John Nicholson Inglefield
Encyclopedia
John Nicholson Inglefield (1748–1828) was an officer in the British Royal Navy
.
John Nicholson Inglefield was the son of a ship's carpenter, Isaac Inglefield, and his wife, a sister of the ship designer Thomas Slade
, (later Sir Thomas Slade). According to Captain Inglefield himself his paternal family was of Lancashire origin and distantly connected to that of the Englefields.
Under the patronage of his maternal uncle, Thomas Slade, Inglefield joined the navy as a boy of 11 in 1759. In April 1766 he was rated Able Seaman aboard the Launceston: in May 1768 he was made lieutenant and moved into HMS Romney
under the command of Sir Samuel Hood
. This connection was to prove the most significant of Inglefield's career. Although Inglefield returned to the Launceston in October, by July 1769 he was back with Hood aboard the Romney and from that time forward his career was closely associated with his friend's. With him Inglefield left the Romney in December 1770, served in HMS Marlborough
and HMS Courageux, and in 1778 in HMS Robust
with Hood's brother Alexander
. Aboard the Robust he was present at the First Battle of Ushant on 27 July.
On 27 December 1773 at Baughurst, Hampshire, Inglefield married Ann Smith, daughter of a gentleman of Greenwich named Robert Smith. They had three daughters and one son, Samuel Hood Inglefield
, who also went on to a distinguished naval career and was the father of Sir Edward Augustus Inglefield
.
In June 1779 Inglefield was promoted to command of the brig-sloop HMS Lively and in the October of the following year made Captain and posted to HMS Barfleur
(90 guns), in which his patron, Sir Samuel Hood, hoisted his flag. As Captain of the flagship Inglefield sailed to the West Indies and took part in the skirmish with the French fleet off Martinique
in 1781. In August of the same year Hood transferred him to HMS Centaur
(74 guns), which Inglefield commanded in three actions against the French, culminating on 12 April 1782 at the Battle of the Saintes
.
It was however aboard the Centaur that Inglefield suffered the most harrowing episode of his career when, sailing for England with the convoy under Rear-Admiral Sir Thomas Graves, his ship along with the others was struck by a hurricane. The Centaur, an ageing ship, was severely damaged. Thrown upon her beam ends, dismasted in order to right herself and with her rudder gone, she eventually foundered despite the most strenuous efforts of Inglefield and the crew over several days. Inglefield and eleven others escaped aboard the pinnace, though otherwise the ship's complement of some six hundred men was lost. Subsisting on a few bottles of French cordials, some spoilt bread, ship's biscuit and rainwater wrung out into a bailing cup, the survivors successfully navigated to Faial Island
in the Azores
after sixteen days of the most terrible privation that saw one of them, Thomas Matthews, die the day before they reached land. On returning to England and the court martial usual in such cases, the survivors were acquitted. Inglefield's spare and unsensational description of this disaster, Captain Inglefield's narrative concerning the loss of the 'Centaur was published shortly afterwards. A dramatic painting of the incident in which those on the pinnace, thrusting off from the foundering Centaur, pulled aboard a fifteen-year-old midshipman who had thrown himself from the wreck, was later made into a popular print.
For three years Inglefield was given a home posting aboard the guardship HMS Scipio
in the Medway. In 1786 however he and his wife were publicly involved in a marital dispute which led to a permanent breach. After accusing his wife of making advances towards a manservant, Inglefield demanded a separation. Denying the accusation, Mrs Inglefield sued him for desertion. Although she won her case in court, the marriage was irretrievably damaged and they appear never to have cohabited again.
In 1788 Inglefield was posted to HMS Adventure (44 guns) which, joined later by HMS Medusa (44 guns), also under his command, patrolled the West Coast of Africa. In 1792 he served as one of the judges at the court-martial of the mutineers
from , who had been captured on Tahiti
. In 1793 he was serving in the Mediterranean aboard the frigate HMS Aigle (36 guns) and in 1794 was appointed Captain of the Fleet (chief of staff to the Commander in Chief). Towards the end of 1794 he returned to England with Samuel, now Viscount, Hood and was thereafter a resident Commissioner of the Navy Board, serving in Corsica
, Malta
, Gibraltar
and Halifax, Nova Scotia
. A Commissioner's post was considered equivalent Rear Admiral, but was only given to officers who had ended their active service. In 1799 he was placed on the list of retired captains.
He died in Greenwich
, Kent
before 7 February 1828 when his will was proved. In his will he bequeathed his estate of some £8,300, apart from three annuities to relatives, to his two surviving children, Samuel Hood Inglefield and Lady Ann Hallowell-Carew, wife of Sir Benjamin Hallowell-Carew
.
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...
.
John Nicholson Inglefield was the son of a ship's carpenter, Isaac Inglefield, and his wife, a sister of the ship designer Thomas Slade
Thomas Slade
Sir Thomas Slade was an English naval architect, most famous for designing HMS Victory, Lord Nelson's flagship at the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805.-Career Outline:...
, (later Sir Thomas Slade). According to Captain Inglefield himself his paternal family was of Lancashire origin and distantly connected to that of the Englefields.
Under the patronage of his maternal uncle, Thomas Slade, Inglefield joined the navy as a boy of 11 in 1759. In April 1766 he was rated Able Seaman aboard the Launceston: in May 1768 he was made lieutenant and moved into HMS Romney
HMS Romney (1762)
HMS Romney was a 50-gun fourth rate of the Royal Navy. She served during the American War of Independence, and the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars in a career that spanned forty years....
under the command of Sir Samuel Hood
Samuel Hood, 1st Viscount Hood
Samuel Hood, 1st Viscount Hood was a British Admiral known particularly for his service in the American War of Independence and French Revolutionary Wars...
. This connection was to prove the most significant of Inglefield's career. Although Inglefield returned to the Launceston in October, by July 1769 he was back with Hood aboard the Romney and from that time forward his career was closely associated with his friend's. With him Inglefield left the Romney in December 1770, served in HMS Marlborough
HMS Marlborough (1767)
HMS Marlborough was a 74-gun third rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, launched on 26 August 1767 at Deptford. She was one of the Ramillies class built to update the Navy and replace ships lost following the Seven Years' War. She was first commissioned in 1771 under Captain Richard Bickerton...
and HMS Courageux, and in 1778 in HMS Robust
HMS Robust (1764)
HMS Robust was a 74-gun third rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, launched on 25 October 1764 at Harwich. She was the only vessel of the Royal Navy to bear the name....
with Hood's brother Alexander
Alexander Hood, 1st Viscount Bridport
|-...
. Aboard the Robust he was present at the First Battle of Ushant on 27 July.
On 27 December 1773 at Baughurst, Hampshire, Inglefield married Ann Smith, daughter of a gentleman of Greenwich named Robert Smith. They had three daughters and one son, Samuel Hood Inglefield
Samuel Inglefield
Rear Admiral Samuel Hood Inglefield CB was a Royal Navy officer who went on to be Commander in-Chief, East Indies and China Station.-Naval career:...
, who also went on to a distinguished naval career and was the father of Sir Edward Augustus Inglefield
Edward Augustus Inglefield
Sir Edward Augustus Inglefield was a Royal Naval officer who led one of the searches for the missing Arctic explorer John Franklin during the 1850s. In doing so, his expedition charted previously unexplored areas along the northern Canadian coastline, including Baffin Bay, Smith Sound and...
.
HMS Barfleur (1768)
HMS Barfleur was a 90-gun second-rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, designed by Sir Thomas Slade on the lines of the 100-gun ship Royal William, and launched at Chatham Dockyard on 30 July 1768, at a cost of £49,222. In about 1780, she had another eight guns added to her quarterdeck, making...
(90 guns), in which his patron, Sir Samuel Hood, hoisted his flag. As Captain of the flagship Inglefield sailed to the West Indies and took part in the skirmish with the French fleet off Martinique
Martinique
Martinique is an island in the eastern Caribbean Sea, with a land area of . Like Guadeloupe, it is an overseas region of France, consisting of a single overseas department. To the northwest lies Dominica, to the south St Lucia, and to the southeast Barbados...
in 1781. In August of the same year Hood transferred him to HMS Centaur
HMS Centaur (1759)
Centaure was a 74-gun ship of the line of the French Navy, launched at Toulon in 1757.The Royal Navy captured Centaure at the Battle of Lagos on 18 August 1759, and commissioned her as the Third Rate HMS Centaur.-Loss:...
(74 guns), which Inglefield commanded in three actions against the French, culminating on 12 April 1782 at the Battle of the Saintes
Battle of the Saintes
The Battle of the Saintes took place over 4 days, 9 April 1782 – 12 April 1782, during the American War of Independence, and was a victory of a British fleet under Admiral Sir George Rodney over a French fleet under the Comte de Grasse forcing the French and Spanish to abandon a planned...
.
Faial Island
Faial Island , also known in English as Fayal, is a Portuguese island of the Central Group of the Azores....
in the Azores
Azores
The Archipelago of the Azores is composed of nine volcanic islands situated in the middle of the North Atlantic Ocean, and is located about west from Lisbon and about east from the east coast of North America. The islands, and their economic exclusion zone, form the Autonomous Region of the...
after sixteen days of the most terrible privation that saw one of them, Thomas Matthews, die the day before they reached land. On returning to England and the court martial usual in such cases, the survivors were acquitted. Inglefield's spare and unsensational description of this disaster, Captain Inglefield's narrative concerning the loss of the 'Centaur was published shortly afterwards. A dramatic painting of the incident in which those on the pinnace, thrusting off from the foundering Centaur, pulled aboard a fifteen-year-old midshipman who had thrown himself from the wreck, was later made into a popular print.
For three years Inglefield was given a home posting aboard the guardship HMS Scipio
HMS Scipio (1782)
HMS Scipio was a 64-gun third rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, launched on 22 October 1782 at Deptford. She was broken up in 1798....
in the Medway. In 1786 however he and his wife were publicly involved in a marital dispute which led to a permanent breach. After accusing his wife of making advances towards a manservant, Inglefield demanded a separation. Denying the accusation, Mrs Inglefield sued him for desertion. Although she won her case in court, the marriage was irretrievably damaged and they appear never to have cohabited again.
In 1788 Inglefield was posted to HMS Adventure (44 guns) which, joined later by HMS Medusa (44 guns), also under his command, patrolled the West Coast of Africa. In 1792 he served as one of the judges at the court-martial of the mutineers
Mutiny on the Bounty
The mutiny on the Bounty was a mutiny that occurred aboard the British Royal Navy ship HMS Bounty on 28 April 1789, and has been commemorated by several books, films, and popular songs, many of which take considerable liberties with the facts. The mutiny was led by Fletcher Christian against the...
from , who had been captured on Tahiti
Tahiti
Tahiti is the largest island in the Windward group of French Polynesia, located in the archipelago of the Society Islands in the southern Pacific Ocean. It is the economic, cultural and political centre of French Polynesia. The island was formed from volcanic activity and is high and mountainous...
. In 1793 he was serving in the Mediterranean aboard the frigate HMS Aigle (36 guns) and in 1794 was appointed Captain of the Fleet (chief of staff to the Commander in Chief). Towards the end of 1794 he returned to England with Samuel, now Viscount, Hood and was thereafter a resident Commissioner of the Navy Board, serving in Corsica
Corsica
Corsica is an island in the Mediterranean Sea. It is located west of Italy, southeast of the French mainland, and north of the island of Sardinia....
, Malta
Malta
Malta , officially known as the Republic of Malta , is a Southern European country consisting of an archipelago situated in the centre of the Mediterranean, south of Sicily, east of Tunisia and north of Libya, with Gibraltar to the west and Alexandria to the east.Malta covers just over in...
, Gibraltar
Gibraltar
Gibraltar is a British overseas territory located on the southern end of the Iberian Peninsula at the entrance of the Mediterranean. A peninsula with an area of , it has a northern border with Andalusia, Spain. The Rock of Gibraltar is the major landmark of the region...
and Halifax, Nova Scotia
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...
. A Commissioner's post was considered equivalent Rear Admiral, but was only given to officers who had ended their active service. In 1799 he was placed on the list of retired captains.
He died in Greenwich
Greenwich
Greenwich is a district of south London, England, located in the London Borough of Greenwich.Greenwich is best known for its maritime history and for giving its name to the Greenwich Meridian and Greenwich Mean Time...
, Kent
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
before 7 February 1828 when his will was proved. In his will he bequeathed his estate of some £8,300, apart from three annuities to relatives, to his two surviving children, Samuel Hood Inglefield and Lady Ann Hallowell-Carew, wife of Sir Benjamin Hallowell-Carew
Benjamin Hallowell Carew
Admiral Sir Benjamin Hallowell Carew GCB, was a senior officer in the Royal Navy...
.