Admiral Henry Curzon (24 May 1765 – 2 May 1846) was a Royal Navy officer who held commands during the French Revolutionary Wars and the Napoleonic Wars. Curzon was the fifth son of Nathaniel Curzon, 1st Baron Scarsdale, and his wife Caroline. He first entered the Navy on 14 October 1776 as an able seaman aboard . When ''Aeolus'' returned from the West Indies in 1780, he became 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 ...

aboard . ''Magnanime'' was sent out to assist in the

Relief 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 end ...

in 1781, and then to the East Indies in 1782, to reinforce the fleet under Sir Edward Hughes. Curzon transferred aboard the

flagship A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of naval ships, characteristically a flag officer entitled by custom to fly a distinguishing flag. Used more loosely, it is the lead ship in a fleet of vessels, typically the fi ...

, , and fought in the battles of Providien, Negapatam, and Trincomalee. On 1 February 1783, he received a lieutenancy on ''Monarca'' and was with that ship at the Battle of Cuddalore in 1783, his last action in the East. From July 1784 to March 1790, he was successively lieutenant aboard , , and , and first lieutenant of , then flagship of Sir Richard Hughes on the North American Station. He was sent home in 1790 as acting commander of . His rank as commander was confirmed on 21 September 1790 and he was given the fireship . On 22 November 1790, he was promoted post captain. In June 1791, Curzon was given the sixth rate , and was sent to Villefranche-sur-Mer to protect British property at the capture of Nice by the French in 1792. When France

declared war A declaration of war is a formal act by which one state announces existing or impending war activity against another. The declaration is a performative speech act (or the signing of a document) by an authorized party of a national government, i ...

in 1793, ''Lapwing'' escorted a convoy back from

Gibraltar ) , anthem = " God Save the King" , song = " Gibraltar Anthem" , image_map = Gibraltar location in Europe.svg , map_alt = Location of Gibraltar in Europe , map_caption = United Kingdom shown in pale green , mapsize = , image_map2 = Gib ...

. On 22 January 1794, Curzon was given the fifth rate

frigate A frigate () is a type of warship. In different eras, the roles and capabilities of ships classified as frigates have varied somewhat. The name frigate in the 17th to early 18th centuries was given to any full-rigged ship built for speed and ...

, which he commanded at the Glorious First of June and in Cornwallis's Retreat. At the latter action, Cornwallis, in , kept ''Pallas'' close by to repeat his signals to the fleet, and Curzon was

mentioned in despatches To be mentioned in dispatches (or despatches, MiD) describes a member of the armed forces whose name appears in an official report written by a superior officer and sent to the high command, in which their gallant or meritorious action in the face ...

for his good performance. ''Pallas'' was lost when she went aground under Mount Batten in a storm on 4 April 1798. On 28 February 1799, Curzon took command of , and took part in a number of captures, including that of the corvette in 1800, accompanying the expedition to

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in the autumn of that year. In June 1801, he was invalided out of the service due to severe ill-health. He did not return to command until 10 June 1807, when he was given the third rate . ''Elizabeth'' was part of the fleet under Sir Charles Cotton that blockaded

Lisbon Lisbon (; pt, Lisboa ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 544,851 within its administrative limits in an area of 100.05 km2. Grande Lisboa, Lisbon's urban area extends beyond the city's administr ...

during the "Anglo-Russian War", escorted the Russians to Portsmouth, and helped cover the evacuation after Corunna. He was sent out to the Brazil station in early 1809 to search for a French fleet supposed to be bound for the River Plate. Having made a junction with the forces there and found no sign of the French, Curzon escorted a homeward-bound convoy and returned in April 1810. He found he had been appointed a Colonel of Marines on 25 October 1809. His last command was of a squadron blockading

Cherbourg Cherbourg (; , , ), nrf, Chèrbourg, ) is a former commune and subprefecture located at the northern end of the Cotentin peninsula in the northwestern French department of Manche. It was merged into the commune of Cherbourg-Octeville on 28 Feb ...

. On 31 July 1810, Curzon was promoted 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 ...

, ending his seagoing command. He obtained no further employment from the Admiralty, but he became a vice-admiral on 4 June 1814 and

admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in some navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force, and is above vice admiral and below admiral of the fleet, ...

on 22 July 1830. He was unmarried and left no children when he died at his residence in Derby on 2 May 1846.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Curzon, Henry 1765 births Royal Navy personnel of the French Revolutionary Wars Royal Navy personnel of the Napoleonic Wars Royal Navy admirals Younger sons of barons 1846 deaths