Ferdinand-Alphonse Hamelin (2 September 1796 – 10 January 1864),

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in some 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, and is above vice admiral and below admiral of the fleet, ...

, was born in Pont-l'Évêque,

Normandy Normandy (; french: link=no, Normandie ; nrf, Normaundie, Nouormandie ; from Old French , plural of ''Normant'', originally from the word for "northman" in several Scandinavian languages) is a geographical and cultural region in Northwestern ...

. He was the nephew of

Jacques Félix Emmanuel Hamelin Baron Jacques Félix Emmanuel Hamelin (13 October 1768 – 23 April 1839) was a rear admiral of the French navy and later a Baron. He commanded numerous naval expeditions and battles with the Royal Navy as well as exploratory voyages in the Indi ...

, a successful rear admiral in the French Navy of the Napoleonic era.

Early career

Hamelain went to sea in 1806 as cabin boy with his uncle,

, 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 ...

'' Vénus'' in the era of Napoleon and the French Empire. The ''Vénus'' was part of the French squadron in the Indian Ocean during the

Mauritius Campaign of 1809-1811 Mauritius ( ; french: Maurice, link=no ; mfe, label= Mauritian Creole, Moris ), officially the Republic of Mauritius, is an island nation in the Indian Ocean about off the southeast coast of the African continent, east of Madagascar. It in ...

, and young Hamelin had an opportunity of seeing much active service. She, in company with another and a smaller vessel, captured the English frigate ''

Ceylon Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

'' in 1810, but was immediately afterwards captured herself by the ''

Boadicea Boudica or Boudicca (, known in Latin chronicles as Boadicea or Boudicea, and in Welsh as ()), was a queen of the ancient British Iceni tribe, who led a failed uprising against the conquering forces of the Roman Empire in AD 60 or 61. She ...

'', under Commodore Josias Rowley (1765–1842). Young Hamelin was a prisoner of war for a short time. His identification as François seems to be in error.

Career after the First French Empire fell

He returned to France in 1811. On the fall of the Empire he had better fortune than most of the

Napoleon 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 ...

ic officers who were turned ashore. In 1821 he became lieutenant, and in 1823 took part in the French expedition under the

Duke of Angoulême Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are rank ...

into Spain. In 1828 he was appointed captain of the Actéon, and was engaged till 1831 on the coast of

Algiers Algiers ( ; ar, الجزائر, al-Jazāʾir; ber, Dzayer, script=Latn; french: Alger, ) is the capital and largest city of Algeria. The city's population at the 2008 Census was 2,988,145Census 14 April 2008: Office National des Statistiques ...

and in the conquest of the town and country. His first command as flag officer was in the Pacific, where he showed much tact during the dispute over the Marquesas Islands with England in 1844. He was promoted vice-admiral in 1848. During the Crimean War he commanded in the Black Sea, and co-operated with Admiral Dundas in the bombardment of Sevastopol on 17 October 1854. His relations with his English colleague were not very cordial. On 7 December 1854 he was promoted to admiral. Shortly afterwards he was recalled to France, and was named minister of marine. His administration lasted till 1860, and was remarkable for the expeditions to Italy and

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

organized under his directions; but it was even more notable for the energy shown in adopting and developing the use of armour. The launch of the '' Gloire'' in 1859 set the example of constructing seagoing

ironclad An ironclad is a steam engine, steam-propelled warship protected by Wrought iron, iron or steel iron armor, armor plates, constructed from 1859 to the early 1890s. The ironclad was developed as a result of the vulnerability of wooden warships ...

s. When Napoleon III made his first concession to Liberal opposition, Admiral Hamelin was one of the ministers sacrificed. He held no further command, and died on 10 January 1864.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hamelin, Francois 1796 births 1864 deaths People from Pont-l'Évêque, Calvados Admirals of France French military personnel of the Napoleonic Wars French military personnel of the Crimean War Grand Chanceliers of the Légion d'honneur Honorary Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath