Elie A. F. La Vallette
Encyclopedia
Elie Augustus Frederick La Vallette (3 May 1790 – 18 November 1862) was one of the first rear admiral
s appointed in the United States Navy
when President
Abraham Lincoln
created the rank in July 1862.
, to a distinguished family of French
origin, and at the age of 10 accompanied his father, a chaplain
, on a cruise in the frigate
, commanded by Stephen Decatur, Sr.
After serving the merchant marine, La Vallette entered the Navy on June 25, 1812, as sailing master
. On September 11, 1814, he was an acting
lieutenant
aboard the corvette , the flagship of Commodore Thomas Macdonough
at the Battle of Lake Champlain, where the British were defeated in a decisive engagement of the War of 1812
. La Vallette distinguished himself during the battle, winning promotion and a medal. He received his commission as lieutenant on December 9, 1814.
La Vallette's first command came in June 1817, taking the schooner
on a survey of Virginia
's coast and harbors. He then served on a number of larger ships, and in 1824 was assigned to . While on duty in the Mediterranean, he was acting captain for several months, and served on the ship until 1828.
After leaving Constitution, La Vallette held a series of routine assignments, before being ordered to take the sloop-of-war
to Guayaquil
, Ecuador
, to protect the United States interests during a revolution. He sailed from the United States in May 1833, rounding Cape Horn
, and finally reaching Guayaquil in February 1834. After receiving assurances that American lives and property would be protected, he returned home, making the voyage from Valparaíso
to Hampton Roads
in a little more than two months.
He formally anglicized
his name to Lavallette in 1830. Lavallette was promoted to master commandant
on March 3, 1831, and to captain
on February 23, 1840.
During the Mexican–American War
(1846–1848) Lavallette commanded the frigates and the , directing operations against Guaymas
in the Gulf of California
on 19–20 November 1847. For a time in 1848, he served as Military Governor of Mazatlán
, and the crew of the Congress comprised the occupying garrison. In the 1850s he commanded the Africa
and Mediterranean Squadrons.
On 30 July 1862, President Abraham Lincoln appointed Lavallette a rear admiral. Four months later, on 18 November, Rear Admiral Lavallette died at the Philadelphia Naval Yard Hospital.
have been named for him.
The Borough of Lavallette, New Jersey
was named in his honor and was co-founded by his son Albert T. Lavallette.
Rear admiral (United States)
Rear admiral is a naval commissioned officer rank above that of a commodore and captain, and below that of a vice admiral. The uniformed services of the United States are unique in having two grades of rear admirals.- Rear admiral :...
s appointed in the United States Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
when President
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He successfully led his country through a great constitutional, military and moral crisis – the American Civil War – preserving the Union, while ending slavery, and...
created the rank in July 1862.
Biography
La Vallette was born in Alexandria, VirginiaAlexandria, Virginia
Alexandria is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of 2009, the city had a total population of 139,966. Located along the Western bank of the Potomac River, Alexandria is approximately six miles south of downtown Washington, D.C.Like the rest of northern Virginia, as well as...
, to a distinguished family of French
French people
The French are a nation that share a common French culture and speak the French language as a mother tongue. Historically, the French population are descended from peoples of Celtic, Latin and Germanic origin, and are today a mixture of several ethnic groups...
origin, and at the age of 10 accompanied his father, a chaplain
Chaplain
Traditionally, a chaplain is a minister in a specialized setting such as a priest, pastor, rabbi, or imam or lay representative of a religion attached to a secular institution such as a hospital, prison, military unit, police department, university, or private chapel...
, on a cruise in 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"...
, commanded by Stephen Decatur, Sr.
Stephen Decatur, Sr.
Stephen Decatur, Sr. was an American naval captain in the Revolutionary War and later in the Quasi-War. He was the father of Stephen Decatur, Jr. During the American Revolution he commanded the Royal Louis, the Comet, the Retaliation, the Rising Sun, and the Fair American...
After serving the merchant marine, La Vallette entered the Navy on June 25, 1812, as sailing master
Master (naval)
The master, or sailing master, was a historic term for a naval officer trained in and responsible for the navigation of a sailing vessel...
. On September 11, 1814, he was an acting
Acting (rank)
An Acting rank, is a military designation allowing an commissioned- or non-commissioned officer to assume a rank—usually higher and usually temporary—with the pay and allowances appropriate to that grade. As such, an officer may be ordered back to the previous grade...
lieutenant
Lieutenant
A lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer in many nations' armed forces. Typically, the rank of lieutenant in naval usage, while still a junior officer rank, is senior to the army rank...
aboard the corvette , the flagship of Commodore Thomas Macdonough
Thomas MacDonough
Thomas Macdonough was an early-19th-century American naval officer noted for his roles in the first Barbary War, and the War of 1812. He was the son of a revolutionary officer, Thomas Sr. who lived close to Middleton, Delaware. Being the sixth child born, he came from a large family of ten...
at the Battle of Lake Champlain, where the British were defeated in a decisive engagement of the War of 1812
War of 1812
The War of 1812 was a military conflict fought between the forces of the United States of America and those of the British Empire. The Americans declared war in 1812 for several reasons, including trade restrictions because of Britain's ongoing war with France, impressment of American merchant...
. La Vallette distinguished himself during the battle, winning promotion and a medal. He received his commission as lieutenant on December 9, 1814.
La Vallette's first command came in June 1817, taking the schooner
Schooner
A schooner is a type of sailing vessel characterized by the use of fore-and-aft sails on two or more masts with the forward mast being no taller than the rear masts....
on a survey of Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
's coast and harbors. He then served on a number of larger ships, and in 1824 was assigned to . While on duty in the Mediterranean, he was acting captain for several months, and served on the ship until 1828.
After leaving Constitution, La Vallette held a series of routine assignments, before being ordered to take the sloop-of-war
Sloop-of-war
In the 18th and most of the 19th centuries, a sloop-of-war was a warship with a single gun deck that carried up to eighteen guns. As the rating system covered all vessels with 20 guns and above, this meant that the term sloop-of-war actually encompassed all the unrated combat vessels including the...
to Guayaquil
Guayaquil
Guayaquil , officially Santiago de Guayaquil , is the largest and the most populous city in Ecuador,with about 2.3 million inhabitants in the city and nearly 3.1 million in the metropolitan area, as well as that nation's main port...
, Ecuador
Ecuador
Ecuador , officially the Republic of Ecuador is a representative democratic republic in South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and by the Pacific Ocean to the west. It is one of only two countries in South America, along with Chile, that do not have a border...
, to protect the United States interests during a revolution. He sailed from the United States in May 1833, rounding Cape Horn
Cape Horn
Cape Horn is the southernmost headland of the Tierra del Fuego archipelago of southern Chile, and is located on the small Hornos Island...
, and finally reaching Guayaquil in February 1834. After receiving assurances that American lives and property would be protected, he returned home, making the voyage from Valparaíso
Valparaíso
Valparaíso is a city and commune of Chile, center of its third largest conurbation and one of the country's most important seaports and an increasing cultural center in the Southwest Pacific hemisphere. The city is the capital of the Valparaíso Province and the Valparaíso Region...
to Hampton Roads
Hampton Roads
Hampton Roads is the name for both a body of water and the Norfolk–Virginia Beach metropolitan area which surrounds it in southeastern Virginia, United States...
in a little more than two months.
He formally anglicized
Anglicisation
Anglicisation, or anglicization , is the process of converting verbal or written elements of any other language into a form that is more comprehensible to an English speaker, or, more generally, of altering something such that it becomes English in form or character.The term most often refers to...
his name to Lavallette in 1830. Lavallette was promoted to master commandant
Master Commandant
Master commandant was a rank within the early United States Navy. The rank of master commandant was slightly higher than lieutenant, and a master commandant would often command warships too small to justify the command of a full captain. In the United States Navy, the rank was shortened to...
on March 3, 1831, and to captain
Captain (naval)
Captain is the name most often given in English-speaking navies to the rank corresponding to command of the largest ships. The NATO rank code is OF-5, equivalent to an army full colonel....
on February 23, 1840.
During the Mexican–American War
Mexican–American War
The Mexican–American War, also known as the First American Intervention, the Mexican War, or the U.S.–Mexican War, was an armed conflict between the United States and Mexico from 1846 to 1848 in the wake of the 1845 U.S...
(1846–1848) Lavallette commanded the frigates and the , directing operations against Guaymas
Guaymas
Guaymas is a city and municipality located in the southwest part of the state of Sonora in northwestern Mexico. The city is located 117 km south of the state capital of Hermosillo, and 242 miles from the U.S. border, and is the principal port for the state. The municipality is located in the...
in the Gulf of California
Gulf of California
The Gulf of California is a body of water that separates the Baja California Peninsula from the Mexican mainland...
on 19–20 November 1847. For a time in 1848, he served as Military Governor of Mazatlán
Mazatlán
Mazatlán is a city in the Mexican state of Sinaloa; the surrounding municipio for which the city serves as the municipal seat is Mazatlán Municipality. It is located at on the Pacific coast, across from the southernmost tip of the Baja California peninsula.Mazatlán is a Nahuatl word meaning...
, and the crew of the Congress comprised the occupying garrison. In the 1850s he commanded the Africa
Africa Squadron
The Africa Squadron was a unit of the United States Navy that operated from 1819 to 1861 to suppress the slave trade along the coast of West Africa...
and Mediterranean Squadrons.
On 30 July 1862, President Abraham Lincoln appointed Lavallette a rear admiral. Four months later, on 18 November, Rear Admiral Lavallette died at the Philadelphia Naval Yard Hospital.
Namesakes and honors
Two destroyers of the United States NavyUnited States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
have been named for him.
The Borough of Lavallette, New Jersey
Lavallette, New Jersey
Lavallette is a Borough in Ocean County, New Jersey, United States. As of the United States 2010 Census, the borough population was 1,875. Lavallette is situated on the Barnegat Peninsula, a long, narrow barrier peninsula that separates Barnegat Bay from the Atlantic Ocean.Lavallette was...
was named in his honor and was co-founded by his son Albert T. Lavallette.