Benjamin Hallowell Carew
Sir Benjamin Hallowell Carew Beddington Park, Wallington, England | |
---|---|
Allegiance | United Kingdom |
Service/ | Royal Navy |
Years of service | c. 1781–1834 |
Rank | Admiral of the Blue |
Commands held | HMS Scorpion HMS Camel HMS Robust HMS Courageux HMS Lowestoffe HMS Lively HMS Swiftsure HMS Argo HMS Tigre Cork Station Nore Command |
Battles/wars |
|
Awards | Order of Saint Ferdinand and Merit (Naples) |
Relations | Ann Inglefield (wife) |
Early years
Although he is often identified as
His father's job exposed Hallowell's
Educated in the private schools of England, through his father's connections with Admiral Samuel Hood, 1st Viscount Hood, Hallowell entered the Royal Navy at a slightly later age than was normal, receiving his promotion to lieutenant on 31 August 1781.
Benjamin Hallowell's naval career spanned the
By 1795 he was in command of
Following her loss, Hallowell served as a volunteer aboard HMS Victory during the Battle of Cape St. Vincent (1797). Admiral Sir John Jervis commended Hallowell to the Admiralty by for his actions during the battle. Jervis, a stern and imposing figure, informed of the superior odds facing him, he expressed determination to attack no matter how strong the opposition; Hallowell, standing with Jervis on the deck of Victory, reportedly expressed loud approbation and thumped his commander-in-chief on the back in a startling display of familiarity.[9] Subsequently, Hallowell received command of HMS Lively.[10]
Capture
On 10 June 1801 Hallowell encountered
On his repatriation, Hallowell received the court-martial that was automatic for a Royal Navy captain who had lost his ship, but was honourably acquitted.[12] Meanwhile the French Navy took Swiftsure into service under her own name.[13]
Nelson's coffin
Hallowell is probably best known as the man who made Nelson a present of what would become his own coffin, after the
Sir, I have taken the liberty of presenting you a coffin made from the main mast of L'Orient, that when you have finished your military career in this world you may be buried in one of your trophies. But that that period may be far distant is the earnest wish of your sincere friend, Benjamin Hallowell
— "The Life of Horatio, Lord Nelson", Robert Southey, Chapter V[14]
Nelson is said to have been pleased with the gift, keeping it propped against the wall of his cabin for some time, behind the chair in which he sat for dinner, and taking it with him to his next command.[7] After Nelson was killed in 1805 during the Battle of Trafalgar, he was buried in the coffin Hallowell had given him.[15]
Hallowell himself, now in command of HMS Tigre, missed the Battle of Trafalgar. Nelson had sent Tigre, along with five other vessels in his squadron, to Gibraltar for water and on convoy duty.[16] However his old command, Swiftsure, took part on the French side. She and her officers and crew, including Hallowell, had been captured in 1801 after a fight with a squadron of five French warships. Hallowell faced a court-martial over this incident when he was returned to England after a short time as a prisoner of war, but he was honorably acquitted of any failure of duty.[17]
Hallowell remained a serving naval officer after Nelson's death and went on to be Commander-in-Chief,
Honours
Hallowell was awarded the
Inheritance and change of name in later life
In 1828, Sir Benjamin Hallowell succeeded to the estates of the Carew family of Beddington, Surrey, on the death of his cousin, who had herself inherited them from her brother-in-law. In accordance with the terms of her will, he assumed the Carew name and coat of arms, becoming known as Admiral Sir Benjamin Hallowell Carew.[26] He died on 2 September 1834.
In person he was the exact cut of a sailor, five feet eight or nine inches high, stout and muscular, but not at all corpulent. His countenance was open, manly, and benevolent, with bright, clear grey eyes, which, if turned inquiringly upon you, seemed to read your most secret thoughts. His mouth was pleasing and remarkably handsome, but indicative of decision and strength of character; and his thinly scattered hair, powdered, and tied in a cue [sic] after the old fashion, displayed, in all its breadth, his high and massive forehead, upon which unflinching probity and sterling good sense seemed to have taken their stand.
— Abraham Crawford, Reminiscences of a Naval Officer, during the Late War with Sketches and Anecdotes of Distinguished Commanders. London, Henry Colburn, 1851[27]
Hallowell-Carew married Ann Inglefield, daughter of John Nicholson Inglefield. They were the parents of Captain Charles Hallowell-Carew R.N., who married Mary Murray Maxwell, daughter of Sir Murray Maxwell and great granddaughter of Sir Alexander Maxwell, 2nd Bt., of Myrton Castle, Wigtownshire.
References
- ^ Portrait, National Portrait Gallery
- ^ "Nelson's 'Band of Brothers' at www.remembernelson.com". Archived from the original on 1 September 2008. Retrieved 3 September 2008.
- ^ Lambert, Andrew. "Nelson's band of brothers (act. 1798)". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
- ^ "Benjamin Hallowell Homestead on the Jamaica Plain Historical Society website". Archived from the original on 4 September 2008. Retrieved 4 September 2008.
- ^ Drake, Samuel Adams: Old Landmarks and Historic Personages of Boston, page 148. J. R. Osgood & Company, 1873. Published online by Ann Arbor, Michigan: University of Michigan Library 2005]
- ^ James, William (1837). "British and French Fleets". The Naval History of Great Britain. Vol. 1. London: Richard Bentley. pp. 190–191. Archived from the original on 22 April 2008. Retrieved 4 September 2008.
- ^ a b "Benjamin Hallowell Biography Part 1". Naval Marine Archive, Picton, Ontario. Retrieved 4 September 2008. Abstracted from Captain A Crawford, RN, Reminiscences of a Naval Officer, During the Late War. With Sketches and Anecdotes of Distinguished Commanders. In Two Volumes. Embellished with Portraits of Admirals Sir Edward Owen and Sir Benjamin Hallowell Carew. London, Colburn, 1851.
- ^ "James 1837 Vol I pp 316-317". Archived from the original on 10 March 2009. Retrieved 4 September 2008.
- ^ (Crawford 1851)
- ^ James 1837 Vol II 55
- ^ a b c "No. 15437". The London Gazette. 19 December 1801. pp. 1505–1506.
- ^ "SWIFTSURE (74)". Retrieved 15 October 2008.
- ^ Capture du Swiftsure
- ^ "Transcribed at www.paintedships.com". Archived from the original on 16 May 2008. Retrieved 4 September 2008.
- ^ James 1837 Vol IV 96
- ^ James 1837 Volume IV 92
- ^ James 1837 Vol III 94
- ^ Marshall, John (1835). Royal Naval Biography; Or, Memoirs of the Services of All the Flag-officers, Superannuated Rear Admirals, Retired Captains, Post-Captains and Commanders. Longmans Rees. p. 262.
- ISBN 978-0786438099.
- ^ "No. 17727". The London Gazette. 20 July 1821. p. 1511.
- ^ "No. 18709". The London Gazette. 23 July 1830. p. 1539.
- ^ "No. 15333". The London Gazette. 31 January 1801. p. 140.
- ^ "No. 16391". The London Gazette. 28 July 1810. p. 1119.
- ^ "No. 16972". The London Gazette. 4 January 1815. p. 19.
- ^ "No. 18810". The London Gazette. 7 June 1831. p. 1107.
- ^ "No. 18483". The London Gazette. 1 July 1828. p. 1273.
- ^ Quoted at www.sailingnavies.com. [dead link]
Further reading
- Elson, Bryan, Nelson's Yankee Captain: The Life of Boston Loyalist Sir Benjamin Hallowell (2008) ISBN 978-0-88780-751-0
External links
- Media related to Benjamin Hallowell Carew at Wikimedia Commons
- Portrait of Sir Benjamin Hallowell Carew by John Hayter at the National Portrait Gallery in London
- Sir Benjamin Hallowell Carew's robes as a Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath, displayed at the National Maritime Museum, London[permanent dead link]
- Manuscript letter from Sir Benjamin Hallowell to Captain Lempriere of HMS Trent, 1815