Vice-Admiral Peter John Douglas (30 June 1787 – 17 December 1858) was an officer of 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 ...

who served during 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 ...

. He was born 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 ...

on 30 June 1787, the son of Admiral Billy Douglas. He entered the Navy on 17 January 1797 and during the next six years served on a variety of ships, including the 90-gun , commanded by his father. In March 1804, he was appointed Acting-Lieutenant of the sloop for his conduct in proceeding up the river

Elbe The Elbe (; cs, Labe ; nds, Ilv or ''Elv''; Upper and dsb, Łobjo) is one of the major rivers of Central Europe. It rises in the Giant Mountains of the northern Czech Republic before traversing much of Bohemia (western half of the Czech Re ...

with the boats of that sloop, and capturing five vessels which had forced the blockade. On 25 October 1805 Douglas, whilst serving on the frigate HMS ''Franchise'', commanded one of the ship's boats at the capture, on the north side of

Jamaica Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of His ...

, of the

privateer A privateer is a private person or ship that engages in maritime warfare under a commission of war. Since robbery under arms was a common aspect of seaborne trade, until the early 19th century all merchant ships carried arms. A sovereign or deleg ...

''General Ferrand'', and, on the night of 6 January 1806, he had charge of the barge, and elicited the highest approbation for his promptitude and gallantry at the taking, in the Bay of Campeche, of the Spanish corvette ''Raposa'', at which he was wounded. Douglas was subsequently presented by the

Lloyd's Patriotic Fund Lloyd's Patriotic Fund was founded on 28 July 1803 at Lloyd's Coffee House, and continues to the present day. Lloyd’s Patriotic Fund now works closely with armed forces charities to identify the individuals and their families who are in urgent ne ...

with a sword. Prior to leaving the ''Franchise'', he further served in the boats at the capture of the Spanish schooner ''Carmen'', and on board that ship he succeeded in making two prizes, and in driving an armed vessel on shore. In 1808 Douglas was commanding the

brig-sloop In the 18th century and most of the 19th, a sloop-of-war in the Royal Navy was a warship with a single gun deck that carried up to eighteen guns. The rating system covered all vessels with 20 guns and above; thus, the term ''sloop-of-war'' enc ...

and captured four privateers within as many months. He subsequently served under Captain Charles Dashwood at the capture, towards the close of 1808, of the town of Samana, St. Domingo. On his passage to England he captured the French schooner ''Mouche'', on 9 March 1809. He co-operated with Commodore Edward Owen's advanced division in the East

Scheldt The Scheldt (french: Escaut ; nl, Schelde ) is a river that flows through northern France, western Belgium, and the southwestern part of the Netherlands, with its mouth at the North Sea. Its name is derived from an adjective corresponding to ...

during the

Walcheren Campaign The Walcheren Campaign ( ) was an unsuccessful British expedition to the Netherlands in 1809 intended to open another front in the Austrian Empire's struggle with France during the War of the Fifth Coalition. Sir John Pitt, 2nd Earl of Chath ...

. Captain Douglas was paid off on 16 November 1812 and was unable to gain employment until 19 January 1836 when he returned 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 Greate ...

with HMS Melville as

flag captain In the Royal Navy, a flag captain was the captain of an admiral's flagship. During the 18th and 19th centuries, this ship might also have a "captain of the fleet", who would be ranked between the admiral and the "flag captain" as the ship's "First ...

Peter Halkett Admiral Sir Peter Halkett, 6th Baronet (''c.'' 1765 – 7 October 1839) was a senior Royal Navy officer of the early nineteenth century who is best known for his service in the French Revolutionary Wars. The younger son a Scottish baronet, ...

. On 30 March 1838, he was appointed Commodore on the Division of North America and West Indies Station and superintended the naval establishment

Jamaica Dockyard Jamaica Dockyard also known as Port Royal Dockyard was a British Royal Navy Dockyard located at Port Royal, Jamaica. It was established 1675 and closed in 1905. The dockyard was initially administered by the Navy Board then later the Board of Adm ...

and in the November following he was sent in command of a large squadron to the

Gulf of Mexico The Gulf of Mexico ( es, Golfo de México) is an ocean basin and a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean, largely surrounded by the North American continent. It is bounded on the northeast, north and northwest by the Gulf Coast of the United ...

, to mediate between the French and Mexican governments. He afterwards, during the intervals occasioned by the deaths of Vice-Admirals Sir Charles Paget and Sir Thomas Harvey, officiated, from 29 January to 24 May 1839, and from 28 May to 1 October 1841, as Commander-in-Chief on the

North America and West Indies 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 ...

. He was later 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 ...

, and died on 17 December 1858 in

Southsea Southsea is a seaside resort and a geographic area of Portsmouth, Portsea Island in England. Southsea is located 1.8 miles (2.8 km) to the south of Portsmouth's inner city-centre. Southsea is not a separate town as all of Portsea Island's s ...

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in western South East England on the coast of the English Channel. Home to two major English cities on its south coast, Southampton and Portsmouth, Hampshire ...

. He had married on 13 April 1809 in

Chatham Chatham may refer to: Places and jurisdictions Canada * Chatham Islands (British Columbia) * Chatham Sound, British Columbia * Chatham, New Brunswick, a former town, now a neighbourhood of Miramichi * Chatham (electoral district), New Brunswic ...

Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...

, Lydia Moriarty, eldest daughter of Vice-Admiral Sylverius Moriarty, by whom he had four daughters and two sons, of whom the eldest, William Manners Wellington, served in the navy. His eldest daughter married Captain W. Campbell Onslow, Superintendent of Coorg, in the East Indies; his second married Robert Pollock, second son of Sir Frederick Pollock, the Lord

Chief Baron of the Exchequer The Chief Baron of the Exchequer was the first "baron" (meaning judge) of the English Exchequer of Pleas. "In the absence of both the Treasurer of the Exchequer or First Lord of the Treasury, and the Chancellor of the Exchequer, it was he who pre ...

; and his third married Alexander Henry Gordon, of the

Indian Navy The Indian Navy is the maritime branch of the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India is the Supreme Commander of the Indian Navy. The Chief of Naval Staff, a four-star admiral, commands the navy. As a blue-water navy, it operates si ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Douglas, Peter John 1787 births 1858 deaths Royal Navy rear admirals Royal Navy personnel of the French Revolutionary Wars Royal Navy personnel of the Napoleonic Wars Military personnel from Portsmouth

See also

References