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 ...

Sir Samuel Pym KCB (1778–1855) was a British admiral, brother of Sir

William Pym Sir William Pym, KCH (1772 – 18 March 1861) was a British military surgeon. Biography The son of Joseph Pym of Pinley, near Henley-in-Arden, Warwickshire, and elder brother of Sir Samuel Pym, Pym was born in Edinburgh in 1772, and was ed ...

. In June 1788, Pym joined the Royal Navy as captain's servant of the frigate ''

Eurydice Eurydice (; Ancient Greek: Εὐρυδίκη 'wide justice') was a character in Greek mythology and the Auloniad wife of Orpheus, who tried to bring her back from the dead with his enchanting music. Etymology Several meanings for the na ...

''. He was promoted to lieutenant of the sloop ''Martin'', under Captain William Grenville Lobb, and served under Lobb aboard the and the '' Aimable''. From November 1798, Pym served aboard the '' Ethalion'' (36), taking part in the capture of the Spanish ''Thetis'' and ''Santa-Brigida'' in 1799. The ''Ethalion'' was wrecked on the Penmarks on Christmas Day. From April 1804, Pym served aboard the ''

Mars Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun and the second-smallest planet in the Solar System, only being larger than Mercury. In the English language, Mars is named for the Roman god of war. Mars is a terrestrial planet with a thin at ...

'', and from June on the 74-gun ''

Atlas An atlas is a collection of maps; it is typically a bundle of maps of Earth or of a region of Earth. Atlases have traditionally been bound into book form, but today many atlases are in multimedia formats. In addition to presenting geograp ...

'', under the overall command of Sir

John Thomas Duckworth Sir John Thomas Duckworth, 1st Baronet, GCB (9 February 174831 August 1817) was an officer of the Royal Navy, serving during the Seven Years' War, the American War of Independence, the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic wars, as the Governor ...

. Pym was decorated after the

Battle of San Domingo The Battle of San Domingo was a naval battle of the Napoleonic Wars fought on 6 February 1806 between squadrons of French and British ships of the line off the southern coast of the French-occupied Spanish colonial Captaincy General of Santo Do ...

, on 6 February 1806. In October 1808, Pym took command of the 36-gun frigate ''

Sirius Sirius is the brightest star in the night sky. Its name is derived from the Greek word , or , meaning 'glowing' or 'scorching'. The star is designated α Canis Majoris, Latinized to Alpha Canis Majoris, and abbreviated Alpha CM ...

'', in the squadron of Commodore Rowley. In 1810, Pym was sent to the 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 ...

) to lead a squadron consisting of the frigates ''Sirius'', ''Iphigenia'', ''Nereide'', and the brig ''Staunch''. On 13 August, the squadron captured the Île de la Passe which commanded the entrance of Grand Port, and moved to blockade Port Louis. On 21 August, the squadron seized the East Indiaman ''Wyndham'', previously captured by the French, and learnt that a French frigate squadron had arrived at Grand Port. The British squadron attempted to attack the French squadron at anchor and moved into the harbour. Entering it, the ''Sirius'' and ''Magicienne'' ran aground and became unmanoeuverable. The ''Nereide'' struck her colours before the French frigates, and the ''Sirius'' and ''Magicienne'' were scuttled by fire. The last ship of the squadron, the ''Iphigenia'', surrendered two days later. Pym, then at the Île de la Passe, was taken prisoner along with the whole garrison. 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 Mau ...

became the only defeat of a British squadron against Napoleonic France. Pym was released in December when Sir Albemarle Bertie recaptured the Île de la Passe. He was court-martialled and found innocent of the defeat. In February 1812, Pym was in command of the 74-gun ship ''Hannibal'', off Cherbourg, in May of the ''Niemen'', and in 1830 of HMS ''Kent''. Pym was made a rear-admiral in 1837. He served as

admiral-superintendent The admiral-superintendent was the Royal Navy officer in command of a larger Naval Dockyard. Portsmouth, Devonport and Chatham all had admiral-superintendents, as did some other dockyards in the United Kingdom and abroad at certain times. The adm ...

at Devonport from 1841 to 1846, and in the autumn of 1845 commanded the experimental squadron in the Channel. He was promoted to vice-admiral in 1847 and to full admiral in 1851.

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Samuel Pym 1778-1855

by Peter Davis {{DEFAULTSORT:Pym, Samuel British naval commanders of the Napoleonic Wars Royal Navy personnel of the French Revolutionary Wars 1778 births 1885 deaths Royal Navy admirals Knights Commander of the Order of the Bath

See also

External links