Baron Jacques Félix Emmanuel Hamelin (13 October 1768 – 23 April 1839) was a
rear admiral of the French navy and later a
Baron. He commanded numerous naval expeditions and battles with 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 Fr ...
as well as exploratory voyages in the
Indian Ocean
The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, covering or ~19.8% of the water on Earth's surface. It is bounded by Asia to the north, Africa to the west and Australia to the east. To the south it is bounded by ...
and the
South Seas.
Early life
Hamelin was born in
Honfleur,
Calvados,
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
. At age 17, Hamelin embarked on a trade ship belonging to his uncle as a young marine to learn sailing. In April 1786, he was a crew member of the ship ''Asie'' of the
merchant marine which was destined for the coast of
Angola on a ten-month campaign. He then proceeded to
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 Febr ...
on board the ''Triton'' as a
helmsman
A helmsman or helm (sometimes driver) is a person who steers a ship, sailboat, submarine, other type of maritime vessel, or spacecraft. The rank and seniority of the helmsman may vary: on small vessels such as fishing vessels and yachts, t ...
. In July 1788, Hamelin returned to Honfleur, where he embarked as a midshipman on the ship ''Jeune Mina'' and campaigns on several other vessels.
French Navy
He was conscripted by the
French Revolutionary Government for the
French Revolutionary Wars and in 1792, quit commercial sailing and joined the Navy. In August 1792 he was a
quartermaster aboard the vessel ''Entreprenant'' which was a part of a naval division under
Rear Admiral Louis-René Levassor de Latouche Tréville. Tréville's division joined together with another squadron of
Admiral Truguet and took part in operations against
Oneglia
Oneglia ( lij, Inêia or ) is a former town in northern Italy on the Ligurian coast, in 1923 joined to Porto Maurizio to form the Comune of Imperia. The name is still used for the suburb.Roy Palmer Domenico, ''The regions of Italy: a referenc ...
,
Cagliari, and
Nice
Nice ( , ; Niçard: , classical norm, or , nonstandard, ; it, Nizza ; lij, Nissa; grc, Νίκαια; la, Nicaea) is the prefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes department in France. The Nice agglomeration extends far beyond the administrative ...
. In August 1793 Hamelin was named
midshipman of the frigate ''
Proserpine'', with which he took over the Dutch frigate ''Vigilante'' and part of the convoy she was escorting. He was promoted to
lieutenant in August 1795, and on ''
Minerve'', took part in the
action of 7 March 1795, in which
HMS ''Berwick'' was captured.
He took part in the
action of 7 October 1795, in which Rear-Admiral
de Richery's squadron met with a British convoy bound for Smyrna, capturing 30 out of 31 merchant ships, and retaking the 74 gun
''Censeur''. On 21 November 1796, Hamelin was promoted to ''capitaine de frégate'' (commander) and took a commission as first officer of ''
Révolution''. He took part in the French expedition to support the
Irish Rebellion. Hamelin subsequently took command of the ''
Fraternité'' for three months, after which took command of ''
Précieuse'', part of a squadron under Admiral
Eustache Bruix. He then embarked as second-in-command on the ''
Formidable''.
Exploration of the South Seas
From 1 October 1800 to 23 June 1803, Hamelin captained the bomb ship ''
Naturaliste'', along with Captain
Nicolas Baudin on ''
Géographe'', on a
scientific expedition exploring the South Seas. This voyage was intended as a scientific exploration of
New Holland and the charting of the as yet unknown southern coastline. There were no instructions from the French government to claim any land in the name of France. This expedition returned to France the largest collection of plants animals and seeds from New Holland and
Timor that Europe had ever seen, including two short-legged emus from King Island who lived out their days in Josephine's garden.
Baudin rejected ideas amongst his crewmen that they should found a settlement there, and he wrote letters back home to this effect. A party of Hamelin's men discovered a
plate, left by
Willem de Vlamingh
Willem Hesselsz de Vlamingh (November 1640 – ) was a Dutch sea captain who explored the central west coast of New Holland ( Australia) in the late 17th century, where he landed in what is now Perth on the Swan River. The mission proved fruit ...
in 1697, which had in turn replaced an earlier plate left by
Dirk Hartog in 1616. Hamelin's men initially removed the plate but it was returned on his orders and left intact until a later visit by
Louis de Freycinet
Louis Claude de Saulces de Freycinet (7 August 1779 – 18 August 1841) was a French Navy officer. He circumnavigated the earth, and in 1811 published the first map to show a full outline of the coastline of Australia.
Biography
He was born at ...
in 1818. De Freycinet was on Hamelin's 1801 crew. On his return to France, Hamelin was promoted to ''captaine de vaisseau'' (captain), and oversaw the weaponry of the large fleet intended for the invasion of England.
Mauritius
In July 1806, Hamelin took command of the frigate ''
Vénus'' from
Le Havre. He set sail for
Isle de France (now
Mauritius
Mauritius ( ; french: Maurice, link=no ; mfe, label= Mauritian Creole, Moris ), officially the Republic of Mauritius, is an island nation in the Indian Ocean about off the southeast coast of the African continent, east of Madagascar. It ...
), seizing four ships along the way. In March 1809, ''Vénus'' entered Port Napoléon (formerly
Port-Louis, Isle de France). This is the start of the
Mauritius campaign of 1809–1811 between the French and the British, to maintain control of these well-located islands between the coast of Africa and India. On 26 April, after orders from the general captain of Mauritius to leave, he sailed off, having under his command ''Vénus'', the frigate ''
Manche'', the brig ''Entreprenant'', and the schooner ''Créole''.
He visited
Foulpointe on the east coast of
Madagascar. Besieged by local Madagascan tribesmen, he moved on the
Bay of Bengal
The Bay of Bengal is the northeastern part of the Indian Ocean, bounded on the west and northwest by India, on the north by Bangladesh, and on the east by Myanmar and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands of India. Its southern limit is a line bet ...
, entered Saint George's channel in the
Nicobar Islands, seized several British merchant ships, sinking a number of small ships sent out by the British, and on 18 November 1809, seized the British colony of
Tappanouti. On the return voyage to Mauritius, he captured three
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 Sou ...
East Indiamen in the
action of 18 November 1809. On his return trip, he seized several more British ships, until he encountered
HMS ''Ceylon'' on 17–18 September 1810. ''Ceylon'' was captured, but the next day a British frigate squadron
captured both ''Ceylon'' and ''Vénus''.
Hero's return
On returning to France in February 1811 Hamelin was presented to
Napoleon I
Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader wh ...
,
Emperor of the French, and made a
''Commandeur de la Légion d'honneur'', created a
Baron of Empire, raised to the rank of rear-admiral and named commander of a division of the squadron under the orders of Admiral
Édouard Thomas Burgues de Missiessy
Édouard-Thomas de Burgues, comte de Missiessy (23 April 1756, Forcalquier, Alpes-de-Haute-Provence – 24 March 1837, Toulon) was a French naval officer and admiral. He joined the navy in April 1766, as a volunteer aboard his father's ship ...
. In April 1818 he moved to
Toulon as general major of the navy, a post that he occupied until 18 May 1822. In early 1823, he was bestowed the rank of ''Grand Officer de la Légion d'Honneur''. In 1832 Baron Hamelin was appointed Inspector General of Marine Crews, and in 1833 he was named Director of Marine Cartography. He retired shortly after, and died in Paris. His nephew was Admiral
Ferdinand-Alphonse Hamelin
Ferdinand-Alphonse Hamelin (2 September 1796 – 10 January 1864), French admiral, was born in Pont-l'Évêque, Normandy. He was the nephew of Jacques Félix Emmanuel Hamelin, a successful rear admiral in the French Navy of the Napoleonic era. ...
.
Legacy
The completion of the hero's welcome in 1811 was that his
name was inscribed on the
Arc de Triomphe in Paris, on the north pillar, the only naval officer to be so honored from the Napoleonic Wars. He was second in command during the
Battle of Grand Port
The Battle of Grand Port was a naval battle between squadrons of frigates from the French Navy and the British Royal Navy. The battle was fought during 20–27 August 1810 over possession of the harbour of Grand Port on Isle de France (now Ma ...
, a naval battle won by the French off the coast of Mauritius. The battle is the only French naval battle to be inscribed on the
Arc de Triomphe.
See also
*
European and American voyages of scientific exploration
*
Cape Leeuwin
Cape Leeuwin is the most south-westerly (but not most southerly) mainland point of the Australian continent, in the state of Western Australia.
Description
A few small islands and rocks, the St Alouarn Islands, extend further in Flinders B ...
*
Cape Naturaliste
*
Geographe Bay
*
Hamelin Bay
References
*
Edward Duyker ''François Péron: An Impetuous Life: Naturalist and Voyager'', Miegunyah/MUP, Melb., 2006, ,
* Fornasiero, Jean; Monteath, Peter and West-Sooby, John. ''Encountering Terra Australis: the Australian voyages of Nicholas Baudin and Matthew Flinders'', Kent Town, South Australia, Wakefield Press, 2004.
*Frank Horner, The French Reconnaissance: Baudin in Australia 1801—1803, Melbourne University Press, Melbourne, 1987 .
* "Jacques Félix Emmanuel Hamelin", in C. Mullié, ''
Biographie des célébrités militaires des armées de terre et de mer de 1789 à 1850, XIXe siècle''
* ''This article draws heavily on the
Jacques Félix Emmanuel Hamelin article in the
French Wikipedia, which was accessed in the version of 26 July 2006.
* Marchant, Leslie R. ''French Napoleonic Placenames of the South West Coast'', Greenwood, WA. R.I.C. Publications, 2004.
*Taillemite, E. Dictionnaire des marins français, Editions Maritimes et d’Outre-Mer, Paris, 1982, p. 156.
Further reading
* Playford, Phillip E.(1998) ''Voyage of discovery to Terra Australis : by Willem De Vlamingh in 1696-97'' Perth, W.A. Western Australian Museum.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hamelin, Jacques Felix Emmanuel
1768 births
1839 deaths
People from Honfleur
French Navy admirals
French explorers
Explorers of Australia
Explorers of Western Australia
French naval commanders of the Napoleonic Wars
Deputies of the 12th National Assembly of the French Fifth Republic
Knights of the Order of Saint Louis
Grand Officiers of the Légion d'honneur
Names inscribed under the Arc de Triomphe