Admiral of the Fleet Sir George Francis Seymour, (17 September 1787 – 20 January 1870) was a

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 ...

officer. After serving as a junior officer during the

French Revolutionary Wars The French Revolutionary Wars (french: Guerres de la Révolution française) were a series of sweeping military conflicts lasting from 1792 until 1802 and resulting from the French Revolution. They pitted France against Britain, Austria, Prussia ...

, Seymour commanded the third-rate under Admiral Sir John Duckworth at the

Battle of San Domingo The Battle of San Domingo was a naval battle of the Napoleonic Wars fought on 6 February 1806 between squadrons of French and British ships of the line off the southern coast of the French-occupied Spanish colonial Captaincy General of Santo Do ...

during the

Napoleonic Wars The Napoleonic Wars (1803–1815) were a series of major global conflicts pitting the French Empire and its allies, led by Napoleon I, against a fluctuating array of European states formed into various coalitions. It produced a period of Fren ...

. He also commanded the sloop at the blockade of

Rochefort Rochefort () may refer to: Places France * Rochefort, Charente-Maritime, in the Charente-Maritime department ** Arsenal de Rochefort, a former naval base and dockyard * Rochefort, Savoie in the Savoie department * Rochefort-du-Gard, in the Ga ...

and the fifth-rate under Admiral

Lord Gambier Admiral of the Fleet (Royal Navy), Admiral of the Fleet James Gambier, 1st Baron Gambier, (13 October 1756 – 19 April 1833) was a Royal Navy officer. After seeing action at the capture of Charleston, South Carolina, Charleston during the Ameri ...

at the

Battle of the Basque Roads The Battle of the Basque Roads, also known as the Battle of Aix Roads (French: ''Bataille de l'île d'Aix'', also ''Affaire des brûlots'', rarely ''Bataille de la rade des Basques''), was a major naval battle of the Napoleonic Wars, fought in th ...

. He then saw active service during the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States, United States of America and its Indigenous peoples of the Americas, indigenous allies against the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom ...

. Seymour became Third Naval Lord in the

Second Peel ministry The second Peel ministry was formed by Sir Robert Peel in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland in 1841. History Peel came to power for a second time after the Conservative victory in the General Election caused the Whig government ...

and went on to be Commander-in-Chief

Pacific Station The Pacific Station was created in 1837 as one of the geographical military formations into which the Royal Navy divided its worldwide responsibilities. The South America Station was split into the Pacific Station and the South East Coast of ...

. In late 1844 the French Admiral

Abel Aubert du Petit-Thouars __NOTOC__ Abel Aubert du Petit-Thouars (3 August 1793 – 16 March 1864) was a French naval officer important in France's annexation of French Polynesia. Early life He was born at the castle of La Fessardière, near Saumur. His uncle Aristide Aube ...

entered into a confrontation with Queen

Pōmare IV Pōmare IV (28 February 1813 – 17 September 1877), more properly ʻAimata Pōmare IV Vahine-o-Punuateraʻitua (otherwise known as ʻAimata – "eye-eater", after an old custom of the ruler to eat the eye of the defeated foe), was the Queen of ...

Tahiti Tahiti (; Tahitian ; ; previously also known as Otaheite) is the largest island of the Windward group of the Society Islands in French Polynesia. It is located in the central part of the Pacific Ocean and the nearest major landmass is Austra ...

and with the English missionary and consul George Pritchard, expelling the consul and establishing a French protectorate over the territory during the

Franco-Tahitian War The Franco-Tahitian War (french: Guerre franco-tahitienne) or French–Tahitian War (1844–1847) was a conflict between the Kingdom of the French and the Kingdom of Tahiti and its allies in the South Pacific archipelago of the Society Islands ...

. This matter became known as the "Pritchard Affair". Seymour handled this matter tactfully and avoided a confrontation with the French Government, which had already denounced Thouars' actions. Seymour later served as Commander-in-Chief

North America and West Indies Station The North America and West Indies Station was a formation or command of the United Kingdom's Royal Navy stationed in North American waters from 1745 to 1956. The North American Station was separate from the Jamaica Station until 1830 when the ...

and then as

Commander-in-Chief, Portsmouth The Commander-in-Chief, Portsmouth, was a senior commander of the Royal Navy for hundreds of years. The commanders-in-chief were based at premises in High Street, Portsmouth from the 1790s until the end of Sir Thomas Williams's tenure, his succes ...

Early career

Seymour was the eldest son of Vice-Admiral

Lord Hugh Seymour Vice-Admiral Lord Hugh Seymour (29 April 1759 – 11 September 1801) was a senior British Royal Navy officer of the late 18th century who was the fifth son of Francis Seymour-Conway, 1st Marquess of Hertford, and became known for being both a ...

and Anna Horatia Waldegrave (a daughter of James Waldegrave, 2nd Earl Waldegrave) and joined the

in October 1797. He was assigned to the Royal yacht HMY ''Princess Augusta'' and then transferred to the

third-rate In the rating system of the Royal Navy, a third rate was a ship of the line which from the 1720s mounted between 64 and 80 guns, typically built with two gun decks (thus the related term two-decker). Years of experience proved that the third r ...

HMS ''Sans Pareil'' in the

Channel Squadron Channel, channels, channeling, etc., may refer to: Geography * Channel (geography), in physical geography, a landform consisting of the outline (banks) of the path of a narrow body of water. Australia * Channel Country, region of outback Austral ...

in March 1798 and to the

second-rate In the rating system of the Royal Navy used to categorise sailing warships, a second-rate was a ship of the line which by the start of the 18th century mounted 90 to 98 guns on three gun decks; earlier 17th-century second rates had fewer gun ...

HMS ''Prince of Wales'' in the

West Indies The West Indies is a subregion of North America, surrounded by the North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea that includes 13 independent island countries and 18 dependencies and other territories in three major archipelagos: the Greate ...

later that year.Heathcote 2002, p. 229 He was present when the Batavian Republic surrendered Suriname to British forces in August 1799 during the

and, having been promoted to midshipman, transferred to the

fifth-rate In the rating system of the Royal Navy used to categorise sailing warships, a fifth rate was the second-smallest class of warships in a hierarchical system of six " ratings" based on size and firepower. Rating The rating system in the Royal ...

HMS ''Acasta'' early in 1800. He joined the fifth-rate HMS ''Endymion'' in 1802 and then transferred to the

first-rate In the rating system of the British Royal Navy used to categorise sailing warships, a first rate was the designation for the largest ships of the line. Originating in the Jacobean era with the designation of Ships Royal capable of carrying ...

HMS Victory HMS ''Victory'' is a 104-gun first-rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, ordered in 1758, laid down in 1759 and launched in 1765. She is best known for her role as Lord Nelson's flagship at the Battle of Trafalgar on 21 October 1805. She ...

, flagship of the Mediterranean Squadron, in 1803, to the

fourth-rate In 1603 all English warships with a compliment of fewer than 160 men were known as 'small ships'. In 1625/26 to establish pay rates for officers a six tier naval ship rating system was introduced.Winfield 2009 These small ships were divided i ...

HMS ''Madras'' in February 1804 and, having been promoted to

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often ...

on 12 October 1804, to the third-rate HMS ''Donegal'' later that month. In HMS ''Donegal'' he took part in the pursuit of the French Fleet, under the command of Admiral

Pierre-Charles Villeneuve Pierre-Charles-Jean-Baptiste-Silvestre de Villeneuve (31 December 1763 – 22 April 1806) was a French naval officer during the Napoleonic Wars. He was in command of the French and the Spanish fleets that were defeated by Nelson at the Bat ...

, to the West Indies and back in Summer 1805 during the

before seeing action at the capture of the Spanish 100-gun ''Rayo'' in October 1805.Heathcote 2002, p. 130 HMS Northumberland battle

Promoted to commander on 23 January 1806, Seymour became commanding officer of the third-rate HMS ''Northumberland'', flagship of the West Indies Squadron, in January 1806 and fought under Admiral Sir John Duckworth at the

where he was wounded off the southern coast of the French-occupied Spanish colony San Domingo in the

Caribbean Sea The Caribbean Sea ( es, Mar Caribe; french: Mer des Caraïbes; ht, Lanmè Karayib; jam, Kiaribiyan Sii; nl, Caraïbische Zee; pap, Laman Karibe) is a sea of the Atlantic Ocean in the tropics of the Western Hemisphere. It is bounded by Mexico ...

in February 1806. He went on to be commanding officer of the sloop HMS ''Kingfisher'' and took part in the blockade of

. He became commanding officer of the sloop HMS ''Aurora'' in the Mediterranean Squadron in June 1806 and, having been promoted to captain on 29 July 1806, he was given command of the fifth-rate HMS ''Pallas'' in February 1808. In HMS ''Pallas'' he fought under Admiral

at the

in April 1809. In the summer of 1809 he was called as a witness at the

Court-martial of James, Lord Gambier The Court-martial of James, Lord Gambier, was a notorious British naval legal case during the summer of 1809, in which Admiral Lord Gambier requested a court-martial to examine his behaviour during the Battle of Basque Roads in April of the same ...

which assessed whether Gambier had failed to support Captain Lord Cochrane at the battle. Gambier was controversially cleared of all charges. He went on to be commanding officer of the fifth-rate HMS ''Manilla'' in September 1809. Seymour became commanding officer of the fifth-rate HMS ''Fortunée'' in June 1812 and of the fifth-rate HMS ''Leonidas'' in January 1813 during the

. In HMS ''Leonidas'' he captured the privateer USS ''Paul Jones'' in May 1813. He was appointed a Companion of the Order of the Bath on 4 June 1815. He became Serjeant-at-Arms to the

House of Lords The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by appointment, heredity or official function. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminste ...

in 1818 and was given a short leave of absence to undertake a tour as commanding officer of the fifth-rate HMS ''Briton'' on "particular service" in 1827. He was appointed a

Knight Commander of the Royal Guelphic Order The Royal Guelphic Order (german: Königliche Guelphen-Orden), sometimes referred to as the Hanoverian Guelphic Order, is a Hanoverian order of chivalry instituted on 28 April 1815 by the Prince Regent (later King George IV). It takes its nam ...

in 1831, awarded a British

knighthood A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state (including the Pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church or the country, especially in a military capacity. Knighthood finds origins in the ...

on 23 March 1831 and advanced to Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Guelphic Order on 9 December 1834. In June 1837 he attended the funeral of King

William IV William IV (William Henry; 21 August 1765 – 20 June 1837) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and King of Hanover from 26 June 1830 until his death in 1837. The third son of George III, William succeeded h ...

, Seymour's last act as Master of the Robes to the King.

Senior command

Seymour was appointed Third Naval Lord in the

in September 1841. Promoted to rear admiral on 23 November 1841, he became Commander-in-Chief

, with his flag in the third-rate HMS ''Collingwood'', in May 1844.Heathcote 2002, p. 231 Later that year the French Admiral

entered into a confrontation with Queen

and with the English missionary and consul George Pritchard, expelling the consul and establishing a French protectorate over the territory in the

. The expulsion of the consul became known as the "Pritchard Affair", a business which Seymour handled tactfully avoiding a confrontation with the French Government who had already denounced Thouars' actions. Tensions with

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

were high as a result of the

Oregon boundary dispute The Oregon boundary dispute or the Oregon Question was a 19th-century territorial dispute over the political division of the Pacific Northwest of North America between several nations that had competing territorial and commercial aspirations in ...

and Seymour avoided inflaming this situation in discussions over fisheries. Eaton Square, London SW1W - geograph

Promoted to vice-admiral on 27 March 1850, Seymour became Commander-in-Chief

, with his flag in the third-rate HMS ''Cumberland'', in January 1851. He was advanced to

Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate medieval ceremony for appointing a knight, which involved bathing (as a symbol of purification) as o ...

on 6 April 1852 and became

, with his flag in the first-rate HMS ''Victory'' in 1856. Promoted to full admiral on 14 May 1857 and advanced to Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath on 18 May 1860, he was appointed

Rear-Admiral of the United Kingdom The Rear-Admiral of the United Kingdom is a now honorary office generally held by a senior (possibly retired) Royal Navy admiral, though the current incumbent is a retired Royal Marine General. Despite the title, the Rear-Admiral of the Unit ...

on 16 May 1863 and

Vice-Admiral of the United Kingdom The Vice-Admiral of the United Kingdom is an honorary office generally held by a senior Royal Navy admiral. The title holder is the official deputy to the Lord High Admiral, an honorary (although once operational) office which was vested in th ...

on 23 September 1865. Promoted to Admiral of the Fleet on 20 November 1866, he died of

bronchitis Bronchitis is inflammation of the bronchi (large and medium-sized airways) in the lungs that causes coughing. Bronchitis usually begins as an infection in the nose, ears, throat, or sinuses. The infection then makes its way down to the bronchi. ...

at his home at

Eaton Square Eaton Square is a rectangular, residential garden square in London's Belgravia district. It is the largest square in London. It is one of the three squares built by the landowning Grosvenor family when they developed the main part of Belgra ...

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

on 20 January 1870. Seymour's body was placed in a tomb, on which rests a recumbent marble sculpture of him by Victor Gleichen, at Holy Trinity Church in Arrow, not far from the Seymour family seat at Ragley Hall in

Warwickshire Warwickshire (; abbreviated Warks) is a county in the West Midlands region of England. The county town is Warwick, and the largest town is Nuneaton. The county is famous for being the birthplace of William Shakespeare at Stratford-upon-Av ...

Family

In March 1811 Seymour married Georgiana Mary Berkeley (a daughter of Sir George Berkeley) and they had three sons (

Francis Seymour, 5th Marquess of Hertford Francis George Hugh Seymour, 5th Marquess of Hertford (11 February 1812 – 25 January 1884), known as Francis Seymour until 1870, was a British army officer, courtier and Conservative politician. He served as Lord Chamberlain of the Hous ...

, Vice-Admiral Henry Seymour and General Lord William Seymour) and four daughters (including Laura Williamina Seymour, a Princess by marriage with a nephew of Queen Victoria).

Recognition

Seymour Narrows Seymour Narrows is a section of the Discovery Passage in British Columbia known for strong tidal currents. Discovery Passage lies between Vancouver Island at Menzies Bay, British Columbia and Quadra Island except at its northern end where the ea ...

in British Columbia, where he commanded the

from 1844 to 1848, is named for Seymour.

References

Sources

* *

External links

William Loney
Career History {{DEFAULTSORT:Seymour, George Francis 1787 births 1870 deaths Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath Lords of the Admiralty People from Berkeley, Gloucestershire Royal Navy admirals of the fleet Royal Navy personnel of the War of 1812 Royal Navy personnel of the Napoleonic Wars Serjeants-at-arms of the House of Lords G