Sir Richard Onslow, 1st Baronet, GCB (23 June 1741 – 27 December 1817) was an English

naval officer An officer is a person who holds a position of authority as a member of an armed force or uniformed service. Broadly speaking, "officer" means a commissioned officer, a non-commissioned officer, or a warrant officer. However, absent context ...

who played a distinguished role at the

Battle of Camperdown The Battle of Camperdown (known in Dutch as the ''Zeeslag bij Kamperduin'') was a major naval action fought on 11 October 1797, between the British North Sea Fleet under Admiral Adam Duncan and a Batavian Navy (Dutch) fleet under Vice-Admiral ...

Naval career

He was the younger son of Lt-Gen. Richard Onslow and his wife Pooley, daughter of Charles Walton.Sir Richard Onslow at Oxford Dictionary of National Biography
/ref> Onslow's uncle was

Arthur Onslow Arthur Onslow (1 October 169117 February 1768) was an English politician. He set a record for length of service when repeatedly elected to serve as Speaker of the House of Commons, where he was known for his integrity. Early life and educati ...

, Speaker of the House of Commons, and he enjoyed considerable interest as he rapidly rose through the Navy. He was made fourth lieutenant of the ''Sunderland'' on 17 December 1758 by V-Adm.

George Pocock Admiral Sir George Pocock or Pococke, KB (6 March 1706 – 3 April 1792) was a British officer of the Royal Navy. Family Pocock was born in Thames Ditton in Surrey, the son of Thomas Pocock, a chaplain in the Royal Navy. His great grandfa ...

, fifth lieutenant of the ''Grafton'' on 3 March 1759, and fourth lieutenant of Pocock's flagship, the ''Yarmouth'' on 17 March 1760, upon which he returned to England. Onslow became commander of the ''Martin'' on 11 February 1761, cruising in the

Skagerrak The Skagerrak (, , ) is a strait running between the Jutland peninsula of Denmark, the southeast coast of Norway and the west coast of Sweden, connecting the North Sea and the Kattegat sea area through the Danish Straits to the Baltic Sea. The ...

until his promotion to captain of the ''Humber'' on 14 April 1762. He joined the ''Humber'' in June, but she was wrecked off

Flamborough Head Flamborough Head () is a promontory, long on the Yorkshire coast of England, between the Filey and Bridlington bays of the North Sea. It is a chalk headland, with sheer white cliffs. The cliff top has two standing lighthouse towers, the olde ...

while returning from the

Baltic Baltic may refer to: Peoples and languages * Baltic languages, a subfamily of Indo-European languages, including Lithuanian, Latvian and extinct Old Prussian *Balts (or Baltic peoples), ethnic groups speaking the Baltic languages and/or originati ...

in September. Onslow was

court-martial A court-martial or court martial (plural ''courts-martial'' or ''courts martial'', as "martial" is a postpositive adjective) is a military court or a trial conducted in such a court. A court-martial is empowered to determine the guilt of memb ...

ed for her loss, but was acquitted, the pilot being blamed for the wreck. On 29 November 1762, he was appointed to command the ''Phoenix''. Onslow did not receive another command until 31 October 1776, when he was appointed to the ''St Albans''. He took a convoy 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 ...

in April 1777 and joined Lord Howe in time for the repulse of d'Estaing on 22 July 1777 at

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 ...

. Onslow sailed for the West Indies on 4 November 1778 with Commodore Hotham, and took part in the capture of

Saint Lucia Saint Lucia ( acf, Sent Lisi, french: Sainte-Lucie) is an island country of the West Indies in the eastern Caribbean. The island was previously called Iouanalao and later Hewanorra, names given by the native Arawaks and Caribs, two Amerindian ...

and its defense against d'Estaing that December at the Cul-de-Sac. In August 1779, he brought a convoy from

St Kitts Saint Kitts, officially the Saint Christopher Island, is an island in the West Indies. The west side of the island borders the Caribbean Sea, and the eastern coast faces the Atlantic Ocean. Saint Kitts and the neighbouring island of Nevis cons ...

Spithead Spithead is an area of the Solent and a roadstead off Gilkicker Point in Hampshire, England. It is protected from all winds except those from the southeast. It receives its name from the Spit, a sandbank stretching south from the Hampshire ...

. He was placed in command of the ''Bellona'', in the

Channel Fleet The Channel Fleet and originally known as the Channel Squadron was the Royal Navy formation of warships that defended the waters of the English Channel from 1854 to 1909 and 1914 to 1915. History Throughout the course of Royal Navy's history the ...

under Admiral Francis Geary, in February 1780, and captured the Dutch 54-gun ship ''Prinses Carolina'' on 30 December 1780. Onslow took part in the Relief of Gibraltar under Admiral Darby in April 1781, and again under Howe in October 1782. The ''Bellona'' captured ''La Solitaire'' in the West Indies before Onslow returned home and took half-pay in June 1783. In early 1789, he was appointed to command the ''Magnificent'' 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 ...

, but was out of employment again in September 1791. He was promoted

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 regarded ...

of the white on 1 February 1793 and vice-admiral on 4 July 1794. In 1796, he was made port admiral at Portsmouth, and in November, he went aboard the ''Nassau'' to act as second-in-command of the North Sea Fleet under Admiral Duncan. During the

Spithead and Nore mutinies The Spithead and Nore mutinies were two major mutinies by sailors of the Royal Navy in 1797. They were the first in an increasing series of outbreaks of maritime radicalism in the Atlantic World. Despite their temporal proximity, the mutinies d ...

, Onslow suppressed a rising aboard the ''Nassau'', and was sent by Duncan to quell the ''Adamant''. When the ''Nassau'' refused to sail on 26 May 1797, Onslow moved his flag to the ''Adamant'' and until the end of the mutiny, Duncan (in the ''Venerable'') and Onslow maintained the blockade off the

Texel Texel (; Texels dialect: ) is a municipality and an island with a population of 13,643 in North Holland, Netherlands. It is the largest and most populated island of the West Frisian Islands in the Wadden Sea. The island is situated north of De ...

alone, making signals to an imaginary fleet over the horizon. Onslow moved his flag again to the ''Monarch'' on 25 July 1797, and it was aboard her that he took part in the

on 11 October 1797. His flag captain,

Edward O'Bryen Rear-Admiral Edward O'Bryen (sometimes O'Brien) (1753 – 18 December 1808) was a British Royal Navy officer prominent in the late eighteenth century, who is best known for his participation at the Nore Mutiny and the Battle of Camperdown, both i ...

, supposedly warned him that the Dutch ships were too close together to get between, to which Onslow replied "The ''Monarch'' will make a passage." Indeed, ''Monarch'' was the first to break the Dutch line and attack the ''Jupiter'' of 72 guns, flagship of Vice-Admiral Reyntjes, who subsequently surrendered to Onslow. The victory was captured by the artist

Thomas Rowlandson Thomas Rowlandson (; 13 July 175721 April 1827) was an English artist and caricaturist of the Georgian Era, noted for his political satire and social observation. A prolific artist and printmaker, Rowlandson produced both individual social an ...

, a friend of Onslow's brother-in-law, Matthew Michell, in the painting "Glorious Defeat of the Dutch Navy Octr 10 1797, by Admirals Lord Duncan and Sir Richard Onslow, with a View Drawn on the Spot of the Six Dutch Line of Battle Ships Captured and Brought into Yarmouth". For his exertions at Camperdown, Onslow was created a baronet and presented with the

Freedom of the City of London The Freedom of the City of London started around 1237 as the status of a 'free man' or 'citizen', protected by the charter of the City of London and not under the jurisdiction of a feudal lord. In the Middle Ages, this developed into a freedom or ...

. He became

Commander-in-Chief, Plymouth The Commander-in-Chief, Plymouth, was a senior commander of the Royal Navy for hundreds of years. Plymouth Command was a name given to the units, establishments, and staff operating under the admiral's command. Between 1845 and 1896, this offic ...

in 1796.Bodmin Moor, Chapter 11
/ref> He went on sick leave on 10 December 1798 and retired as Commander-in-Chief, Plymouth a few weeks later. He was promoted

Admiral of the Red The Admiral of the Red was a senior rank of the Royal Navy of the United Kingdom, immediately outranked by the rank Admiral of the Fleet (see order of precedence below). The rank did not exist prior to 1805, as the admiral commanding the Red ...

on 9 November 1805 and received the GCB in 1815. He died on 27 December 1817 at

Southampton Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Po ...

aged 76 years.

Family

In 1765, Onslow, known for his conviviality, was a founder of the Navy Society dining club. On 18 January 1766, he was appointed to command the

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 ...

''Aquilon'' in the

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the e ...

, which he did until 1769, and from 12 October 1770, commanded the ''Diana'' in 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 ...

. Admiral Rodney gave him command of ''Achilles'' on 18 January 1773, in which he returned to England, where he acquired an estate and married Anne, daughter of Commodore Matthew Michell of Chitterne, Wiltshire. They had five sons and four daughters: * Fanny Onslow (1775–1844), married V-Adm. Sir Hyde Parker (1739–1807) in 1800 and had two daughters and one son * George Cranley Onslow (died in infancy) * Roger Onslow (died in infancy) * Matthew Richard Onslow (1781–1808), married Sarah Seton in 1805 and had two daughters * Anne Onslow (1783–1853), married Francis Lake, 2nd Viscount Lake (1772–1836) in 1833; married Henry Gritton in 1837 * Sir Henry Onslow, 2nd Baronet (1784–1853), married Caroline Bond and had four daughters and five sons * Elizabeth Onslow (1788–1861), married Robert Lewis (1793–1840) and had five daughters and two sons * Harriet Onslow (1791–1860), married James Norman Creighton (1786–1838) and had two daughters and one son * Capt. John James Onslow (1796–1856), married Lavinia Dinning (1796–1871) and had four sons and two daughters Onslow's widow, Dame Anne, died of influenza at Grand Parade, Brighton on 31 January 1837 aged 85 year. She was buried with her granddaughter at St Nicholas church northern burial ground, Brighton. A note found after her death and addressed to her son Sir Henry Onslow Bart, contained the following message: ''When I am no more, I hope I am going to a world of comfort after all the sorrows I have experienced in this''.

References

, - {{DEFAULTSORT:Onslow, Richard, 1st Baronet 1741 births 1817 deaths Baronets in the Baronetage of Great Britain Royal Navy personnel of the American Revolutionary War Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath Royal Navy admirals Richard, 1st Baronet