# Royal Naval Biography/Huskisson, Thomas

Layout 2
THOMAS HUSKISSON, Esq. Paymaster of the Navy. [Post-Captain of 1811.]
Half-brother of the Right Hon. William Huskisson, late one of his Majesty’s Principal Secretaries of State; and of Major-General Samuel Huskisson.
​This officer was born at Oxley, near Wolverhampton, co. Stafford, July 31, 1784. He entered the navy under the patronage of Admiral Mark Milbanke, as a midshipman on board the Beaver sloop of war, July 22, 1800; and served in that vessel, under the command of Captain C. B. Jones, on the Channel station, until Oct. 24, 1800, when we find him joining the Romney of 50 guns, Captain Sir Home Popham; with whom he proceeded to the Red Sea, where he appears to have been employed with another midshipman, in a small hired brig, surveying the coast of Arabia from Mocha to within a few miles of Jeddah, the port of Mecca. He afterwards visited various parts of India, and continued in the Romney till she was put out of commission, June 2, 1803. From that period he served under Captain George Hope, in the Defence 74, until she was also paid off, in Dec. 1805.
The Defence bore a very distinguished part at the battle of Trafalgar, on which occasion she sustained a loss of 7 men killed and 29 wounded: her first opponent was the Berwick, French 74, and her next the San-Ildefonso, a Spanish ship of similar force, which she compelled to surrender, and afterwards preserved from destruction, although totally dismasted; – a practical proof of the benefit that might have been derived had the whole of the British fleet and prizes likewise anchored, agreeably to Nelson’s dying injunctions.
Mr. Huskisson next joined the Foudroyant 80, bearing the flag of Sir John B. Warren, in which ship he witnessed the capture of Rear-Admiral Linois, after a running fight with the London 98, and Amazon frigate. Mar. 13, 1806. On the 9th Aug. following, he was ordered to act as Lieutenant of the Foudroyant; an appointment which was confirmed by the Admiralty, Nov. 15 in the same year.
After leaving the Foudroyant, June 1807, Mr. Huskisson was appointed to the Prince of Wales 98, in which ship he performed the duty of Flag-Lieutenant to Admiral (now Lord) Gambier, during the operations against Copenhagen; but ​unfortunately the new regulations were at that time a bar to his; promotion, as he had not served a sufficient time to qualify him for the rank of Commander.
At the commencement of 1808, Lieutenant Huskisson received an appointment to the Hyperion frigate, then just commissioned; and shortly afterwards he was ordered to repair on board the Melpomene 38, for a passage to Jamaica,, with Vice-Admiral B. S. Rowley, who gave him the command of the Fleur-de-la-Mer schooner, and sent him to cruise on the coast of St. Domingo, where he rescued a gentleman belonging to the former island from the grasp of Christophe, under whose displeasure he had fallen, and to which he would in all probability have been sacrificed; as was another person, an American, under similar circumstances. Lieutenant Huskisson subsequently visited Carthagena, on the Spanish Main, where, through his intercession, seven individuals were restored to liberty, who had accompanied General Miranda to that coast, and who had not seen day-light from the time they were made prisoners, shortly after his landing.
In May, 1809, Lieutenant Huskisson heard of his promotion, and appointment to the Pelorus, a fine 18-gun brig, stationed at the Leeward Islands. His commission as a Commander bears date Jan. 18, 1809.
In Oct. following Captain Huskisson assisted at the destruction of a French schooner privateer, in the bight of Point-à-Petre, “under circumstances of considerable difficulty,” and, as Sir Alexander Cochrane acquaints the Admiralty, “highly honorable to the parties employed.” The following is a copy of the official letter in which the performance of this service is detailed:–
“H.M. sloop Hazard, of St. Mary’s, Guadaloupe, Oct. 17, 1809.
“Sir,– Cruising on my station blockading Point-à-Petre, Pelorus in company, at day-light this morning I observed a schooner, moored under the battery of St. Mary. I immediately determined on the capture or destruction of her. Both sloops stood in sufficiently close to silence the battery effectually, and cover our boats, which were despatched under the orders of Lieutenants Robertson and Flin, first of their respective sloops; ​and I am happy to say they succeeded in boarding her; but as she was moored to the shore with a chain from the mast-head and each quarter, finding it impossible to bring her out, they shortly after blew her up.
“In justice to the officers and men employed on this service, I cannot omit particularizing the very gallant manner in which they approached the schooner, under a very heavy fire of grape from the battery, until it was silenced by us, and of grape and musketry from the privateer till they were nearly alongside, when the enemy quitted her, and joined a long line of musketry on the beach, and two field pieces, to the fire of which they were exposed during the whole time they were preparing to blow her up, at a distance of not more than ten yards.
“The privateer had one long 18-pounder on a circular carriage, and two swivels; about 100 tons, and appeared to have from 80 to 100 men; she was coppered, appeared new, and left Point-à-Petre yesterday on a cruise. Our joint loss has been 15 killed and wounded; that of the enemy must have been very considerable, as the shore was completely lined with musketeers, exposed to a heavy cannonade from both sloops, as well as from the small arms in the boats.
“I should be very deficient in my duty was I not to mention the very gallant style in which Captain Huskisson of the Pelorus supported me, in totally destroying the enemy’s battery by a joint fire.
“It is impossible for me to express my ideas of the very gallant manner in which Lieutenants Robertson and Flin conducted themselves on this occasion: they speak in the highest terms of Messrs. Brisbane and Hunter, midshipmen of this ship; Mr. Ferguson, boatswain, and Mr. Scott, mate, of the Pelorus; who, as well as every individual employed, were volunteers on the service. I have the honor to be, &c.
(Signed)“Hugh Cameron.”
“To Commodore Fahie.”
The Pelorus formed part of the naval force under Sir Alexander Cochrane, at the reduction of Guadaloupe, in 1810; after which conquest the subject of this memoir received an order from that officer to act as captain of the Blonde frigate, and directions to convoy home a valuable fleet of merchantmen.
Captain Huskisson put the Blonde out of commission, at Woolwich, in July, 1810; and rejoined the Pelorus in Nov. following; the Admiralty having refused to confirm his appointment to the frigate, in consequence of the death vacancy which occasioned it having occurred on the Halifax station, and the right of appointing an officer to fill it being claimed ​by Sir John B. Warren, and admitted by their lordships, although the Captain who had died was then proceeding to Barbadoes, for the purpose of placing himself under the orders of Sir Alexander Cochrane.
Captain Huskisson’s promotion to post rank took place Mar. 14, 1811; at which time the Pelorus was employed on the Jamaica station. From May 1 in the same year, until June 1812, he commanded the Garland frigate. At the latter period he was removed by Vice-Admiral Stirling to the Barbadoes of 28 guns, and ordered to accompany the Polyphemus 64, with a fleet of merchantmen, to a certain latitude. Whilst thus employed he captured, after a seven hours’ chase, the United States’ revenue schooner James Madison, pierced for 14 guns, but with only 10 mounted, and a complement of 65 men. This fine fast-sailing vessel had been hovering about the outskirts of the convoy all the preceding day, and her commander was meditating an attack upon the rear of the fleet, with a view of burning as many vessels as he possibly could, in the course of the ensuing night.
A few days afterwards, the Barbadoes was separated from the convoy in a violent hurricane, during the continuance of which she lost her topmasts and main-yard, and was otherwise much disabled.
After refitting at Bermuda, Captain Huskisson took charge of three small vessels bound to Halifax, and was proceeding thither with 60,000 dollars on board for the dock-yard, when, in the night of Sept. 28, 1812, the Barbadoes and two of her consorts were unfortunately wrecked on the N.W. bar of Sable Island. There being a very heavy surf between them and the shore, the boats were all stove and unfit for service before half the frigate’s crew were landed; and at the end of 46 hours, there was nothing to be seen of her except mere fragments of wreck, with which the beach was strewed; happily, however, only one man perished on this disastrous occasion: the specie was saved by throwing it overboard, with a buoy attached to each of the cases.
​The vessel that escaped was immediately despatched to Halifax with intelligence of what had happened; and at the end of 12 days Captain Huskisson and his companions in misfortune were released from their unpleasant situation by the arrival of the Shannon frigate, and a schooner sent to their relief. The sentence of the court-martial afterwards held at Halifax, to enquire into the circumstances attending the loss of the Barbadoes, was as follows:–
“No blame is imputable to Captain Huskisson, his officers, and ship’s company; but the loss of the ship was occasioned by the extraordinary and uncertain set of the currents; and it appears to the Court that every exertion was used for the preservation of the stores and provisions, but the state of the weather precluded every possibility of doing it: the Court doth therefore most fully acquit Captain Huskisson, his officers, and ship’s company and they are hereby most fully acquitted accordingly.”
From Halifax, Captain Huskisson returned to England in the Africa 64, a guest at Vice-Admiral Sawyer’s table. His next appointment was, June 7, 1815 to the Euryalus 42, in which frigate he proceeded to cruise off Havre, where he remained as senior officer of the squadron employed in watching that port and the mouth of the Seine, to prevent the escape of Napoleon Buonaparte, until it was known that that personage had surrendered himself to the Bellerophon 74.
On the 25th July, 1818, Captain Huskisson was again appointed to the Euryalus, then fitting at Chatham for the Leeward Islands station. On the 18th Nov. 1819, he hoisted a broad pendant at Barbardoes, the command of the squadron in the Caribbean seas having devolved upon him in consequence of the death of Rear-Admiral Donald Campbell, which had taken place at Tortola seven days before.
On the 16th May, 1820, Rear-Admiral Fahie arrived from England, when Captain Huskisson received directions to proceed to Jamaica, and place himself under the command of his friend Sir Home Popham. On the 16th June, only eight days after his arrival at Port Royal, he again hoisted a broad pendant, and assumed the command of the squadron on that station, the health of Sir Home being in so precarious a state as to oblige him to return to England, where he died on the 11th Sept. following. It perhaps has never before happened ​to any officer of Captain Huskisson’s standing in the service, to have had a broad pendant on two stations, on each of which he held the command six months.
On the 23d Dec. 1820, Captain Huskisson was relieved by Sir Charles Rowley; and as his health was then much impaired he invalided, and returned home in the Sandwich packet. In Sept. 1821, he obtained the command of the Semiramis 42, fitting for the flag of Lord Colville, with whom he continued on the Irish station till Mar. 16, 1822. His appointment to be Paymaster of the Navy took place in Mar. 1827.
The subject of this memoir married, in 1813, Miss E. Wedge, the youngest daughter of an eminent agriculturist, well known in the west of Staffordshire, by whom he has ​three sons and two daughters. His brother, George Huskisson, Esq. is an officer in the royal marines, and Collector of the Customs at the island of St. Vincent’s. One of his sisters is married to the Rev. James Walhouse, uncle to Edward John Littleton, Esq. M.P. for the county of Stafford.
Agent.– Messrs. Cooke, Halford, and Son.
* ↑ See Suppl. Part. I. p. 56.
* ↑ See Vol. I, Part II, p. 435 et seq.
* ↑ See Captain Donald Campbell.
* ↑ Pelorus – 2 killed, 1 mortally, 2 severely, and 3 slightly wounded.
* ↑ Captain Charles Worsley, of the Statira 38, whose demise took place at sea, Nov. 17, 1809.
* ↑ On being informed of the demise of Captain Arthur Stow, of the Tamar 26, whom he had recently ordered to Halifax, Commodore Huskisson appointed his first Lieutenant, Mr. Charles Peake, to command the Bann sloop, vacant by the removal of Captain Wilson B. Bigland to the Tamar; but on the arrival of the latter ship at Halifax, Rear-Admiral Griffith thought proper to fill up the death vacancy also. Hearing this, the Commodore wrote to the Admiralty, requesting their Lordships not to suffer him to be deprived of the patronage which so justly belonged to him, the vacancy having occurred whilst the Tamar was still within the limits of his command. The Board did not think proper to grant his request, but superseded all the appointments that had taken place, and gave the command of the Tamar to an officer then in England; at the same time paying off the sloop he commanded, in order to avoid promoting either of the Lieutenants selected by the Commodore and Rear-Admiral. Mr. Peake subsequently commanded the Euryalus for a short period; and on that ship being paid off, her crew presented him with a handsome silver vase and cover, and a sword and belt, as a testimony of their gratitude and esteem for his kindness, &c. &c. He is still a Lieutenant.
* ↑ In 1819, a dreadful sickness prevailed on board the Euryalus, to which many of her ship’s company became victims in the short space of six weeks. She also lost a Lieutenant and 5 other very fine young men belonging to the quarter-deck, one of whom was Mr. Joseph Thomas Marshall, brother to the author of this work. By the same packet that brought home an account of his death was received an unfinished letter from him, wherein he spoke of his commander in such terms, as induced his afflicted relatives to return their most grateful thanks to Captain Huskisson, for his parental kindness to the lamented youth.
addendum.
THOMAS HUSKISSON, Esq. (Suppl. Part II. p. 344.)
This officer was appointed one of the captains of the Royal Hospital, Greenwich, on the 15th Oct. 1830. His eldest son, Thomas, midshipman of the Cordelia sloop, died at Malta in June 1833, aged 18 years. Possessing the most amiable and gentlemanly qualities, he was loved and esteemed by all who knew him.