Francis Austen
Encyclopedia
Sir Francis William Austen, GCB
(23 April 1774 – 10 August 1865) was a British officer who spent most of his long life on active duty in the Royal Navy
, rising to the position of Admiral of the Fleet
.
, he was the son of George Austen and his wife, the daughter of Thomas Leigh. Austen was brother to novelist Jane Austen
, and likely the model for the character William Price in the novel Mansfield Park
. His younger brother, Charles Austen
, also had a naval career, reaching the rank of rear-admiral.
in 1786 at the age of 12 and graduated in 1788. Austen then joined HMS Perseverance, who was sailing for the East Indies
under Captain Isaac Smith. He was promoted to midshipman in December 1789. He joined the 64-gun third-rate
Crown
and then the 38-gun Minerva
in November 1791. He was promoted to lieutenant in December 1792, while still in the East Indies. He returned to England at the end of 1793. In March 1794 he joined Lark
, a brig that was part of a fleet that evacuated British troops from Ostend
and Nieuwpoort
after the French captured the Netherlands
. In 1795, Lark was part of a squadron that escorted Princess Caroline of Brunswick
to England.
On the outbreak of Napoleonic Wars he was appointed to raise and organise a corps of Sea Fencibles
to defend a strip of the Kentish coast. He subsequently married a local Ramsgate girl, Mary Gibson. In spring 1804 he was appointed to Leopard
, a 50-gun Fourth Rate.
In October 1805, as Captain of , a French ship of the line
captured in the Battle of the Nile
(as the Franklin), Austen was temporarily detached from Admiral Nelson's fleet for convoy duty in the Mediterranean and missed the Battle of Trafalgar
. However, Austen did command the Canopus the following year in the Battle of San Domingo
, leading the lee line of ships into the battle. He served throughout the whole Napoleonic Wars
until 1814. Austen was transferred to the North America and West Indies Station in 1844 and was promoted an Admiral of the Red in 1855.
Austen's rapid early promotions were largely due to the patronage of the powerful Warren Hastings
, who was a friend of the Austen family and was alleged to be the natural father of Frank's cousin (and later sister-in-law), Eliza de Feuillide.
Austen is buried in a tomb at Wymering Parish Church, Wymering
, Portsmouth
. It lies to the west of the church as viewed from the porch. The inscriptions are still legible.
|-
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...
(23 April 1774 – 10 August 1865) was a British officer who spent most of his long life on active duty in 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...
, rising to the position of Admiral of the Fleet
Admiral of the Fleet (Royal Navy)
Admiral of the fleet is the highest rank of the British Royal Navy and other navies, which equates to the NATO rank code OF-10. The rank still exists in the Royal Navy but routine appointments ceased in 1996....
.
Background
Born at Steventon, HampshireSteventon, Hampshire
Steventon is a rural village with a population of about 250 in north Hampshire, England. Situated 7 miles south-west of the town of Basingstoke, between the villages of Overton, Oakley and North Waltham, it is close to Junction 7 of the M3....
, he was the son of George Austen and his wife, the daughter of Thomas Leigh. Austen was brother to 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...
, and likely the model for the character William Price in the novel Mansfield Park
Mansfield Park (novel)
Mansfield Park is a novel by Jane Austen, written at Chawton Cottage between 1812 and 1814. It was published in July 1814 by Thomas Egerton, who published Jane Austen's two earlier novels, Sense and Sensibility and Pride and Prejudice...
. His younger brother, Charles Austen
Charles Austen
Rear Admiral Sir Charles John Austen CB was an officer in the Royal Navy. He served during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, and beyond, eventually rising to the rank of rear-admiral.-Family and early life:...
, also had a naval career, reaching the rank of rear-admiral.
Career
He entered the Royal Naval AcademyRoyal Naval Academy
The Royal Naval Academy was established at Portsmouth Dockyard as a facility to train officers for the Royal Navy. The founders' intentions were to provide an alternative means to recruit officers and to provide standardised training, education and admission.-Training:In 1773, a shore side...
in 1786 at the age of 12 and graduated in 1788. Austen then joined HMS Perseverance, who was sailing for the East Indies
East Indies
East Indies is a term used by Europeans from the 16th century onwards to identify what is now known as Indian subcontinent or South Asia, Southeastern Asia, and the islands of Oceania, including the Malay Archipelago and the Philippines...
under Captain Isaac Smith. He was promoted to midshipman in December 1789. He joined the 64-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...
Crown
HMS Crown
Five ships of the Royal Navy have borne the name HMS Crown. Another was planned but never completed: was a 48-gun ship launched as Taunton in 1654. She was renamed HMS Crown in 1660, was rebuilt in 1704 and wrecked in 1719. was a 44-gun fifth rate launched in 1747, used as a storeship from 1757,...
and then the 38-gun Minerva
HMS Minerva (1780)
HMS Minerva was a 38-gun fifth-rate Royal Navy frigate. The first of four Minerva-class frigates, she was launched on 3 June 1780, and commissioned soon thereafter. In 1798 she was renamed Pallas and employed as a troopship...
in November 1791. He was promoted to lieutenant in December 1792, while still in the East Indies. He returned to England at the end of 1793. In March 1794 he joined Lark
HMS Lark (1794)
HMS Lark was a 16-gun ship sloop of the Cormorant class, built in 1794 at Northfleet. She served primarily in the Caribbean, where she took a number of prizes, some after quite intensive action...
, a brig that was part of a fleet that evacuated British troops from Ostend
Ostend
Ostend is a Belgian city and municipality located in the Flemish province of West Flanders. It comprises the boroughs of Mariakerke , Stene and Zandvoorde, and the city of Ostend proper – the largest on the Belgian coast....
and Nieuwpoort
Nieuwpoort, Belgium
Nieuwpoort is a municipality located in Flanders, one of the three regions of Belgium, and in the Flemish province of West Flanders. The municipality comprises the city of Nieuwpoort proper and the towns of Ramskapelle and Sint-Joris. On January 1, 2008 Nieuwpoort had a total population of 11,062....
after the French captured the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
. In 1795, Lark was part of a squadron that escorted Princess Caroline of Brunswick
Caroline of Brunswick
Caroline of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel was the Queen consort of King George IV of the United Kingdom from 29 January 1820 until her death...
to England.
On the outbreak of Napoleonic Wars he was appointed to raise and organise a corps 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...
to defend a strip of the Kentish coast. He subsequently married a local Ramsgate girl, Mary Gibson. In spring 1804 he was appointed to Leopard
HMS Leopard (1790)
HMS Leopard was a 50-gun Portland-class fourth rate of the Royal Navy. She served during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, and the War of 1812.-Construction and commissioning:...
, a 50-gun Fourth Rate.
In October 1805, as Captain of , a French ship of the line
Ship of the line
A ship of the line was a type of naval warship constructed from the 17th through the mid-19th century to take part in the naval tactic known as the line of battle, in which two columns of opposing warships would manoeuvre to bring the greatest weight of broadside guns to bear...
captured in the Battle of the Nile
Battle of the Nile
The Battle of the Nile was a major naval battle fought between British and French fleets at Aboukir Bay on the Mediterranean coast of Egypt from 1–3 August 1798...
(as the Franklin), Austen was temporarily detached from Admiral Nelson's fleet for convoy duty in the Mediterranean and missed the Battle of Trafalgar
Battle of Trafalgar
The Battle of Trafalgar was a sea battle fought between the British Royal Navy and the combined fleets of the French Navy and Spanish Navy, during the War of the Third Coalition of the Napoleonic Wars ....
. However, Austen did command the Canopus the following year in the Battle of San Domingo
Battle of San Domingo
The Battle of San Domingo, in 1806, was a naval battle of the Napoleonic Wars. French and British squadrons of ships of the line met off the southern coast of the French-occupied Spanish Colony of Santo Domingo in the Caribbean...
, leading the lee line of ships into the battle. He served throughout the whole 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...
until 1814. Austen was transferred to the North America and West Indies Station in 1844 and was promoted an Admiral of the Red in 1855.
Austen's rapid early promotions were largely due to the patronage of the powerful Warren Hastings
Warren Hastings
Warren Hastings PC was the first Governor-General of India, from 1773 to 1785. He was famously accused of corruption in an impeachment in 1787, but was acquitted in 1795. He was made a Privy Councillor in 1814.-Early life:...
, who was a friend of the Austen family and was alleged to be the natural father of Frank's cousin (and later sister-in-law), Eliza de Feuillide.
Family
In 1806, he married the eldest daughter of John Gibson. After her death in 1823, Austen married the eldest daughter of Noyes Lloyd five years later.Austen is buried in a tomb at Wymering Parish Church, Wymering
Wymering
Wymering is a residential area of the city of Portsmouth in the English county of Hampshire. Unlike the majority of Portsmouth, it is located on the mainland rather than Portsea Island....
, 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...
. It lies to the west of the church as viewed from the porch. The inscriptions are still legible.
External links
|-