William Warden (1777–1849) was a British surgeon 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 ...

"Naval History of the Present Year, 1810"
''The Naval Chronicle, Volume 23''. Retrieved 2017-06-29. who published a popular account of his conversations with

Napoleon Bonaparte Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...

. Warden was born in

Alyth Alyth () ( gd, Ailt) is a town in Perth and Kinross, Scotland, northeast of Blairgowrie and about northwest of Dundee. In 2016 the town had an estimated population of 2,400. First mentioned by name in a 12th-century royal charter of Willia ...

Forfarshire Angus ( sco, Angus; gd, Aonghas) is one of the 32 local government council areas of Scotland, a registration county and a lieutenancy area. The council area borders Aberdeenshire, Dundee City and Perth and Kinross. Main industries include agri ...

on 1 May 1777. After attending a local parish school, he was sent to Montrose and

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

. In 1795, Warden entered the Royal Navy and was assigned as a

surgeon's mate A surgeon's mate was a rank in the Royal Navy for a medically trained assistant to the ship's surgeon. The rank was renamed assistant surgeon in 1805, and was considered equivalent to the rank of master's mate/mate. In 1807, first-rate would ha ...

on 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 ...

Melpomene In Greek mythology, Melpomene (; grc, Μελπομένη, Melpoménē, to sing' or 'the one that is melodious), initially the muse of chorus, eventually became the muse of tragedy, and is now best known in that association. Etymology Melp ...

. In 1797, Warden became involved in a sailor mutiny on several fleet ships that were anchored at the

Nore The Nore is a long bank of sand and silt running along the south-centre of the final narrowing of the Thames Estuary, England. Its south-west is the very narrow Nore Sand. Just short of the Nore's easternmost point where it fades into the cha ...

in the Thames River. When the crew took over the Melpomene, they demanded that the ship surgeon be sent ashore with Warden taking his place. Warden refused their demand. On 2 April 1801, Warden was promoted to ship surgeon on his new ship, the frigate , during the Battle of Copenhagen. On 10 August 1805, Warden was the ship surgeon on the frigate when it engaged the French frigate ''Didon'' off

Cape Finisterre Cape Finisterre (, also ; gl, Cabo Fisterra, italic=no ; es, Cabo Finisterre, italic=no ) is a rock-bound peninsula on the west coast of Galicia, Spain. In Roman times it was believed to be an end of the known world. The name Finisterre, like ...

. Severely wounded in the battle, Warden was later evacuated to Greenwich Hospital in England for recuperation. Several years later, Warden served 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 ...

. In 1811, Warden received his doctorate from

St. Andrews University (Aien aristeuein) , motto_lang = grc , mottoeng = Ever to ExcelorEver to be the Best , established = , type = Public research university Ancient university , endowment ...

. In 1815, Warden was assigned 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 ...

as it transported Bonaparte to his exile on St. Helena Island. During the voyage and for several months later on the island, Warden had extensive conversations through a translator with Bonaparte. Warden later sent a journal of these conversations to London for publication in 1816. The publication of Warden's ''Letters'' caused a furor in England. Critics claimed that the book was

ghostwritten ''Ghostwritten'' is the first novel published by English author David Mitchell. Published in 1999, it won the John Llewellyn Rhys Prize and was widely acclaimed. The story takes place mainly around East Asia, but also moves through Russia, B ...

and was historically inaccurate. The

Admiralty Admiralty most often refers to: *Admiralty, Hong Kong * Admiralty (United Kingdom), military department in command of the Royal Navy from 1707 to 1964 *The rank of admiral * Admiralty law Admiralty can also refer to: Buildings *Admiralty, Tr ...

treated Warden book as a breach of discipline and removed him from the list of ship surgeons in the fleet. However, he was later reassigned to the hospital ship ''Argonaut''. In 1824, Warden received a second medical degree from Edinburgh University. In 1825, he was appointed surgeon of the navy dockyard at Sheerness in Kent. In 1842, Warden was transferred to the Chatham Dockyard in Kent. Warden died in Chatham on 23 April 1849, still in the Royal Navy.

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