Arthur Cumming (Royal Navy officer)
Sir Arthur Cumming | |
---|---|
Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath |
He was born in
Cumming's first command was
Cumming achieved
Early life
Arthur Cumming was born at
In 1837, Cumming passed his examinations to become eligible for the position of lieutenant and was promoted to the rank of mate on 4 April.[1][2]
By early 1840, Cumming was stationed at HMS Excellent, a navy stone frigate in Portsmouth that housed the gunnery school.[3]
Syrian War
On 14 March 1840 Cumming was appointed mate on the
The ultimatum was refused and the European allies intervened, the naval side of the war becoming the responsibility of Britain and Austria.
Cumming transferred to
South America
On 5 November 1842 Cumming was appointed to the newly built 16-gun sloop
With their captain killed the crew were thrown into confusion and Cumming was able to board the vessel, followed by a marine and six sailors – all that could fit on the deck at the time.[1] Cumming and his men were able to drive the 27-strong and fully armed crew below and lock them beneath the hatches.[1][6] He got the rest of the pinnace's crew aboard and ordered the Portuguese crew shackled to the anchor cable.[1] The other two slavers could have changed the course of events if they chose to get involved but instead made their escape.[1] The Vincedora displaced just 55 tons but was found to be carrying 338 slaves, having left Africa with 450.[6]
The ships set sail for Rio de Janeiro, arriving there on 10 September when the slaves were transferred to the
Cumming hoped that he would be promoted to commander as a result of the action given the unusual circumstances and danger involved.[1] However the event was reported to London merely as the commonplace capture of a slaver and hence merited no reward, a fact that Cumming resented for the rest of his life.[1] Instead all he received was a period of quarantine, followed by an attack of smallpox and a long convalescence in England.[1][6][7] Cumming remained nominally with Frolic until 21 October 1843.[2]
Experimental Squadron
Cumming was posted to the
Albion, alongside Cumming's previous ships Caledonia and Queen and other vessels, was part of the
Crimean War
Cumming saw active service against the Russians during the Crimean War. On 25 February 1854 he received command of the frigate HMS Gorgon, being promoted to post-captain on 19 April.[2] Cumming was transferred to command HMS Conflict on 9 May 1854 and served aboard her in the Baltic Sea until 6 February 1855.[2] In company with HMS Amphion, under the command of Captain Astley Cooper Key, the Conflict sailed into Libau on 17 May 1854.[11] The harbour contained eight Russian merchant vessels and was defended by a force of 4–500 soldiers with 2–3 cannon.[11]
Cumming went ashore under a
Cumming returned to England in 1855 and on 22 May was appointed to
HMS Emerald
Cumming was appointed captain of the 51-gun frigate
Cumming and Emerald returned to Plymouth on 4 July 1860 and was heading to
On his return Cumming was again ordered to America, transporting guns, shot and stores to the West India Squadron, but was hit by storms off Newfoundland and forced to turn back to Plymouth.[12] Once again Emerald was damaged, losing three boats, damaging rigging and equipment and being said to leak "like a sieve".[12] This necessitated another period of repair in Keyham, before Cumming set out for Brazil once more, this time encountering storms in the Bay of Biscay and again being damaged and repaired in dock.[12] Emerald saw service in the Baltic and participated in propeller trials for the Admiralty but was decommissioned in 1863 and sold in 1869.[12]
Cumming was appointed a
Admiral
Cumming's service aboard the Duke of Wellington ended with his promotion to
After retirement, he lived mainly at
In 1877, Cumming wrote to Vice-Admiral
Cumming became an early victim of identity theft on 27 March 1888 when a man impersonating him stole goods worth 100,000 francs (equivalent to approximately £474,000 in current terms) from a Nice jewellery shop.[18][19] The thief had identified himself to the shop's owner, Mr Boxta, as "Admiral Sir Arthur Cumming" and presented a card in that name with Cumming's coat of arms printed on it. Having made a small purchase the thief requested that Boxta bring a large quantity of diamond rings, bracelets and a necklace to his rooms so that he could choose a present for his wife.[18] Boxta was reassured by the high status neighbourhood and a pile of Bank of England notes that the thief showed him and allowed the thief to take the jewellery to an adjacent room from which he was able to escape. The thief was never caught.[18]
Sir Arthur Cumming died in London on 17 February 1893. He was survived by his wife and is buried in Brookwood Cemetery, Surrey.[1]
See also
- O'Byrne, William Richard (1849). John Murray – via Wikisource. . .
References
- ^ required.)
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u Davis, Peter. "Captain Authur Cumming RN". Archived from the original on 26 May 2011. Retrieved 8 September 2010.
- ^ a b c d "Cyclops, 1839". Naval Database. Archived from the original on 14 June 2011. Retrieved 13 September 2010.
- ^ a b c d e f g h "James Bunting – Royal Marines". Retrieved 13 September 2010.
- A Naval Biographical Dictionary. London: John Murray.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i Colomb, Philip Howard. "Memoirs of Admiral the Right Honble. Sir Astley Cooper Key". ebooksread.com. p. 8. Retrieved 8 September 2010.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-7864-3809-9.
- A Naval Biographical Dictionary. London: John Murray.
- ^ a b Davis, Peter. "Experimental squadrons". Retrieved 8 September 2010.
- ^ "No. 21252". The London Gazette. 10 October 1851. p. 2545.
- ^ a b c d e f Colomb, Philip Howard. "Memoirs of Admiral the Right Honble. Sir Astley Cooper Key". p. 26. Retrieved 13 September 2010.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Davis, Peter. "Mid-Victorian RN vessel HMS Emerald". Retrieved 8 September 2010.
- ^ a b c d Davis, Peter. "Extracts from the log of HMS Emerald for the period 4 July 1860 – 13 April 1861". Retrieved 8 September 2010.
- ^ "News by the Suez Mail". Nelson Examiner and New Zealand Chronicle. 20 February 1872. Retrieved 13 September 2010.
- ^ "No. 24800". The London Gazette. 13 January 1880. p. 143.
- ^ "No. 25105". The London Gazette. 9 May 1882. p. 2157.
- ^ a b Davis, Peter. "William Loney RN - Documents". Retrieved 8 September 2010.
- ^ a b c "London Topics". West Coast Times. 3 April 1888. p. 4. Retrieved 8 September 2010.
- ^ UK Retail Price Index inflation figures are based on data from Clark, Gregory (2017). "The Annual RPI and Average Earnings for Britain, 1209 to Present (New Series)". MeasuringWorth. Retrieved 11 June 2022.
Sources
Laughton, John Knox (1901). Lee, Sidney (ed.). Dictionary of National Biography (1st supplement). London: Smith, Elder & Co.
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