_Revolutionnaire_ to leeward. On examination, found the cut-water so
much shook I determined to run on to Baia and secure the bowsprit;
made signal to prepare to anchor, and bore up little after 8 A.M.
Anchored in fifteen fathom water. The _Revolutionnaire_ was examined
also, when I found her mainmast was sprung; sent the master and
carpenter to survey the damage she had sustained, two or three of her
timbers being broke. They reported she might be put in a state to
proceed in two days. Sent Lieutenant Drewry up to the Admiral with a
letter giving an account of our disaster, and informing him I should
proceed as soon as the weather would admit of it, taking
_Revolutionnaire_ with me if she was ready, otherwise directing him to
follow. Got an answer from him in the evening offering the King any
ship, even _Rochefort_ (the flagship), if we could not proceed; and
that he had ordered _Active_ down here, to be ready to relieve
_Revolutionnaire_ if she could not go. In the morning, when the King
came out, he took hold of both my hands, squeezed them, and shook
them very heartily, saying, "I am infinitely obliged to you for the
way in which you manoeuvred the ship last night, for had it not been
for your promptitude she must have been dismasted." Dined with his
Majesty, who sent me an invitation, and took my place, by his
direction, at his right hand, in the way I used when Bonaparte was
with me, and was a good deal struck with the similarity of situation.
On the King's left sat the Princess of Paterna, created by him Duchess
of Floridia. She is married to him, but does not assume the title of
Queen, because she is not of blood royal. She is an uncommonly
handsome woman for her time of life,--which the Prince of Babro tells
me is very near fifty,--her manners pleasing, and quite those of a
woman of high rank. He seems much attached to her, was particular in
recommending good dishes to her, and once or twice when he spoke to
her took her hand, and shook and prest it in a friendly affectionate
way.
* * * * *
_Baia, Dec. 15._--Strong gale, with very heavy squalls and showers of
rain. The King is, in my opinion, much better at an anchor here than
beating about the sea in a gale of wind. Employed securing the
bowsprit.... Dined with the King, who told us several anecdotes of his
sea excursions; and he really is a tolerably good sailor. In the
evening a deputation of the Parliament came on board to condole with
his Majesty on the accident that had befallen the ship, and to wish
him a pleasant voyage and a speedy return to his country. In the
evening pointed the yards to the wind.... While at dinner, H.M. sent
out to have "Rule Britannia" played by the band, and drank success to
the British Navy with three cheers.
* * * * *
_Dec. 16._--In the morning the weather fine, with light wind W.S.W.
Unmoored ship.... Stood over towards Capri till half-past one, when we
tacked. The King told us at dinner he had been one of six who in seven
days killed nine thousand quails on Capri Island, where in the month
of May some years they come in millions.... Got round Ischia at 10
o'clock P.M.......................................................
* * * * *
_Leghorn Roads, Wednesday, Dec. 20._--Employed all night beating into
Leghorn Roads.... At eight, pratique boat came off and gave us
pratique, and soon after the Governor of Leghorn came to pay his
respects to the King, with a fine large barge. His Majesty soon got
very impatient to go on shore, and would hardly give us time to make
the necessary preparations for sending him out of the ship with due
honours. At half-past nine he left the ship, accompanied by the
Duchess of Floridia.... Saluted with twenty-one guns, and manned yards
and cheered him as he left the ship. I accompanied him on shore, and
when about to take my leave he asked me to dinner. I went, therefore,
to the Grand Duke's palace, which is in the square; and when I got
there the Marchese di Ruffo soon arrived, and, desiring my company in
another room, produced the Order of St Ferdinand of the second class,
and told me he had the King's sanction to present me with it; and when
we were talking about it his Majesty came into the room and put it
over my neck, and then led me by the hand and presented me to the
Princess Paterna, when I returned my humble thanks to his Majesty,
knelt, and kissed his hand. The princess told me it was her intention
to send by me something as a present from her to my wife. The Marchese
di Ruffo then came in and told me he had something further to
communicate, and took me into the other room, when he gave me from his
Majesty a remarkably handsome gold snuff-box with his portrait on
it,--a very good likeness, set with twenty-four diamonds, some of them
large, particularly four at the corners. He gave me also two other
boxes, one for Captain Pellew and the other for the captain of the
_Fleur de Lis_, and informed me he meant to give 3000 ducats to the
_Vengeur's_ ship's company and 1500 to each of the frigates. Dined
with the King, and came off in the evening.
* * * * *
_Dec. 21._--... To Franschetti the banker to obtain the money given by
the King of Naples to the ships' companies; and after waiting a long
time and having a great deal of trouble with a very stupid old fellow,
we managed to get it from him.... Got my patent as Commander of the
Order of St Ferdinand and of Merit, for which I had to pay ten ducats
as a fee to the secretary's clerk,--a part of the ceremony I did not
bargain for, as the order cannot be of any use to me, there being a
rule against officers accepting of foreign orders except in particular
cases.
* * * * *
_Dec. 22._--... At eleven the boats came off and brought all my traps,
and a small parcel from the Princess Paterna, containing a very
handsome gold necklace and bracelets, requesting I would accept them
for her sake and present them to my wife. His Majesty, as well as the
princess, have behaved to me in a most munificent way, having loaded
me with favours and marks of their affection, which I shall ever
remember with the warmest gratitude. As I have now done with the King
of Naples, it may be as well to say a few words of his person and
habits. He is a tall thin fair man, now seventy years of age,
uncommonly robust and active for that time of life, which may be
attributed in a great measure to his temperance and love of
field-sports, which has been ever his ruling passion, and often
occasioned him to neglect the more imposing and serious duties of a
king. As a man, he must be liked by every one who comes immediately in
contact with him, as he is cheerful and good-humoured, though not a
man of much information. While on board the ship he was generally up
before daylight,--which at this season of the year is not saying
much,--took a cup of coffee and a bit of biscuit,--to strengthen his
stomach as he said,--and then said prayers, having two friars and a
priest with him. At noon he dined, when he ate a very hearty meal, and
drank about half a bottle of Neapolitan wine a good deal diluted with
water, and ate nothing for the remainder of the day. In the evening he
played picquet, and went to bed at eight or half past....
* * * * *
The _Vengeur_ returned to England in the spring of 1820, and Maitland
was appointed to the _Genoa_, guardship at Portsmouth, from which he
was superseded in October on the completion of his three years'
continuous service on the peace establishment. The midshipmen of the
_Genoa_ presented him with a sword as a mark of respect.
Then followed a period of rest. In 1816 he had bought from his mother
the estate of Lindores, near Newburgh, in Fifeshire, which had been in
her family since 1569. Here he now spent several years, chiefly
occupied in the improvement of the property. During the war he had
made some L16,000 out of prize-money, part of which was spent in
building the present mansion-house, overlooking the beautiful Loch of
Lindores. In the spring of 1826 he visited London to arrange for the
publication of the _Narrative_, which, after some fruitless
negotiations with John Murray, was accepted by Colburn on satisfactory
terms.
On February 13, 1827, Maitland was appointed to the _Wellesley_, 74.
In December 1826, Mr Canning, in response to an appeal from the
Portuguese Regency, had sent English troops to Lisbon to protect the
Government of Portugal against the threatened attack of Spain.
Maitland was ordered to Lisbon, and the _Wellesley_ spent the autumn
and winter of 1827 in the Tagus. After a spring cruise up the
Mediterranean, she returned to England in May 1828. On June 26 she
again sailed for the Mediterranean, carrying the flag of Admiral Sir
Pulteney Malcolm, who was then going out to succeed Sir Edward
Codrington in command of the Mediterranean station. On August 24 she
joined the squadron under Codrington at Navarino.
Maitland remained in Greek waters for the next two years. The tragic
drama of the Greek Revolution, after seven years of horrors, had now
reached its final act. By the Treaty of London, in July 1827, England,
Russia, and France had undertaken to put an end to the conflict in the
East, and to establish the autonomy of Greece. In the following
October the battle of Navarino had been fought, and the Turkish fleet
destroyed. Ibrahim Pasha still held the fortresses of the Morea, which
he was shortly to evacuate under the pressure of a French army corps.
In April 1828 war had broken out between Turkey and Russia.
Desultory fighting was still going on in Crete, which had been utterly
devastated by years of barbarous warfare. In October the _Wellesley_
went to Suda Bay, and most of the winter was spent by Maitland on the
coast of Crete, endeavouring to bring about an armistice, and
superintending the blockade which the Powers had established in order
to prevent military supplies from reaching the Turks in the island.
The blockade was raised early in 1829; and during the following months
Maitland visited nearly every point of interest on the Greek coast and
in the Greek islands, as well as Sicily, the coast of Asia Minor, and
Constantinople. Like most Englishmen who have served in the Levant, he
developed a considerable respect for the Turk, and a quite unbounded
contempt for the Greek. After the armistice negotiations in Crete he
writes: "I found the conduct of the Turkish chiefs throughout manly,
straightforward, and sincere, while that of their opponents was very
much the reverse;" and in another place he writes of the Greeks that
"a more perfidious, ferocious, and cruel race does not exist."
Needless to say he did not think much of "our pretty Greek Committee."
In the summer of 1830 the _Wellesley_ returned to England. Maitland
attained his flag on July 22, 1830. At the reconstruction of the Order
of the Bath in 1815 he had been made a C.B.; on November 17, 1830, he
was advanced to be a K.C.B. In 1835 he received the Greek Order of the
Redeemer.
During his South American and Mediterranean cruises Maitland kept a
very full and interesting private journal. It reveals him to us as a
man of immense mental activity and power of observation, hard humorous
common-sense, and an almost Pepysian interest in all the doings of
mankind. Politics, archaeology, cricket, theatricals, scandal, the
terms of a treaty, the _menu_ of a good dinner, the armament of a
foreign frigate, the toilette of a pretty woman,--everything interests
him, and is observed, remembered, and noted in his diary. A few
extracts have been given; within the limits of this sketch they cannot
be multiplied. His account of the slave-market at Constantinople may
serve as a specimen of his power of picturesque description.
* * * * *
_October 12, 1829._--... We then crossed the harbour, and went to the
slave-market. It is held in a small square, with some houses in the
middle, and on two sides of the square are small rooms, where the
slaves for sale are kept until their turn comes to be put up.
Adjoining the doors of these rooms or cells are raised platforms of
wood on which a number of black women and girls were sitting; and I
saw a few white ones inside. Outside these platforms are others, where
the purchasers or those intending to purchase slaves were placed; and
between the two platforms there is a passage three or four feet wide.
At another corner of the market there were some black men and boys,
chained by the legs to prevent their escaping, and among them we saw a
very good-looking respectably dressed young man, also in chains. We
were told he was a Georgian, but could not discover his history,
though it is probable that his master had died, and that he was sold
in consequence. He was smoking a pipe, and looked very disconsolate. A
little after nine o'clock, the chief of the market arrived, and the
sale began. Two or three black girls were first put up. A crier went
round the square, followed by the slave for sale, passing through the
passage before mentioned. When any person bids, the crier goes on,
calling the sum bid, until some one bids higher, and continues calling
till no more is bid, when the slave becomes the property of the
highest bidder. There were three or four criers, with each a slave
following them, going round the bazaar at the same time. At last a
very pretty-looking white girl about sixteen years of age was put up
for sale. Several bids had been made before I discovered her; and when
I came up to the place where she was standing, Lambrino, the admiral's
interpreter, asked the crier what sum was bid for her. He answered
1200 piastres; upon which the girl turned round in a rage, and said to
Lambrino, "You dog-faced fellow, what is that to you?" and the
interpreter being a little man, with high shoulders and a face very
much shaped like a dog's, the girl's remark excited a general laugh.
The crier, however, was by no means pleased at the young lady for
making such a display of her temper, as it was likely to hurt her
sale, and he therefore reprimanded her. They then passed on along the
passage and came to one of the divans, where a man about forty was
sitting smoking his pipe. He stopped the crier, and took the girl by
the hand, felt all up her arm to the shoulder, then drew her a little
nearer and opened her waistcoat, which exposed a beautiful white
bosom, and the effect seemed electric, for he immediately bid 1300
piastres, and after pulling down the lower part of her veil so as to
show the whole of her face, and looking at her teeth, he allowed the
crier to proceed. The girl had been angry at Lambrino, and seemed a
good deal distressed when the Turk was examining and handling her. I
saw a blush of either modesty or indignation cross her countenance;
but the instant the additional piastres were bid (whether from
gratified vanity or what other cause I cannot say, for these poor
creatures are very proud of bringing a high price) a smile of
satisfaction beamed over her face, and she marched off in apparent
good humour. I had seen enough of this horrid scene, and was tired of
seeing a fellow-creature paraded about and handled like a horse,
therefore was rejoiced when the admiral proposed we should leave it.
Before we went away, a fellow, apparently an Armenian, came up and
said he had a handsome young Greek girl for sale if we would like to
see her. As, however, none of us under any circumstances could have
purchased her, we declined his offer....
* * * * *
A characteristic feature of Maitland's diary is his constant reference
to his wife. He had married, in 1804, Catherine, second daughter of
Daniel Connor of Ballybricken, County Cork. They had only one child,
who died in infancy. Maitland loved his wife with lifelong devotion;
wherever the service called him, her picture hung in his cabin, and he
carried her image in his heart. Every letter she wrote to him is noted
in his journal; and it is full of references to her in words of
devoted attachment. Thus on the voyage home from South America in 1820
he writes: "Crossed the equator at eleven o'clock at night, and we are
once more, Heaven be praised, in the northern hemisphere, which
contains all I love and delight in in this world, and every mile we go
draws us nearer to the sole mistress and possessor of my heart.... A
more affectionate, kind, attached wife no man on earth is blessed with
than myself." He was bitterly disappointed when from Lisbon he was
ordered to the Mediterranean. As the ship passed Gibraltar he wrote:
"This was the day I had settled in my own mind that I was to arrive at
Portsmouth, and there meet the dearest and best of wives.... I had
expected this day to be the happiest of human beings, and now the
event that would make me so appears as distant as ever." When he was
at Naples, Mrs Maitland appears to have fallen under religious
influences of the kind which often embitter family relations; and it
is pathetic to read the expression of her husband's grief and anxiety
lest the love which was the chief joy of his life should be estranged.
"I fear much," he writes, "I shall have to regret the longest day I
have to live, having left her in Scotland, instead of taking her
abroad with me, as she was in a nest of fanatical foolish women who
have the madness to believe they are inspired from above." Happily the
cloud soon passed, and he notes the receipt of "one of her own dear
affectionate kind letters, such as she used formerly to write." A
little later comes the joyful entry: "Bore up and made sail, with a
fine strong Levant wind, which cleared us of the Gut of Gibraltar by
noon; and I can now look forward with confidence to meeting my beloved
Kate in about two weeks' time."
From 1832 to 1837 Maitland was Admiral Superintendent of the dockyard
at Portsmouth. In July 1837 he was appointed commander-in-chief in the
East Indies and China. He hoisted his flag on his own old ship the
_Wellesley_, now commanded by Captain Thomas Maitland, afterwards Earl
of Lauderdale, and sailed for Bombay on the 11th of October. Lady
Maitland accompanied him to the East.
When the advance from Bombay towards Afghanistan was made in 1838, it
was decided that a naval force should proceed along the coast to
co-operate with the troops. In January 1839, Maitland, in the
_Wellesley_, joined the squadron in the Indus, and was requested by
Sir John Keane, the military commander-in-chief, to "proceed to
Kurrachee and take it." He arrived with his squadron before Kurrachee
the 1st of February, and sent a flag of truce, summoning the fort of
Manora, which formed the chief defence of the town. The Baluchi
garrison refused all terms, and fired on the boats of the squadron,
which were engaged in landing troops. The _Wellesley_ accordingly
opened fire, and soon reduced the fort to ruins and brought the
commandant to terms. The British flag was hoisted on the fort by
Lieutenant Jenkins of the _Wellesley_. The town also surrendered, and
was occupied by the 40th Regiment and the 2nd Bombay Native Infantry.
The British Government thus easily obtained possession of the chief
port of the Punjab.
After the capture of Kurrachee, Maitland returned to Bombay, and
thence proceeded to Bushire, where difficulties had arisen with the
Persian authorities. At an interview with the Governor, the Admiral
demanded permission for himself and his officers to land and
communicate freely with the British Resident. The Governor agreed to
this, but refused to allow the Admiral to embark from the
landing-place opposite the Residency. Next morning, March 25, all the
boats of the squadron, manned and armed, proceeded to the shore to
protect the embarkation of the Admiral and other officers. The
following account by an eyewitness of what then took place is given in
Low's _History of the Indian Navy_:--
"The Persians had assembled to the number of several hundreds, and the
Governor, with his body-guard, was determined to prevent, if possible,
the property being shipped before the Residency. The first boat which
approached the shore was fired upon, and one Persian had his musket
presented at Captain Maitland. He was just on the eve of firing, when
fortunately the Admiral and two Indian naval officers in a moment
wrenched it from his hands, and kept possession of the piece, which
they found loaded with a heavy charge. You may imagine how strongly
inclined the marines must have been to fire. The benevolent spirit of
the Admiral, however, would not allow it till the throwing of stones,
and continued firing from the Persians, called forth two volleys,
which caused the Persians to evacuate the breastwork. One was killed
and two wounded; their fire upon us, fortunately, did not injure any
one, but the Commodore and several other officers were struck with
stones. After this the Residency was put in a state of defence,
Captain Hennell (the Political Agent), had all the property conveyed
as quickly as possible on board the _Wellesley_, _Elphinstone_,
_Clive_, and _Emily_, and finally abandoned the Residency on the
morning of the 28th, when surrounded by four or five hundred armed
Persians, composed of Bushirees and Tungustanees, with Baukr Khan at
their head.... And on the morning of the 29th the _Wellesley_ and the
other vessels reached Kharrack, bringing along with them the whole
Residency establishment."
On May 9, 1839, the Officiating Secretary to the Government of India
wrote to Maitland: "The Right Hon. the Governor-General highly
applauds the cordial and able assistance offered by the officers and
crews of H.M.'s and the Hon. Company's ships, in the removal on board
the ships of the Resident and his suite from the Residency at
Bushire,--an operation which, but for their aid, might have been
attended with difficulty and danger." Maitland was bitterly attacked
by the Anglo-Indian press for his forbearance on this occasion, which
it was said had lowered British prestige in the eyes of the Persians.
It is possible that our relations with Persia might have been improved
by the slaughter of the Bushire mob by the _Wellesley's_ marines, but
apparently the Admiral thought otherwise.
The Bushire incident was followed by a cruise round the Persian Gulf,
in the course of which the Admiral had various interviews with the
local chiefs, and impressed upon them the necessity of keeping the
peace and respecting British interests.
It was his last service. He died at sea, off Bombay, on November 30,
1839. A letter from the late Admiral Philip Somerville,[2] then a
lieutenant on board the _Wellesley_, describes the closing scenes.
[Footnote 2: Admiral Somerville married Mary Stuart, eldest
daughter of David Maitland Makgill Crichton of Rankeilour,
and grand-niece of Sir Frederick. I am indebted for the use
of this letter to the courtesy of his son, Mr D. M. M.
Crichton Somerville.]
* * * * *
"On our arrival at Bombay, Nov. 3," he writes, "the tents had not been
pitched more than a week or so, and the one fitted by the Government
for the Admiral was so very large that, after our arrival, he had to
remain for some days on board ship ere it was ready. You may fancy
the state the ground was in after five months' heavy rain,--the chill
and damp scarcely possible to describe,--evaporation of course
following the excessive heat of the day. A week had scarcely passed
ere he felt its effects, but he could say nothing. On the 15th
November I dined with him on shore. He seemed then tolerably well. On
Sunday, 17th, he visited the ship, and returned to his tent. On the
18th he dined with her Majesty's 6th Regiment, and complained a little
that day. The 21st, he was out to see our sailors and marines
exercising. The complaint from that time made rapid progress.
Saturday, 23rd, Lady Maitland went to a large party, but returned to
the Admiral very early. Sunday 24th and Monday 25th he was dangerously
ill; 26th and 27th, rather easier. Preparations were made for going to
sea. On the 28th, the poor old fellow was brought off and hoisted on
board in a palankeen. I saw him for a moment. Poor Sir Frederick lay
with his head thrown back, his mouth a little open, his cheeks sunk,
and his whole frame totally changed. He was conveyed to his cabin. We
immediately got under way. All gloom, and solemn silence prevailed. I
daresay some at least were in deep thought, some thinking of his
former prosperity, others of the money he had made; perhaps some
thought of the happy and honourable day on which Bonaparte
surrendered. After lingering until Saturday the 30th, at 11.45 he
expired. One can scarcely conceive the sensation caused by the
mournful event. The countenances of all evinced deep sorrow for their
chief, a man who was looked up to by all who knew him, and greatly
beloved by those under his command....
"On Monday morning, preparations having been made the previous day,
the troops of the garrison and boats from the ships began to assemble.
The ship was painted black all over, and her yards topped in mourning.
The body was conveyed in his own boat, the barge, the other boats
following in order with their colours half-mast, presenting a very
imposing sight. On leaving the ship, minute-guns began; and on the
corpse reaching the shore, it was received with a guard of honour, and
the fort commenced firing minute-guns as we formed in procession. The
troops had their arms reversed, and the same people who received the
Admiral that day fortnight at the dinner given by the 6th Regiment
formed part of the parade that sorrowful moment. They lined the road
through which we passed, and reached to the church. Here the body was
received in the usual way, and all the respectable attendants followed
it into the cathedral. The lesson was read by the officiating
Archdeacon, and on coming to the grave in the aisle of the church, the
Bishop read the service in a very affecting and solemn manner. After
the ceremony we returned to our respective ships."
* * * * *