Admiral
Nicholas Haddock
(1686 ? 26 September 1746) was an
admiral
in the
Royal Navy
and Commander-in-Chief of Britain's naval forces in the
Mediterranean
between 1738 and 1742. Despite an active and successful early and middle career, his reputation was tarnished in 1740 when he failed to prevent the Spanish and French fleets from combining to support an invasion of Italy. Amid public outcry he was forced to resign his naval responsibilities and return to England, where he fell into a melancholic state.
Haddock never returned to sea. He held public office as the
Member of Parliament
for Rochester, but there is no record of him attending parliament or casting a vote. He died at
Wrotham Place
in Kent, in 1746.
Early life
[
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]
Haddock was born in 1686, the third and youngest son of
Sir Richard Haddock
, then
Controller of the Navy
, and his wife Elizabeth. He joined the Royal Navy at thirteen as a
volunteer-per-order
and was promoted to
midshipman
three years later.
[1]
At around this time he also saw his first active service at sea, being present at the
Battle of Vigo Bay
off Spain in 1702. Promoted to lieutenant, he served at the relief of
Barcelona
in 1706. On 6 April 1707 he was promoted to the rank of
captain
and placed in command of the 42-gun
fifth-rate
HMS
Ludlow Castle
.
[2]
England was
at war with France
, and Haddock's orders were to hunt for enemy privateers. On 30 December he brought
Ludlow Castle
into range with two such vessels,
Nightingale
and
Squirrel
, both former English merchantmen captured and refitted by the French. Haddock ordered that
Ludlow Castle
give chase, and was rewarded with the capture of
Nightingale
. This vessel, Haddock's first
prize ship
, was returned to England along with her crew.
[2]
Haddock was also present at the
Battle of Cape Passaro
off Sicily in 1718; he was Captain of the 70-gun
Grafton
, and led the attack.
[3]
Later career
[
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]
In 1723 he purchased the estate of
Wrotham Place
in
Kent
. In 1732 he was appointed to command of
The Nore
. He was Commander-in-Chief in the
Mediterranean Fleet
from 1738 to 1742.
[4]
After the outbreak of the
War of Austrian Succession
, with only 10 ships at his disposal, he was unable to prevent the crossing of two Spanish armies from Barcelona to Italy. In November 1741, a Spanish fleet with 14,000 troops sailed to
Orbetello
and in mid-December, 52 ships carrying almost 12,800 men successfully crossed towards
La Spezia
.
[5]
Only with the arrival of additional ships from Britain in February 1742, he was able to successfully blockaded the Spanish coast
[6]
and take valuable prizes including two treasure ships, but failed to force the Spanish fleet into an action. He was recalled from the Mediterranean in December 1741 and succeeded first by
Richard Lestock
[7]
and then
Thomas Mathews
.
[7]
He was promoted to the rank of
rear admiral
in 1734 and promptly took up a political career, obtaining the Admiralty-controlled
rotten borough
of
Rochester
in the elections in that year. Although no longer a serving sea officer he continued to progress through seniority, reaching the rank of
vice-admiral
in 1744 and
Admiral of the Blue
in 1744. He remained in Parliament as Member for Rochester until his death in 1746.
[1]
His estate, comprising Wrotham Place and a fortune in
South Sea
and
East India Company
shares, was inherited by his eldest son
Nicholas
.
[1]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
a
b
c
"Haddock, Nicholas (1686-1746), of Wrotham Place, Kent"
. United Kingdom: The History of Parliament Trust. 2016
. Retrieved
26 November
2016
.
- ^
a
b
Charnock 1795, p. 383
- ^
"Nicholas Haddock"
. Three Decks
. Retrieved
7 January
2018
.
- ^
Stewart, William (2014).
Admirals of the World: A Biographical Dictionary, 1500 to the Present
. Jefferson, North Carolina, United States: McFarland. p. 152.
ISBN
9780786482887
.
- ^
Reed Browning,
The War of the Austrian Succession
, p. 79-81.
- ^
Reed Browning,
The War of the Austrian Succession
, p. 97.
- ^
a
b
Bruce, Anthony; Cogar, William (2014).
Encyclopedia of Naval History
. Cambridge, England: Routledge. p. 240.
ISBN
9781135935344
.
Further reading
[
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]
External links
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