Vice-Admiral Hyde Parker CB (1784 – 26 May 1854), sometimes referred to as Hyde Parker III, 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. As a junior officer he took part in the capture of the Cape of Good Hope in January 1806 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 naval forces at the siege of Machias in September 1814 and took the surrender of the frigate USS ''President'' in January 1815 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 ...

. He became First Naval Lord in February 1852 and in that capacity he ensured that all new warships being procured were propelled by steam and he also increased the size of the active fleet.

Early career

The second of three sons of

Admiral Sir Hyde Parker Admiral Sir Hyde Parker (1739 – 16 March 1807) was an admiral of the British Royal Navy. Biography He was born in Devonshire, England, the second son of Admiral Sir Hyde Parker, 5th Baronet (1714–1782). He entered the Royal Navy at an ear ...

and Anne Parker (née Boteler), Parker joined the

in February 1796. After initial training at the

Royal Naval Academy The Royal Naval Academy was a facility established in 1733 in Portsmouth Dockyard to train officers for the Royal Navy. The founders' intentions were to provide an alternative means to recruit officers and to provide standardised training, educa ...

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council. Portsmouth is the most dens ...

he joined 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 ''Cambrian''. He transferred to the fifth-rate HMS ''Narcissus'' in 1801, 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 24 September 1804, took part in the capture of the Cape of Good Hope in January 1806 during the

. He transferred to the frigate HMS ''Volontaire'' later that year and, having been promoted to commander on 22 January 1806, took command of the sloop HMS ''Prometheus'' in March 1807 for the Copenhagen expedition. Promoted to captain on 13 October 1807, Parker was given command of the third-rate HMS ''Monmouth'' in the Downs in March 1811 and the fifth-rate HMS ''Tenedos'' on the

North American 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 ...

in April 1812. On 3 April 1814, while cruising with , ''Tenedos'' chased the

USS Constitution USS ''Constitution'', also known as ''Old Ironsides'', is a three-masted wooden-hulled heavy frigate of the United States Navy. She is the world's oldest ship still afloat. She was launched in 1797, one of six original frigates authorized ...

into

Marblehead, Massachusetts Marblehead is a coastal New England town in Essex County, Massachusetts, along the North Shore. Its population was 20,441 at the 2020 census. The town lies on a small peninsula that extends into the northern part of Massachusetts Bay. Attache ...

. Parker was keen to follow her in but the senior officer Clotworthy Upton, ordered him to withdraw. Parker commanded the naval forces at the siege of Machias in September 1814 and took the surrender of the frigate USS ''President'' in January 1815 during the

. Parker took command of the fifth-rate HMS ''Iphigenia'' also on the North American Station in March 1818 and then the first-rate HMS ''St Vincent'', flagship of the

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 ...

, in May 1830. Having been appointed an extra aide-de-camp to the King on 5 September 1831, he took command of the first-rate HMS ''Victory'' also at Portsmouth in December 1831 and then the second-rate HMS ''Rodney'' in the Mediterranean Fleet in August 1835. He was appointed a Companion of the Order of the Bath on 18 April 1839.

Senior command

Promoted to

rear-admiral Rear admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, equivalent to a major general and air vice marshal and above that of a commodore and captain, but below that of a vice admiral. It is regarded as a two star "admiral" rank. It is often regarde ...

on 23 November 1841, Parker went on to be Admiral Superintendent of

Portsmouth Dockyard His Majesty's Naval Base, Portsmouth (HMNB Portsmouth) is one of three operating bases in the United Kingdom for the Royal Navy (the others being HMNB Clyde and HMNB Devonport). Portsmouth Naval Base is part of the city of Portsmouth; it is l ...

, hoisting his flag in HMS ''Victory'', in August 1842 and Commander of the Experimental Squadron in July 1845. Parker became First Naval Lord in the First Derby ministry in February 1852 but continued in office when the

Aberdeen ministry After the collapse of Lord Derby's minority government, the Whigs and Peelites formed a coalition under the Peelite leader Lord Aberdeen. The government resigned in early 1855 after a large parliamentary majority voted for a select committee ...

came to power in December 1852 having impressed the incoming Government with his non-political style of leadership. As First Naval Lord, Parker he ensured that all new warships being procured were propelled by steam and he also increased the size of the active fleet. Promoted to vice-admiral on 4 June 1852, he died while still in office at his home in

Ham Ham is pork from a leg cut that has been preserved by wet or dry curing, with or without smoking."Bacon: Bacon and Ham Curing" in ''Chambers's Encyclopædia''. London: George Newnes, 1961, Vol. 2, p. 39. As a processed meat, the term "ham ...

in Surrey on 25 May 1854.

Family

In 1821 he married Caroline Eden (1801-1854), daughter of

Sir Frederick Eden, 2nd Baronet Sir Frederick Morton Eden, 2nd Baronet, of Maryland (18 June 1766 – 14 November 1809) was an English writer on poverty and pioneering social investigator. Early life Frederick Morton Eden was the eldest son of Sir Robert Eden, 1st Baronet, of ...

; they had several children. Their son, Hyde Parker, was a captain in the

Black Sea The Black Sea is a marginal mediterranean sea of the Atlantic Ocean lying between Europe and Asia, east of the Balkans, south of the East European Plain, west of the Caucasus, and north of Anatolia. It is bounded by Bulgaria, Georgia, Rom ...

during the

Crimean War The Crimean War, , was fought from October 1853 to February 1856 between Russia and an ultimately victorious alliance of the Ottoman Empire, France, the United Kingdom and Piedmont-Sardinia. Geopolitical causes of the war included the ...

and was killed on 8 July 1854 when storming a Russian fort at

Sulina Sulina () is a town and free port in Tulcea County, Northern Dobruja, Romania, at the mouth of the Sulina branch of the Danube. It is the easternmost point of Romania. History During the mid-Byzantine period, Sulina was a small cove, and in th ...

References

Sources

William Loney RN
Career History {{DEFAULTSORT:Parker, Hyde First Sea Lords and Chiefs of the Naval Staff Lords of the Admiralty Royal Navy vice admirals 1784 births 1854 deaths Royal Navy personnel of the Napoleonic Wars Onslow family

Early career

Senior command

Family

See also

References

Sources