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Thomas Phillips (engineer)
Encyclopedia
Thomas Phillips was an influential military engineer of the seventeenth century, who worked closely with some of the leading naval figures of his period, and who was involved in several military operations against the French during the Nine Years' War.
. He is first recorded in 1661, when he was appointed as master gunner of HMS Portsmouth
. He rose further, passing an examination by the master gunner of England in 1672 and becoming a gunner in the Tower of London
. The following year in 1673 he was back with the Royal Navy
during the closing stages of the First Anglo-Dutch War
, serving under Admiral Edward Spragge
. He was commissioned an ensign
in the company of the governor of Portsmouth
, George Legge
. During this period he became an expert on bombardment
and fortification
and achieved recognition of his abilities as a military engineer. He was dispatched to the Channel Islands
in 1679–80, where he surveyed and drew up plans of the Islands from a tactical perspective.
at Tangier
in 1683. He dutifully recorded the expedition's success in a series of drawings. During this time, he fell in with Samuel Pepys
, who had also accompanied the expedition. Pepys recorded that Phillips had 'views on many topics, including the improvement of navigation skills, the need to study the world's currents, the importance of mathematics in the educational curriculum of children intended for careers at sea, the simplification of the rigging of ships, and the needlessness of discovering the means of calculating longitude, which he believed would only bring about miscarriages at sea.'
Phillips returned to England in April 1684, and by July had been appointed third engineer of the ordnance. He visited France
in the summer of 1684. Whilst in Luxembourg
he met fellow military engineer and expert in fortifications, Vauban
. He also took the opportunity to view frontier fortifications on the Rhine and at the channel ports. He reported back to his patron Dartmouth that he had ‘taken particular observations of all things that can in any way be serviceable to us, especially in the affairs of the artillery’ Having gained valuable knowledge of the continental styles of fortification, Phillips was ordered to inspect the defences of Portsmouth, design and prepare any new works he thought necessary, and then oversee their construction. A further commission came in August that year, when he was sent to Ireland
by the Duke of Ormonde
to carry out a survey of the existing harbours and their fortifications, draw up plans of their designs and give advice on repairs. He issued his report in 1685, in which he criticised the existing defences and made recommendations for improvements costing some £554,000.
For his surveys, he drew up meticulous plans of key strategic locations. He drafted a report entitled ‘Rules, orders and directions for regulating the office of ordnance in Ireland’ and together with Francis Povey carried out a survey of the ordnance and arms remaining in the king's stores in Ireland. He subsequently advised the building of new storehouses. The reports were presented to King James II
, who referred to matter to the Irish administration in 1686. The immense cost that would have been involved in implementing Phillips' proposals meant that little was done about them however, and he returned to England in the summer of 1685. His departure was lamented by the former master-general of the Irish ordnance the Earl of Longford
, who wrote to Lord Dartmouth praising the character and conduct of ‘Honest Tom Phillips’ Phillips also carried out a number of paintings of Irish towns and harbours in a variety of mediums including pencil, pen and ink, and colourwash. They are significant in showing the influence of Dutch landscapists then at work in England, as well as being a useful topographical record of Irish towns in the late seventeenth century.
in London
but toured the Navy bases and strategic harbours, such as Poole
, Portsmouth, Plymouth
, Chatham
, and Sheerness
to inspect and advise on the defences. He erected a fort on Hounslow Heath
in 1687 for the army's summer exercises, and in December was commissioned captain of the company of miners in Lord Dartmouth's ordnance regiment. Phillips was in Portsmouth during the Glorious Revolution
in November 1688, and wrote to Dartmouth to report on the strength of the Dutch fleet which had brought William of Orange
to Torbay
.
The revolution caused his patron, Lord Dartmouth, to fall from power and perhaps out of bitterness, Phillips refused to go to Ireland
in 1689 on the pretext that he was owed significant arrears of salary. The expedition's commander Frederick Schomberg
dismissed Phillips from the post of second engineer. He returned to work on Portsmouth's fortifications in July 1690, receiving commendations for his diligence from Queen Mary
. He joined the Duke of Marlborough's
expedition to Munster
in September that year, and showed his expertise during the sieges of Cork
and Kinsale. As a reward he was restored to his office as second engineer in April 1691. He had also spent his time in designing a new gun carriage for naval warships, and in 1690 his design was adopted for all the guns of HMS Royal Sovereign
. He had also developed a mould
to cast large cannon
. He had hoped to establish a company to supply ordnance to the crown, but died before this was realised.
and St Malo, the latter being the main base for French privateer
s. He returned to England and presented his report in October. He was then appointed, in 1693, to the post of chief engineer to the train of brass ordnance for sea service. In November he was assigned to a naval squadron under Commodore John Benbow
, which was equipped with bomb vessel
s and fireships and was ordered to destroy St Malo. Phillips directed the bomb vessels during the opening three day long bombardment, before taking charge of a 300 ton galliot loaded with explosives. He brought it inshore on 19 November, intending to use it to reduce the town to ashes. The ship ran aground and exploded before it could reach the harbour, but the blast succeeded in damaging hundreds of houses and bringing down the port's sea wall.
Phillips escaped and returned to the fleet, but may have been injured in the escapade. He died three days later aboard Benbow's flagship
, HMS Norwich
at Guernsey Road in the Channel Islands on 22 November 1693. His body was brought back to Portsmouth and he was buried on 29 November with military honours in the church. His son Thomas received an allowance to study engineering, whilst his widow, Frances sought payment of his arrears of pay and a pension out of the Welsh revenue to support five children.
The British Library
, the National Library of Ireland
, the Public Record Office
, and Worcester College, Oxford
, hold collections of Phillips's surviving plans and drawings. The illustration shows Murray's painting of Phillips with Admiral John Benbow
and Admiral Sir Ralph Delaval
which is held at the National Maritime Museum
. Intrigingly the British Government's art collection also contains an almost identical painting by Godfrey Kneller
but Phillips has been replaced by Edward Russell
, the first Earl of Orford
(Moreover the picture looks more complete as the figure on the left's hand now holds an object).
Early years
Little is known about Phillips's origins and background, though his parents may have been WelshWelsh people
The Welsh people are an ethnic group and nation associated with Wales and the Welsh language.John Davies argues that the origin of the "Welsh nation" can be traced to the late 4th and early 5th centuries, following the Roman departure from Britain, although Brythonic Celtic languages seem to have...
. He is first recorded in 1661, when he was appointed as master gunner of HMS Portsmouth
HMS Portsmouth (1650)
Portsmouth was a 38-gun fourth-rate frigate of the English Royal Navy, originally built for the navy of the Commonwealth of England at Portsmouth, and launched in 1650....
. He rose further, passing an examination by the master gunner of England in 1672 and becoming a gunner in the Tower of London
Tower of London
Her Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress, more commonly known as the Tower of London, is a historic castle on the north bank of the River Thames in central London, England. It lies within the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, separated from the eastern edge of the City of London by the open space...
. The following year in 1673 he was back with 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...
during the closing stages of the First Anglo-Dutch War
First Anglo-Dutch War
The First Anglo–Dutch War was the first of the four Anglo–Dutch Wars. It was fought entirely at sea between the navies of the Commonwealth of England and the United Provinces of the Netherlands. Caused by disputes over trade, the war began with English attacks on Dutch merchant shipping, but...
, serving under Admiral Edward Spragge
Edward Spragge
Sir Edward Spragge was an English admiral. His name was also written as Spragg or Sprague.Spragge was a fiery, brilliantly accomplished Irish seaman who fought in many great actions after the restoration of King Charles II in 1660.Spragge was an officer of the Royal Navy who remained loyal to the...
. He was commissioned an ensign
Ensign (rank)
Ensign is a junior rank of a commissioned officer in the armed forces of some countries, normally in the infantry or navy. As the junior officer in an infantry regiment was traditionally the carrier of the ensign flag, the rank itself acquired the name....
in the company of the governor of Portsmouth
Portsmouth
Portsmouth is the second largest city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire on the south coast of England. Portsmouth is notable for being the United Kingdom's only island city; it is located mainly on Portsea Island...
, George Legge
George Legge, 1st Baron Dartmouth
Admiral George Legge, 1st Baron Dartmouth PC was an English naval commander who gave distinguished service to both Charles II and James II.-Biography:...
. During this period he became an expert on bombardment
Bombardment
A bombardment is an attack by artillery fire directed against fortifications, troops or towns and buildings.Prior to World War I the term term was only applied to the bombardment of defenceless or undefended objects, houses, public buildings, it was only loosely employed to describe artillery...
and fortification
Fortification
Fortifications are military constructions and buildings designed for defence in warfare and military bases. Humans have constructed defensive works for many thousands of years, in a variety of increasingly complex designs...
and achieved recognition of his abilities as a military engineer. He was dispatched to the Channel Islands
Channel Islands
The Channel Islands are an archipelago of British Crown Dependencies in the English Channel, off the French coast of Normandy. They include two separate bailiwicks: the Bailiwick of Guernsey and the Bailiwick of Jersey...
in 1679–80, where he surveyed and drew up plans of the Islands from a tactical perspective.
Overseas service
Still with Legge, by now Lord Dartmouth, Phillips joined him in an expedition to destroy the fortifications and moleMole (architecture)
A mole is a massive structure, usually of stone, used as a pier, breakwater, or a causeway between places separated by water. The word comes from Middle French mole and ultimately Latin mōlēs meaning a large mass, especially of rock and has the same root as molecule.Historically, the term "mole"...
at Tangier
Tangier
Tangier, also Tangiers is a city in northern Morocco with a population of about 700,000 . It lies on the North African coast at the western entrance to the Strait of Gibraltar where the Mediterranean meets the Atlantic Ocean off Cape Spartel...
in 1683. He dutifully recorded the expedition's success in a series of drawings. During this time, he fell in with Samuel Pepys
Samuel Pepys
Samuel Pepys FRS, MP, JP, was an English naval administrator and Member of Parliament who is now most famous for the diary he kept for a decade while still a relatively young man...
, who had also accompanied the expedition. Pepys recorded that Phillips had 'views on many topics, including the improvement of navigation skills, the need to study the world's currents, the importance of mathematics in the educational curriculum of children intended for careers at sea, the simplification of the rigging of ships, and the needlessness of discovering the means of calculating longitude, which he believed would only bring about miscarriages at sea.'
Phillips returned to England in April 1684, and by July had been appointed third engineer of the ordnance. He visited France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
in the summer of 1684. Whilst in Luxembourg
Luxembourg
Luxembourg , officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg , is a landlocked country in western Europe, bordered by Belgium, France, and Germany. It has two principal regions: the Oesling in the North as part of the Ardennes massif, and the Gutland in the south...
he met fellow military engineer and expert in fortifications, Vauban
Vauban
Sébastien Le Prestre, Seigneur de Vauban and later Marquis de Vauban , commonly referred to as Vauban, was a Marshal of France and the foremost military engineer of his age, famed for his skill in both designing fortifications and breaking through them...
. He also took the opportunity to view frontier fortifications on the Rhine and at the channel ports. He reported back to his patron Dartmouth that he had ‘taken particular observations of all things that can in any way be serviceable to us, especially in the affairs of the artillery’ Having gained valuable knowledge of the continental styles of fortification, Phillips was ordered to inspect the defences of Portsmouth, design and prepare any new works he thought necessary, and then oversee their construction. A further commission came in August that year, when he was sent to Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
by the Duke of Ormonde
James Butler, 1st Duke of Ormonde
James Butler, 1st Duke of Ormonde PC was an Irish statesman and soldier. He was the second of the Kilcash branch of the family to inherit the earldom. He was the friend of Thomas Wentworth, 1st Earl of Strafford, who appointeed him commander of the Cavalier forces in Ireland. From 1641 to 1647, he...
to carry out a survey of the existing harbours and their fortifications, draw up plans of their designs and give advice on repairs. He issued his report in 1685, in which he criticised the existing defences and made recommendations for improvements costing some £554,000.
For his surveys, he drew up meticulous plans of key strategic locations. He drafted a report entitled ‘Rules, orders and directions for regulating the office of ordnance in Ireland’ and together with Francis Povey carried out a survey of the ordnance and arms remaining in the king's stores in Ireland. He subsequently advised the building of new storehouses. The reports were presented to King James II
James II of England
James II & VII was King of England and King of Ireland as James II and King of Scotland as James VII, from 6 February 1685. He was the last Catholic monarch to reign over the Kingdoms of England, Scotland, and Ireland...
, who referred to matter to the Irish administration in 1686. The immense cost that would have been involved in implementing Phillips' proposals meant that little was done about them however, and he returned to England in the summer of 1685. His departure was lamented by the former master-general of the Irish ordnance the Earl of Longford
Francis Aungier, 1st Earl of Longford
Francis Aungier, 1st Earl of Longford PC was an English politician, who sat in the House of Commons from 1660 to 1679. He was an administrator in Ireland....
, who wrote to Lord Dartmouth praising the character and conduct of ‘Honest Tom Phillips’ Phillips also carried out a number of paintings of Irish towns and harbours in a variety of mediums including pencil, pen and ink, and colourwash. They are significant in showing the influence of Dutch landscapists then at work in England, as well as being a useful topographical record of Irish towns in the late seventeenth century.
Fall from grace and subsequent return
Having received good references from his patrons, Phillips was appointed second engineer in December 1685, a post with an annual salary of £250. He was based at the Board of OrdnanceBoard of Ordnance
The Board of Ordnance was a British government body responsible for the supply of armaments and munitions to the Royal Navy and British Army. It was also responsible for providing artillery trains for armies and maintaining coastal fortresses and, later, management of the artillery and engineer...
in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
but toured the Navy bases and strategic harbours, such as Poole
Poole
Poole is a large coastal town and seaport in the county of Dorset, on the south coast of England. The town is east of Dorchester, and Bournemouth adjoins Poole to the east. The Borough of Poole was made a unitary authority in 1997, gaining administrative independence from Dorset County Council...
, Portsmouth, 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...
, Chatham
Chatham, Medway
Chatham is one of the Medway towns located within the Medway unitary authority, in North Kent, in South East England.Although the dockyard has long been closed and is now being redeveloped into a business and residential community as well as a museum featuring the famous submarine, HMS Ocelot,...
, and Sheerness
Sheerness
Sheerness is a town located beside the mouth of the River Medway on the northwest corner of the Isle of Sheppey in north Kent, England. With a population of 12,000 it is the largest town on the island....
to inspect and advise on the defences. He erected a fort on Hounslow Heath
Hounslow Heath
Hounslow Heath is a public open space and local nature reserve to the west of Hounslow, a London borough. It now covers about , the residue of the historic Hounslow Heath that covered over .-History:...
in 1687 for the army's summer exercises, and in December was commissioned captain of the company of miners in Lord Dartmouth's ordnance regiment. Phillips was in Portsmouth during the Glorious Revolution
Glorious Revolution
The Glorious Revolution, also called the Revolution of 1688, is the overthrow of King James II of England by a union of English Parliamentarians with the Dutch stadtholder William III of Orange-Nassau...
in November 1688, and wrote to Dartmouth to report on the strength of the Dutch fleet which had brought William of Orange
William III of England
William III & II was a sovereign Prince of Orange of the House of Orange-Nassau by birth. From 1672 he governed as Stadtholder William III of Orange over Holland, Zeeland, Utrecht, Guelders, and Overijssel of the Dutch Republic. From 1689 he reigned as William III over England and Ireland...
to Torbay
Torbay
Torbay is an east-facing bay and natural harbour, at the western most end of Lyme Bay in the south-west of England, situated roughly midway between the cities of Exeter and Plymouth. Part of the ceremonial county of Devon, Torbay was made a unitary authority on 1 April 1998...
.
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
in 1689 on the pretext that he was owed significant arrears of salary. The expedition's commander Frederick Schomberg
Frederick Schomberg, 1st Duke of Schomberg
Friedrich Hermann , 1st Duke of Schomberg , KG , was a marshal of France and a General in the English and Portuguese Army....
dismissed Phillips from the post of second engineer. He returned to work on Portsmouth's fortifications in July 1690, receiving commendations for his diligence from Queen Mary
Mary II of England
Mary II was joint Sovereign of England, Scotland, and Ireland with her husband and first cousin, William III and II, from 1689 until her death. William and Mary, both Protestants, became king and queen regnant, respectively, following the Glorious Revolution, which resulted in the deposition of...
. He joined the Duke of Marlborough's
John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough
John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough, Prince of Mindelheim, KG, PC , was an English soldier and statesman whose career spanned the reigns of five monarchs through the late 17th and early 18th centuries...
expedition to Munster
Munster
Munster is one of the Provinces of Ireland situated in the south of Ireland. In Ancient Ireland, it was one of the fifths ruled by a "king of over-kings" . Following the Norman invasion of Ireland, the ancient kingdoms were shired into a number of counties for administrative and judicial purposes...
in September that year, and showed his expertise during the sieges of Cork
Siege of Cork
The Siege of Cork took place during the Williamite war in Ireland in the year of 1690, shortly after the Battle of the Boyne when James II attempted to retake the English throne from King William III....
and Kinsale. As a reward he was restored to his office as second engineer in April 1691. He had also spent his time in designing a new gun carriage for naval warships, and in 1690 his design was adopted for all the guns of HMS Royal Sovereign
HMS Sovereign of the Seas
Sovereign of the Seas was a 17th century warship of the English Navy. She was ordered as a 90-gun first-rate ship of the line of the English Royal Navy, but at launch was armed with 102 bronze guns, at the insistence of the king...
. He had also developed a mould
Molding (process)
Molding or moulding is the process of manufacturing by shaping pliable raw material using a rigid frame or model called a pattern....
to cast large cannon
Cannon
A cannon is any piece of artillery that uses gunpowder or other usually explosive-based propellents to launch a projectile. Cannon vary in caliber, range, mobility, rate of fire, angle of fire, and firepower; different forms of cannon combine and balance these attributes in varying degrees,...
. He had hoped to establish a company to supply ordnance to the crown, but died before this was realised.
Last campaigns
Phillips's pay was in arrears again by 1692, causing him significant financial difficulties. He was sent in August with a squadron to reconnoitre the Channel IslandsChannel Islands
The Channel Islands are an archipelago of British Crown Dependencies in the English Channel, off the French coast of Normandy. They include two separate bailiwicks: the Bailiwick of Guernsey and the Bailiwick of Jersey...
and St Malo, the latter being the main base for French privateer
Privateer
A privateer is a private person or ship authorized by a government by letters of marque to attack foreign shipping during wartime. Privateering was a way of mobilizing armed ships and sailors without having to spend public money or commit naval officers...
s. He returned to England and presented his report in October. He was then appointed, in 1693, to the post of chief engineer to the train of brass ordnance for sea service. In November he was assigned to a naval squadron under Commodore John Benbow
John Benbow
John Benbow was an English officer in the Royal Navy. He joined the navy aged 25 years, seeing action against Algerian pirates before leaving and joining the merchant navy where he traded until the Glorious Revolution of 1688, whereupon he returned to the Royal Navy and was commissioned.Benbow...
, which was equipped with 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...
s and fireships and was ordered to destroy St Malo. Phillips directed the bomb vessels during the opening three day long bombardment, before taking charge of a 300 ton galliot loaded with explosives. He brought it inshore on 19 November, intending to use it to reduce the town to ashes. The ship ran aground and exploded before it could reach the harbour, but the blast succeeded in damaging hundreds of houses and bringing down the port's sea wall.
Death and legacy
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...
, HMS Norwich
HMS Norwich (1693)
HMS Norwich was a 50-gun fourth rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, launched at Deptford in 1693.She was rebuilt according to the 1706 Establishment at Chatham Dockyard, relaunching on 20 May 1718. In 1744 she was reduced to a fifth rate and renamed HMS Enterprise...
at Guernsey Road in the Channel Islands on 22 November 1693. His body was brought back to Portsmouth and he was buried on 29 November with military honours in the church. His son Thomas received an allowance to study engineering, whilst his widow, Frances sought payment of his arrears of pay and a pension out of the Welsh revenue to support five children.
The British Library
British Library
The British Library is the national library of the United Kingdom, and is the world's largest library in terms of total number of items. The library is a major research library, holding over 150 million items from every country in the world, in virtually all known languages and in many formats,...
, the National Library of Ireland
National Library of Ireland
The National Library of Ireland is Ireland's national library located in Dublin, in a building designed by Thomas Newenham Deane. The Minister for Arts, Sport & Tourism is the member of the Irish Government responsible for the library....
, the Public Record Office
Public Record Office
The Public Record Office of the United Kingdom is one of the three organisations that make up the National Archives...
, and Worcester College, Oxford
Worcester College, Oxford
Worcester College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. The college was founded in the eighteenth century, but its predecessor on the same site had been an institution of learning since the late thirteenth century...
, hold collections of Phillips's surviving plans and drawings. The illustration shows Murray's painting of Phillips with Admiral John Benbow
John Benbow
John Benbow was an English officer in the Royal Navy. He joined the navy aged 25 years, seeing action against Algerian pirates before leaving and joining the merchant navy where he traded until the Glorious Revolution of 1688, whereupon he returned to the Royal Navy and was commissioned.Benbow...
and Admiral Sir Ralph Delaval
Ralph Delaval
Admiral Sir Ralph Delaval was an English naval admiral.He was a member of a junior branch of the Delaval family of Seaton Delaval, Northumberland...
which is held at the National Maritime Museum
National Maritime Museum
The National Maritime Museum in Greenwich, England is the leading maritime museum of the United Kingdom and may be the largest museum of its kind in the world. The historic buildings forming part of the Maritime Greenwich World Heritage Site, it also incorporates the Royal Observatory, Greenwich,...
. Intrigingly the British Government's art collection also contains an almost identical painting by Godfrey Kneller
Godfrey Kneller
Sir Godfrey Kneller, 1st Baronet was the leading portrait painter in England during the late 17th and early 18th centuries, and was court painter to British monarchs from Charles II to George I...
but Phillips has been replaced by Edward Russell
Edward Russell, 1st Earl of Orford
Admiral of the Fleet Edward Russell, 1st Earl of Orford, PC was the First Lord of the Admiralty under King William III.-Naval career:...
, the first Earl of Orford
Earl of Orford
Earl of Orford is a title that has been created three times. The first creation came in the Peerage of England in 1697 in favour of the naval commander Edward Russell, who served three times as First Lord of the Admiralty. He was created Baron Shingay and Viscount Barfleur at the same time...
(Moreover the picture looks more complete as the figure on the left's hand now holds an object).