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Charles Gordon (Royal Navy officer)
Encyclopedia
Admiral Charles Gordon, CB
(c. 1781 – 3 October 1860) was an officer of the British Royal Navy
during the nineteenth century. Gordon's most notable action was the Action of 18 September 1810
, when he was seriously wounded in battle and his frigate HMS Ceylon
captured by the French frigate Vénus
. Gordon was recaptured by Commodore Josias Rowley
the following day and later took part in the capture of Île de France
. This was the second occasion on which Gordon had been captured, but he had also distinguished himself in operations against Persian Gulf
pirates in the campaign of 1809
and was flag captain at the capture of Île de France in December 1810. His later career was unremarkable, although he eventually rose to become an admiral and was made a Companion of the Order of the Bath before his death in 1860.
in June 1796 as a midshipman
and by later advanced to become a commander
in the sloop
HMS St Lucia. In 1807 he was captured but was exchanged soon afterwards and made a post captain in command of HMS Caroline, which he commanded in the Indian Ocean
, operating against pirates in the Persian Gulf
during the campaign of 1809
: At Ras al-Khaymah in November 1809, Caroline destroyed or captured 80 pirate vessels. Shortly after the operations in the Persian Gulf, Gordon took command of the Indian built frigate HMS Ceylon
and continued operating in the Indian Ocean, based at Madras.
In September 1810, word reached Madras that the British force that was blockading the French island of Île de France
had been destroyed at the Battle of Grand Port
and its commander Josias Rowley
was in desperate need of reinforcement. Sailing south to join Rowley, Ceylon visited Port Napoleon on Île de France in the hope of meeting Rowley there. Instead he found the large French frigate Vénus
and the corvette
Victor under the command of Commodore Jacques Hamelin. The French ships chased Ceylon westwards towards Île Bourbon and caught her on 17 September within sight of Saint Denis. In a series of bitterly contested engagements during the night, Ceylon was battered and defeated, the badly wounded Gordon surrendering to Hamelin, but only after inflicting significant damage to his flagship. Gordon was taken aboard the French ship and was thus freed when Rowley chased and captured Hamelin's ship on 18 September. At the eventual court martial into his conduct in the action, Gordon was honourably acquitted.
Although badly wounded in the action, Gordon was made captain of HMS Africaine, which later served as Admiral Albemarle Bertie
's flagship in the successful invasion of Île de France. In the aftermath of the campaign, Gordon was sent back to Britain and despite living another 50 years and remaining in the Navy throughout, he never again served at sea. He was appointed a Companion of the Order of the Bath and gradually rose through the retired ranks, becoming a vice-admiral in 1853, and a full admiral prior to his death in October 1860 aged 79.
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. 1781 – 3 October 1860) was an officer of the 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...
during the nineteenth century. Gordon's most notable action was the Action of 18 September 1810
Action of 18 September 1810
The Action of 18 September 1810 was a naval battle fought between British Royal Navy and French Navy frigates in the Indian Ocean during the Napoleonic Wars. The engagement was one of several between rival frigate squadrons contesting control of the French island base of Île de France, from which...
, when he was seriously wounded in battle and his frigate HMS Ceylon
HMS Bombay (1805)
HCS Bombay, later HMS Bombay and HMS Ceylon, was a 672 ton fifth rate, 38-gun wooden warship built in the Bombay Dockyard for the Honourable East India Company and launched in 1793. The Royal Navy purchased her in 1805 and renamed her HMS Bombay. She served with the Royal Navy under that name...
captured by the French frigate Vénus
French frigate Vénus (1808)
The Vénus was a Junon class frigate of the French Navy.On 10 November 1808, she departed Cherbourg, bound for Île de France, where she served as Hamelin's flagship, leading a squadron also comprising the frigate Manche and the sloop Créole....
. Gordon was recaptured by Commodore Josias Rowley
Josias Rowley
Admiral Sir Josias Rowley, 1st Baronet GCB, GCMG , known as "The Sweeper of the Seas", was a naval officer who commanded the campaign that captured the French Indian Ocean islands of Réunion and Mauritius in 1810.-Naval career:...
the following day and later took part in the capture of Île de France
Mauritius
Mauritius , officially the Republic of Mauritius is an island nation off the southeast coast of the African continent in the southwest Indian Ocean, about east of Madagascar...
. This was the second occasion on which Gordon had been captured, but he had also distinguished himself in operations against Persian Gulf
Persian Gulf
The Persian Gulf, in Southwest Asia, is an extension of the Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula.The Persian Gulf was the focus of the 1980–1988 Iran-Iraq War, in which each side attacked the other's oil tankers...
pirates in the campaign of 1809
Persian Gulf campaign of 1809
The Persian Gulf Campaign, in 1809, was an operation by a British Royal Navy to force Arab pirates to cease their raids on British ships in the Persian Gulf, particularly on the Persian and Arabian coasts of the Straits of Hormuz...
and was flag captain at the capture of Île de France in December 1810. His later career was unremarkable, although he eventually rose to become an admiral and was made a Companion of the Order of the Bath before his death in 1860.
Military career
Charles Gordon joined the Royal NavyRoyal 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 June 1796 as a 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...
and by later advanced to become a commander
Commander
Commander is a naval rank which is also sometimes used as a military title depending on the individual customs of a given military service. Commander is also used as a rank or title in some organizations outside of the armed forces, particularly in police and law enforcement.-Commander as a naval...
in the sloop
Sloop
A sloop is a sail boat with a fore-and-aft rig and a single mast farther forward than the mast of a cutter....
HMS St Lucia. In 1807 he was captured but was exchanged soon afterwards and made a post captain in command of HMS Caroline, which he commanded in the Indian Ocean
Indian Ocean
The Indian Ocean is the third largest of the world's oceanic divisions, covering approximately 20% of the water on the Earth's surface. It is bounded on the north by the Indian Subcontinent and Arabian Peninsula ; on the west by eastern Africa; on the east by Indochina, the Sunda Islands, and...
, operating against pirates in the Persian Gulf
Persian Gulf
The Persian Gulf, in Southwest Asia, is an extension of the Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula.The Persian Gulf was the focus of the 1980–1988 Iran-Iraq War, in which each side attacked the other's oil tankers...
during the campaign of 1809
Persian Gulf campaign of 1809
The Persian Gulf Campaign, in 1809, was an operation by a British Royal Navy to force Arab pirates to cease their raids on British ships in the Persian Gulf, particularly on the Persian and Arabian coasts of the Straits of Hormuz...
: At Ras al-Khaymah in November 1809, Caroline destroyed or captured 80 pirate vessels. Shortly after the operations in the Persian Gulf, Gordon took command of the Indian built frigate HMS Ceylon
HMS Bombay (1805)
HCS Bombay, later HMS Bombay and HMS Ceylon, was a 672 ton fifth rate, 38-gun wooden warship built in the Bombay Dockyard for the Honourable East India Company and launched in 1793. The Royal Navy purchased her in 1805 and renamed her HMS Bombay. She served with the Royal Navy under that name...
and continued operating in the Indian Ocean, based at Madras.
In September 1810, word reached Madras that the British force that was blockading the French island of Île de France
Mauritius
Mauritius , officially the Republic of Mauritius is an island nation off the southeast coast of the African continent in the southwest Indian Ocean, about east of Madagascar...
had been destroyed at the Battle of Grand Port
Battle of Grand Port
The Battle of Grand Port was a naval battle between squadrons of frigates from the French Navy and the British Royal Navy. The battle was fought during 20–27 August 1810 over possession of the harbour of Grand Port on Île de France during the Napoleonic Wars...
and its commander Josias Rowley
Josias Rowley
Admiral Sir Josias Rowley, 1st Baronet GCB, GCMG , known as "The Sweeper of the Seas", was a naval officer who commanded the campaign that captured the French Indian Ocean islands of Réunion and Mauritius in 1810.-Naval career:...
was in desperate need of reinforcement. Sailing south to join Rowley, Ceylon visited Port Napoleon on Île de France in the hope of meeting Rowley there. Instead he found the large French frigate Vénus
French frigate Vénus (1808)
The Vénus was a Junon class frigate of the French Navy.On 10 November 1808, she departed Cherbourg, bound for Île de France, where she served as Hamelin's flagship, leading a squadron also comprising the frigate Manche and the sloop Créole....
and the 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...
Victor under the command of Commodore Jacques Hamelin. The French ships chased Ceylon westwards towards Île Bourbon and caught her on 17 September within sight of Saint Denis. In a series of bitterly contested engagements during the night, Ceylon was battered and defeated, the badly wounded Gordon surrendering to Hamelin, but only after inflicting significant damage to his flagship. Gordon was taken aboard the French ship and was thus freed when Rowley chased and captured Hamelin's ship on 18 September. At the eventual court martial into his conduct in the action, Gordon was honourably acquitted.
Although badly wounded in the action, Gordon was made captain of HMS Africaine, which later served as Admiral Albemarle Bertie
Sir Albemarle Bertie, 1st Baronet
Admiral Sir Albemarle Bertie, 1st Baronet, KCB, was a long-serving and at time controversial officer of the British Royal Navy who saw extensive service in his career but also courted controversy with several of his actions....
's flagship in the successful invasion of Île de France. In the aftermath of the campaign, Gordon was sent back to Britain and despite living another 50 years and remaining in the Navy throughout, he never again served at sea. He was appointed a Companion of the Order of the Bath and gradually rose through the retired ranks, becoming a vice-admiral in 1853, and a full admiral prior to his death in October 1860 aged 79.