Lieutenant Commander Daniel Lawrence Braine

Daniel Lawrence Braine (May 18, 1829 – January 30, 1898) was an admiral of the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

Early life

Born in

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on May 18, 1829, Braine was appointed

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 1846. He served on the and the during the

Mexican–American War The Mexican–American War, also known in the United States as the Mexican War and in Mexico as the (''United States intervention in Mexico''), was an armed conflict between the United States and Mexico from 1846 to 1848. It followed the 1 ...

Civil War service

During the

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

he commanded the and took part in an engagement with the rebel battery at

Sewell's Point Sewells Point is a peninsula of land in the independent city of Norfolk, Virginia in the United States, located at the mouth of the salt-water port of Hampton Roads. Sewells Point is bordered by water on three sides, with Willoughby Bay to th ...

, in the first naval engagement of the war. He also took part in the attack and capture of Fort Hatteras and Fort Clarke and engaged the enemy at Kimmekerk Woods above Cape Hatteras. He was promoted to lieutenant commander in July 1862.

Post-Civil War

Braine was promoted to commander in July 1866. On November 1, 1871, he was elected as a Companion of the New York Commandery of the

Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States The Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States (MOLLUS), or simply the Loyal Legion is a United States patriotic order, organized April 15, 1865, by three veteran officers of the Army. The original membership was composed of members ...

– a military society of officers who had served the Union during the American Civil War. He was assigned insignia number 1338. Between 1873 and 1875 he commanded the on its cruise to

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in search of the ill-fated ''Polaris'' Expedition. During this cruise, he was promoted to the rank of captain in 1874. In 1875, he took command of the receiving ship USS ''

Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of t ...

'', after which he was assigned to command USS '' Powhatan''. As a senior captain, Braine was permitted to use the customary title commodore beginning in 1885, and in late 1886 he was assigned to command the South Atlantic Squadron with promotion to

rear admiral Rear admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, equivalent to a major general and air vice marshal and above that of a commodore and captain, but below that of a vice admiral. It is regarded as a two star "admiral" rank. It is often regarde ...

the following year. In 1889 he was assigned to command of the Brooklyn Navy Yard, where he served until his retirement.

Retirement and death

Rear Admiral Rear admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, equivalent to a major general and air vice marshal and above that of a commodore and captain, but below that of a vice admiral. It is regarded as a two star "admiral" rank. It is often regarde ...

Braine retired from the Navy in May 1891. In 1895 he became a Veteran Companion of the New York Commandery of the Military Order of Foreign Wars and received insignia number 45. He died in

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

on January 30, 1898.

Namesake

The

destroyer In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast, manoeuvrable, long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy or battle group and defend them against powerful short range attackers. They were originally developed in ...

, (1943–1971) was named in his honor.

Dates of rank

* Midshipman, May 30, 1846. * Passed Midshipman, June 8, 1852. * Master, September 15, 1855. * Lieutenant, September 16, 1855. * Lieutenant Commander, July 16, 1862. * Commander, July 25, 1866. * Captain, December 11, 1874. * Commodore, March 2, 1885. * Rear Admiral, September 4, 1887. * Retired List, May 18, 1891.

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Braine, Daniel 1829 births 1898 deaths United States Navy rear admirals (upper half) Union Navy officers People of New York (state) in the American Civil War United States Navy personnel of the Mexican–American War Burials at Green-Wood Cemetery