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Thomas Williams (Royal Navy officer)
Encyclopedia
Admiral Sir Thomas Williams GCB
(c. 1761/62 – 8 October 1841) was a senior British Royal Navy
officer of the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, who served in numerous theatres during the American Revolutionary War
, French Revolutionary Wars
and Napoleonic Wars
. As a young officer he fought at a number of battles in the Caribbean and as a frigate captain he was knighted
for his actions at the Action of 8 June 1796 in which two French frigates were captured without a single man killed or wounded on Williams' ship . Later in his career, Williams commanded squadrons blockading the European coast and assisting the supply of the British Army
during the Peninsula War.
, aboard the brig
. The following year he moved to , flagship
of Rear-Admiral Samuel Barrington
in the Caribbean. Prince of Wales was subsequently engaged at the Battle of St. Lucia
in 1778 and the Battle of Grenada
in 1779. Having gained the requisite seniority, Williams was promoted to lieutenant in December 1779 and served on , part of the fleet that captured a Spanish convoy from Caracas
in 1780. Returning briefly to Britain, Williams returned to the Americas the following year with Vice-Admiral Marriott Arbuthnot
and fought at the Battle of Cape Henry
.
The same year, Williams became first lieutenant and temporary commander of the frigate , becoming a commander in 1783 in charge of . In reserve from 1784, Williams returned to service in command of in 1789, becoming a post captain in November 1790 and taking command of the frigate
, followed shortly afterwards by . Operating in the North Sea
, Williams was commended with his service during the winter of 1794 and moved to , operating from Cork
in Ireland
. In June 1796, Unicorn and another frigate encountered two French frigates: the French ships divided and the British ships followed them, Unicorn chasing and engaging the Tribune. After a running fight, Tribune was captured, Williams achieving his victory without a single casualty. For his services in the action, Williams was knighted
by King George III
. During the winter of 1796, Unicorn formed part the squadron operating against the French Expédition d'Irlande
and was present at the capture of the transport Ville de Lorient.
In March 1797, Williams became commander of the new frigate and in October joined the North Sea fleet with orders to pursue the scattered Dutch ships in the aftermath of the Battle of Camperdown
. With hours, Endymion encountered the ship of the line Brutus close inshore, but the protected anchorage prevented Williams from successfully attacking the Dutch ship and she was able to escape. For the next three years, Williams was employed off Ireland and on convoy to the island of St Helena. In 1801, Williams took command of the 74-gun third-rate
ship of the line ) and operated in the Baltic Sea
and off Cadiz
. In 1804 he moved to and in 1805 commanded a unit of Sea Fencibles
at Gosport
, returning to Neptune in 1807. In 1809, Williams was promoted to rear-admiral and sailed in and in the Channel Fleet
and then at Lisbon
. In 1811 he returned to Britain and took command of and became Commander-in-Chief, The Nore. He remained in that position until 1814, retiring as a vice-admiral and establishing the Naval Female School
as his final act, donating £1,000 to the school's endowment (the equivalent of £ as of ).
In his personal life, Williams was married twice, first in 1792 to Jane Cooper, who died in a carriage accident in 1798 on the Isle of Wight
. (Jane Cooper was a cousin of the novelist Jane Austen
). In 1800 he married again, to a Miss Whapshare, who died in 1824. It is said he re-married as he had had such a happy first marriage.
During his retirement, Williams lived at Burwood House near Weybridge
, Surrey
and was promoted to admiral and advanced to a Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath. He held the post of Commander-in-Chief, Portsmouth
from 1833 to 1836 and died in October 1841.
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...
(c. 1761/62 – 8 October 1841) was a senior British 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...
officer of the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, who served in numerous theatres during the American Revolutionary War
American Revolutionary War
The American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result 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...
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...
. As a young officer he fought at a number of battles in the Caribbean and as a frigate captain he was knighted
Knight Bachelor
The rank of Knight Bachelor is a part of the British honours system. It is the most basic rank of a man who has been knighted by the monarch but not as a member of one of the organised Orders of Chivalry...
for his actions at the Action of 8 June 1796 in which two French frigates were captured without a single man killed or wounded on Williams' ship . Later in his career, Williams commanded squadrons blockading the European coast and assisting the supply of the British Army
British Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
during the Peninsula War.
Life
Williams was born in 1761 or 1762, the son of Naval Captain William Williams. Aged only 7, Thomas Williams was entered as a servant on his father's ship , although it is likely that he did not spend much time aboard. He is reported to have followed his father through various commands (although many of these commissions were on paper only) until 1776, when he was certainly present at the Battle of Sullivan's IslandBattle of Sullivan's Island
The Battle of Sullivan's Island or the Battle of Fort Sullivan was fought on June 28, 1776, during the American Revolutionary War, also known as the American War of Independence. It took place near Charleston, South Carolina, during the first British attempt to capture the city from American rebels...
, aboard the brig
Brig
A brig is a sailing vessel with two square-rigged masts. During the Age of Sail, brigs were seen as fast and manoeuvrable and were used as both naval warships and merchant vessels. They were especially popular in the 18th and early 19th centuries...
. The following year he moved to , 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 Rear-Admiral Samuel Barrington
Samuel Barrington
Rear Admiral Samuel Barrington RN was a British admiral.Samuel was the fourth son of John Shute Barrington, 1st Viscount Barrington of Beckett Hall at Shrivenham in Berkshire...
in the Caribbean. Prince of Wales was subsequently engaged at the Battle of St. Lucia
Battle of St. Lucia
The Battle of St. Lucia or the Battle of the Cul de Sac was a naval battle fought off the island of St. Lucia in the West Indies during the American War of Independence on 15 December 1778, between the British Royal Navy and the French Navy.-Background:...
in 1778 and the Battle of Grenada
Battle of Grenada
The Battle of Grenada took place on 6 July 1779 during the American War of Independence in the West Indies between the British Royal Navy and the French Navy.-Origins:...
in 1779. Having gained the requisite seniority, Williams was promoted to lieutenant in December 1779 and served on , part of the fleet that captured a Spanish convoy from Caracas
Caracas
Caracas , officially Santiago de León de Caracas, is the capital and largest city of Venezuela; natives or residents are known as Caraquenians in English . It is located in the northern part of the country, following the contours of the narrow Caracas Valley on the Venezuelan coastal mountain range...
in 1780. Returning briefly to Britain, Williams returned to the Americas the following year with Vice-Admiral Marriott Arbuthnot
Marriott Arbuthnot
Admiral Mariot Arbuthnot was a British admiral, who commanded the Royal Navy's North American station during the American War for Independence.-Early life:...
and fought at the Battle of Cape Henry
Battle of Cape Henry
The Battle of Cape Henry was a naval battle in the American War of Independence which took place near the mouth of Chesapeake Bay on 16 March 1781 between a British squadron led by Vice Admiral Mariot Arbuthnot and a French fleet under Admiral Charles René Dominique Sochet, Chevalier Destouches...
.
The same year, Williams became first lieutenant and temporary commander of the frigate , becoming a commander in 1783 in charge of . In reserve from 1784, Williams returned to service in command of in 1789, becoming a post captain in November 1790 and taking command of the frigate
Frigate
A frigate is any of several types of warship, the term having been used for ships of various sizes and roles over the last few centuries.In the 17th century, the term was used for any warship built for speed and maneuverability, the description often used being "frigate-built"...
, followed shortly afterwards by . Operating 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...
, Williams was commended with his service during the winter of 1794 and moved to , operating from Cork
Cork (city)
Cork is the second largest city in the Republic of Ireland and the island of Ireland's third most populous city. It is the principal city and administrative centre of County Cork and the largest city in the province of Munster. Cork has a population of 119,418, while the addition of the suburban...
in 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...
. In June 1796, Unicorn and another frigate encountered two French frigates: the French ships divided and the British ships followed them, Unicorn chasing and engaging the Tribune. After a running fight, Tribune was captured, Williams achieving his victory without a single casualty. For his services in the action, Williams was knighted
Knight Bachelor
The rank of Knight Bachelor is a part of the British honours system. It is the most basic rank of a man who has been knighted by the monarch but not as a member of one of the organised Orders of Chivalry...
by King George III
George III of the United Kingdom
George III was King of Great Britain and King of Ireland from 25 October 1760 until the union of these two countries on 1 January 1801, after which he was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland until his death...
. During the winter of 1796, Unicorn formed part the squadron operating against the French Expédition d'Irlande
Expédition d'Irlande
The Expédition d'Irlande was an unsuccessful attempt by the First French Republic during the French Revolutionary Wars to assist the outlawed Society of United Irishmen, a popular rebel Irish republican group, in their planned rebellion against British rule...
and was present at the capture of the transport Ville de Lorient.
In March 1797, Williams became commander of the new frigate and in October joined the North Sea fleet with orders to pursue the scattered Dutch ships in the aftermath of the Battle of Camperdown
Battle of Camperdown
The Battle of Camperdown was a major naval action fought on 11 October 1797 between a Royal Navy fleet under Admiral Adam Duncan and a Dutch Navy fleet under Vice-Admiral Jan de Winter...
. With hours, Endymion encountered the ship of the line Brutus close inshore, but the protected anchorage prevented Williams from successfully attacking the Dutch ship and she was able to escape. For the next three years, Williams was employed off Ireland and on convoy to the island of St Helena. In 1801, Williams took command of the 74-gun third-rate
Third-rate
In the British Royal Navy, a third rate was a ship of the line which from the 1720s mounted between 64 and 80 guns, typically built with two gun decks . Years of experience proved that the third rate ships embodied the best compromise between sailing ability , firepower, and cost...
ship of the line ) and operated in the Baltic Sea
Baltic Sea
The Baltic Sea is a brackish mediterranean sea located in Northern Europe, from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from 20°E to 26°E longitude. It is bounded by the Scandinavian Peninsula, the mainland of Europe, and the Danish islands. It drains into the Kattegat by way of the Øresund, the Great Belt and...
and off Cadiz
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 1804 he moved to and in 1805 commanded a unit of Sea Fencibles
Sea Fencibles
The original Sea Fencibles were a naval militia established to provide a close-in line of defense to protect the United Kingdom from invasion by France during the Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars...
at Gosport
Gosport
Gosport is a town, district and borough situated on the south coast of England, within the county of Hampshire. It has approximately 80,000 permanent residents with a further 5,000-10,000 during the summer months...
, returning to Neptune in 1807. In 1809, Williams was promoted to rear-admiral and sailed in and in 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...
and then at Lisbon
Lisbon
Lisbon is the capital city and largest city of Portugal with a population of 545,245 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Lisbon extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of 3 million on an area of , making it the 9th most populous urban...
. In 1811 he returned to Britain and took command of and became Commander-in-Chief, The Nore. He remained in that position until 1814, retiring as a vice-admiral and establishing the Naval Female School
Royal School Haslemere
The Royal School Haslemere is an independent school for girls aged 4–18 in Haslemere and Hindhead in Surrey, England.It was created from the 1995 amalgamation of the Royal Naval School for Girls and The Grove School ....
as his final act, donating £1,000 to the school's endowment (the equivalent of £ as of ).
In his personal life, Williams was married twice, first in 1792 to Jane Cooper, who died in a carriage accident in 1798 on the Isle of Wight
Isle of Wight
The Isle of Wight is a county and the largest island of England, located in the English Channel, on average about 2–4 miles off the south coast of the county of Hampshire, separated from the mainland by a strait called the Solent...
. (Jane Cooper was a cousin of the novelist Jane Austen
Jane Austen
Jane Austen was an English novelist whose works of romantic fiction, set among the landed gentry, earned her a place as one of the most widely read writers in English literature, her realism and biting social commentary cementing her historical importance among scholars and critics.Austen lived...
). In 1800 he married again, to a Miss Whapshare, who died in 1824. It is said he re-married as he had had such a happy first marriage.
During his retirement, Williams lived at Burwood House near Weybridge
Weybridge
Weybridge is a town in the Elmbridge district of Surrey in South East England. It is bounded to the north by the River Thames at the mouth of the River Wey, from which it gets its name...
, 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...
and was promoted to admiral and advanced to a Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath. He held the post of 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:...
from 1833 to 1836 and died in October 1841.