Admiral Sir Richard Hussey Bickerton, 2nd Baronet (11 October 1759 – 9 February 1832) was a British

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

 admiral

Admiral

Admiral is the rank, or part of the name of the ranks, of the highest naval officers. It is usually considered a full admiral and above vice admiral and below admiral of the fleet . It is usually abbreviated to "Adm" or "ADM"...

.

Early life

He was born the son of Vice Admiral Sir Richard Bickerton whom he succeeded as 2nd Baronet in 1792. He married in 1788 Anne, daughter of Dr James Athill of Antigua:they had no children.

Naval career

Bickerton joined 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...

 in 1771. He was present at the capture of Sint Eustatius in 1781. He went on to command HMS Invincible

HMS Invincible (1869)

HMS Invincible was an Audacious-class ironclad battleship of the Royal Navy. She was built at the Napier shipyard and completed in 1870. Completed just 10 years after , she still carried sails as well as a steam engine.-Armament:...

, HMS Russell

HMS Russell (1764)

HMS Russell was a 74-gun third rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, launched on 10 November 1764 at Deptford.In 1782, she was commanded by Captain James Saumarez at the Battle of the Saintes. In 1794 she was part of Admiral Howe's fleet at the Glorious First of June, and in the following year...

, HMS Terrible

HMS Terrible (1762)

HMS Terrible was a 74-gun third rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, launched on 4 September 1762 at Harwich, England.In 1778 she fought at the First Battle of Ushant, and in 1781 Terrible was part of Sir Thomas Graves' fleet at the Battle of the Chesapeake. During the course of the battle, she...

, HMS Amazon and HMS Bruce. In 1787 he commissioned HMS Sibyl

HMS Sibyl (1779)

HMS Sibyl was a 28-gun Enterprise-class sixth-rate frigate of the Royal Navy. The Sibyl was first commissioned in October 1778 under the command of Captain Thomas Pasley.- References :...

, before succeeding his father as a baronet

Baronet

A baronet or the rare female equivalent, a baronetess , is the holder of a hereditary baronetcy awarded by the British Crown...

 in 1792. Later he commanded HMS Ruby

HMS Ruby (1776)

HMS Ruby was a 64-gun third rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, launched on 26 November 1776 at Woolwich.She was converted to serve as a receiving ship in 1813, and was broken up in 1821....

, HMS Ramillies

HMS Ramillies (1785)

HMS Ramillies was a 74-gun third rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, launched on 12 July 1785 at Rotherhithe.In 1801, she was part of Admiral Sir Hyde Parker's reserve squadron at the Battle of Copenhagen, and so did not take an active part in the battle.In August 1812, Sir Thomas Masterman...

 and the new HMS Terrible

HMS Terrible (1785)

HMS Terrible was a 74-gun third rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, launched on 28 March 1785 at Rotherhithe.She became a receiving ship in 1823, and was broken up in 1836....

.

Bickerton commanded the squadron off Cádiz

Cádiz

Cadiz is a city and port in southwestern Spain. It is the capital of the homonymous province, one of eight which make up the autonomous community of Andalusia....

 in 1800. By 1804 he was serving as Second-in-Command to Lord Nelson

Horatio Nelson, 1st Viscount Nelson

Horatio Nelson, 1st Viscount Nelson, 1st Duke of Bronté, KB was a flag officer famous for his service in the Royal Navy, particularly during the Napoleonic Wars. He was noted for his inspirational leadership and superb grasp of strategy and unconventional tactics, which resulted in a number of...

. He was appointed a Lord of the Admiralty in 1807 and served as Member of Parliament

Member of Parliament

A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...

 (MP) for Poole from 1808 until 1812. He became Commander-in-Chief, Portsmouth

Commander-in-Chief, Portsmouth

The Commander-in-Chief, Portsmouth was a senior commander of the Royal Navy for hundreds of years. Portsmouth Command was a name given to the units, establishments, and staff operating under the post.-History:...

 in 1812, with Puissant

French ship Puissant (1782)

Puissant was built in 1781-82 to a design by Antoine Groignard as a Pégase-class third rate. Her captain handed her over to the British at Toulon on 29 August 1793. She arrived at Portsmouth on 3 May 1794...

 as his flagship.

Flinders

Matthew Flinders

Captain Matthew Flinders RN was one of the most successful navigators and cartographers of his age. In a career that spanned just over twenty years, he sailed with Captain William Bligh, circumnavigated Australia and encouraged the use of that name for the continent, which had previously been...

 named Bickerton Island

Bickerton Island

Bickerton Island is situated 13 km west off Groote Eylandt and 8 km east of the mouth of Blue Mud Bay in eastern Arnhem Land, in the Northern Territory of Australia. It is about 21 by 21 kilometers in size, with deep bays and indentations, and has an area of 215 km2. The largest bays...

 for him. He was electes a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1810.

He was knighted KCB

Order of the Bath

The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate mediæval ceremony for creating a knight, which involved bathing as one of its elements. The knights so created were known as Knights of the Bath...

 in 1815. He assumed name of Hussey in 1823.

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