Philip Westphal (178216 March 1880) was an admiral in 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 ...

. He was designated a

Person of National Historic Significance Persons of National Historic Significance (National Historic People) are people designated by the Canadian government as being nationally significant in the history of the country. Designations are made by the Minister of the Environment on the re ...

for Canada in 1945.

Biography

Philip Westphal was born in 1782, the son of George Westphal and younger brother of Admiral

George Augustus Westphal Sir George Augustus Alexander Westphal (27 March 1785 – 12 January 1875) was a Nova Scotian admiral in the Royal Navy who served in more than 100 actions. He was midshipman on HMS ''Victory'' during the Battle of Trafalgar. Early life West ...

. He entered the

North American station The North America and West Indies Station was a formation or command of the United Kingdom's Royal Navy stationed in North American waters from 1745 to 1956. The North American Station was separate from the Jamaica Station until 1830 when the ...

of the

in 1794. Two years later he served in the

Home Squadron The Home Squadron was part of the United States Navy in the mid-19th century. Organized as early as 1838, ships were assigned to protect coastal commerce, aid ships in distress, suppress piracy and the Atlantic slave trade, make coastal surveys, ...

on and before being transferred to in 1797. Westphal served in North America on the ''Asia'' for three years, until 1800. He served under

Horatio Nelson Vice-Admiral Horatio Nelson, 1st Viscount Nelson, 1st Duke of Bronte (29 September 1758 – 21 October 1805) was a British flag officer in the Royal Navy. His inspirational leadership, grasp of strategy, and unconventional tactics brought abo ...

on and participated in the Battle of Copenhagen in April 1801. On 5 April Westphal was promoted to

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often sub ...

of and in May of the following year he switched to , traveling from

Toulon Toulon (, , ; oc, label= Provençal, Tolon , , ) is a city on the French Riviera and a large port on the Mediterranean coast, with a major naval base. Located in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, and the Provence province, Toulon is th ...

to 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 ...

. In 1806 his ship captured the French schooner ''Belle Poule'' and Westphal refitted the ship and captained it back to England in an unofficial capacity. When he returned, the

British Admiralty The Admiralty was a department of the Government of the United Kingdom responsible for the command of the Royal Navy until 1964, historically under its titular head, the Lord High Admiral – one of the Great Officers of State. For much of it ...

declined to make his rank official and he remained a lieutenant. He left the ''Amazon'' in 1812 for , serving off the coast of North America for three years.

George Cockburn Admiral of the Fleet Sir George Cockburn, 10th Baronet, (22 April 1772 – 19 August 1853) was a British Royal Navy officer. As a captain he was present at the Battle of Cape St Vincent in February 1797 during the French Revolutionary Wars an ...

placed Westphal in service on Cockburn's flagship in January 1815 and he was promoted to

commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countries this naval rank is termed frigate captain. ...

on 23 June. Westphal moved to in November 1828 and later to . He reached a 'post rank' on 22 July 1830 and retired in 1847. While on the retired list, he 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 ...

(27 September 1855), vice-admiral (4 October 1862), 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, ...

(2 April 1866). He died on 16 March 1880. When he died, Westphal was the oldest officer in the Royal Navy.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Westphal, Philip 1782 births 1880 deaths Persons of National Historic Significance (Canada) Royal Navy admirals