Charles Lydiard
Encyclopedia
Charles Lydiard was an officer of the Royal Navy
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...

 who served during the French Revolutionary
French Revolutionary Wars
The French Revolutionary Wars were a series of major conflicts, from 1792 until 1802, fought between the French Revolutionary government and several European states...

 and Napoleonic Wars
Napoleonic Wars
The Napoleonic Wars were a series of wars declared against Napoleon's French Empire by opposing coalitions that ran from 1803 to 1815. As a continuation of the wars sparked by the French Revolution of 1789, they revolutionised European armies and played out on an unprecedented scale, mainly due to...

.

Lydiard's origins are obscure, but he joined the navy in 1780 and rose through the ranks after distinguished service in the early years of the French Revolutionary Wars, particularly during the Siege of Toulon
Siege of Toulon
The Siege of Toulon was an early Republican victory over a Royalist rebellion in the Southern French city of Toulon. It is also often known as the Fall of Toulon.-Context:...

. He saw action in several engagements in the Mediterranean, and had a part in the defeat of a French frigate in 1795. The chance for promotion passed him by however when the French ship escaped. He again demonstrated his qualities on a cutting-out expedition under the guns of a French shore battery, and this time was successful in escaping with his prize. He was promoted and appointed to the command of his prize, and went on to be captain of several small vessels before a period of unemployment caused by his promotion to post-captain
Post-Captain
Post-captain is an obsolete alternative form of the rank of captain in the Royal Navy.The term served to distinguish those who were captains by rank from:...

. He returned to active service in 1805 with command of the razee
Razee
A razee or razée is a sailing ship that has been cut down to reduce the number of decks. The word is derived from the French vaisseau rasé, meaning a razed ship.-Sixteenth century:...

 , in which ship he distinguished himself in a number of incidents in the West Indies, capturing a Spanish frigate, attacking a French ship of the line, and helping to capture the island of Curaçao
Curaçao
Curaçao is an island in the southern Caribbean Sea, off the Venezuelan coast. The Country of Curaçao , which includes the main island plus the small, uninhabited island of Klein Curaçao , is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands...

. He returned to Britain after these exploits, but his ship was caught in a gale, and despite his best efforts, was driven ashore and wrecked. Lydiard did his utmost to save as many of his men as he could, before being swept away and drowned.

Early life

Lydiard's origins are largely unknown, but his entry to the navy is recorded as being on 13 May 1780, when he joined the 100-gun as a captain's servant. The Britannia was at this time the flagship
Flagship
A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of naval ships, reflecting the custom of its commander, characteristically a flag officer, flying a distinguishing flag...

 of Vice-Admiral George Darby
George Darby
Vice Admiral George Darby was an officer in the Royal Navy. He was the second son of Jonathan Darby III Esq. , of Leap Castle, in King's County, Ireland.-Early career:Darby joined the Royal Navy as a volunteer...

, commander of the Channel Fleet
Channel Fleet
The Channel Fleet was the Royal Navy formation of warships that defended the waters of the English Channel from 1690 to 1909.-History:The Channel Fleet dates back at least to 1690 when its role was to defend England against the French threat under the leadership of Edward Russell, 1st Earl of...

. Lydiard was appointed an able seaman
Able seaman
An able seaman is an unlicensed member of the deck department of a merchant ship. An AB may work as a watchstander, a day worker, or a combination of these roles.-Watchstander:...

 on 25 July 1781, and on 27 May 1782 was transferred to the 44-gun , at first as an able seaman, but receiving a promotion to midshipman
Midshipman
A midshipman is an officer cadet, or a commissioned officer of the lowest rank, in the Royal Navy, United States Navy, and many Commonwealth navies. Commonwealth countries which use the rank include Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, India, Pakistan, Singapore, Sri Lanka and Kenya...

 on 12 October that year. He went on to serve aboard the 74-gun and , and passed his lieutenant's examination on 27 May 1791. He was serving with Lord Hood's
Samuel Hood, 1st Viscount Hood
Samuel Hood, 1st Viscount Hood was a British Admiral known particularly for his service in the American War of Independence and French Revolutionary Wars...

 fleet during the occupation of Toulon
Siege of Toulon
The Siege of Toulon was an early Republican victory over a Royalist rebellion in the Southern French city of Toulon. It is also often known as the Fall of Toulon.-Context:...

 in the early months of the French Revolutionary Wars
French Revolutionary Wars
The French Revolutionary Wars were a series of major conflicts, from 1792 until 1802, fought between the French Revolutionary government and several European states...

. Lydiard distinguished himself with his actions during the hard-fought defence of Fort Mulgrave, and received his commission on 25 November 1793.

Lieutenancy

He then became first lieutenant of , one of the prizes from Toulon, under the command of Commander William Shield. Shield and Lydiard served along the French Mediterranean coast until October 1794, and were engaged in cutting-out enemy ships from French harbours. Sincere was then paid off and Lydiard transferred to the 74-gun , where he saw action at the Battle of Genoa
Naval Battle of Genoa (1795)
The Naval Battle of Genoa was fought on 14 March 1795 off the coast of Genoa, a port city in north-western Italy, between French warships under Rear-Admiral Pierre Martin and British and Neapolitan warships under Vice Admiral William Hotham...

 on 14 March and the Battle of Hyères Islands
Naval Battle of Hyères Islands
The Naval Battle of Hyères Islands was fought on 13 July 1795 off the Hyères Islands, a group of islands off the French Mediterranean coast, about 25 km east of Toulon. The battle was fought between the van of a British fleet chasing the French squadron, and the French rear...

 on 13 July 1795. His former commander, William Shield, had received command of the 32-gun by July 1795, and Lydiard transferred that month to serve as his first lieutenant. Lydiard remained with Southampton after Shield's replacement by Captain James Macnamara
James Macnamara
James Macnamara was an officer of the Royal Navy who served during the American War of Independence and the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars....

 and in September 1795 they spent 15 days blockading a French grain convoy in the port of Genoa
Genoa
Genoa |Ligurian]] Zena ; Latin and, archaically, English Genua) is a city and an important seaport in northern Italy, the capital of the Province of Genoa and of the region of Liguria....

.

Southampton and the French

The convoy was protected by two frigates, the Vestale and the Brun. The French finally came out on the evening of the fifteenth day, and were engaged by Southampton, despite the French possessing considerably more firepower. After a sustained engagement Southampton forced Vestale to strike her colours while the Brun escaped with the convoy, leaving Vestale to her fate. But as Southampton prepared to lower her boats to take possession of the French ship, her fore-mast, which had been damaged during the engagement, went by the board. Taking advantage of this, Vestale raised her colours and escaped from the scene. Victory over the Vestale should have brought promotions for Southamptons officers, including Lydiard, but her escape deprived them of this. Lydiard now had to secure another triumph to ensure his promotion.

Capture of Utile

Lydiard's next opportunity to distinguish himself came in June 1796. On 9 June a French corvette
Corvette
A corvette is a small, maneuverable, lightly armed warship, originally smaller than a frigate and larger than a coastal patrol craft or fast attack craft , although many recent designs resemble frigates in size and role...

 was sighted entering Hyères
Hyères
Hyères , Provençal Occitan: Ieras in classical norm or Iero in Mistralian norm) is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France....

 bay, and Vice-Admiral Sir John Jervis
John Jervis, 1st Earl of St Vincent
Admiral of the Fleet John Jervis, 1st Earl of St Vincent GCB, PC was an admiral in the Royal Navy and Member of Parliament in the United Kingdom...

, commander of the Mediterranean Fleet, summoned Macnamara to his flagship
Flagship
A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of naval ships, reflecting the custom of its commander, characteristically a flag officer, flying a distinguishing flag...

, . He asked Macnamara to bring out the French ship if he could. Recognising the difficulty and risk that would be involved, he did not make it a formal written order, instead instructing Macnamara 'bring out the enemy's ship if you can; I'll give you no written order; but I direct you to take care of the king's ship under your command.' Macnamara promptly took his ship in under the guns of the batteries, and apparently having been mistaken for a French or neutral frigate, closed to within pistol shot of the French ship, and demanded her captain surrender. The captain replied with a broadside, and Macnamara brought Southampton alongside and sent Lydiard over in command of the boarders. After subduing fierce resistance Lydiard took possession of the French ship and together he and Macnamara escaped out to sea under heavy fire from the French shore batteries. Macnamara wrote in a letter to Jervis

The prize, a 24-gun corvette
Corvette
A corvette is a small, maneuverable, lightly armed warship, originally smaller than a frigate and larger than a coastal patrol craft or fast attack craft , although many recent designs resemble frigates in size and role...

 named Utile, was taken into service with the Royal Navy as and Lydiard was promoted and given command of her, a commission confirmed on 22 July 1796.

Command

Lydiard spent some time in the Adriatic before returning to Britain in 1797 as a convoy escort, after which Utile was paid off. He was appointed to command the bomb vessel
Bomb vessel
A bomb vessel, bomb ship, bomb ketch, or simply bomb was a type of wooden sailing naval ship. Its primary armament was not cannon —although bomb vessels carried a few cannon for self-defence—but rather mortars mounted forward near the bow and elevated to a high angle, and projecting their fire in a...

  in May 1798, followed by the sloop in November that year. He served aboard Kite in the North Sea
North Sea
In the southwest, beyond the Straits of Dover, the North Sea becomes the English Channel connecting to the Atlantic Ocean. In the east, it connects to the Baltic Sea via the Skagerrak and Kattegat, narrow straits that separate Denmark from Norway and Sweden respectively...

 until his promotion to post-captain
Post-Captain
Post-captain is an obsolete alternative form of the rank of captain in the Royal Navy.The term served to distinguish those who were captains by rank from:...

 on 1 January 1801, at which point he was superseded in the command of the Kite. No further commands could be found for him, and the Peace of Amiens further lengthened his enforced retirement from active service. He went ashore during this time, and took the opportunity to marry. The couple had three sons together.

Anson and Pomona

Lydiard finally returned to active service in December 1805, with an appointment to command the 38-gun . Anson had originally been a 64-gun third rate, but had been razee
Razee
A razee or razée is a sailing ship that has been cut down to reduce the number of decks. The word is derived from the French vaisseau rasé, meaning a razed ship.-Sixteenth century:...

d in 1794. He sailed Anson to the West Indies in early 1806 and in August was sailing in company with Captain Charles Brisbane
Charles Brisbane
Sir Charles Brisbane KCB was an officer of the Royal Navy who served during the American War of Independence, and with distinction under Lords Hood and Nelson....

's when on 23 August they came across the 38-gun Spanish frigate Pomona off Havana
Havana
Havana is the capital city, province, major port, and leading commercial centre of Cuba. The city proper has a population of 2.1 million inhabitants, and it spans a total of — making it the largest city in the Caribbean region, and the most populous...

, guarded by a shore battery and twelve gunboat
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:...

s. The Pomona was trying to enter the harbour, whereupon Lydiard and Brisbane bore up and engaged her. The gunboats came out to defend her, whereupon the two British frigates anchored between the shore battery and gunboats on one side, and the Pomona on the other. A hard fought action began, which lasted for 35 minutes until the Pomona struck her colours. Three of the gunboats were blown up, six were sunk, and the remaining three were badly damaged. The shore battery was obliged to stop firing after an explosion in one part of it. There were no casualties aboard Anson, but Arethusa lost two killed and 32 wounded, with Brisbane among the latter. The captured Pomona was subsequently taken into the Navy as .

Anson and Foudroyant

Lydiard remained cruising off Havana, and on 15 September sighted the French 84-gun Foudroyant
French ship Foudroyant (1800)
The Foudroyant was a Tonnant class 80-gun ship of the line of the French Navy.She was started in Rochefort from 1793, and renamed to Dix-huit fructidor in 1798 in honour of the Coup of 18 fructidor an V , as she was still on keel...

. The Foudroyant, carrying the flag of Vice-Admiral Jean-Baptiste Willaumez
Jean-Baptiste Philibert Willaumez
Jean-Baptiste Philibert Willaumez was a French sailor and admiral of the First French Empire....

, had been dismasted in a storm and was carrying a jury-rig. Despite the superiority of his opponent and the nearness of the shore Lydiard attempted to close on the French vessel and opened fire. Anson came under fire from the fortifications at Morro Castle
Morro Castle (fortress)
Morro Castle is a picturesque fortress guarding the entrance to Havana bay in Havana, Euta. Juan Bautista Antonelli, an Italian engineer, was commissioned to design the structure. When it was built in 1589, Euta was under the control of Germany...

, while several Spanish ships , including the 74-gun San Lorenzo, came out of Havana to assist the French. After being unable to manoeuvre into a favourable position and coming under heavy fire, Lydiard hauled away and made his escape. Anson had two killed and 13 wounded during the engagement, while the rigging was badly cut. Foudroyant meanwhile had 27 killed or wounded.

Capture of Curaçao

Anson was then assigned to Charles Brisbane's squadron and joined Brisbane's Arethusa and James Athol Wood
James Athol Wood
Sir James Athol Wood , British rear-admiral. Younger brother of Sir Sir Mark Wood, 1st Baronet. After serving on merchant ships for the East India Company from a young age, he entered the Royal Navy in 1774. Wood served in the navy for almost his whole life, and took part in several of the wars...

's . The ships were despatched in November 1806 by Vice-Admiral James Richard Dacres
James Richard Dacres (1749–1810)
James Richard Dacres was an officer of the Royal Navy who saw service during the Seven Years' War, the American War of Independence and the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars...

 to reconnoitre Curaçao
Curaçao
Curaçao is an island in the southern Caribbean Sea, off the Venezuelan coast. The Country of Curaçao , which includes the main island plus the small, uninhabited island of Klein Curaçao , is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands...

. They were joined in December by and Brisbane decided to launch an attack on 1 January 1807. The British ships approached early in the morning of 1 January and anchored in the harbour. They were attacked by the Dutch, at which Brisbane boarded and captured the 36-gun frigate Halstaar, while Lydiard attacked and secured the 20-gun corvette Suriname. Both Lydiard and Brisbane then led their forces on shore, and stormed Fort Amsterdam, which was defended by 270 Dutch troops. The fort was carried after ten minutes of fighting, after which two smaller forts, a citadel and the entire town were also taken. More troops were landed while the ships sailed round the harbour to attack Fort République. By 10 am the fort had surrendered, and by noon the entire island had capitulated. Lydiard was sent back to Britain carrying the despatches and captured colours. The dramatic success of the small British force carrying the heavily defended island was rewarded handsomely. Brisbane was knighted, and the captains received swords, medals and vases.

Wreck of Anson

Anson was sent back to Britain shortly afterwards, and Lydiard rejoined his ship at Plymouth
Plymouth
Plymouth is a city and unitary authority area on the coast of Devon, England, about south-west of London. It is built between the mouths of the rivers Plym to the east and Tamar to the west, where they join Plymouth Sound...

. After a period refitting Anson was assigned to the Channel Fleet and ordered to support the blockade of Brest
Brest, France
Brest is a city in the Finistère department in Brittany in northwestern France. Located in a sheltered position not far from the western tip of the Breton peninsula, and the western extremity of metropolitan France, Brest is an important harbour and the second French military port after Toulon...

 by patrolling off Black Rocks. She sailed from Falmouth
Falmouth, Cornwall
Falmouth is a town, civil parish and port on the River Fal on the south coast of Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It has a total resident population of 21,635.Falmouth is the terminus of the A39, which begins some 200 miles away in Bath, Somerset....

 on 24 December, and reached Ile de Bas on 28 December. With a gale blowing up from the south west, Lydiard decided to return to port. He made for the Lizard
The Lizard
The Lizard is a peninsula in south Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. The most southerly point of the British mainland is near Lizard Point at ....

, but in the poor weather, came up on the wrong side and became trapped on a lee shore, with breakers ahead. Anson rolled heavily in rough seas, having retained the spars from her days as a 64-gun ship after she had been razeed. Lydiard's only option was to anchor, but early on the morning of 29 December the rising storm caused the anchor cables to part and she was driven onto the shore. Lydiard ordered the ship to be run onto a beach in the hope of saving as many lives as possible, and resolved to remain aboard to oversee the evacuation. The pounding surf prevented boats from being launched from the ship or the shore, and a number of the crew were swept away. Some managed to clamber along the fallen main-mast to the shore, while Lydiard clung to the wheel to encourage them on. Eyewitnesses recorded that Lydiard had exhausted himself with the effort of organising the evacuation and clinging to the wreck in the violence of the storm. He attempted to leave the ship, but became distracted by trying to help a boy. In doing so Lydiard was washed away and drowned. The Naval Chronicles account of the wreck recorded that

A total of sixty of Ansons crew were lost, including her captain and her first-lieutenant. Lydiard's body was recovered and a funeral service was held at Falmouth, attended by Admiral Sir Charles Cotton
Sir Charles Cotton, 5th Baronet
Sir Charles Cotton, 5th Baronet was a senior Royal Navy officer of the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars whose service continued until his death in command of the Channel Fleet from apoplexy in 1812. During his service, Cotton saw action off the Eastern Seaboard of the Thirteen Colonies and...

 and large numbers of army and navy officers, as well as the local dignitaries. The body was later interred in the family vault at Haslemere
Haslemere
Haslemere is a town in Surrey, England, close to the border with both Hampshire and West Sussex. The major road between London and Portsmouth, the A3, lies to the west, and a branch of the River Wey to the south. Haslemere is approximately south-west of Guildford.Haslemere is surrounded by hills,...

, Surrey
Surrey
Surrey is a county in the South East of England and is one of the Home Counties. The county borders Greater London, Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex, Hampshire and Berkshire. The historic county town is Guildford. Surrey County Council sits at Kingston upon Thames, although this has been part of...

.
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