Transcriber's Note:
Every effort has been made to replicate this text as faithfully as
possible, including inconsistent hyphenation and discrepancies in
numbers of guns. Some errors in the table of contents and chapter
summaries have been corrected. Some other changes have been made.
They are listed at the end of the text.
Italic text has been marked with _underscores_.
PERSONAL NARRATIVE
OF EVENTS,
FROM 1799 TO 1815,
_WITH ANECDOTES_.
BY THE LATE
VICE-ADM^{L.} W^{M.} STANHOPE LOVELL, R.N., K.H.
SECOND EDITION.
London:
WM. ALLEN & CO., 13, WATERLOO PLACE, W.
1879.
WITHERBY AND CO., PRINTERS,
74, CORNHILL; NEWMAN’S COURT, CORNHILL; AND 325A, HIGH HOLBORN, W.C.
_To_ Rear-Admiral Sir ROBERT BARRIE, C.B., K.C.H.
MY DEAR SIR ROBERT,
In dedicating the following pages to you, under whose command I had the
honour of serving in the Chesapeake, &c., I do it with the greatest
respect, esteem, and admiration of your conduct.
I must ever consider you as one of those officers upon whom the country
may safely rely in the hour of peril, and in whose hands it may entrust
its honour in the day of battle. Like the celebrated Bayard of old,
your career has obtained for you a character, “_sans peur et sans
reproche_.”
Your faithful friend,
THE AUTHOR.
_CONTENTS._
CHAPTER I. PAGE
First Trip to Sea--Shipmates--Admiral Sir John Borlase Warren,
Bart, K.B. 1
CHAPTER II.
Channel Cruising--Boat Expeditions--Anecdote of a Gallant
Mid--Ditto of Two Dandy Guardsmen--Expedition to Ferrol--Sir
James Pulteney, Sir Edward Pellew and the Donkey--The Unlucky
Cruise 7
CHAPTER III.
Cruise off Cadiz--Proceed up the Mediterranean to Egypt after a
French Squadron under Rear-Admiral Ganteaume, 1801 16
CHAPTER IV.
From the Peace of Amiens (1802) until the Commencement of the
Second Gallic War--Gambling 26
CHAPTER V.
From the Commencement of Second Gallic War until the Battle of
Trafalgar, 1805; with Anecdotes 30
CHAPTER VI.
The Battle of Trafalgar, and Extracts from the Log of His
Majesty’s Ship _Neptune_, on the 21st, 22nd, and 23rd
October, 1805 43
CHAPTER VII.
Joined the _Melpomene_--Sent up the Mediterranean--Tremendous
Weather, with Thunder, Lightning, and Water-spouts--Ship
loses her Rudder and Main-topmast--Proceed to Malta 57
CHAPTER VIII.
Siege of Gaeta by the French--Boat Affairs--My Capture--Leghorn 62
CHAPTER IX.
Malta--Dreadful Accident by the Explosion of a Magazine in the
Town, on the Bermola side--Nearly get into a Scrape about
Breaking Quarantine--Kind Answer of the gallant Admiral Sir
Sidney Smith to the Complaint--Rejoin the _Melpomene_--Mutiny
in Fribourg’s Regiment--Cruise in the Adriatic 73
CHAPTER X.
North American Station, from 1808 to
1811--Bermuda--Anecdote--Death of Captain Conn 87
CHAPTER XI.
Lisbon--Trip to the Army of Lord Wellington--Montemor Novo,
O’Rodondo, Villa Vicosa, Elvas, Fort le Lippe 101
CHAPTER XII.
Lisbon, Cintra, Mafra, etc., 1811, 1812--Second Trip to the
Army--Taking of Badajoz 113
CHAPTER XIII.
Cadiz, Minorca, Majorca, Alicant, Carthagena, Algiers, Oran,
Altea Bay--Drive a French Privateer on Shore near Denia 124
CHAPTER XIV.
Siege of the Col de Balaguer--A Reconnoitering Party--Raising
of the Siege of Tarragona--Lieutenant-General Sir John and
Lady Murray--Rear-Admiral Benjamin Hallowell--Viscount
and Viscountess Mahon--Palermo, Veniros; Upset in a
Boat--Valencia--Holland 136
CHAPTER XV.
1814--Sent to Bermuda--Operations in the Chesapeake--The
River Patuxent--Expedition to Washington--Town of
Rappahannock--River Rappahannock--Commodore Robert Barrie,
etc. 150
CHAPTER XVI.
Operations in South Carolina--Capture of Cumberland Island
and the Fort of Point-à-Petre--An Affair with the American
Riflemen in the Woods--An Abattis--Anecdotes of the 2nd West
India Regiment--A Rattlesnake--Capture of the Town of St.
Mary’s--Destruction of the Forts and Barracks--Nassau, New
Providence--Compliment to the Royal Marines--Return Home 173
A PERSONAL NARRATIVE OF EVENTS.
CHAPTER I.
First trip to sea--Shipmates--Admiral Sir John Borlase Warren,
Bart, K.B.
My father[A] and uncle both served their king and country in the
American war of independence; the former was with Lord Cornwallis’s
army when it surrendered at York to the American forces under the
command of General Washington (he was at that time an officer in the
6th Regiment of Foot); and the latter in the 4th Dragoons. Both were
magistrates for the county of Buckinghamshire, and served the office of
high sheriff for the same.
When scarcely ten years old, I joined H.M. ship _Renown_ (74) in
Torbay, bearing the flag (blue at the mizen) of one of the most
amiable men in the service, Sir John Borlase Warren, Bt, K.B., who had
commanded a squadron of dashing frigates during all the early part of
the war, and had taken and destroyed several French ships, and finished
his glorious flying squad career by capturing most of those, which,
under the command of Monsieur Bompart, had been sent with troops to
assist the Irish during the rebellion of 1798, thereby saving the blood
of thousands in Ireland, if not Ireland itself. A better or braver
officer than the late Admiral Sir J. B. Warren never lived; he was that
perfect model of a gentleman that every one might take as a pattern. I
had the melancholy honour of following him to his grave, and wept over
it tears of unfeigned sorrow.
But to commence my peregrinations. I still recollect the delight that
a letter from my father gave me when at school, informing me I was
to leave Latin and Greek, which classical knowledge was all blown
overboard and forgotten the first gale of wind at sea; and after
spending a short time at Little Missenden Abbey (which then belonged
to my father) with my mother and two sisters,[B] I proceeded to
Portsmouth, thence to find a passage to join the before-mentioned ship
in Torbay.
I bore the parting with my kind, dear, excellent mother and sisters
pretty well, because my father accompanied me to Portsmouth to see me
safely launched into a new world; but when he took leave, I thought
my heart would burst with grief. Time, however, reconciles us to
everything, and the gaiety and thoughtlessness of youth, added to the
cocked hat, dirk, spy-glass, etc., of a nautical fit out, assisted
wonderfully to dry my tears, and, in a manner, reconciled me to a new
scene of life.
Captain Pickmore, who at that period commanded the _Royal William_, at
Spithead, very kindly sent me on board the _Montague_ (74) with all my
baggage, in the admiral’s tender, to join my ship to the westward. The
first night on board was not the most pleasant; the noises unusual to a
novice--sleeping in a hammock for the first time--its tarry smell--the
wet cables for a bed carpet, and a somersault or two from my lubberly
manner of getting into it, made me draw comparisons between sleeping on
beds of down ashore, and my new abode, by no means very favourable to
the latter.
The second day after quitting Portsmouth brought us to Torbay, where
the channel fleet of thirty-six sail of the line, under Lord Bridport,
was lying at anchor. I was soon transferred to my own ship, and
introduced to my new messmates.
We lived in the gun-room on the lower deck, and in fine weather
had daylight, which was better in many respects than the old
midshipmen’s berths in the cockpit. Amongst the youngsters were some
within a year or two as young as myself; nice boys, full of fun
and mischief, who soon initiated me in the sea pranks of “sawing
your bed-posts,”--cutting you down head and foot; “reefing your
bed-clothes,”--making them up into hard balls which, if properly done,
will take one unpractised in the art a good half-hour or more to
undo. It used to be a great annoyance to come off deck after a first
or middle watch (from eight at night to twelve, or from twelve to
four in the morning), perhaps quite wet through, thinking, on being
relieved, what a nice sleep you would have, to find, on going to your
hammock, all your sheets and blankets made up into hard balls, and a
good half-hour’s work in the dark to undo them, particularly when tired
and sleepy. During your labour to effect this, you had the pleasure of
hearing the mischievous fellows that had a hand in doing it, laughing
in their hammocks, and offering their condolences by saying what a
shame it was to play such tricks when you were absent on deck, keeping
your watch, and recommending you to lick them all round, if you were
able, or at all events to retaliate the first opportunity.
Blowing the grampus (sluicing you with water), and many other tricks
used to be resorted to occasionally. Taking it all in good part, from
the persuasion that it was the customary initiation to a sea life, my
torments were few, for when the art of tormenting ceases to irritate,
it loses the effect intended, and it generally ends by your shipmates
saying, “Well, you are a good-natured fellow, and shall not be annoyed
any more.”
I must do my brother mids the justice to say that a more kind-hearted
set was not to be met with. We had few or no real quarrels the four
years we sailed together, and, whenever spare time permitted, our
evenings were spent in the amusements afforded by the old games of
cribbage, loo, draughts and able wackets, which is a kind of forfeit
played with cards, where each player is subject, for every mistake,
to one or more blows with a knotted handkerchief on the palm of the
hand. Many of them have paid the debt of nature, but some have risen
to high rank and honours, most deservedly, in the service. We were
all kept tight at work, and had at least four hours of sky-parlour
(being sent to the main-topmast-head), when our watch was over, for
every delinquency. I recollect one of my messmates was a lazy fellow,
and shocking bad relief (the Hon. Henry Dawson); he always kept the
unfortunate mid he had to relieve at least half-an-hour beyond his time
on deck, until his patience was exhausted, forcing him to the unwelcome
alternative of making a complaint to the lieutenant of the watch, who
sent down to bring his relief on deck. It frequently happened that an
old quarter-master, named Ned Cowen, was employed on this errand; he
was a complete character, and as he had sailed round the world with the
celebrated Captain Cook, and was a great favourite with us mids, we
used to get him into our berth, give the old fellow a glass or two of
grog, and make him relate his adventures.
Whenever old Ned presented himself at the Honble. H. Dawson’s hammock,
he signified the purport of his visit with this summons--“Come,
Mr. Dawson, past one bell (the half-hour after the watch has been
called), turn out, show a leg, or I am ordered to bring you up on the
quarter-deck, hammock and all; take my advice, bring a good, thick
greatcoat with you; it is a wet night, and the masthead waiting for
you--the old story, you know.” The delinquent’s tale of “overslept
myself, sir,” was quite worn out--it occurred too often; therefore
nothing was left but to mount up to the masthead, and there enjoy the
refreshing breezes, fine showers, and exhilarating air of sky-parlour,
to awaken him from his balmy slumbers.
The ship was in fine order and a perfect man-of-war, well manned and
officered. The lieutenants were good seamen, knew and did their duty
promptly, and managed the ship well.
Of the first lieutenants, two, after being promoted, found a watery
grave--poor Hawes, in the _Moucheron_, brig of 16 guns, which foundered
in a heavy gale with all his crew; and the gallant Burke shared a
similar fate in the _Seagull_, of 18 guns.