Admiral Sir Richard Lee KCB KTS (c. 1765 – 5 August 1837) was a prominent officer of the British

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 ...

who served in the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...

, the

French Revolutionary Wars The French Revolutionary Wars (french: Guerres de la Révolution française) were a series of sweeping military conflicts lasting from 1792 until 1802 and resulting from the French Revolution. They pitted French First Republic, France against Ki ...

and the

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 ...

. His early career was marked by his participation in a number of important battles during the American war, during the French Revolutionary Wars he spent an unremarkable period of time in the Caribbean, but during the Napoleonic Wars he was again prominent, participating heavily in a number of important engagements. In 1812, Lee was promoted to rear-admiral and was unable to get an appointment, his future as a serving officer in doubt. Although he never again served in an active capacity, he continued to receive promotions and rewards for his lengthy service, both from the British and Portuguese royal families. He died at his home in

Walmer Walmer is a town in Dover District, the district of Dover, Kent, in England. Located on the coast, the parish of Walmer is south-east of Sandwich, Kent. Largely residential, its coastline and castle attract many visitors. It has a population of ...

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in 1837 at the age of 72 as a full admiral.

Early life

Richard Lee was born in approximately 1765, entering the

at the age of just 12 as 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 ...

on the

sloop A sloop is a sailboat with a single mast typically having only one headsail in front of the mast and one mainsail aft of (behind) the mast. Such an arrangement is called a fore-and-aft rig, and can be rigged as a Bermuda rig with triangular sa ...

HMS ''Speedwell'', then captained by Commander

John Harvey John Harvey may refer to: People Academics * John Harvey (astrologer) (1564–1592), English astrologer and physician * John Harvey (architectural historian) (1911–1997), British architectural historian, who wrote on English Gothic architecture ...

. Lee later transferred to the

ship of the line A ship of the line was a type of naval warship constructed during the Age of Sail from the 17th century to the mid-19th century. The ship of the line was designed for the naval tactic known as the line of battle, which depended on the two colu ...

HMS ''Triumph'', which was attached to the fleet under Admiral Sir George Rodney. With Rodney, ''Triumph'' participated in the victory over the Spanish at the Battle of Cape St Vincent and the inconclusive Battle of Martinique against the French during 1780. Later in the year, Rodney's fleet sailed to

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

and ''en route'' seized the captured armed Jamaica ship ''Lion''. Lee was made master of ''Lion'' and cruised the coastline near

Sandy Hook Sandy Hook is a barrier spit in Middletown Township, Monmouth County, New Jersey, United States. The barrier spit, approximately in length and varying from wide, is located at the north end of the Jersey Shore. It encloses the southern en ...

, on one occasion fighting a brief engagement with the American

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 ...

''Retaliation'', which was driven into Neversink. For his services, Lee was promoted to lieutenant and awarded a large financial reward from the merchants of New York.''The Gentleman's Magazine'', July 1837, p. 424

Career

In 1781, Lee returned to Britain and joined first HMS ''Recovery'' and then HMS ''Raisonnable'', in which he participated in the relief of

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 ...

during the Great Siege. With the fleet under Lord Howe, Lee subsequently participated in the indecisive

Battle of Cape Spartel The Battle of Cape Spartel was an indecisive naval battle between a Franco-Spanish fleet under Admiral Luis de Córdova y Córdova and a British fleet under Admiral Richard Howe. These forces met on 20 October 1782 after Howe successfully resupp ...

. Lee remained in service during the peace that followed, initially on and then on the

fourth rate In 1603 all English warships with a compliment of fewer than 160 men were known as 'small ships'. In 1625/26 to establish pay rates for officers a six tier naval ship rating system was introduced.Winfield 2009 These small ships were divided i ...

in the West Indies under Rear-Admiral

Philip Affleck Admiral (Royal Navy), Admiral Philip Affleck ( December 21, 1799) was an admiral in the Royal Navy. He was the younger brother of Sir Edmund Affleck. Affleck held various commands throughout the latter half of the 18th Century, most notably as ...

. Under Affleck's patronage, Lee received a promotion to commander in and acted as a convoy escort during the opening months of the

, for which service he was given substantial financial rewards by the convoy's merchants and insurers. ''Serpent'' was subsequently deployed in support of allied forces during the siege of Nieuwpoort, returning in June 1794 when Lee was promoted to

post captain Post-captain is an obsolete alternative form of the rank of Captain (Royal Navy), captain in the Royal Navy. The term served to distinguish those who were captains by rank from: * Officers in command of a naval vessel, who were (and still are) ...

. Lee's first full command was HMS ''Hind'' in the English Channel, followed by HMS ''Greyhound'' in the Caribbean and HMS ''Assistance'' in the Channel once more. In 1802, Lee survived the loss of ''Assistance'' in a shipwreck off

Dunkirk Dunkirk (french: Dunkerque ; vls, label=French Flemish, Duunkerke; nl, Duinkerke(n) ; , ;) is a commune in the department of Nord in northern France.maritime pilot A maritime pilot, marine pilot, harbor pilot, port pilot, ship pilot, or simply pilot, is a mariner who maneuvers ships through dangerous or congested waters, such as harbors or river mouths. Maritime pilots are regarded as skilled professionals ...

s grounded the vessel on a sandbar. Two men were drowned in the wreck, and Lee was subsequently admonished for placing too much trust in hired pilots. The pilots were each imprisoned for six months. After three years unemployed, Lee returned to service in early 1805, taking over the 74-gun HMS ''Courageux'' and joining the squadron under Sir Richard Strachan in the

Bay of Biscay The Bay of Biscay (), known in Spain as the Gulf of Biscay ( es, Golfo de Vizcaya, eu, Bizkaiko Golkoa), and in France and some border regions as the Gulf of Gascony (french: Golfe de Gascogne, oc, Golf de Gasconha, br, Pleg-mor Gwaskogn), ...

. On 4 November 1805, ''Courgueux'' was heavily engaged at the

Battle of Cape Ortegal The Battle of Cape Ortegal was the final action of the Trafalgar campaign, and was fought between a squadron of the Royal Navy and a remnant of the fleet that had been defeated earlier at the Battle of Trafalgar. It took place on 4 November 180 ...

, in which four French ships of the line that had escaped from the

Battle of Trafalgar The Battle of Trafalgar (21 October 1805) was a naval engagement between the British Royal Navy and the combined fleets of the French and Spanish Navies during the War of the Third Coalition (August–December 1805) of the Napoleonic Wars (180 ...

were defeated and captured.

HMS ''Monarch''

In 1806, Lee took command of HMS ''Monarch'', and again took part in an important action while serving with the blockade squadron under

Sir Samuel Hood Samuel Hood, 1st Viscount Hood (12 December 1724 – 27 January 1816) was an admiral in the Royal Navy. As a junior officer he saw action during the War of the Austrian Succession. While in temporary command of , he drove a French ship ashore i ...

off

Rochefort Rochefort () may refer to: Places France * Rochefort, Charente-Maritime, in the Charente-Maritime department ** Arsenal de Rochefort, a former naval base and dockyard * Rochefort, Savoie in the Savoie department * Rochefort-du-Gard, in the Ga ...

. At the

action of 25 September 1806 The action of 25 September 1806 was a naval battle fought during the Napoleonic Wars off the French Biscay port of Rochefort. A French squadron comprising five frigates and two corvettes, sailing to the French West Indies with supplies and rei ...

, seven French ships attempted to break out the port for the West Indies. Intercepted within hours by Hood's squadron of ships of the line, the French fled, only ''Monarch'' managing to keep in touch. In the ensuing engagement, four French frigates were captured although ''Monarch'' suffered considerable damage to her masts and rigging. Over the next several years, Lee was employed in the blockade of the

Tagus The Tagus ( ; es, Tajo ; pt, Tejo ; see #Name, below) is the longest river in the Iberian Peninsula. The river rises in the Montes Universales near Teruel, in mid-eastern Spain, flows , generally west with two main south-westward sections ...

, assisting the flight of the Portuguese Royal family in 1807 and negotiating peace with the Spanish forces in the

Rio de la Plata Rio or Río is the Portuguese, Spanish, Italian, and Maltese word for "river". When spoken on its own, the word often means Rio de Janeiro, a major city in Brazil. Rio or Río may also refer to: Geography Brazil * Rio de Janeiro * Rio do Sul, a ...

Later life

In 1809, after his return to Britain, Lee joined the disastrous

Walcheren Expedition 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 Chatham ...

, and remained in ''Monarch'' in the

North Sea The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Norway, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium. An epeiric sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian S ...

until 1812, when his ship was deemed no longer serviceable and broken up. Advanced to rear-admiral, Lee was unable to secure a commission at sea and effectively retired from the service, although he continued to rise in rank and stature. He became a vice-admiral in 1821 and a full admiral in 1830. He died on 5 August 1837, at his home in

.''The Gentleman's Magazine'', July 1837, p. 425

Awards

In 1815, he was made a

Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I of Great Britain, George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate medieval ceremony for appointing a knight, which involved Bathing#Medieval ...

and in 1816 was awarded the

Order of the Tower and Sword The Ancient and Most Noble Military Order of the Tower and of the Sword, of the Valour, Loyalty and Merit ( pt, Antiga e Muito Nobre Ordem Militar da Torre e Espada, do Valor, Lealdade e Mérito), before 1910 Royal Military Order of the Tower an ...

by the

Portuguese Royal family The Most Serene House of Braganza ( pt, Sereníssima Casa de Bragança), also known as the Brigantine Dynasty (''Dinastia Brigantina''), is a dynasty of emperors, kings, princes, and dukes of Portuguese origin which reigned in Europe and the Ame ...

in recognition of his services towards them.

Notes

References

* Retrieved on 27 July 2009 {{DEFAULTSORT:Lee, Richard 1760s births 1837 deaths Royal Navy admirals Knights Commander of the Order of the Bath Royal Navy personnel of the American Revolutionary War Royal Navy personnel of the French Revolutionary Wars Royal Navy personnel of the Napoleonic Wars