Windham William Sadler (1796 – 30 September 1824) was a balloonist born in Ireland. His father was aviation pioneer James Sadler and, after an education in engineering, Sadler followed in his father's footsteps. He made an ascent in London during the Grand Jubilee of 1814 and in 1817 made the first successful aerial crossing of the

Irish Sea The Irish Sea or , gv, Y Keayn Yernagh, sco, Erse Sie, gd, Muir Èireann , Ulster-Scots: ''Airish Sea'', cy, Môr Iwerddon . is an extensive body of water that separates the islands of Ireland and Great Britain. It is linked to the Ce ...

, a feat that had been unsuccessfully attempted by his father. Sadler was killed when his balloon crashed into a chimney near Blackburn during a flight in 1824.

Early life

Sadler was born near Dublin in 1796 the son of James Sadler and his second wife. James Sadler was a pioneer in aviation, being one of the first British balloonists. James Sadler had made his first ascent in 1785 with the politician

William Windham William Windham (4 June 1810) of Felbrigg Hall in Norfolk, was a British Whig statesman. Elected to Parliament in 1784, Windham was attached to the remnants of the Rockinghamite faction of Whigs, whose members included his friends Charles J ...

who became godfather to Sadler's son, who was named in his honour. Windham William Sadler received an engineer's education, with a focus on chemistry, and worked for the first

town gas Coal gas is a flammable gaseous fuel made from coal and supplied to the user via a piped distribution system. It is produced when coal is heated strongly in the absence of air. Town gas is a more general term referring to manufactured gaseous ...

company in Liverpool. He left his employment to focus on aviation. He made his first flight at the age of 17 and in 1814 flew from

Burlington House Burlington House is a building on Piccadilly in Mayfair, London. It was originally a private Neo-Palladian mansion owned by the Earls of Burlington and was expanded in the mid-19th century after being purchased by the British government. Toda ...

, London, with Mary Thompson, an actress. During the Grand Jubilee of 1814 Sadler ascended in a balloon from

Green Park Green Park, officially The Green Park, is one of the Royal Parks of London. It is in the southern part – the core part – of the City of Westminster, Central London, but before that zone was extended to the north, to take in Maryleb ...

, London, to distribute favour and programmes onto the crowd below. Sadler worked with his father but by now was piloting most of their flights. He flew from the New Barracks in Cork in early September 1816, in a diameter balloon. He was presented with flags for the trip by Sarah, Countess of Shannon. A flight with Edmond D. Livingston in November from

Richmond Barracks Richmond Barracks was a British Army barracks in Inchicore, Dublin, Ireland. It is now a cultural centre. History The barracks, which were named after Charles Lennox, 4th Duke of Richmond, were completed in 1810 and first occupied by the Briti ...

, Dublin, intended to be the first to cross the Irish Sea by air. His father had attempted the feat in 1812 but failed, landing in the Irish Sea and being rescued by a fishing vessel. Sadler's balloon was blown westwards, away from the sea, for about and eventually landed in the

Bog of Allen The Bog of Allen ( ga, Móin Alúine) is a large raised bog in the centre of Ireland between the rivers Liffey and Shannon. The bog's 958 square kilometers (370 square miles) stretch into County Offaly, County Meath, County Kildare, County Lao ...

Irish Sea crossing

In 1817, Sadler attempted again to cross the Irish Sea by balloon. Sadler's attempt began at 1.30 pm on 22 June 1817 with an ascent from Portobello barracks in Dublin, witnessed by 100,000 spectators. Sadler managed to find the right height to ride the prevailing westerly current towards Great Britain. He recalled seeing, at mid-crossing, the shores of both Wales and Ireland and the entirety of the

Isle of Man ) , anthem = "O Land of Our Birth" , image = Isle of Man by Sentinel-2.jpg , image_map = Europe-Isle_of_Man.svg , mapsize = , map_alt = Location of the Isle of Man in Europe , map_caption = Location of the Isle of Man (green) in Europe ...

. Sadler successfully landed south of Holyhead at 6.45 pm the same day. Sadler afterwards published an account of his flight, the first successful aerial crossing of the Irish Sea. This account appeared as ''Balloon: An Authentic Narrative of the Aerial Voyage, of Mr. Sadler Across the Irish Channel'' and ''Ærostation: A Narrative of the Aerial Voyage of Mr. Windham Sadler, Across the Irish Channel''. A contemporary print by engraver

Robert Havell The Havell family of Reading, Berkshire, England, included a number of notable engravers, etchers and painters, as well as writers, publishers, educators, and musicians. In particular, members of this family were among the foremost practitioners ...

shows Sadler's balloon carrying a banner reading "

Erin go bragh Erin go Bragh ( ), sometimes Erin go Braugh, is the anglicisation of an Irish language phrase, , and is used to express allegiance to Ireland. It is most often translated as "Ireland Forever." Origin ''Erin go Bragh'' is an anglicisation of ...

" (Irish: Ireland forever).

Later exploits and death

Sadler married 1819 and afterwards combined his professional aviation exploits with management of a bathing pool in Liverpool. On 28 September 1819 Sadler and companion Mr Armstrong ascended from Kirkby Fair, Liverpool, in his balloon ''Loyalist'' watched by 120,000 spectators. He intended to fly the to Manchester but a thunderstorm intervened and blew him across the Pennines. In danger of being blown out to the North Sea he pulled a ripcord to release gas from the balloon at

Norton, County Durham Norton is a market town in the Borough of Stockton-on-Tees, County Durham, England. It stands on higher ground to the south, further away from the River Tees than Stockton town centre. They are small areas west of the area called Roseworth and ...

. His anchor failed but the balloon was eventually brought to a halt. The balloonists had travelled in less than three hours, in probably the fastest journey then made between Merseyside and Teesside. In early summer 1824 Sadler made a flight from Oxford. Sadlers's 31st balloon ascent was made on 29 September 1824 at Bolton. In the evening he prepared to land near Blackburn, but his balloon was caught by the wind and struck a chimney. Sadler was thrown out of the basket and sustained fatal injuries, dying at 8.00 am the following morning. He was buried at Christchurch, Liverpool.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sadler, Windham William 1796 births 1824 deaths Aviators from Dublin (city) Aviators killed in aviation accidents or incidents in England Irish balloonists Irish people of English descent Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in 1824