Admiral sir Charles Napier (print, c. 1855).

Admiral Sir Charles (John) Napier KCB RN (6 March 1786 – 6 November 1860) was a British naval officer whose sixty years in the Royal Navy included service in the Napoleonic Wars, Syrian War and the Crimean War, and a period commanding the Portuguese navy in the Liberal Wars. An innovator concerned with the development of iron ships, and an advocate of humane reform in the Royal Navy, he was also active in politics as a Liberal Member of Parliament and was probably the naval officer most widely known to the public in the early Victorian Era. Image File history File links Admiral_Charles_Napier. ... Image File history File links Admiral_Charles_Napier. ... Admiral is the rank, or part of the name of the ranks, of the highest naval officers. ... Badge of a Companion of the Order of the Bath (Military Division) The Most Honourable Order of the Bath (formerly The Most Honourable Military Order of the Bath)[1] is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. ... The Royal Navy of the United Kingdom is the oldest of the British armed services (and is therefore the Senior Service). ... March 6 is the 65th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (66th in Leap years). ... 1786 was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ... November 6 is the 310th day of the year (311th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 55 days remaining. ... 1860 is the leap year starting on Sunday. ... Navy is also:- shorthand for Navy Blue the nickname of the United States Naval Academy A navy is the branch of the armed forces of a nation that operates primarily on water. ... The Royal Navy of the United Kingdom is the oldest of the British armed services (and is therefore the Senior Service). ... Combatants Allies: Austria[1] Portugal Prussia[1] Russia[2] Spain[3] Sweden United Kingdom[4] French Empire Holland Kingdom of Italy Kingdom of Naples Duchy of Warsaw Bavaria[5] Saxony[6] Rhine Confederation Denmark [7] Commanders Archduke Charles Prince Schwarzenberg Karl Mack von Leiberich Gebhard von Blücher Karl Wilhelm... This article belongs in one or more categories. ... Combatants Allies: Second French Empire United Kingdom Ottoman Empire Kingdom of Sardinia Russian Empire Bulgarian volunteers Casualties 90,000 French 35,000 Turkish 17,500 British 2,050 Sardinian killed, wounded and died of disease 256,000 killed, wounded and died of disease The Crimean War (1854–1856) was fought... Pedro IV of Portugal, I of Brazil Miguel I of Portugal The Liberal Wars, also known as the Portuguese Civil War, the War of the Two Brothers, or Miguelite War, was a war between progressive constitutionalists and authoritarian absolutists in Portugal over royal succession that lasted from 1828 to 1834. ... This article is about the historic Liberal Party. ... A Member of Parliament, or MP, is a representative elected by the voters to a parliament. ...

Napoleonic service

Napier was the second son of Captain the Hon. Charles Napier, RN, and grandson of Francis, 6th Lord Napier; he was thus a direct descendant of the great mathematician John Napier. He was born at Merchiston Hall, near Falkirk, on 6 March 1786. He became a midshipman in 1800; and served aboard HMS Renown, flagship of Sir John Borlase Warren, and later aboard the frigate Greyhound under Captain William Hoste. He was promoted lieutenant in 1805. He was appointed to Courageux (74), and was present in her in the West Indies at the action in which the squadron under Admiral Warren took the French Marengo (80) and Belle Poule (40), on 13 March 1806. After returning home with Warren, he returned to the West Indies in St George and was appointed acting commander of the brig Pultusk of 16 guns, formerly the French privateer Austerlitz. In August 1808 he became captain of the brig-sloop Recruit (18), and in her fought a hot action off Antigua with the French sloop Diligente (18), in which his thigh was smashed by a cannon-ball. John Napier For other people with the same name, see John Napier (disambiguation). ... Falkirk (An Eaglais Bhreac in Scottish Gaelic) is a town in central Scotland. ... March 6 is the 65th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (66th in Leap years). ... 1786 was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ... A midshipman is a subordinate officer, or alternatively a commissioned officer of the lowest rank, in the navies of several English-speaking countries. ... // ON MAY 5 1853 MR.FADER HAD SEX WITH A MAN NAME MR WIEN THEN THEY HAD SON NAMEDMRS COTURE AND MR MANOOGIAN WENT INTO MRS HASKELLS OFFICE NAKED AND DANCED AROUND AND MASTERBATED ON HER CHEST AND SHE LICKED IT OFF THEN THEY HAD ORAL SEEX WITH NAPLOEAN OF... HMS Renown was a sailing ship of the line in the late 1700s later renamed the Royal Oak. ... Sir John Borlase Warren (1753-1822), English admiral, was born at Stapleford, Nottinghamshire, on the 2nd of September 1753, being the son and heir of John Boriase Warren (d. ... Sir William Hoste (26 August 1780 - 6 December 1828), Royal Navy captain, was the son of Dixon Hoste, rector of Godwick and Tittleshall in Norfolk. ... Lieutenant is a military, naval, paramilitary, fire service or police officer rank. ... 1805 was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ... March 13 is the 72nd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (73rd in leap years). ... 1806 was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... The Caribbean or the West Indies is a group of islands in the Caribbean Sea. ... A privateer was a private ship (or its captain) authorized by a countrys government to attack and seize cargo from another countrys ships. ... 1808 was a leap year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ...

In April 1809 Napier took part in the capture of Martinique, and subsequently distinguished himself in the pursuit of three escaping French ships of the line, handling the small Recruit so well that their flagship, the D'Hautpoult (74), was captured, and as a result was promoted acting post captain. His rank was confirmed, but he was put on half-pay, when he came home as temporary captain of HMS Jason escorting a convoy. He spent some time at the University of Edinburgh, and then went to Portugal to visit his three cousins, (all colonels serving in Wellington's army, and one of whom was Charles James Napier, the future conqueror of Sind). He took part in the Battle of Buçaco, during which he saved his cousin Charles's life and was himself wounded. In 1811, he was appointed captain of the frigate Thames and served in the Mediterranean, disrupting enemy shipping. Among his principal exploits was the capture of the island of Ponza, which was a haven for corsairs. In 1813 he moved to command the frigate HMS Euryalus (36), operating mainly off the French and Spanish Mediterranean coast. Year 1809 (MDCCCIX) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar). ... Post-Captain is an obsolete alternative form of the rank of Captain in the Royal Navy. ... A convoy is a group of vehicles traveling together for mutual support. ... The University of Edinburgh, founded in 1582,[4] is a renowned centre for teaching and research in Edinburgh, Scotland. ... Colonel (IPA: or ) is a military rank of a commissioned officer, with the corresponding ranks existing in nearly every country in the world. ... Field Marshal Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, KG, GCB, GCH, PC, FRS (c. ... General Sir Charles James Napier Sir Charles James Napier (August 10, 1782 - August 29, 1853) was a British general and Commander-in-Chief in India. ... Le de de Sind de ou de Sindh de (Sindhi: ‎, Urdu: ‎, Hindi: ) peut se rapporter : * Sindh de le Pakistan (de 1970), retitré du ** de province de Sind dedans 1990 * [[provinces de |Sind] de province de Sind (1936-1955)] de lInde britannique (1936-04-01 - 1947-08-13) ** de le... The Battle of Buçaco was a battle of the Peninsular War, fought by British and Portuguese forces under the command of the Duke of Wellington on September 27, 1810, to check French pursuit of his retreat to the Lines of Torres Vedras. ... 1811 was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ... The Mediterranean Sea is an intercontinental sea positioned between Europe to the north, Africa to the south and Asia to the east, covering an approximate area of 2. ... Ponza and the Pontine Islands. ... 1813 is a common year starting on Friday (link will take you to calendar). ... HMS Euryalus, launched 1803, was a frigate of the Royal Navy. ...

American War and the 'Hundred Days'

After the surrender of Napoleon in 1814 Napier and his ship were transferred to the coast of America, where the War of 1812 was still in progress. He took part in the expedition up the Potomac to Alexandria, as second in command to Captain James Alexander Gordon. The British squadron took 10 days to travel 50 miles upriver, with many strandings and damage from a tornado, but on 28 August 1814 after bombardment they captured Fort Washington; the town of Alexandria capitulated and the shipping there was seized. The squadron successfully withdrew downriver with their prizes despite American attacks from the shore. During this withdrawal Napier was wounded in the neck. Motto: (traditional) In God We Trust (official, 1956–present) Anthem: The Star-Spangled Banner Capital Washington, D.C. Largest city New York City Official language(s) None at the federal level; English de facto Government Federal Republic  - President George W. Bush (R)  - Vice President Dick Cheney (R) Independence - Declared - Recognized... Combatants United States Native Americans Great Britain, Canadian provincial forces First Nations Peoples Commanders James Madison Henry Dearborn George Prevost Isaac Brock† Tecumseh† Strength •U.S. Regular Army: 35,800 •Rangers: 3,049 •Militia: 458,463* •US Navy & US Marines: (at start of war): •Frigates:6 •Other vessels: 14 •Indigenous... The Potomac River flows into the Chesapeake Bay, located along the mid-Atlantic coast of the United States (USA). ... Location in Virginia Coordinates: Country United States State Virginia Founded 1718 Mayor William D. Euille Area    - City 39. ... James Alexander Gordon, born 6 October 1782, died 8 January 1869, was a distinguished British naval officer of the Napoleonic Wars whose 75 years in the service, from Midshipman to Admiral of the Fleet, was unprecedented in its duration. ... August 28 is the 240th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (241st in leap years), with 125 days remaining. ... 1814 was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ... Fort Washington, located near Fort Washington, Maryland, was for many decades the only defensive fort protecting Washington D.C. The fort (maintained by the National Park Service) is a stone structure with a good cannon shot down the Potomac River. ...

He next distinguished himself in the attack on the city of Baltimore by a British army and 16 warships, 12–14 September 1814, under Admiral Cochrane. Euryalus was involved in the bombardment of Fort McHenry that began early in the morning of the 13th. The critical period of the attack developed shortly after midnight when a picked British force in longboats under Napier’s command penetrated the branch of the river to the west of the fort with the intention of storming it from the flank. Before they could land, however, they were detected and subjected to a withering fire from the guns of Fort McHenry and two smaller forts. The British fought back strongly with cannon and rockets. (Watching the battle from a safe distance, Francis Scott Key was inspired to compose 'The Star-Spangled Banner’.) Eventually American fire power prevailed; Napier was compelled to retire to the warships, and Cochrane’s fleet withdrew on the morning of the 14th. Nickname: Monument City, Charm City, Mob Town[1][2] Motto: The Greatest City in America[3], Get in on it. ... September 14 is the 257th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (258th in leap years). ... 1814 was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ... Admiral Sir Alexander (Forrester Inglis) Cochrane (April 23, 1758 – January 26, 1832) was a senior Royal Navy commander during the Napoleonic Wars. ... Fort McHenry, in Baltimore, Maryland, is a star fort best known for its role in the War of 1812, when it successfully defended Baltimore Harbor from an attack by the British navy in Chesapeake Bay. ... The Patapsco is a river in central and coastal Maryland. ... Francis Scott Key Fort McHenry looking towards the position of the British ships (with the Francis Scott Key Bridge in the distance on the upper left) Francis Scott Key (August 1, 1779 – January 11, 1843) was an American lawyer, an author, and an amateur poet who wrote the words to... Nicholson took the copy Key had given him to a printer, who published it as a broadside on 17 September, 1814 under the title Defense of Fort McHenry, with a note explaining the circumstances of its writing. ...

Euryalus proceeded to Halifax, Nova Scotia for refit and then took part in the ongoing blockade of the eastern seaboard of the USA. Bored by such duties, Napier issued a challenge to the American frigate Constellation, which was lying at Norfolk, Virginia, to come out and fight a single-ship duel. The challenge was accepted and due arrangements were made ‘in the most gentlemanly fashion’, but Euryalus was made part of the squadron that Admiral Cochrane took to Florida and Louisiana in December 1814 in the operations that climaxed in the Battle of New Orleans on 8 January 1815, and before she could return to fulfil her engagement with Constellation news of the peace treaty of Ghent reached the USA. Motto: Template:Unhide = E Mari Merces (Wealth from the Sea) Logo: Location City Information Established: April 1, 1996 Area: (former city) 79. ... The first USS Constellation, a 38-gun frigate, was the first ship to be commissioned in the United States Navy; the first US Navy vessel to put to sea; and the first US Navy vessel to engage, defeat, and capture an enemy vessel. ... Motto: Crescas (Latin for, Thou shalt grow. ... Combatants United Kingdom United States Commanders Sir Edward Pakenham† John Lambert Alexander Cochrane Andrew Jackson Strength 8,000 men 3,500-4,000 men Casualties 385 killed 1,186 wounded 484 captured 13 killed 58 wounded 30 captured The Battle of New Orleans, also known as the Battle of Chalmette... January 8 is the 8th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... April 5-12: Mount Tambora explodes, changing climate. ... Signing of the Treaty of Ghent The Treaty of Ghent, signed on December 24, 1814, in Ghent, (Belgium), was the peace treaty that ended the War of 1812 between the United States of America and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. ...

With Napoleon's escape from Elba and brief return to power, (the 'Hundred Days'), Euryalus returned to Britain. Napier's last mission of the Napoleonic wars was to land troops at the mouth of the River Scheldt to guard against the French advance into Belgium. For other uses, see Napoleon (disambiguation). ... Elba (bottom centre) from space, February 1994. ... The Hundred Days (French Cent-Jours) or the Waterloo Campaign commonly names the period between 20 March 1815, the date on which Napoleon Bonaparte arrived in Paris after his return from Elba, and 8 July 1815, the date of the restoration of King Louis XVIII. The phrase Cent jours was... The Scheldt (Dutch: Schelde, French Escaut) is a 350 km[1] long river in northern France, western Belgium and the southwestern part of the Netherlands. ...

Steam and iron

At the end of the war Napier married Frances Elers, née Younghusband, whom he had known and loved in Edinburgh while still a teenager. She had married and been widowed in the meantime, and had four sons whom Napier adopted as his own. She was to give him two children of his own, a son born in Rome and a daughter born by Lake Geneva. The son, Charles, died as a result of an accident aged five. The first years of his leisure Napier spent in Italy, Switzerland (where he briefly took up farming), and in Paris. He had inherited considerable wealth from his mother's side of the family and spent it freely. During these years Napier began a voluminous and indefatigable correspondence with the Admiralty on the urgency for naval reform, which lasted for the rest of his career. He sought to persuade successive civil administrations of the need for innovative ship-design and tactics, the development of steam ships and the use of iron in ship construction, the proper training of officers, and decent living conditions for ordinary seamen. He held that the use of the press gang and of flogging should be abolished, and that seamen should receive proper wages and pensions. In all this he was far ahead of his time. His advocacy had little effect: on the contrary, successive administrators considered him an eccentric nuisance. He had been interested in steam navigation since its beginnings, and began investing his considerable resources in a steam vessel service that would ply along the River Seine. In 1821 he financed and participated in the construction of one of the first iron-hulled vessels ever built, and the first designed to venture into open water. The Aaron Manby was named after the master of the Horseley Ironworks, Tipton, Staffordshire, where she was pre-fabricated to a design formulated by Napier, Manby and Manby’s son Charles and then assembled at Rotherhithe on the Thames. After trials in May 1822, the Aaron Manby crossed the English Channel to Le Havre under Napier’s command on June 10, 1822, and proceeded up the Seine to Paris, where she caused a great stir and where she was based for the next decade. This has been claimed as the first passage from France to Britain by steam ship, which it was not: but it was the first direct passage from London to Paris by steam ship and the first seagoing voyage by an iron ship anywhere. Napier’s company built five similar steamships but in 1827 he went bankrupt, leaving the family in severe financial difficulty. (Sold off, the ships gave 30 years further service.) Nickname: The Eternal City Motto: SPQR: Senatus PopulusQue Romanus Location of the city of Rome (yellow) within the Province of Rome (red) and region of Lazio (grey) Coordinates: Region Lazio Province Province of Rome Founded 21 April 753 BC  - Mayor Walter Veltroni Area    - City 1285 km²  (580 sq mi)  - Urban... Lake Geneva or Lake Léman (French Lac Léman, le Léman, or Lac de Genève) is the second largest freshwater lake in Central Europe (after Lake Balaton). ... City flag City coat of arms Motto: Fluctuat nec mergitur (Latin: Tossed by the waves, she does not sink) Paris Eiffel tower as seen from the esplanade du Trocadéro. ... Look up Impressment in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Whipping on a post Flagellation is the act of whipping (Latin flagellum, whip) the human body. ... The Seine (pronounced in French) is a major river of north-western France, and one of its commercial waterways. ... Aaron Manby, a landmark vessel in the science of shipbuilding The Aaron Manby was the first steamship to be built of iron. ... St Olavs, Rotherhithes Norwegian church. ... Abbey of Graville, Le Havre Le Havre is a city in Normandy, northern France, on the English Channel, at the mouth of the Seine. ... June 10 is the 161st day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (162nd in leap years), with 204 days remaining. ... 1822 (MDCCCXXII) was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Thursday of the 12-day-slower Julian calendar). ...

Portugal

Sir Charles Napier (1854).

At the beginning of 1829 he was appointed to command the frigate Galatea (42), and was given permission to fit her with paddles of his own design, worked by winches on the main deck, and carried out trials with them that successfully proved that ships could travel independently of the wind. This innovation was not adopted by the Admiralty. At the start of Portugal's Liberal Wars in 1832 Napier was at the Azores, which were the only part of Portuguese territory still held for Queen Maria II of Portugal against the usurpation of her uncle, the absolutist Dom Miguel. He so much impressed the constitutional leaders, especially the Count de Vila Flor (better known by his later title of Duke of Terceira), that they begged him to take command of their small fleet. He accepted in February 1833 after Galatea was paid off. Sailing to Portugal with troop reinforcements and using the incognito of 'Carlos da Ponza', he arrived in Oporto, where Queen Maria's father Dom Pedro, ex-Emperor of Brazil, and the Liberal forces were being besieged by Miguel's armies. He assumed command of the Liberal fleet, succeeding its previous British commander George Rose Sartorius. With it he then transported the Liberal army to the Algarve to open a second front in the south of the country, and on his return voyage destroyed the much larger Miguelite fleet in the Battle of Cape St Vincent on 5 July 1833. These two strokes enabled the Liberals to capture Lisbon, which was abandoned by the Miguelites, though Napier's squadron was now ravaged by cholera. On the demand of France he was struck off the English navy list. On the other hand Dom Pedro appointed him Admiral of the Portuguese Navy on 10 July; and his victory, with a fleet largely manned by British seamen, was viewed in Britain as a credit to the Royal Navy, though it greatly annoyed King William IV, who disliked both Napier and Dom Pedro. Continuing his Portuguese services, he commanded land forces in the successful defence of Lisbon, September 1833, when he was made Grand Commander of the Tower and Sword, and Count of the Cape of Saint Vincent in the Peerage of Portugal. In 1834, with a small army made up largely of British sailors, he reconquered the Minho region for the constitutional cause. After the final defeat of Miguel and the death of Dom Pedro shortly afterwards, Napier found himself frustrated in his attempts to reform the naval administration of Portugal and returned to England. His departure was followed by a vote of thanks to him in both houses of the restored Portuguese parliament. He occupied himself until 1836 with writing a history of the Portuguese War and his own part in it. Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (711x1043, 207 KB) Portrait of the British admiral Sir Charles Napier, by Henry Valentin (1822-18--), Paris : L.Turgis Jeune, 1854. ... Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (711x1043, 207 KB) Portrait of the British admiral Sir Charles Napier, by Henry Valentin (1822-18--), Paris : L.Turgis Jeune, 1854. ... Pedro IV of Portugal, I of Brazil Miguel I of Portugal The Liberal Wars, also known as the Portuguese Civil War, the War of the Two Brothers, or Miguelite War, was a war between progressive constitutionalists and authoritarian absolutists in Portugal over royal succession that lasted from 1828 to 1834. ... Motto: Antes morrer livres que em paz sujeitos (Rather die free than in peace subjugated) Anthem: A Portuguesa (national) Hino dos Açores (local) Capital Ponta Delgada (Presidency of the Regional Government) Angra do Heroísmo (Supreme Court)1 Horta (Legislative Assembly)2 Largest city Ponta Delgada Official languages Portuguese... Maria II da Glória, (pron. ... Miguel of Portugal (English: Michael), the Traditionalist (Port. ... António José de Sousa Manoel de Menezes Severim de Noronha (1792- 26 April 1860), First Duke of Terceira, Seventh Count and First Marquess of Vila-Flor, was a Portuguese soldier and statesman and a leader of the Constitutionalist side in the Liberal Wars, as well as a Prime Minister... 1833 was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ... A modern view of the ancient city of Porto, the city that gave the name to the country. ... Dom Pedro (Lord Peter) is the traditional Portuguese appellation of several kings of Portugal and of the two 19th century Emperors of Brazil: Peter I of Portugal Peter II of Portugal Peter III of Portugal Peter IV of Portugal Peter V of Portugal Peter I of Brazil Peter II of... Miguel of Portugal (English: Michael), the Traditionalist (Port. ... The fourth Battle of Cape St Vincent was fought on 5 July 1833 and was a decisive encounter in Portugals Liberal Wars. ... July 5 is the 186th day of the year (187th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 179 days remaining. ... 1833 was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ... Lisbon (Portuguese: Lisboa, IPA: ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal. ... William IV (William Henry) (21 August 1765 – 20 June 1837) was King of the United Kingdom and of Hanover from 26 June 1830 until his death. ... The Military Order of the Tower and of the Sword, of Valour, Loyalty and Merit is a Portuguese order of knighthood, and was created by King Afonso V in 1459. ... Miño/Minho designates both the river as well as an adjacent Portuguese region Miño/Minho River The river is the longest in Galicia with an extension of 340 km. ...

Syria

Though he published his An Account of the War in Portugal as 'Admiral Charles Napier', he was only an Admiral as far as Portugal was concerned. He was restored to his former rank of Captain in the Royal Navy in 1836, and in 1838 received command of the ship of the line HMS Powerful (84). When troubles broke out in Syria and Mehmet Ali, ruler of Egypt, invaded it and destroyed a Turkish army, he was ordered to the Mediterranean, but there followed a lull of about a year. In the summer of 1840 the Maronite Christians of Lebanon rose in revolt against the occupying Egyptians and Mehmet Ali in retaliation sent Ibrahim Pasha with 15,000 troops to burn towns and villages along the Lebanese coast. By 1 July 1840 Napier, with a detached squadron and the rank of Commodore, was patrolling the coast to protect British interests. Though in August he appeared off Beirut and called upon Suleiman Pasha, Mehmet’s governor, to abandon the town and leave Syria, there was little he could do until September, when he was joined by the allied fleet under Admiral Robert Stopford: mainly British, but also including Turkish and Austrian warships. Open war broke out on 11 September. Due to the illness of the army commander, Brigadier-General Sir Charles Smith, Napier was instructed to lead the land force, and effected a landing at Junieh with 1,500 Turks and Marines to operate against Ibrahim, who was prevented by the revolt from doing more than trying to hold the coastal cities. Meanwhile Stopford, claiming his flag of truce had been fired on, bombarded Beirut, killing many civilians. Napier next distinguished himself by leading an attack by land and sea on Sidon, the Egyptian army’s southern base, which capitulated on 28 September. Ships of the line were 1st, 2nd, or 3rd-rated ships in the rating system of the Royal Navy. ... See Mehemet Ali (Turkey) for the Turkish foreign minister and regent. ... Maronites (Marunoye ܡܪܘܢܝܐܶ; in Syriac, Mâruniyya مارونية in Arabic) are members of an Eastern Catholic Church in full communion with the Pope of Rome. ... Ibrahim Pasha (Arabic: ابراهيم باشا) ‎ (1789 – 10 November 1848), a 19th century general of Egypt. ... July 1 is the 182nd day of the year (183rd in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 183 days remaining. ... 1840 is a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will take you to calendar). ... Commodore is a military rank used in some navies for officers whose position exceeds that of a Captain, but is less than that of a Flag Officer. ... For other uses, see Beirut (disambiguation). ... Suleiman Pasha (born Joseph Anthelme Sève, also known as Süleyman PaÅŸa, Soliman Al Fransawi Pasha, or Colonel Sève; May or July 1788 - Cairo, March 12, 1860) was a French-born Egyptian commander. ... Sir Robert Stopford (5 February 1768 – 25 June 1847), was a distinguished officer in the Royal Navy whose career spanned over 60 years, from the first war with revolutionary France to the Syrian War. ... Charles Smith could be: Charles Emory Smith, an American journalist and politician, (1842-1908) Charles Ferguson Smith, a Union General of the American Civil War, serving under Grant (1807-1862) Charles Hamilton Smith, a British artist, soldier and spy, (1776–1859) Charles Smith, the former Mayor of the Melbourne, Australia... , Sidon or Saida, (Arabic صيدا á¹¢aydā) is the third-largest city in Lebanon. ... September 28 is the 271st day of the year (272nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

The Egyptians abandoned Beirut on 3 October. While preparing to attack them at Nahr-el-Kelb, Napier was ordered to relinquish command of the army to withdraw and hand over the land forces to the now recovered Brigadier-General Smith. To do so would have meant giving up the tactical initiative, and Napier accordingly disobeyed the order and continued with the attack against Ibrahim’s army. The ensuing Battle of Nahr-el-Kelb, or Kelbson, on 10 October, was a hard-fought victory, one of the very few land battles won by a naval officer. By the end of the month the only coastal position still held by the Egyptians was Acre, which Stopford was instructed to recapture. On 3 November the Mediterranean Fleet, with its Turkish and Austrian allies, moved into position against the western and southern sides of the town. The fire of the ships (48,000 rounds in all) was devastatingly accurate. A shell penetrated the main magazine in the south of the city, which exploded killing 1,100 men. That night Acre was occupied. British losses were only 18 men killed and 41 wounded. During the action, Napier had manouvred independently against Stopford’s orders and his division, by accident and mutual misunderstandings, left a space in the fleet’s deployment, not that this affected the outcome. Some captains wanted Napier to be court-martialled for insubordination, but Stopford did not push the issue. October 3 is the 276th day of the year (277th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar. ... The Nahr al-Kalb (Arabic: ‎) (Rendered in English Al-Kalb River, but translated Dog River) is a river in Lebanon. ... October 10 is the 283rd day of the year (284th in leap years). ... An acre is the name of a unit of area in a number of different systems, including Imperial units and United States customary units. ... November 3 is the 307th day of the year (308th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 58 days remaining. ...

The rapid collapse of Mehmet Ali’s power, with the prospect of bloody chaos in Egypt, was not part of the Allies’ plan, and Stopford sent Napier to command the squadron at Alexandria and to observe the situation. Here, acting once again on his own initiative, he appeared before the city on 25 November and enforced a blockade. Then without reference to his Admiral or the British government he personally negotiated a peace with Mehmet Ali, guaranteeing him and his heirs the sovereignty of Egypt, and pledging to evacuate Ibrahim’s beleauguered army back to Alexandria, if Mehmet in turn renounced all claims to Syria, submitted to the Sultan and returned the Ottoman fleet. 'I do not know if I have done right in settling the eastern question', Napier wrote to Lord Minto, the First Lord of the Admiralty. Stopford repudiated the arrangement immediately when he had heard the news, the Sultan and the British ambassador were furious, and several of the Allied powers declared it void. Nevertheless the formal treaty later concluded and confirmed on 27 November was essentially a ratification of Napier’s original, and he was congratulated by his friend Lord Palmerston. (Mehemet’s last heir, King Farouk, was still ruling Egypt in 1952.) This article is about the city in Egypt. ... November 25 is the 329th (in leap years the 330th) day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... The title of Earl of Minto was created in the Peerage of the United Kingdom in 1813. ... The First Lord of the Admiralty was a British government position in charge of the Admiralty. ... Lord Palmerston and Henry Temple redirect here. ... King Farouk of Egypt (February 11, 1920 - March 18, 1965) was the penultimate King of Egypt, succeeding his father Fuad I in 1936. ...

Parliament and Channel Fleet

In acknowledgement of his distinguished services during the campaign Napier was knighted on 4 December 1840, and was also included in the vote of thanks by the Houses of Parliament. He was also presented by the Emperors of Russia and Austria and the King of Prussia with the Order of St. George of Russia; the Order of Maria Theresa of Austria; and the Red Eagle of Prussia. In January 1841, Napier he carried out a special mission to Alexandria and Cairo to see that the treaty was being adhered to before returning to Britain in March. He was invited to stand as Parliamentary candidate in two constituencies and so at his own request was placed on half pay. He was returned as Liberal Party MP for Marylebone at the 1841 general election. He spoke mainly on naval topics, especially conditions for seamen and increasing the strength of the navy. In November, 1841, he was appointed Naval Aide-de-Camp to Queen Victoria. He subsequently wrote and published War in Syria, his personal account of the campaign. On 4 December 1845 he was invested with the Freedom of the City of Edinburgh. Badge of a Companion of the Order of the Bath (Military Division) The Most Honourable Order of the Bath (formerly The Most Honourable Military Order of the Bath)[1] is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. ... December 4th redirects here. ... 1840 is a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will take you to calendar). ... The Order of St. ... Military Order of Maria Theresa The Military Order of Maria Theresa (Militär-Maria-Theresien-Orden in German) was founded on June 18, 1757, the day of the Battle of Kolin, by the Empress Maria Theresa to reward especially meritorious and valorous acts by commissioned officer. ... The Order of the Red Eagle was an order of chivalry of Prussia, awarded to recognize valor in combat or excellence in military leadership. ... Nickname: Al Qahirah (The Triumphant City) Cairos location in Egypt Coordinates: Governor Dr. Abdul Azim Wazir Area    - City 210 km²  - Metro 1,492 km² Population (2005)  - City 7,438,376  - Density 35,420/km²  - Urban 10,834,495  - Metro 15,200,000 Time zone EET (UTC+2)  - Summer (DST... This article is about the historic Liberal Party. ... Marylebone was a two seat constituency in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom created under the Reform Act 1832 and divided under the Redistribution of Seats Act, 1885 into two single member divisions (see below for details). ... The 1841 UK general election saw a big swing as Robert Peels Conservatives took control of the House of Commons. ... Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was the Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837, and the first Empress of India from 1 May 1876, until her death on 22 January 1901. ... December 4th redirects here. ... 1845 was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ...

Napier lost his parliamentary seat in 1846 but was promoted Rear-Admiral of the Blue on 9 November of the same year. In May 1847 he was appointed to the command of the Channel Fleet, hoisting his flag in HMS St Vincent (120). By this time he was perhaps the naval personality most famous to the general public: his level of everyday name-recognition is shown by the passing allusion in William Makepeace Thackeray's famous humorous ballad Little Billee ("the British fleet a-riding at anchor / with Admiral Napier, K.C.B."). Sleeve lace Command flag Please see Admiral for other nations which use this rank Admiral is a senior rank of the Royal Navy of the United Kingdom, outranked only by the rank Admiral of the Fleet. ... The Channel Fleet is the historical name used for the group of Royal Navy warships that defended the waters of the English Channel. ... William Makepeace Thackeray William Makepeace Thackeray (18 July 1811 – 24 December 1863) was an English novelist of the 19th century. ...

The Channel Fleet was sometimes a sinecure, but this was by no means the case during Napier’s period of command. The fleet’s area of operations was not just the English Channel but more or less throughout what in the 20th century would be called the Western Approaches. Portugal was in the closing stages of its ‘little’ civil war, the Patuleia, and British interests in that country needed protecting. Ireland, in the aftermath of the Potato Famine, was feared to be near insurrection. Moreover there were considerations of experiment and training with new ships, made necessary by the rapid technological advances such as screw propulsion. During 1848, the fleet was mainly off the coast of Ireland, where the political situation dictated that Napier show the flag and train for the eventuality of transporting and landing soldiers on practically any part of the Irish coast. In December he took the Channel Fleet further than it had ever operated before, when it was sent to Gibraltar and then onto the Moroccan coast, with the purpose of curbing the activities of Riff pirates. He compelled the Emperor of Morocco, Muley Abderrahman, to grant compensation for the injuries he had inflicted on British commerce. Satellite view of the English Channel The English Channel (French: La Manche (IPA: ), the sleeve) is the part of the Atlantic Ocean that separates the island of Great Britain from northern France and joins the North Sea to the Atlantic. ... The Western Approaches is a rectangular area of the Atlantic ocean lying on the western coast of the United Kingdom. ... Potato famine may mean or refer to: The Irish Potato Famine (1845–1849) The Highland Potato Famine (1846 - 1857) The potato famines of the mid 19th century arose from an infestation of potato blight, Phytophthora infestans, which spread across Europe in the 1840s. ... A propeller can be seen as a rotating fin in water or a wing in air. ... Riff is also an alternate spelling of Rif, a region of Morocco. ...

Napier returned to Britain in April 1849 and was ordered to strike his flag. His disappointment that his expected three years term had been cut short led to bitter letters to The Times criticising the Admiralty’s policy. When he applied for the vacant Mediterranean command, the Government and Admiralty agreed that he could not be trusted and he was rejected, Rear-Admiral Sir James Dundas being appointed instead. This led Napier to write more angry letters to the newspapers and directly to Lord John Russell claiming that he had been defrauded of his just rights. He unsuccessfully contested the parliamentary seat for the Borough of Lambeth. On 28 May 1853 he was promoted to Vice-Admiral of the Blue. Sir James Whitley Deans Dundas (4 December 1785-3 October 1862) was a British admiral. ... John Russell, 1st Earl Russell, KG, GCMG, PC (18 August 1792–28 May 1878), known as Lord John Russell before 1861, was a British Whig and Liberal politician who served twice as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom in the mid-19th century. ... Lambeth is a place in the London Borough of Lambeth. ... Vice Admiral is a naval rank of three star level, equivalent to Lieutenant General in seniority. ...

Baltic Campaign

Bombardment of Sveaborg during the Crimean War. Napier is the large figure in the slouch hat and carrying telescope in centre foreground.

On the outbreak of the Russian War, better known as the Crimean War, he received the command of the largest fleet which the Royal Navy had assembled since the Napoleonic Wars, destined to act in the Baltic Sea. This was not without misgivings on the part of the Admiralty, but he was the most senior and experienced officer available. Napier hoisted his flag in February 1854 in the steam ship of the line HMS Duke of Wellington (131), his subordinate commanders being the Rear-Admirals Arthur Lowry Corry, second in command, Henry Ducie Chads, third in command, and James Hanway Plumridge, commanding the scouting forces. They were all elderly men, at most a year or so younger than Napier himself. Napier's force, which was augmented in June by a French fleet sent by Napoleon III, though impressive on paper, was radically unsuited to operations in the Baltic and he was hampered by contradictory sets of orders from the Admiralty. Nevertheless he successfully blockaded all the Russian ports, sufficiently overawed the Russian Baltic Fleet that it never stirred from its moorings, and carried out many bombardment operations as far as the northenmost point of the Gulf of Finland. During the campaign the first ever Victoria Cross was won by a Midshipman of the gunboat HMS Hecla who threw a Russian explosive shell overboard before it could detonate. During the campaign Rear-Admiral Corry was invalided home because of poor health; he was replaced by Commodore (later Rear-Admiral) Henry Byam Martin. The major success of the campaign was the capture and destruction, in a near-perfect combined operation by French and British soldiers and sailors, of the Russian fortress of Bomarsund on the Aland Islands, which were temporarily liberated from Russian rule and which Napier offered to Sweden (they were declined). But he refused to attack the great naval bases at Sveaborg (often misquoted as the "Gibraltar of the north") and Kronstadt, which observation had established were probably impregnable without shallow-draught bomb vessels which he did not have; and a great outcry (led by the Times newspaper) was raised against him for his apparent lack of determination. (His inaction was thoroughly justified by the sequel: in 1855 a better-equipped Anglo-French fleet did bombard Sveaborg, but despite an enormous expenditure of ammunition caused the fortress only trifling structural damage.) Napier felt he was continually being second-guessed by the Admiralty, and especially by the First Lord of the Admiralty, Sir James Graham. In fact the Naval Lords were reacting to adverse press coverage and unwilling to accept the assessment of the commander on the spot, and relations between them deteriorated as his ships maintained the blockade in atrocious weather, quite unable to storm or destroy impregnable Russian fortresses into the bargain. Never one to mince his words or submit to what he felt to be unmerited criticism, Napier's 'disrespectful' tone in his despatches, which the Admiralty complained of, sealed his professional fate. Image File history File links Download high resolution version (900x699, 184 KB)British fleet bombarding Sveaborg during the Crimean War. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (900x699, 184 KB)British fleet bombarding Sveaborg during the Crimean War. ... Utsikt över Sveaborg (View over Sveaborg), painting by Augustin Ehrensvärd Suomenlinna (Finnish), or Sveaborg (Swedish), is an inhabited sea fortress built on six islands, today within Helsinki, the capital of Finland. ... Combatants Allies: Second French Empire United Kingdom Ottoman Empire Kingdom of Sardinia Russian Empire Bulgarian volunteers Casualties 90,000 French 35,000 Turkish 17,500 British 2,050 Sardinian killed, wounded and died of disease 256,000 killed, wounded and died of disease The Crimean War (1854–1856) was fought... The Baltic Sea is located in Northern Europe, from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from 20°E to 26°E longitude. ... Ships of the line were 1st, 2nd, or 3rd-rated ships in the rating system of the Royal Navy. ... HMS Duke of Wellington, was a major British warship of the mid-19th century, symptomatic of an era of rapid technological change in the Royal Navy, powered both by sail and steam. ... Henry Ducie Chads (1788-1868), an officer in the British Royal Navy who saw action from the Napoleonic Wars to the Crimean War He entered the Royal Naval Academy at 12 years of age, and in 1803 embarked aboard the 74-gun ship of the line HMS Excellent, sharing in... James Hanway Plumridge (c. ... Charles Louis Napoléon Bonaparte (April 20, 1808 - January 9, 1873) was the son of King Louis Bonaparte and Queen Hortense de Beauharnais; both monarchs of the French puppet state, the Kingdom of Holland. ... The Baltic Fleet, located at the Baltic Sea. ... The Baltic Sea The Gulf of Finland is an arm of the Baltic Sea that extends between Finland (to the north) and Estonia (to the south) all the way to the city of Saint Petersburg in Russia, where the river Neva drains into it. ... Victoria Cross medal, ribbon, and bar. ... HMS Hecla was the lead ship of the Hecla class, an ocean going survey ship type in the Royal Navy. ... Bomarsund is a 19th-century fortress in the Åland Islands in the Baltic Sea. ... The Åland Islands, or Landskapet Åland in Swedish, are an autonomous, demilitarised and monolingually Swedish province of Finland, consisting of more than 6,500 islands and skerries. ... Utsikt över Sveaborg (View over Sveaborg), painting by Augustin Ehrensvärd Suomenlinna (Finnish), or Sveaborg (Swedish), is an inhabited sea fortress built on six islands, today within Helsinki, the capital of Finland. ... 1888 map of Kronstadt bay Kronstadt (Russian: ), or Kronshtadt, Cronstadt, is a strongly fortified Russian seaport town, located on Kotlin Island, near the head of the Gulf of Finland, at , . It lies thirty kilometers west of Saint Petersburg, of which it is the chief port. ... [[THIS WEBSITE:]] IT IS RUBBISH IT DOESNT TELL YOU ANYTHING GO ON A DIFFERNT ONE NOT THIS ONE!!!!!! --82. ... The First Lord of the Admiralty was a British government position in charge of the Admiralty. ... Sir James Robert George Graham, 2nd Baronet (1 June 1792 - 25 October 1861) was a British statesman. ...

Retirement

On his return in December 1854 he was ordered to haul down his flag and informed his command was terminated, the fleet being given for the campaign of 1855 to Admiral the Hon. Richard Saunders Dundas, the Second Sea Lord. (None of the flag officers of the 1854 campaign was allowed to return to the Baltic in 1855, but Sir Michael Seymour, Napier's Captain of the Fleet, was promoted to Rear-Admiral and was made second-in-command to Dundas.) Richard Saunders Dundas (1802 - 1861) was a British naval officer. ... The Second Sea Lord is one of the senior admirals of the Royal Navy. ... Sir Michael Seymour (1802 - 1887) was a British admiral and the uncle of Sir Edward Hobart Seymour, also an admiral. ... In the Royal Navy a Captain of the fleet could be appointed to assist an admiral when the admiral had ten or more ships to command. ...

The Admiralty attempted to make Napier a scapegoat for the perceived failure of the campaign (which, within the limits of the possible, had been rather successful) and suborned several captains to testify to their lack of confidence in him, his timidity, his age, his lack of understanding of steam tactics, and his heavy drinking. Nevertheless some of the leading seamen in the fleet, such as Captain (later Admiral) Sir Bartholomew Sulivan, maintained along with him that Napier's strategy had been wise and the faults lay with the Admiralty themselves. Bartholomew James Sulivan, British sailor and hydrographer, born 1810, died 1890 He was a leading advocate of the value of nautical surveying in relation to naval operations. ...

After the war the Russians testified that, knowing Napier's reputation, their main hope had been of his making a foolhardy attack on their fleet under the guns of Kronstadt, where they were confident he would have come to grief. Napier was elected MP for Southwark in February 1855, and carried his dispute with the Admiralty to the floor of the House of Commons. He was never given another command. He continued to campaign vigorously for the improvement of the way common seamen were treated during and after service, and maintained his parliamentary seat, though broken in health, until his death on the 6 November 1860. Southwark was a parliamentary constituency centred on the Southwark district of South London. ... The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. ... November 6 is the 310th day of the year (311th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 55 days remaining. ... 1860 is the leap year starting on Sunday. ...

Just before his death he was hoping to persuade Giuseppe Garibaldi to acquire a fleet for the liberation of Italy, which he would command. Garibaldi in 1866. ...

Character

According to the Encyclopedia entry of 1911, "Sir Charles Napier was a man of undoubted energy and courage, but of no less eccentricity and vanity. He caused great offence to many of his brother officers by his behaviour to his superior, Admiral Stopford, in the Syrian War, and was embroiled all his life in quarrels with the Admiralty." Napier was a large, untidy man who walked with a limp and a stoop due to his leg and neck wounds. His common nickname in the Navy was 'Black Charlie' because of his swarthy appearance and dark side-whiskers. He was also known as 'Mad Charlie' because of his eccentric behaviour and enthusiasms, and 'Dirty Charlie' from his habit of wearing the most unsuitable and ill-fitting clothes while insisting that his officers were correctly dressed at all times. This article belongs in one or more categories. ...

References

• This article incorporates text from the Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition, a publication now in the public domain.

Encyclopædia Britannica, the 11th edition The Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition (1910–1911) is perhaps the most famous edition of the Encyclopædia Britannica. ... The public domain comprises the body of all creative works and other knowledge—writing, artwork, music, science, inventions, and others—in which no person or organization has any proprietary interest. ...

External links

• Vice Admiral Sir Charles Napier