Charles Hardy

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Sir Charles Hardy
Hardy, painted by George Romney in 1780
Bornc. 1714
Died18 May 1780
Allegiance Kingdom of Great Britain
Service/branch Royal Navy
Years of service1731–1780
RankAdmiral of the White
Commands held

Sir Charles Hardy (c. 1714 – 18 May 1780) was a Royal Navy officer and politician who sat in the House of Commons between 1764 and 1780. He served as colonial governor of New York from 1755 to 1757.

Early career

Born at Portsmouth, the son of Vice-Admiral Sir Charles Hardy, Charles Hardy joined the Royal Navy as a volunteer in 1731.[1]

He became a

Newfoundland, though there is no record of his visiting it during his term in office.[1] In 1745 he took command of HMS Torrington, assisting in the protection of a convoy which brought reinforcements from Gibraltar to the newly captured fortress of Louisbourg.[1]

He was

James Delancey). During his term he was made Rear-Admiral of the Blue
.

Seven Years' War

In 1757, under the command of Vice Admiral

Halifax intending to attack Louisbourg, but the attack was called off when Louisbourg was found to be strongly defended by a French fleet. The next year, he was second in command under Admiral Edward Boscawen at the successful Siege of Louisbourg.[1]

That autumn, he and

attacked French posts around the mouth of the St. Lawrence River and destroyed all of the French fishing stations along the northern shores of what is now New Brunswick and along the Gaspé Peninsula. He also participated in Hawke's victory at the Battle of Quiberon Bay in 1759.[1]

Hardy served as the governor of Greenwich Hospital from 1771 to 1780. In 1778, he was made Admiral of the White. In 1779 he became Commander-in-Chief of the Channel Fleet, remaining in that post until his death in May 1780.[1]

Member of Parliament

Hardy sat as

Member of Parliament for Rochester from 1764 to 1768 and for Plymouth from 1771 to 1780.[3]

Personal life

In 1749 he married Mary Tate, however she died the next year without issue and left her home Delapré Abbey to Hardy which he sold in 1764[4] to Edward Bouverie for £22,000. Following his first wife's death, he married Catharine Stanyan,[1] the daughter of Temple Stanyan. Through Catherine, he inherited Temple Stanyan's estate at Rawlins, Oxfordshire.

The couple had three sons and two daughters. Sir Charles Hardy died at Spithead. He bequeathed £3000 to each of the sons and £4000 to each daughter,[1] as well as leaving his estate to his eldest son Temple Hardy. By Catharine's death in 1801, only Temple survived of the three sons. Hardy's brother Josiah was a merchant and the Governor of New Jersey from 1761 to 1763.

See also

  • Governors of Newfoundland
  • List of people of Newfoundland and Labrador

References

  1. ^ required.)
  2. .
  3. ^ "HARDY, Sir Charles (c.1714-80)". History of Parliament Online. Retrieved 1 July 2016.
  4. ^ Frances Maria Peacock: A BUILDING HISTORY OF DELAPRE ABBEY 2017
Government offices
Preceded by
Commodore Governor of Newfoundland

1744–1744
Succeeded by
Preceded by
James DeLancey
(acting)
Governor of the Province of New York

1755–1758
Succeeded by
James DeLancey
(acting)
Military offices
Preceded by Governor, Greenwich Hospital
1771–1780
Succeeded by