Admiral of the Fleet Sir William Bowles, KCB (25 May 1780 – 2 July 1869) was a senior

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 Fr ...

officer and

Conservative Party The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right. Political parties called The Conservative P ...

politician. After serving as a junior officer in 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, Pruss ...

, he became commanding officer of the sloop HMS ''Zebra'' and took part in the bombardment of Copenhagen in September 1807 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 Fre ...

. As commanding officer of the fifth-rate HMS ''Medusa'', he took part in operations off the north coast of Spain and led a naval brigade in a raid on

Santoña Santoña is a town in the eastern coast of the autonomous community of Cantabria, on the north coast of Spain. It is situated by the bay of the same name. It is from the capital Santander. Santoña is divided into two zones, an urban plain, and ...

. Bowles went on to be Commander-in-Chief,

South America Station The South America Station was a formation of the Royal Navy which existed from 1808 to 1838 when it was split into the Pacific Station and the South East Coast of America Station The South East Coast of America Station was a formation of the Roya ...

before becoming 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 ...

as well as Member of Parliament (MP) for Launceston in Cornwall. He published a number of papers arguing for innovations in naval warfare and naval administration before becoming

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

Born the son of William Bowles and Dinah Bowles (daughter of Admiral Sir Thomas Frankland), Bowles joined the

in September 1796. He was assigned 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 thi ...

HMS ''Theseus'' in the Channel Squadron and saw action off

Cádiz Cádiz (, , ) is a city and port in southwestern Spain. It is the capital of the Province of Cádiz, one of eight that make up the autonomous community of Andalusia. Cádiz, one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in Western Europe, ...

during the

.Heathcote, p. 29 Promoted to

midshipman A midshipman is an officer of the lowest rank, in the Royal Navy, United States Navy, and many Commonwealth navies. Commonwealth countries which use the rank include Canada (Naval Cadet), Australia, Bangladesh, Namibia, New Zealand, South Af ...

, he transferred to the third-rate HMS ''Captain'' in June 1797, to the

corvette A corvette is a small warship. It is traditionally the smallest class of vessel considered to be a proper (or " rated") warship. The warship class above the corvette is that of the frigate, while the class below was historically that of the slo ...

HMS ''Daphne'' in the

North Sea The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Norway, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium. An epeiric sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian ...

early in 1798 and 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 ''Hydra'' in November 1800. After that, he moved to the fifth-rate HMS ''Acasta'' in the

Mediterranean Fleet The British Mediterranean Fleet, also known as the Mediterranean Station, was a formation of the Royal Navy. The Fleet was one of the most prestigious commands in the navy for the majority of its history, defending the vital sea link between t ...

and then to the

sloop A sloop is a sailboat with a single mast typically having only one headsail in front of the mast and one mainsail aft of (behind) the mast. Such an arrangement is called a fore-and-aft rig, and can be rigged as a Bermuda rig with triangular sa ...

HMS ''Driver''. Promoted to lieutenant on 30 August 1803, he transferred to the fifth-rate HMS ''Cambrian'' 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 ...

, then 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 ''Leander'' and then to the fifth-rate HMS ''Milan''. Promoted to

commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countries this naval rank is termed frigate captain. ...

on 22 January 1806, Bowles became commanding officer of the sloop HMS ''Zebra'' in March 1807 and took part in the bombardment of Copenhagen in September 1807 during the

. Promoted to

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

on 13 October 1807, he went on to command the third-rate HMS ''Warspite'' in June 1809 and the fifth-rate HMS ''Medusa'' in June 1810. In HMS ''Medusa'', he took part in operations off the north coast of Spain and led a naval brigade in a raid on

. He next became commanding officer of the fifth-rate HMS ''Aquilon'' in March 1811 and saw action 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 from ...

before becoming commanding officer of the

sixth-rate In the rating system of the Royal Navy used to categorise sailing warships, a sixth-rate was the designation for small warships mounting between 20 and 28 carriage-mounted guns on a single deck, sometimes with smaller guns on the upper works a ...

HMS ''Nemesis'' in April 1811 and sailing with her for duties off the West Coast of Africa. He served on trade protection duties off the

Río de la Plata The Río de la Plata (, "river of silver"), also called the River Plate or La Plata River in English, is the estuary formed by the confluence of the Uruguay River and the Paraná River at Punta Gorda. It empties into the Atlantic Ocean and fo ...

during 1813. Promoted to

commodore Commodore may refer to: Ranks * Commodore (rank), a naval rank ** Commodore (Royal Navy), in the United Kingdom ** Commodore (United States) ** Commodore (Canada) ** Commodore (Finland) ** Commodore (Germany) or ''Kommodore'' * Air commodore ...

, Bowles became Commander-in-Chief,

, with his

broad pennant A broad pennant is a triangular swallow-tailed naval pennant flown from the masthead of a warship afloat or a naval headquarters ashore to indicate the presence of either: (a) a Royal Navy officer in the rank of Commodore, or (b) a U.S. Na ...

in the fifth-rate HMS ''Amphion'', in 1816 and then became commanding officer of the

yacht A yacht is a sailing or power vessel used for pleasure, cruising, or racing. There is no standard definition, though the term generally applies to vessels with a cabin intended for overnight use. To be termed a , as opposed to a , such a pleasu ...

HMY ''William & Mary'' early in 1822 before moving on to be Comptroller-General of the Coast Guard in July 1822.Heathcote, p. 30 In a paper published in 1830 entitled ''Remarks on the Conduct of the Naval Administration of Great Britain'' he argued for the introduction of steam warships and the creation of a gunnery school: the latter ambition was realised with the formation of HMS ''Excellent'' later that year. He was appointed a

Companion of the Order of the Bath Companion may refer to: Relationships Currently * Any of several interpersonal relationships such as friend or acquaintance * A domestic partner, akin to a spouse * Sober companion, an addiction treatment coach * Companion (caregiving), a caregiv ...

on 12 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 rega ...

on 23 November 1841, Bowles became Commander of the Squadron of Evolution (formerly known as the ''Experimental Squadron''), with his flag in the first-rate HMS ''Caledonia'' in May 1843 and was instructed to test various innovations in naval warfare. He became Third Naval Lord in the

in May 1844 and was also elected

Member of Parliament (MP) for Launceston in Cornwall following a by-election brought about by the resignation of Field Marshal Sir Henry Hardinge that same month. When the Government fell in July 1846 Bowles resigned from office. In a republished paper issued in 1847 he additionally called for a centrally organised system of naval recruitment and in a paper published in 1848 entitled ''Thoughts on National Defence'' he argued for a system of fortifications 10 miles deep around the United Kingdom. Promoted vice-admiral on 8 March 1852, Bowles published a paper entitled ''Considerations on the Late Naval War'' in 1856 and, having been promoted to full

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 ...

on 28 November 1857, he published another paper entitled ''A Recommendation for Abolishing the Rank of Commander in the Royal Navy'' in 1858. He became

in March 1859 but was obliged to resign after mishandling the response to an alleged mutiny in the second-rate HMS ''Princess Royal'' in November 1859. Bowles had wanted to

court-martial A court-martial or court martial (plural ''courts-martial'' or ''courts martial'', as "martial" is a postpositive adjective) is a military court or a trial conducted in such a court. A court-martial is empowered to determine the guilt of memb ...

the offenders but the Government would not authorise that course of action. 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 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 10 November 1862, 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 Unite ...

on 23 September 1865 and appointed Vice-Admiral of the United Kingdom on 26 November 1866. Promoted to Admiral of the Fleet on 15 January 1869, he died at his home at 8

Hill Street, London Hill Street is a street in Mayfair, London, which runs south-west, then west, from Berkeley Square to Deanery Street, a short approach way from Park Lane. It was developed from farmland in the 18th century. Travelling one block to the east and ...

on 2 July 1869.

Family

On 9 August 1820, Bowles married The Hon. Frances Temple, daughter of the late

Henry Temple, 2nd Viscount Palmerston Henry Temple, 2nd Viscount Palmerston, FRS (4 December 1739 – 17 April 1802), was a British politician. Life Temple was a son of Henry Temple (son of Henry Temple, 1st Viscount Palmerston) and Jane, daughter of Sir John Barnard, Lord Mayor o ...

and sister of the

Henry John Temple, 3rd Viscount Palmerston Henry John Temple, 3rd Viscount Palmerston, (20 October 1784 – 18 October 1865) was a British statesman who was twice Prime Minister of the United Kingdom in the mid-19th century. Palmerston dominated British foreign policy during the period ...

who became

Secretary at War The Secretary at War was a political position in the English and later British government, with some responsibility over the administration and organization of the Army, but not over military policy. The Secretary at War ran the War Office. Afte ...

and later

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is ...

; they had no children.

References

Sources

* * *

External links

*
William Loney
Career History * , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Bowles, William 1780 births 1869 deaths People from Salisbury Knights Commander of the Order of the Bath Lords of the Admiralty Royal Navy admirals of the fleet UK MPs 1841–1847 UK MPs 1847–1852 Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for Launceston Conservative Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies Royal Navy personnel of the French Revolutionary Wars Royal Navy personnel of the Napoleonic Wars