William Bokenham was 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...

 officer and Whig politician who sat in the House of Commons

House of Commons of England

The House of Commons of England was the lower house of the Parliament of England from its development in the 14th century to the union of England and Scotland in 1707, when it was replaced by the House of Commons of Great Britain...

 from 1701 to 1702.

Bokenham was commissioned as a lieutenant in the Royal Navy on 10 August 1681 and became a captain on 7 May 1689. He was captain of HMS Happy Return

HMS Happy Return (1654)

The Winsby was a 44-gun fourth-rate frigate of the English Royal Navy, originally built for the navy of the Commonwealth of England at Yarmouth, and launched in February 1654....

 from 1689 to 1690, of HMS Monck

HMS Monck (1659)

HMS Monck was a 52-gun third rate frigate built for the navy of the Commonwealth of England at Portsmouth, and launched in 1659. She retained her name after the Restoration of the monarchy in 1660. By 1677 her armament had been increased to 60 guns....

 in 1691 and on HMS Duchess

HMS Duchess (1679)

HMS Duchess was a 90-gun second rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, built by John Shish at Deptford Dockyard, and launched in 1679. She was renamed HMS Princess Anne in 1701, HMS Windsor Castle in 1702, and HMS Blenheim in 1706....

 from 1693 to 1694. In 1696 he was first captain to Sir George Rooke

George Rooke

Admiral of the Fleet Sir George Rooke was an English naval commander. He is known for his service in the wars against France and particularly remembered today for his victory at Vigo Bay and for capturing Gibraltar for the British in 1704.-Early life:Rooke was born at St Lawrence, near Canterbury...

 and was later first captain to Lord Berkeley

John Berkeley, 3rd Baron Berkeley of Stratton

John Berkeley, 3rd Baron Berkeley of Stratton was an English admiral.- Biography :He was the second son of John Berkeley, 1st Baron Berkeley of Stratton, and succeeded to the title on March 6, 1681, by the death of his elder brother Charles, a captain in the navy.On December 14, 1688 he was...

.

In 1700 Bokenham acquired Digs Court, otherwise called Digges, in the parish of Westwell, Kent.

In November 1701 Bokenham was elected Member of Parliament

Member of Parliament

A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...

 (MP) for Rochester

Rochester (UK Parliament constituency)

Rochester was a parliamentary constituency in Kent. It returned two Members of Parliament to the House of Commons of England from 1295 to 1707, then to the House of Commons of Great Britain from 1708 to 1800, and finally to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1801...

 in the government interest, and held the seat until July 1702.

In August 1702, Bokenham became captain of HMS Association, a ninety gun ship. He took part in the Battle of Vigo Bay

Battle of Vigo Bay

The Battle of Vigo Bay, also known as the Battle of Rande , was a naval engagement fought on 23 October 1702 during the opening years of the War of the Spanish Succession. The engagement followed an Anglo-Dutch attempt to capture the Spanish port of Cádiz in September in an effort to secure a naval...

on 23 October 1702 when his ship fired broadsides at the battery on the left of the harbour, which soon disabled it. Vigo Bay was a resounding victory for the Anglo-Dutch forces against the French.

Bokenham's brother Robert was also a naval captain.