Vice-Admiral Aiskew Paffard Hollis (''c.'' 1764 – 23 June 1844) was a Royal Navy officer of the early nineteenth century who is best known for his service in the

French Revolutionary The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are consider ...

and

Napoleonic Wars The Napoleonic Wars (1803–1815) were a series of major global conflicts pitting the French Empire and its allies, led by Napoleon I, against a fluctuating array of European states formed into various coalitions. It produced a period of Fren ...

. Born in the 1760s, Hollis entered the Navy in 1774 and served during the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...

, seeing action at the Battle of Ushant and the

French Revolutionary Wars The French Revolutionary Wars (french: Guerres de la Révolution française) were a series of sweeping military conflicts lasting from 1792 until 1802 and resulting from the French Revolution. They pitted French First Republic, France against Ki ...

in which he was badly wounded at the

Glorious First of June The Glorious First of June (1 June 1794), also known as the Fourth Battle of Ushant, (known in France as the or ) was the first and largest fleet action of the naval conflict between the Kingdom of Great Britain and the First French Republic ...

. In 1801, as the captain of HMS ''Thames'' Hollis was heavily engaged at the

Second Battle of Algeciras The Second Battle of Algeciras (also known as the Battle of the Gut of Gibraltar) was a naval battle fought on the night of 12 July 1801 (23 messidor an IX of the French Republican Calendar) between a squadron of British Royal Navy ships of ...

and in the

he served in a number of commissions and all major theatres.

Life

Aiskew Paffard Hollis was born in approximately 1764 and joined the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...

aged just ten in 1774 under the patronage of Captain Parry. Hollis served as a

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 Afr ...

in the

American War of Independence The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...

, first in the

West Indies The West Indies is a subregion of North America, surrounded by the North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea that includes 13 independent island countries and 18 dependencies and other territories in three major archipelagos: the Greater A ...

and later in the

English 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 Kana ...

in a succession of frigates. By 1778 he was serving in HMS ''Valiant'', which was engaged in the Battle of Ushant under Admiral Augustus Keppel.''Royal Naval Biography'', p. 115–122 He was promoted to lieutenant in 1781 and remained in the Navy following the end of the war, serving in a number of ships before, in 1793, joining HMS ''Queen'' at the request of Rear-Admiral Alan Gardner. In ''Queen'', Hollis served in the Channel Fleet during the early years of the war and was badly wounded in the head by flying splinters at the

in 1794, during which ''Queen'' was heavily engaged. He also saw action the following year at the

Battle of Groix The Battle of Groix was a large naval engagement which took place near the island of Groix off the Biscay coast of Brittany on 23 June 1795 ( 5 messidor an III) during the French Revolutionary Wars. The battle was fought between elements of the ...

.''Annual Register'', p. 249–250 In 1797, after a period of service in HMS ''Royal Sovereign'' and following promotion to commander in HMS ''Chichester'', Hollis was sent to the

Cape of Good Hope The Cape of Good Hope ( af, Kaap die Goeie Hoop ) ;''Kaap'' in isolation: pt, Cabo da Boa Esperança is a rocky headland on the Atlantic coast of the Cape Peninsula in South Africa. A common misconception is that the Cape of Good Hope is t ...

. There he was given command of guardship HMS ''Jupiter'' and tasked with putting down a mutiny at

Robben Island Robben Island ( af, Robbeneiland) is an island in Table Bay, 6.9 kilometres (4.3 mi) west of the coast of Bloubergstrand, north of Cape Town, South Africa. It takes its name from the Dutch word for seals (''robben''), hence the Dutch/Afrik ...

by the crew of HMS ''Crescent''. Hollis advanced on ''Crescent'' subdued the crew without conflict and towed the ship back to

Cape Town Cape Town ( af, Kaapstad; , xh, iKapa) is one of South Africa's three capital cities, serving as the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. It is the legislative capital of the country, the oldest city in the country, and the second largest ...

, where the ringleaders of the mutiny were tried and convicted. As a reward, Hollis was given command of HMS ''Tremendous'' on the station and then the frigate HMS ''Vindictive'', in which he escorted an

East India Company The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (the Indian subcontinent and Southea ...

convoy back to Britain. He was subsequently given command of HMS ''Thames'' in June 1801 and the following month participated in the Algeciras Campaign, firing on the French ship of the line ''Formidable'' during the

. He subsequently participated in a number of raids on the Spanish coastline before being sent back to Britain with his ship. ''Thames'' was decommissioned soon afterward and Hollis given command of HMS ''Mermaid'', sailing to the West Indies in 1804, and was anchored at

Havana Havana (; Spanish: ''La Habana'' ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of the La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center.

when war broke out between Britain and Spain. To avoid his ship being seized, Hollis was forced to

warp Warp, warped or warping may refer to: Arts and entertainment Books and comics * WaRP Graphics, an alternative comics publisher * ''Warp'' (First Comics), comic book series published by First Comics based on the play ''Warp!'' * Warp (comics), a ...

out of the harbour at night just before the Spanish attacked his ship. ''Mermaid'' was subsequently attached to the North American command, blockading French forces anchored in

Chesapeake Bay The Chesapeake Bay ( ) is the largest estuary in the United States. The Bay is located in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region and is primarily separated from the Atlantic Ocean by the Delmarva Peninsula (including the parts: the ...

until 1807, when the ship was sent back to Britain for urgent repairs. Hollis was transferred to HMS ''Standard'' and joined the Baltic Fleet, where he commanded the squadron that captured the Danish fortress at Anholt. He remained in the

Baltic Sea The Baltic Sea is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that is enclosed by Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden and the North and Central European Plain. The sea stretches from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from ...

until 1811, when he was transferred to HMS ''Achille'' in which he served with the Mediterranean Fleet, especially in the

Adriatic Sea The Adriatic Sea () is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkan Peninsula. The Adriatic is the northernmost arm of the Mediterranean Sea, extending from the Strait of Otranto (where it connects to the Ionian Sea) to t ...

. He later served with the Channel Fleet and was on convoy duty off South America when the war ended. Following the end of the Napoleonic Wars he took command of HMS ''Rivoli'' and then HMS ''Ramillies'', serving as acting commander at

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council. Portsmouth is the most dens ...

for several long periods and in 1820 entertaining

King George IV George IV (George Augustus Frederick; 12 August 1762 – 26 June 1830) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and King of Hanover from the death of his father, King George III, on 29 January 1820, until his own death ten y ...

during a visit to the dockyard. He did not hold an active commission after 1820, but remained in service and rose to the rank of vice-admiral, retiring to his estate at Highfield,

Southampton Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Po ...

and dying there aged 80 in June 1844.

Notes

References

* Retrieved 6 April 2012 * {{DEFAULTSORT:Hollis, Aiskew Paffard 1760s births 1844 deaths Royal Navy vice admirals Royal Navy personnel of the American Revolutionary War Royal Navy personnel of the French Revolutionary Wars Royal Navy personnel of the Napoleonic Wars