Frederick Marryat
Encyclopedia
Captain Frederick Marryat (10 July 1792 – 9 August 1848) was an English Royal Navy
officer, novelist, and a contemporary and acquaintance of Charles Dickens
, noted today as an early pioneer of the sea story
. He is now known particularly for the semi-autobiographical novel Mr Midshipman Easy
and his children's novel The Children of the New Forest
, and for a widely used system of maritime flag signalling
, known as Marryat's Code.
. After trying to run away to sea several times, he was permitted to enter the Royal Navy
in 1806, as a midshipman
on board HMS Imperieuse, a frigate
commanded by Lord Cochrane
(who would later serve as inspiration for both Marryat and other authors).
Marryat's time aboard the Imperieuse included action off the Gironde
, the rescue of a fellow midshipman who had fallen overboard, captures of many ships off the Mediterranean coast of Spain, and the capture of the castle of Montgat
. When the Imperieuse shifted to operations in the Scheldt
, in 1809, Marryat contracted malaria
, and returned to England on HMS Victorious
, 74 guns.
After recuperating, Marryat returned to the Mediterranean in HMS Centaur
, 74, and again saved a shipmate by leaping into the sea after him. He then sailed as a passenger to Bermuda
in HMS Atlas
, 64 guns, and from thence to Halifax
, Nova Scotia on the schooner Chubb, to join the frigate HMS Aeolus
of 32 guns (27 April 1811).
A few months later, Marryat again earned distinction by leading the effort to cut away the Aeolus' mainyard to save the ship during a storm, and continuing a pattern, he also saved one of the men from the sea. Shortly thereafter, he moved to the frigate HMS Spartan
, participating in the capture of a number of American ships (the War of 1812
having begun by then), and on 26 December 1812 was promoted to lieutenant.
As lieutenant, Marryat served in the sloop Espiegle and in the Newcastle, and was promoted to commander
13 June 1815, just in time for peace to break out. He then pursued scientific studies, invented a lifeboat (thus earning both a gold medal from the Royal Humane Society
and the nickname 'Lifeboat'). Based on his experience in the Napoleonic Wars
escorting merchant ships in convoy
s, he developed a practical and widely used system of maritime flag signalling
known as Marryat's Code.
In 1819 he married Catherine Shairp, with whom he had four sons (of which only the youngest, Frank
, outlived him) and seven daughters (including Florence
, his biographer).
In 1820 he commanded the sloop Beaver and temporarily commanded Rosario for the purpose of bringing back to England the despatches announcing the death of Napoleon I
on St Helena. He also took the opportunity to make a sketch of Napoleon's body on his deathbed, which was later published as a lithograph. (Marryat's artistic skills were modest, but his sketches of shipboard life above and below deck have considerable charm that overcomes their crudities.)
In 1823 he was appointed to HMS Larne, 20, and took part in an expedition against Burma in 1824. During this expedition, which resulted in large losses due to disease, he was promoted to command HMS Tees, 28, and this gave him his post captain rank. He was back in England in 1826. In 1829 he was commanding the frigate HMS Ariadne on a mission to search for shoals around the Madeira and Canary Islands
. This was an uninspiring exercise, and between that and the recent publication of his first novel, The Naval Officer, he decided to resign his commission in November 1830 and take up writing full time.
. He kept producing novels, with his biggest success, Mr Midshipman Easy, coming in 1836. He lived in Brussels
for a year, travelled in Canada and the United States, then moved to London in 1839, where he was in the literary circle of Charles Dickens
and others. He was in North America in 1837 when the Rebellion of that year in Lower Canada
broke out, and served with the British forces in suppressing it.
He was named a Fellow of the Royal Society
in recognition of his invention and other achievements. In 1843 he moved to a small farm at Manor Cottage in Norfolk, where he died in 1848. His daughter Florence Marryat
later became well-known as a writer and actress. His son Francis Samuel Marryat completed his late novel The Little Savage.
Marryat's novels are characteristic of their time, with the concerns of family connections and social status often overshadowing the naval action, but they are interesting as fictional renditions of the author's 25 years of real-life experience at sea. These novels, much admired by Joseph Conrad
and Ernest Hemingway
, were among the first sea novels. They were models for later works by C. S. Forester
and Patrick O'Brian
that were also set in the time of Nelson and told the stories of young men rising through the ranks through successes as naval officers.
His later novels were generally for the children's market, including his most famous novel for contemporary readers, The Children of the New Forest
, which was published in 1847 and set in the countryside surrounding the village of Sway, Hampshire.
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, novelist, and a contemporary and acquaintance of Charles Dickens
Charles Dickens
Charles John Huffam Dickens was an English novelist, generally considered the greatest of the Victorian period. Dickens enjoyed a wider popularity and fame than had any previous author during his lifetime, and he remains popular, having been responsible for some of English literature's most iconic...
, noted today as an early pioneer of the sea story
Sea story
-Description:The enclosed setting of life aboard a ship allows an author to portray a social world in miniature, with characters cut off from the outside world and forced to interact in cramped and stressful conditions....
. He is now known particularly for the semi-autobiographical novel Mr Midshipman Easy
Mr Midshipman Easy
Mr. Midshipman Easy is an 1836 novel by Frederick Marryat, a retired Captain in the 19th century Royal Navy. The novel is set during the Napoleonic Wars, in which Marryat himself served with distinction.-Plot summary:...
and his children's novel The Children of the New Forest
The Children of the New Forest
The Children of the New Forest is a children's novel published in 1847 by Frederick Marryat. It is set in the time of the English Civil War and the Commonwealth.-Plot summary:...
, and for a widely used system of maritime flag signalling
Maritime flag signalling
Maritime flag signalling, generally flaghoist signalling, is the principal means other than radio by which ships communicate to each other or to shore; distinguished from flags showing nationality, ownership, or organizational status...
, known as Marryat's Code.
Early life and naval career
Marryat was born in London, the son of Joseph Marryat, a "merchant prince" and member of ParliamentParliament of the United Kingdom
The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London...
. After trying to run away to sea several times, he was permitted to enter 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...
in 1806, 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...
on board HMS Imperieuse, a 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 Lord Cochrane
Thomas Cochrane, 10th Earl of Dundonald
Admiral Thomas Cochrane, 10th Earl of Dundonald, 1st Marquess of Maranhão, GCB, ODM , styled Lord Cochrane between 1778 and 1831, was a senior British naval flag officer and radical politician....
(who would later serve as inspiration for both Marryat and other authors).
Marryat's time aboard the Imperieuse included action off the Gironde
Gironde
For the Revolutionary party, see Girondists.Gironde is a common name for the Gironde estuary, where the mouths of the Garonne and Dordogne rivers merge, and for a department in the Aquitaine region situated in southwest France.-History:...
, the rescue of a fellow midshipman who had fallen overboard, captures of many ships off the Mediterranean coast of Spain, and the capture of the castle of Montgat
Montgat
Montgat is a municipality in the comarca of the Maresme inCatalonia, Spain. It is situated on the coast between Badalona and El Masnou, to the north-east of...
. When the Imperieuse shifted to operations in the Scheldt
Scheldt
The Scheldt is a 350 km long river in northern France, western Belgium and the southwestern part of the Netherlands...
, in 1809, Marryat contracted malaria
Malaria
Malaria is a mosquito-borne infectious disease of humans and other animals caused by eukaryotic protists of the genus Plasmodium. The disease results from the multiplication of Plasmodium parasites within red blood cells, causing symptoms that typically include fever and headache, in severe cases...
, and returned to England on HMS Victorious
HMS Victorious (1808)
HMS Victorious was a 74-gun third-rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, launched at Bucklers Hard on 20 October 1808, just five years after the previous had been broken up....
, 74 guns.
After recuperating, Marryat returned to the Mediterranean in HMS Centaur
HMS Centaur (1797)
HMS Centaur was a 74-gun third rate of the Royal Navy, launched on 14 March 1797 at Woolwich. She served as Sir Samuel Hood's flagship in the Leeward Islands and the Channel. During her 22-year career Centaur saw action in the Mediterranean, the Channel, the West Indies, and the Baltic, fighting...
, 74, and again saved a shipmate by leaping into the sea after him. He then sailed as a passenger to Bermuda
Bermuda
Bermuda is a British overseas territory in the North Atlantic Ocean. Located off the east coast of the United States, its nearest landmass is Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, about to the west-northwest. It is about south of Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, and northeast of Miami, Florida...
in HMS Atlas
HMS Atlas
Two ships of the British Royal Navy have been named HMS Atlas:, a second rate ship of the line launched in 1782 and broken up in 1821., a 91 gun second rate ship launched at Chatham Dockyard on 21 July 1860 but kept in reserve after her steam trials, and never commissioned. Lent to the...
, 64 guns, and from thence to Halifax
City of Halifax
Halifax is a city in Canada, which was the capital of the province of Nova Scotia and shire town of Halifax County. It was the largest city in Atlantic Canada until it was amalgamated into Halifax Regional Municipality in 1996...
, Nova Scotia on the schooner Chubb, to join the frigate HMS Aeolus
HMS Aeolus (1801)
HMS Aeolus was a 32-gun Amphion-class fifth-rate frigate of the Royal Navy. She was launched in 1801 and served in the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, and the War of 1812....
of 32 guns (27 April 1811).
A few months later, Marryat again earned distinction by leading the effort to cut away the Aeolus
HMS Spartan
HMS Spartan may refer to one of these vessels of the British Royal Navy named in recognition of the military abilities of the Spartans of ancient Greece. was a 38-gun fifth-rate launched in 1806 and broken up 1822...
, participating in the capture of a number of American ships (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...
having begun by then), and on 26 December 1812 was promoted to lieutenant.
As lieutenant, Marryat served in the sloop Espiegle and in the Newcastle, and was promoted to 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...
13 June 1815, just in time for peace to break out. He then pursued scientific studies, invented a lifeboat (thus earning both a gold medal from the Royal Humane Society
Royal Humane Society
The Royal Humane Society is a British charity which promotes lifesaving intervention. It was founded in England in 1774 as the Society for the Recovery of Persons Apparently Drowned, for the purpose of rendering first aid in cases of near drowning....
and the nickname 'Lifeboat'). Based on his experience in the 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...
escorting merchant ships in convoy
Convoy
A convoy is a group of vehicles, typically motor vehicles or ships, traveling together for mutual support and protection. Often, a convoy is organized with armed defensive support, though it may also be used in a non-military sense, for example when driving through remote areas.-Age of Sail:Naval...
s, he developed a practical and widely used system of maritime flag signalling
Maritime flag signalling
Maritime flag signalling, generally flaghoist signalling, is the principal means other than radio by which ships communicate to each other or to shore; distinguished from flags showing nationality, ownership, or organizational status...
known as Marryat's Code.
In 1819 he married Catherine Shairp, with whom he had four sons (of which only the youngest, Frank
Frank Marryat
Frank Marryat was a sailor, artist, and author.Frank was one of the sons of Frederick 'Captain' Marryat.He joined the Royal Navy at 14 years old as midshipman and made a number of drawings during his service on H.M.S.Samarang in the Far East in 1843: he planned to publish these without any...
, outlived him) and seven daughters (including Florence
Florence Marryat
Florence Marryat was a British author and actress. The daughter of author Capt. Frederick Marryat and his wife Catherine, she was particularly known for her sensational novels and her involvement with several celebrated spiritual mediums of the late nineteenth century...
, his biographer).
In 1820 he commanded the sloop Beaver and temporarily commanded Rosario for the purpose of bringing back to England the despatches announcing the death of Napoleon I
Napoleon I
Napoleon Bonaparte was a French military and political leader during the latter stages of the French Revolution.As Napoleon I, he was Emperor of the French from 1804 to 1815...
on St Helena. He also took the opportunity to make a sketch of Napoleon's body on his deathbed, which was later published as a lithograph. (Marryat's artistic skills were modest, but his sketches of shipboard life above and below deck have considerable charm that overcomes their crudities.)
In 1823 he was appointed to HMS Larne, 20, and took part in an expedition against Burma in 1824. During this expedition, which resulted in large losses due to disease, he was promoted to command HMS Tees, 28, and this gave him his post captain rank. He was back in England in 1826. In 1829 he was commanding the frigate HMS Ariadne on a mission to search for shoals around the Madeira and Canary Islands
Canary Islands
The Canary Islands , also known as the Canaries , is a Spanish archipelago located just off the northwest coast of mainland Africa, 100 km west of the border between Morocco and the Western Sahara. The Canaries are a Spanish autonomous community and an outermost region of the European Union...
. This was an uninspiring exercise, and between that and the recent publication of his first novel, The Naval Officer, he decided to resign his commission in November 1830 and take up writing full time.
Literary career
From 1832 to 1835 Marryat edited The Metropolitan MagazineThe Metropolitan Magazine
The Metropolitan: a monthly journal of literature, science, and the fine arts was a London monthly journal established by Thomas Campbell in 1831....
. He kept producing novels, with his biggest success, Mr Midshipman Easy, coming in 1836. He lived in Brussels
Brussels
Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
for a year, travelled in Canada and the United States, then moved to London in 1839, where he was in the literary circle of Charles Dickens
Charles Dickens
Charles John Huffam Dickens was an English novelist, generally considered the greatest of the Victorian period. Dickens enjoyed a wider popularity and fame than had any previous author during his lifetime, and he remains popular, having been responsible for some of English literature's most iconic...
and others. He was in North America in 1837 when the Rebellion of that year in Lower Canada
Lower Canada
The Province of Lower Canada was a British colony on the lower Saint Lawrence River and the shores of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence...
broke out, and served with the British forces in suppressing it.
He was named a Fellow of the Royal Society
Royal Society
The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, known simply as the Royal Society, is a learned society for science, and is possibly the oldest such society in existence. Founded in November 1660, it was granted a Royal Charter by King Charles II as the "Royal Society of London"...
in recognition of his invention and other achievements. In 1843 he moved to a small farm at Manor Cottage in Norfolk, where he died in 1848. His daughter Florence Marryat
Florence Marryat
Florence Marryat was a British author and actress. The daughter of author Capt. Frederick Marryat and his wife Catherine, she was particularly known for her sensational novels and her involvement with several celebrated spiritual mediums of the late nineteenth century...
later became well-known as a writer and actress. His son Francis Samuel Marryat completed his late novel The Little Savage.
Marryat's novels are characteristic of their time, with the concerns of family connections and social status often overshadowing the naval action, but they are interesting as fictional renditions of the author's 25 years of real-life experience at sea. These novels, much admired by Joseph Conrad
Joseph Conrad
Joseph Conrad was a Polish-born English novelist.Conrad is regarded as one of the great novelists in English, although he did not speak the language fluently until he was in his twenties...
and Ernest Hemingway
Ernest Hemingway
Ernest Miller Hemingway was an American author and journalist. His economic and understated style had a strong influence on 20th-century fiction, while his life of adventure and his public image influenced later generations. Hemingway produced most of his work between the mid-1920s and the...
, were among the first sea novels. They were models for later works by C. S. Forester
C. S. Forester
Cecil Scott "C.S." Forester was the pen name of Cecil Louis Troughton Smith , an English novelist who rose to fame with tales of naval warfare. His most notable works were the 11-book Horatio Hornblower series, depicting a Royal Navy officer during the Napoleonic era, and The African Queen...
and Patrick O'Brian
Patrick O'Brian
Patrick O'Brian, CBE , born Richard Patrick Russ, was an English novelist and translator, best known for his Aubrey–Maturin series of novels set in the Royal Navy during the Napoleonic Wars and centred on the friendship of English Naval Captain Jack Aubrey and the Irish–Catalan physician Stephen...
that were also set in the time of Nelson and told the stories of young men rising through the ranks through successes as naval officers.
His later novels were generally for the children's market, including his most famous novel for contemporary readers, The Children of the New Forest
The Children of the New Forest
The Children of the New Forest is a children's novel published in 1847 by Frederick Marryat. It is set in the time of the English Civil War and the Commonwealth.-Plot summary:...
, which was published in 1847 and set in the countryside surrounding the village of Sway, Hampshire.
Works
- The Naval Officer, or Scenes in the Life and Adventures of Frank Mildmay (1829)
- The King's Own (1830)
- Newton Forster or, the Merchant Service (1832)
- Peter Simple (1834)
- Jacob Faithful (1834)
- The Pacha of Many Tales (1835)
- Mr Midshipman EasyMr Midshipman EasyMr. Midshipman Easy is an 1836 novel by Frederick Marryat, a retired Captain in the 19th century Royal Navy. The novel is set during the Napoleonic Wars, in which Marryat himself served with distinction.-Plot summary:...
(1836) - Japhet, in Search of a Father (1836)
- The Pirate (1836)
- The Three Cutters (1836)
- Snarleyyow, or the Dog Fiend (1837)
- Rattlin the Reefer (with Edward HowardEdward HowardEdward Howard may refer to:*Edward Howard, 1st Baron Howard of Escrick , British nobleman and parliamentarian*Edward Henry Howard, English Roman Catholic cardinal*Edward Howard , centenarian Roman Catholic archbishop in Oregon, USA*Edward L...
) (1838) - The Phantom ShipThe Phantom ShipThe Phantom Ship is a Gothic novel by Frederick Marryat which explores the legend of the Flying Dutchman and, in one chapter, features a werewolf....
(1839) - Diary in America (1839)
- Olla PodridaOlla podridaOlla podrida is a Spanish stew made from pork and beans and an inconsistent, wide variety of other meats and vegetables, often including chickpeas, depending on the recipe used. The meal is traditionally prepared in a clay pot over several hours...
(1840) - Poor JackPoor JackPoor Jack is a novel by the English author Frederick Marryat, published in 1840.It tells the story of Thomas Saunders, a sailor's son and neglected street urchin struggling to survive in Greenwich, London in the early 19th century...
(1840) - Masterman Ready, or the Wreck of the Pacific (1841)
- Joseph Rushbrook, or the Poacher (1841)
- Percival Keene (1842)
- Monsieur Violet (1843)
- Settlers in CanadaSettlers in CanadaSettlers in Canada is a children's novel written by Frederick Marryat. It was published in 1844 and was his twenty-first book. It is set in the wilderness of Upper Canada in the 1790s. Marryat had himself visited Canada in 1837.-Plot summary:...
(1844) - The Mission, or Scenes in Africa (1845)
- The Privateersman, or One Hundred Years Ago (1846)
- The Children of the New ForestThe Children of the New ForestThe Children of the New Forest is a children's novel published in 1847 by Frederick Marryat. It is set in the time of the English Civil War and the Commonwealth.-Plot summary:...
(1847) - The Little Savage (posthumous, 1848)
- Valerie (posthumous, 1848)
External links
- Biography at the Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online
- Works by or about Frederick Marryat at Internet ArchiveInternet ArchiveThe Internet Archive is a non-profit digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It offers permanent storage and access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, music, moving images, and nearly 3 million public domain books. The Internet Archive...
(scanned books original editions color illustrated) (plain text and HTML) - Free ebooks of Marryat books optimised for printing at home, plus short Marryat bibliography
- Link to National Portrait Gallery, London