entered service in 1783 under the command of Captain John MacBride. He was succeeded the following year by Captain George Byron, who commanded her off Land's End.Winfield (2007), p. 212. Captain Joseph Ellison replaced Byron in 1785, and remained in command for the next ten years. ''Druid'' served as a Royal escort between 1785 and 1788, returning to service in 1791 after a period paid off and under refit. ''Druid'' and the smugglers On 31 January ...
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Midshipman
A midshipman is an officer of the lowest rank, in the Royal Navy, United States Navy, and many Commonwealth navies. Commonwealth countries which use the rank include Canada (Naval Cadet), Australia, Bangladesh, Namibia, New Zealand, South Africa, India, Pakistan, Singapore, Sri Lanka, and Kenya. In the 17th century, a midshipman was a rating for an experienced seaman, and the word derives from the area aboard a ship, amidships, either where he worked on the ship, or where he was berthed. Beginning in the 18th century, a commissioned officer candidate was rated as a midshipman, and the seaman rating began to slowly die out. By the Napoleonic era (1793–1815), a midshipman was an apprentice officer who had previously served at least three years as a volunteer, officer's servant or able seaman, and was roughly equivalent to a present-day petty officer in rank and responsibilities. After serving at least three years as a midshipman or master's mate, he was eligible to take the e ...
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Great Siege Of Gibraltar
The Great Siege of Gibraltar was an unsuccessful attempt by Spain and France to capture Gibraltar from the British during the War of the American Revolution. It was the largest battle in the war by number of combatants. The American war had ended with the British defeat at Yorktown in October 1781, but the Bourbon defeat in their great final assault on Gibraltar would not come until September 1782. The siege was suspended in February 1783 at the beginning of peace talks with the British. On 16 June 1779, Spain entered the war on the side of France and as co-belligerents of the revolutionary United Colonies—the British base at Gibraltar was Spain's primary war aim. The vulnerable Gibraltar garrison under George Augustus Eliott was blockaded from June 1779 to February 1783, initially by the Spanish alone, led by Martín Álvarez de Sotomayor. The blockade proved to be a failure because two relief convoys entered unmolested—the first under Admiral George Rodney in 1780 and th ...
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The Channel
The English Channel, "The Sleeve"; nrf, la Maunche, "The Sleeve" (Cotentinais) or (Jèrriais), (Guernésiais), "The Channel"; br, Mor Breizh, "Sea of Brittany"; cy, Môr Udd, "Lord's Sea"; kw, Mor Bretannek, "British Sea"; nl, Het Kanaal, "The Channel"; german: Ärmelkanal, "Sleeve Channel" ( French: ''la Manche;'' also called the British Channel or simply the Channel) is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates Southern England from northern France. It links to the southern part of the North Sea by the Strait of Dover at its northeastern end. It is the busiest shipping area in the world. It is about long and varies in width from at its widest to at its narrowest in the Strait of Dover."English Channel". ''The Columbia Encyclopedia'', 2004. It is the smallest of the shallow seas around the continental shelf of Europe, covering an area of some . The Channel was a key factor in Britain becoming a naval superpower and has been utilised by Britain as a natural defenc ...
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