Samuel Leech (1798–1848) was a young

sailor A sailor, seaman, mariner, or seafarer is a person who works aboard a watercraft as part of its crew, and may work in any one of a number of different fields that are related to the operation and maintenance of a ship. The profession of the s ...

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 ...

and the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

during the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States of America and its indigenous allies against the United Kingdom and its allies in British North America, with limited participation by Spain in Florida. It bega ...

. He became notable as one of very few who wrote an account of his experiences, titled, in the manner of the time, ''Thirty Years from Home, or a Voice from the Main Deck; Being the Experience of Samuel Leech, Who Was Six Years in the British and American Navies: Was Captured in the British Frigate ''Macedonian'': Afterwards Entered the American Navy, and Was Taken in the United States Brig ''Syren'', by the British Ship ''Medway. Leech's nautical career began in 1810, at the age of thirteen, when

Lord William FitzRoy Admiral Lord William FitzRoy (1 June 1782 – 13 May 1857), was an officer of the British Royal Navy who served during the French Revolutionary Wars, French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, and also as a Member of Parliament. Biography Famil ...

agreed to take Samuel into his

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 ...

, as a favor to FitzRoy's sister Frances, the wife of

Francis Spencer, 1st Baron Churchill Francis Almeric Spencer, 1st Baron Churchill DCL FRS (26 December 1779 – 10 March 1845) was a British peer and Whig politician from the Spencer family. Born Lord Francis Almeric Spencer, he was the second youngest of the 4th Duke of Marlbo ...

, Leech being the son of one of her servants.Samuel Leech, ''A Voice from the Main Deck: Being a Record of the Thirty Years' Adventures of Samuel Leech'' (

Naval Institute Press The United States Naval Institute (USNI) is a private non-profit military association that offers independent, nonpartisan forums for debate of national security issues. In addition to publishing magazines and books, the Naval Institute holds se ...

, 1999) hardcover , paperback He was a

powder monkey A powder boy or powder monkey manned naval artillery guns as a member of a warship's crew, primarily during the Age of Sail. His chief role was to ferry gunpowder from the powder magazine in the ship's hold to the artillery pieces, either in ...

during ''Macedonian's'' duel with the in 1812, and would later vividly describe the carnage on board the British ship before she struck her colors. As a

prisoner of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of wa ...

, he was due to be exchanged at some point, but when the captured ''Macedonian'' was brought into

Newport, Rhode Island Newport is an American seaside city on Aquidneck Island in Newport County, Rhode Island. It is located in Narragansett Bay, approximately southeast of Providence, Rhode Island, Providence, south of Fall River, Massachusetts, south of Boston, ...

, Leech jumped ship. After failing to gain steady work on land, he returned to the sea, this time signing on to the US Navy, where he compared his treatment favorably to that in the Royal Navy. Leech was serving on the when she was captured by in 1814. His imprisonment seems not to have been too uncomfortable, and did not last long in any case, since the war ended the following year. He was in subsequently. Around 1816 he went ashore, where he worked at various jobs and joined the

Methodist Church Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related Christian denomination, denominations of Protestantism, Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John W ...

. He eventually accumulated enough money to go into business for himself, and became a merchant living in

Wilbraham, Massachusetts Wilbraham is a town in Hampden County, Massachusetts, United States. It is a suburb of the City of Springfield, and part of the Springfield Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 14,613 at the 2020 census. Part of the town comprises ...

with a wife and three children. Many years later he revisited , now a US ship, when it was in port in New York (probably 1840), and reminisced with the sailors there. Perhaps this encounter inspired his book, which was published by Tappen & Dennet in 1843.

References

* Samuel Leech, ''A Voice from the Main Deck: Being a Record of the Thirty Years' Adventures of Samuel Leech'' (

, 1999) hardcover , paperback * James T. de Kay, ''Chronicles of the Frigate Macedonian'' (W.W. Norton, New York, 1995)

External links

''A Voice from the Main Deck''

{{DEFAULTSORT:Leech, Samuel 1798 births 1848 deaths Royal Navy sailors United States Navy sailors People from Wanstead People from Wilbraham, Massachusetts