The Life of Admiral Viscount Exmouth | Page 3

a Commander-in-chief--Hostility of the new Ministry--Sir T. Troubridge sent to take the more valuable part of the command--Oversight of the Admiralty--Dispute between the two admirals--Sir Edward confirmed in his command--Melancholy fate of the Blenheim, Sir T. Troubridge--Sir Edward sends Captain Troubridge in search of his father--Actions in the Indian Seas--San Fiorenzo and Psyché--Piedmontaise and _Warren Hastings_--Ferocity of the French first lieutenant, and Sir Edward's general order in consequence--San Fiorenzo and Piedmontaise--French privateers--Murderous contest between the Victor and Malay pirates--Attack on Batavia Roads, and destruction of the shipping--Captain Fleetwood Pellew at Samarang--Attack on Griessée, and destruction of the line-of battle ships--Sir Edward's protection of commerce--Convoy system--Resolutions of the Bombay merchants--His care of the fleet--Establishes a naval hospital at Madras--Punishment: Sir Edward's regulations--Encounters a hurricane on his homeward voyage. page 148
CHAPTER IX.
NORTH SEA AND FIRST MEDITERRANEAN COMMANDS.
Declines an offer to be second in command in the Mediterranean--Commander-in-chief in the North Sea; his activity and energy--Receives the Mediterranean command--Affair off Toulon--His expectations of a battle--Disposition of his force--System of the fleet--His attention to discipline; to economy--Frigate affairs off Toulon--Care of his officers--Nature of the service in the Mediterranean--Daring of the crews--Effect of their successes--Diplomatic responsibility--Sir Edward's anxiety for a battle--Anecdote of Napoleon--Affair of November 5th, 1813--of February 13th, 1814--Capture of Genoa--Peace. page 170
CHAPTER X.
SECOND MEDITERRANEAN COMMAND.
Sir Edward created Baron Exmouth--His letter on the occasion--Made Knight of the Bath--Renewal of hostilities--Resumes the command in the Mediterranean--Services at Naples--Services at Marseilles--Instructed to negotiate with the Barbary Powers--Anecdote of the Pope--Causes the city and defences of Algiers to be surveyed--Previous ignorance of the place--General order to the fleet--Peace made with Algiers--Abolition of slavery at Tunis and Tripoli--Second visit to Algiers--Violent discussions, negotiation broken off, danger of the party, hostile proceedings--Negotiation renewed--Arrangement--Lord Exmouth's anxiety at having exceeded his instructions--Debate in the House of Commons--Massacre at Bona--Determination of the Government to enforce the abolition of Christian slavery. page 187
CHAPTER XI.
THE BATTLE OF ALGIERS.
Description of the defences--Force demanded by Lord Exmouth--Surprise of the Admiralty at the small force he required--Lord Exmouth's confidence--His entire satisfaction with the arrangements of the Admiralty--He refuses to allow his relations to accompany him--His promptitude--Sails--Preparations for the battle--A Dutch squadron joins at Gibraltar--Preparations made by the Algerines--Particulars of the battle--Fleet hauls off--Lord Exmouth's conduct after the battle--His very narrow escapes--Submission of the enemy--Lord Exmouth's account of the battle, in a private letter--Closing remarks. page 200
CHAPTER XII.
LORD EXMOUTH'S RETIREMENT AND DEATH.
Honours paid him--His exertions for his officers--Thanks of Parliament--Activity of his mind--Command at Plymouth--Trial of the Queen--His unpopularity, and remarks on it--His independence in politics--Catholic question--His religious principles and conduct--Peace of his declining years--Anxiety for the safety of the country--Death of his daughter--Death of his grandchild; his reflection on the occasion--Made Vice-Admiral of England--Death of Sir Israel Pellew--Lord Exmouth's attachment to the Church, and confidence in God's protection of it--His last illness and death. page 221

THE LIFE
OF
ADMIRAL VISCOUNT EXMOUTH
CHAPTER I.
FAMILY HISTORY.
The life and services of Lord Exmouth are of no common interest; not more because he has advanced the reputation of his country, and connected his name with her history, than that he began his career an almost unfriended orphan, and rose to the highest honours of his profession without having been indebted to fortune or to patronage. One of the most interesting spectacles is that of rising merit struggling from its difficulties. The most encouraging, is the honour which rewards its exertions. The young officer, who, like him, has devoted himself to an arduous service, with nothing to rely on but his sword, may derive instruction from his example, and encouragement from his success.
Edward Pellew, Viscount Exmouth, descended from a family which was settled in the west of Cornwall for many centuries, but came originally from Normandy, where the name is still met with. After the close of the war he received a letter from a family there, claiming kindred, and offering the name and armorial bearings in proof. The original orthography, "Pelleu," was retained until a comparatively recent period. They are said to have landed at Pengersick Castle, near St. Michael's Mount, and appear to have remained in that part of the county until the beginning of the 17th century. They had a family tomb in Breage, a parish on the eastern side of the Mount's Bay, in which they had acquired property, and they still possess a small estate in that neighbourhood. Part of this early history, it will be seen, can rest only upon tradition; and indeed, it is of very little importance. The weakness of seeking credit from remote ancestors, for one whose personal honours require no further illustration, may well be exploded. But there is one kind of ancestry where an inquiry will always be interesting--that where the traits which distinguished the founder of a family may be traced in the character of his forefathers.
The earliest of the family of