Rear-Admiral, Sir Henry Palmer (c. 1550 – 1611) was an English naval commander and
Comptroller of the Navy
The post of Controller of the Navy (abbreviated as CofN) was originally created in 1859 when the Surveyor of the Navy's title changed to Controller of the Navy. In 1869 the controller's office was abolished and its duties were assumed by that of ...
Aylesford
Aylesford is a village and civil parish on the River Medway in Kent, England, northwest of Maidstone.
Originally a small riverside settlement, the old village comprises around 60 houses, many of which were formerly shops. Two pubs, a village s ...
. He is first mentioned as commanding a squadron of the queen's ships on the coast of
Flanders
Flanders (, ; Dutch: ''Vlaanderen'' ) is the Flemish-speaking northern portion of Belgium and one of the communities, regions and language areas of Belgium. However, there are several overlapping definitions, including ones related to culture, ...
in 1576. From that time he was constantly employed in the queen's service. In 1580 and following years he was a commissioner for the repair and maintenance of
Dover
Dover () is a town and major ferry port in Kent, South East England. It faces France across the Strait of Dover, the narrowest part of the English Channel at from Cap Gris Nez in France. It lies south-east of Canterbury and east of Maidstone ...
harbour. In 1587 he had command of a squadron before
Dunkirk
Dunkirk (french: Dunkerque ; vls, label=French Flemish, Duunkerke; nl, Duinkerke(n) ; , ;) is a commune in the department of Nord in northern France.Lord Henry Seymour in the "Narrow Seas", against the
Spanish Armada
The Spanish Armada (a.k.a. the Enterprise of England, es, Grande y Felicísima Armada, links=no, lit=Great and Most Fortunate Navy) was a Spanish fleet that sailed from Lisbon in late May 1588, commanded by the Duke of Medina Sidonia, an aris ...
. When this squadron joined the fleet under the lord admiral before
Calais
Calais ( , , traditionally , ) is a port city in the Pas-de-Calais department, of which it is a subprefecture. Although Calais is by far the largest city in Pas-de-Calais, the department's prefecture is its third-largest city of Arras. Th ...
on 27 July, Palmer was sent to Dover to order out vessels suitable to be used for fireships. Before these could be sent, fireships, hastily improvised, drove the enemy from their anchorage, and Palmer, rejoining Seymour, took apart in the battle of Gravelines on the 29th. When Seymour, with the squadron of the Narrow Seas, was ordered back from the pursuit of the Spanish, Palmer returned with him, and continued with him and afterwards with the fleet till the end of the season. He remained in command of the winter guard on the coast of Flanders.
Through the next year he continued to command in the Narrow Seas, and in September convoyed the army across to
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 employed in similar service throughout the war, his squadron sometimes cruising to the coast of Cornwall, or to Ireland, but remaining for the most part in the Narrow Seas, and in 1596 blockading Calais. On 20 December 1598 he was appointed
Comptroller of the Navy
The post of Controller of the Navy (abbreviated as CofN) was originally created in 1859 when the Surveyor of the Navy's title changed to Controller of the Navy. In 1869 the controller's office was abolished and its duties were assumed by that of ...
, in place of
William Borough
William Borough (1536–1599) was a British naval officer who was Comptroller of the Navy and the younger brother of Stephen Borough. He participated in the British attack on Cádiz in 1587. He was responsible for the drawing of several early map ...
, and in 1600 had command of the defences of the
River Thames
The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the The Isis, River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the Longest rivers of the United Kingdom, se ...
. In 1601 he again commanded on the coast of
Holland
Holland is a geographical regionG. Geerts & H. Heestermans, 1981, ''Groot Woordenboek der Nederlandse Taal. Deel I'', Van Dale Lexicografie, Utrecht, p 1105 and former province on the western coast of the Netherlands. From the 10th to the 16th c ...
.
After the peace he continued in the office of comptroller at his office held at Chatham Dockyard overlooking the mast pools
till his death. He died on 20 November 1611 at Howlets in
Bekesborne
Bekesbourne is a village near Canterbury in Kent, South East England.
The village is centred ESE of the city's cathedral and its centre stretches less than 1 km from its railway station to the A2 road to the south.
Amenities
The parish c ...
, an estate which he had bought.
Family
He was twice married: first to Jane, daughter of Edward Isaac, and widow of Nicholas Sidley; secondly, to Dorothy, née Scott, and widow of Thomas Hernden. By his first wife he had two sons, of whom the younger, Henry, succeeded his father as comptroller of the navy by a grant in reversion of 17 August 1611. Howlets was left to Palmer's stepson, Isaac Sidley, who made it over to his half-brother Henry. His other son was called Levin and little is known about his life
He was the executor of his close friend Sir John Hawkins and for this task he was bequeathed a diamond worth £20