Admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in many 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. Admiral is ranked above vice admiral and below admiral of ...

Sir Thomas Sabine Pasley, 2nd Baronet, (26 December 1804 – 13 February 1884) was an English officer of the British

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...

during the nineteenth century who never saw action but served across the globe in numerous positions. A career officer, Pasley inherited his grandfather

Sir Thomas Pasley, 1st Baronet Admiral Sir Thomas Pasley, 1st Baronet (2 March 1734 – 29 November 1808) was a senior and highly experienced British Royal Navy officer of the eighteenth century, who served with distinction at numerous actions of the Seven Years' War, America ...

's title aged only four and spent much of his career in shore appointments as he paid for and cared for his large family.

Biography

Born 26 December 1804, Pasley was the son of Major John Sabine of the

Grenadier Guards The Grenadier Guards (GREN GDS) is the most senior infantry regiment of the British Army, being at the top of the Infantry Order of Precedence. It can trace its lineage back to 1656 when Lord Wentworth's Regiment was raised in Bruges to protect ...

and Maria Pasley, daughter of Admiral

, a long-serving officer who had lost a leg at the

Glorious First of June The Glorious First of June, also known as the Fourth Battle of Ushant, (known in France as the or ) was fought on 1 June 1794 between the British and French navies during the War of the First Coalition. It was the first and largest fleet a ...

. As Pasley had no male heirs, his baronetcy would have become extinct but for an act of parliament permitting the title to fall to his grandson on his death. When Pasley senior died in 1808, his four-year-old grandson became Sir Thomas and added the Pasley to his surname. Young Pasley was schooled at Dr. Pearson's School in

East Sheen East Sheen, also known as Sheen, is a suburb in south-west London in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. Its long High Street, high street has shops, offices, restaurants, cafés, pubs and suburban supermarkets and is also the economic ...

Durham School Durham School is a Private schools in the United Kingdom, fee-charging boarding and day school in the English Public school (UK), public school tradition located in Durham, England, Durham, North East England. Since 2021 it has been part of th ...

, and by his aunts at Burnfoot, near

Langholm Langholm , also known colloquially as the "Muckle Toon", is a burgh in Dumfries and Galloway, southern Scotland. Langholm lies between four hills in the valley of the River Esk in the Southern Uplands. Location and geography Langholm sits n ...

.Mina Malcolm to Charles William Pasley, 12 February 1817, British Library Additional Manuscripts, 41963/221-222 In 1817, aged 14, Pasley attended the

Royal Naval Academy The Royal Naval Academy was a facility established in 1733 in HMNB Portsmouth, Portsmouth Dockyard to train officers for the Royal Navy. The founders' intentions were to provide an alternative means to recruit officers and to provide standardise ...

and the following year joined Sir Thomas Fremantle's ship HMS ''Rochfort'' as a

midshipman A midshipman is an officer of the lowest Military rank#Subordinate/student officer, rank in the Royal Navy, United States Navy, and many Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth navies. Commonwealth countries which use the rank include Royal Cana ...

under the patronage of his relation Pulteney Malcolm. The ship was later commanded by Sir Graham Moore. In 1823, Pasley moved to the

brig A brig is a type of sailing vessel defined by its rig: two masts which are both square rig, square-rigged. Brigs originated in the second half of the 18th century and were a common type of smaller merchant vessel or warship from then until the l ...

HMS ''Redpole'' and later HMS ''Arachne''. In 1824 he was promoted to lieutenant and joined HMS ''Tweed'' for service off the

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

ian Coast. Returning in 1826, Pasley married Jane Matilda Lily Wynyard and the couple would ultimately have seven sons and two daughters, putting great financial strain on Pasley and once his sons entered the Navy, forcing him to provide patronage for all of them by doing favours for other officers. As a result, his career would stalemate. In 1828, Pasley was promoted to commander and he joined HMS ''Cameleon'' and HMS ''Procris'' in command. As acting captain he also commanded the

frigate A frigate () is a type of warship. In different eras, the roles and capabilities of ships classified as frigates have varied. The name frigate in the 17th to early 18th centuries was given to any full-rigged ship built for speed and maneuvera ...

s HMS ''Rattlesnake'' and HMS ''Blonde''. Pasley was made full captain in 1831, and spent several years on the Brazilian station in HMS ''Curacoa''. In 1848, after a period of unemployment he took over

Pembroke Dockyard Pembroke Dockyard, originally called Pater Yard, is a former Royal Navy Dockyard in Pembroke Dock, Pembrokeshire, Wales. History It was founded in 1814, although not formally authorized until the George IV of the United Kingdom, Prince Regent s ...

and in 1856 he was made

rear-admiral Rear admiral is a flag officer rank used by English-speaking navies. In most European navies, the equivalent rank is called counter admiral. Rear admiral is usually immediately senior to commodore and immediately below vice admiral. It is ...

and commanded HMS ''Royal Albert'' and HMS ''Agamemnon'' in the

Black Sea The Black Sea is a marginal sea, marginal Mediterranean sea (oceanography), mediterranean sea lying between Europe and Asia, east of the Balkans, south of the East European Plain, west of the Caucasus, and north of Anatolia. It is bound ...

at the end of the

Crimean War The Crimean War was fought between the Russian Empire and an alliance of the Ottoman Empire, the Second French Empire, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, and the Kingdom of Sardinia (1720–1861), Kingdom of Sardinia-Piedmont fro ...

. On his return in 1859 Pasley commanded Devonport Dockyard and in 1866 became commander-in-chief at

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. Most of Portsmouth is located on Portsea Island, off the south coast of England in the Solent, making Portsmouth the only city in En ...

. His lengthy shore commands were the result of the pressures maintaining his large family placed him under. In 1869, Pasley retired as a full admiral and in 1873 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 King George I of Great Britain, George I on 18 May 1725. Recipients of the Order are usually senior British Armed Forces, military officers or senior Civil Service ...

. He died in 1884 and was succeeded in the baronetcy by his grandson Thomas Edward Sabine Pasley, his eldest son having died in 1870. He was buried in Shedfield Chuchyard.Pasley, Sir Thomas Sabine
''

Oxford Dictionary of National Biography The ''Dictionary of National Biography'' (''DNB'') is a standard work of reference on notable figures from History of the British Isles, British history, published since 1885. The updated ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' (''ODNB'') ...

'', J. K. Laughton, Retrieved 24 January 2008

References

, - {{DEFAULTSORT:Pasley, Thomas Sabine 1804 births 1884 deaths Royal Navy admirals Baronets in the Baronetage of Great Britain Knights Commander of the Order of the Bath Royal Navy personnel of the Crimean War Military personnel from London

Biography

See also

References