Admiral of the Fleet Sir Nowell Salmon, (20 February 1835 – 14 February 1912) 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 served in the naval brigade and took part in the Siege of Lucknow during the Indian Mutiny. He was a member of the force defending the

Residency Residency may refer to: * Domicile (law), the act of establishing or maintaining a residence in a given place ** Permanent residency, indefinite residence within a country despite not having citizenship * Residency (medicine), a stage of postgra ...

when he volunteered to climb a tree near the wall of the Shah Nujeff mosque to observe the fall of shot, despite being under fire himself and wounded in the thigh. He and his colleague, Leading Seaman

John Harrison John Harrison ( – 24 March 1776) was a self-educated English carpenter and clockmaker who invented the marine chronometer, a long-sought-after device for solving the problem of calculating longitude while at sea. Harrison's solution revol ...

, were awarded the

Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious award of the British honours system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British Armed Forces and may be awarded posthumously. It was previously ...

, the highest award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces for this action. A few years later Salmon was dispatched from

British Honduras British Honduras was a British Crown colony on the east coast of Central America, south of Mexico, from 1783 to 1964, then a self-governing colony, renamed Belize in June 1973,

(now

Belize Belize (; bzj, Bileez) is a Caribbean and Central American country on the northeastern coast of Central America. It is bordered by Mexico to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and Guatemala to the west and south. It also shares a wate ...

) to take custody of William Walker, an American citizen who had briefly been president of

Nicaragua Nicaragua (; ), officially the Republic of Nicaragua (), is the largest country in Central America, bordered by Honduras to the north, the Caribbean to the east, Costa Rica to the south, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. Managua is the countr ...

, but who was now attempting further conquests in Central America. The British Government regarded Walker as a menace to its own affairs in the region. Salmon captured Walker and delivered him to the authorities in Honduras, who promptly had him court-martialed and shot. Salmon went on to be Commander-in-Chief, Cape of Good Hope and West Coast of Africa Station, then Commander-in-Chief,

China Station The Commander-in-Chief, China was the admiral in command of what was usually known as the China Station, at once both a British Royal Navy naval formation and its admiral in command. It was created in 1865 and deactivated in 1941. From 1831 to 18 ...

and finally

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

Salmon was the son of Reverend Henry Salmon, Rector of Swarraton and Emily Salmon (daughter of Admiral William Nowell), Salmon was educated at Marlborough College and joined the

as cadet in May 1847.Heathcote, p. 224 Promoted to midshipman, he was appointed 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 ...

in the

Baltic Sea The Baltic Sea is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that is enclosed by Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden and the North and Central European Plain. The sea stretches from 53°N to 66°N latitude and ...

in March 1854 and saw action 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 ...

. 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 5 January 1856, he joined the

gunboat A gunboat is a naval watercraft designed for the express purpose of carrying one or more guns to bombard coastal targets, as opposed to those military craft designed for naval warfare, or for ferrying troops or supplies. History Pre-ste ...

HMS ''Ant'' in March 1856 before transferring to the frigate on the

East Indies Station The East Indies Station was a formation and command of the British Royal Navy. Created in 1744 by the Admiralty, it was under the command of the Commander-in-Chief, East Indies. Even in official documents, the term ''East Indies Station'' was ...

later that year. He served in the naval brigade and took part in the Siege of Lucknow in November 1857 during the Indian Mutiny. He was a member of the force defending the

, were awarded the

. His citation reads: WilliamWalker

Salmon took part in the Recapture of Lucknow in March 1858 and was promoted to commander on 22 March 1858. He became commanding officer of the sloop on the

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 ...

in November 1859. In 1860, Salmon was dispatched from

British Honduras British Honduras was a British Crown colony on the east coast of Central America, south of Mexico, from 1783 to 1964, then a self-governing colony, renamed Belize in June 1973,

(now

) to take custody of William Walker, an American citizen who had briefly been president of

, but who was now attempting further conquests in Central America. The British Government regarded Walker as a menace to its own affairs in the region. Salmon captured Walker and delivered him to the authorities in Honduras, who promptly had him court-martialed and shot. Promoted to captain on 12 December 1863, Salmon became commanding officer of the

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

in the Mediterranean Fleet in March 1869 and then commanded the ironclad warship under the Commander-in-Chief, Queenstown in Ireland in April 1874. He was appointed a Companion of the

Order of the Bath The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I of Great Britain, George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate medieval ceremony for appointing a knight, which involved Bathing#Medieval ...

on 29 May 1875 and made a naval aide-de-camp to

the Queen In the English-speaking world, The Queen most commonly refers to: * Elizabeth II (1926–2022), Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 1952 until her death The Queen may also refer to: * Camilla, Queen Consort (born 1947), ...

on 12 December that same year, before becoming commanding officer of the battleship in the Mediterranean Fleet on 28 November 1877.Heathcote, p. 225

Senior command

Promoted to rear admiral on 2 August 1879, Salmon became Commander-in-Chief, Cape of Good Hope and West Coast of Africa Station, with his flag in the corvette , in April 1882. Promoted to vice admiral on 1 July 1885, he was advanced to Knight Commander of the

on 21 June 1887. He went on to be Commander-in-Chief,

, with his flag in the armoured cruiser , in December 1887. Salmon was promoted to full admiral on 10 September 1891, and became

in June 1894. He was advanced to Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath on 22 June 1897, and led

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 216 days was longer than that of any previo ...

's Diamond Jubilee Review at

Spithead Spithead is an area of the Solent and a roadstead off Gilkicker Point in Hampshire, England. It is protected from all winds except those from the southeast. It receives its name from the Spit, a sandbank stretching south from the Hampshire ...

on 26 June. He was appointed

First and Principal Naval Aide-de-camp Below is a list of First and Principal Naval Aides-de-Camp, an office established by William IV of the United Kingdom in 1830: First and Principal Naval Aides-de-Camp *1830-1846: Lord Amelius Beauclerk *1846-1866: Sir William Parker, Bt. *18 ...

to the Queen on 23 August 1897. Promoted to admiral of the fleet on 13 January 1899, he retired in February 1905, died at his home in

Southsea Southsea is a seaside resort and a geographic area of Portsmouth, Portsea Island in England. Southsea is located 1.8 miles (2.8 km) to the south of Portsmouth's inner city-centre. Southsea is not a separate town as all of Portsea Island's s ...

on 14 February 1912 and was buried at St Peter's Churchyard in Curdridge. Salmon's Victoria Cross is on display in the Lord Ashcroft Gallery at the Imperial War Museum in London.

Family

In January 1866 Salmon married Emily Augusta Saunders; they had a son and a daughter.Heathcote, p. 225

References

Sources

* *

External links

*
William Loney
Career History *

The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper '' The Sunday Times'' (f ...

Obituary of Sir Nowell Salmon (15 February 1912) , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Salmon, Nowell 1835 births 1912 deaths Burials in Hampshire People from the City of Winchester British recipients of the Victoria Cross Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath Indian Rebellion of 1857 recipients of the Victoria Cross Royal Navy admirals of the fleet People educated at Marlborough College Royal Navy personnel of the Crimean War Royal Navy recipients of the Victoria Cross Military personnel from Winchester