Edward Peyton (died 4 April 1749) was an officer of 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 ...

. He served during the

War of the Austrian Succession The War of the Austrian Succession () was a European conflict that took place between 1740 and 1748. Fought primarily in Central Europe, the Austrian Netherlands, Italy, the Atlantic and Mediterranean, related conflicts included King George's ...

and took part in an inconclusive battle off Bengal. Peyton entered the navy in 1707. From 1744 to 1746 he was captain of the 60-gun . In 1746, he was appointed a

commodore Commodore may refer to: Ranks * Commodore (rank), a naval rank ** Commodore (Royal Navy), in the United Kingdom ** Commodore (United States) ** Commodore (Canada) ** Commodore (Finland) ** Commodore (Germany) or ''Kommodore'' * Air commodore ...

in succession of

Curtis Barnett Curtis Barnett (died 2 May 1746), was an officer of the Royal Navy. He served during the War of the Austrian Succession, commanding ships in the Mediterranean and in the English Channel, before being appointed a commodore in 1744 he was appointed ...

and was commanding a squadron of seven ships of the line off Bengal. The French commander

Mahé de la Bourdonnais Mahe, Mahé, Mähe, or MAHE may refer to: Places China * Mahe Township (, lit. "Horse Creek Village") in Li County in Gansu Estonia * Mähe, a subdistrict of Tallinn, Estonia India * Mahé, India, a municipality in Mahé distric ...

had been sent to the East Indies in response to attacks by Peyton's predecessor. Peyton sighted Bourdonnais and his French fleet off

Negapatnam Nagapattinam (''nākappaṭṭinam'', previously spelt Nagapatnam or Negapatam) is a town in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and the administrative headquarters of Nagapattinam District. The town came to prominence during the period of Medieval ...

on 25 June 1746 and attacked. The clash was inconclusive as the British fleet held back too far to do sufficient damage. The British lost 14 killed and 46 wounded and the French lost 27 killed and 53 wounded. After the action Peyton held a council of war with his captains, and decided to break off the action and return to Tricomalee for repairs. By withdrawing, Peyton left Bourdonnais unopposed on the

Coromandel Coast The Coromandel Coast is the southeastern coastal region of the Indian subcontinent, bounded by the Utkal Plains to the north, the Bay of Bengal to the east, the Kaveri delta to the south, and the Eastern Ghats to the west, extending over an ...

where he went on to attack Madras. Peyton, was censured by the

East India Company The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (the Indian subcontinent and South ...

and arrested by his successor, Thomas Griffin. He was recalled to England but no charges were filed. He died on 4 April 1749, a broken man.DNB Epitome – Edward Peyton

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Peyton, Edward Year of birth missing 1749 deaths Royal Navy officers Royal Navy personnel of the War of the Austrian Succession