Samuel Pym
Encyclopedia
Sir Samuel Pym KCB
(1778-1855) was a British admiral, brother of Sir William Pym.
In June 1788, Pym joined the Royal Navy as captain's servant of the frigate Eurydice
. He was promoted to lieutenant of the sloop
Martin
, under Captain William Grenville Lobb, and served under Lobb aboard the and the Aimable.
From November 1798, Pym served aboard the Ethalion
(36), taking part in the capture of the Spanish Thetis and Santa-Brigida in 1799. The Ethalion was wrecked on the Penmarks on Christmas Day.
From April 1804, Pym served aboard the Mars
, and from June on the 74-gun Atlas
, under Sir John Thomas Duckworth
. Pym was decorated after the Battle of San Domingo
, on the 6 February 1806.
In October 1808, Pym took command of the 36-gun frigate Sirius
, in the squadron of Commodore Rowley
.
In 1810, Pym was sent to the Île de France (now Mauritius
) to lead a squadron consisting of the frigates Sirius
, Iphigenia Nereide, and the brig
Staunch. On the 13 August, the squadron captured the Île de la Passe which commanded the entrance of Grand Port, and moved to blockade Port Louis. On the 21 August, the squadron seized the East Indiaman Wyndham, previously captured by the French, and learnt that a French frigate squadron had arrived at Grand Port.
The British squadron attempted to attack the French squadron at anchor and moved into the harbour. Entering it, the Sirius and Magicienne ran aground and became unmanoeuverable. The Nereide struck her colours before the French frigates, and the Sirius and Magicienne were scuttled by fire. The last ship of the squadron, the Iphigenia, surrendered two days later. Pym, then at the Île de la Passe, was taken prisoner along with the whole garrison. The Battle of Grand Port
became the only defeat of a British squadron against Napoleonic France. Pym was released in December when Sir Albemarle Bertie
recaptured the Île de la Passe. He was court-martialled and found innocent of the defeat.
In February 1812, Pym was in command of the ship Hannibal
, off Cherbourg, in May of the Niemen
, and in 1830 of HMS Kent
.
Pym was made a rear-admiral in 1837. He served as admiral-superintendent
at Devonport, from 1841 to 1846, and in the autumn of 1845 commanded the experimental squadron
in the Channel. He was promoted to vice-admiral in 1847 and to full admiral in 1851.
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...
(1778-1855) was a British admiral, brother of Sir William Pym.
In June 1788, Pym joined the Royal Navy as captain's servant of the frigate Eurydice
HMS Eurydice (1781)
HMS Eurydice was a 24-gun Porcupine-class post ship of the Royal Navy built in 1781 and broken up in 1834. During her long career she saw service in the American War of Independence, the French Revolutionary Wars and the Napoleonic Wars...
. He was promoted to lieutenant of 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....
Martin
HMS Martin (1790)
HMS Martin was a 16-gun sloop of the Royal Navy.-Construction and commissioning:Martin was a , built to a design by John Henslow and ordered from Woolwich Dockyard on 17 January 1788. She was worked on by Master Shipwright John Nelson until August 1790, after which she was completed by William Rule...
, under Captain William Grenville Lobb, and served under Lobb aboard the and the Aimable.
From November 1798, Pym served aboard the Ethalion
HMS Ethalion (1797)
HMS Ethalion was a 38-gun Artois-class fifth-rate frigate of the Royal Navy. She was built by Joseph Graham of Harwich and launched on 14 March 1797...
(36), taking part in the capture of the Spanish Thetis and Santa-Brigida in 1799. The Ethalion was wrecked on the Penmarks on Christmas Day.
From April 1804, Pym served aboard the Mars
HMS Mars (1794)
HMS Mars was a 74-gun third-rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, launched on 25 October 1794 at Deptford Dockyard.-Career:In the early part of the French Revolutionary Wars she was assigned to the Channel Fleet. In 1797 under Captain Alexander Hood she was prominent in the Spithead mutiny...
, and from June on the 74-gun Atlas
HMS Atlas (1782)
HMS Atlas was a 98-gun second-rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, launched on 13 February 1782. She was a built at Chatham Dockyard by Nicholas Phillips.In 1802 she was reduced to a 74-gun ship....
, under Sir John Thomas Duckworth
John Thomas Duckworth
Admiral Sir John Thomas Duckworth, 1st Baronet, GCB was a British naval officer, serving during the American War of Independence, the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, as the Governor of Newfoundland during the War of 1812, and a member of the British House of Commons during his...
. Pym was decorated after 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...
, on the 6 February 1806.
In October 1808, Pym took command of the 36-gun frigate Sirius
HMS Sirius (1797)
HMS Sirius was a 36-gun fifth-rate frigate of the Royal Navy. Between 1797 and 1805, the Sirius was engaged in maintaining the blockade of Napoleonic Europe...
, in the squadron of Commodore 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:...
.
In 1810, Pym was sent to the Île de France (now Mauritius
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...
) to lead a squadron consisting of the frigates Sirius
HMS Sirius (1797)
HMS Sirius was a 36-gun fifth-rate frigate of the Royal Navy. Between 1797 and 1805, the Sirius was engaged in maintaining the blockade of Napoleonic Europe...
, Iphigenia Nereide, and the brig
Brig
A brig is a sailing vessel with two square-rigged masts. During the Age of Sail, brigs were seen as fast and manoeuvrable and were used as both naval warships and merchant vessels. They were especially popular in the 18th and early 19th centuries...
Staunch. On the 13 August, the squadron captured the Île de la Passe which commanded the entrance of Grand Port, and moved to blockade Port Louis. On the 21 August, the squadron seized the East Indiaman Wyndham, previously captured by the French, and learnt that a French frigate squadron had arrived at Grand Port.
The British squadron attempted to attack the French squadron at anchor and moved into the harbour. Entering it, the Sirius and Magicienne ran aground and became unmanoeuverable. The Nereide struck her colours before the French frigates, and the Sirius and Magicienne were scuttled by fire. The last ship of the squadron, the Iphigenia, surrendered two days later. Pym, then at the Île de la Passe, was taken prisoner along with the whole garrison. 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...
became the only defeat of a British squadron against Napoleonic France. Pym was released in December when Sir 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....
recaptured the Île de la Passe. He was court-martialled and found innocent of the defeat.
In February 1812, Pym was in command of the ship Hannibal
HMS Hannibal (1810)
HMS Hannibal was a 74-gun third rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, built by Adams of Bucklers Hard and launched in May 1810.She was used for harbour service from August 1825. Hannibal was broken up in December 1833 at Pembroke Dock....
, off Cherbourg, in May of the Niemen
HMS Niemen (1809)
HMS Niemen was a Royal Navy 38-gun fifth-rate frigate. She began her career as the Niémen, a 44-gun French Navy Armide-class frigate, designed by Pierre Rolland. She was only in French service for a few months when in 1809 she encountered some British frigates. The British captured her and she...
, and in 1830 of HMS Kent
HMS Kent (1798)
HMS Kent was a 74-gun third rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, launched on 17 January 1798 at Blackwall Yard.She became a sheer hulk in 1856, and was broken up in 1881....
.
Pym was made a rear-admiral in 1837. He served as admiral-superintendent
Admiral-Superintendent
The Admiral-Superintendent was the Royal Navy officer in command of a larger Naval Dockyard. Portsmouth, Devonport and Chatham all had Admiral-Superintendents, as did some other dockyards in the United Kingdom and abroad at certain times. The Admiral-Superintendent usually held the rank of...
at Devonport, from 1841 to 1846, and in the autumn of 1845 commanded the experimental squadron
Experimental Squadron (Royal Navy)
The Experimental Squadrons of the Royal Navy were groups of ships sent out in the 1830s and 1840s to test new techniques of ship design, armament, building and propulsion against old ones...
in the Channel. He was promoted to vice-admiral in 1847 and to full admiral in 1851.
External links
- Samuel Pym 1778-1855
- The Capture of Mauritius in 1810, by Peter Davis