page_title: James Walker (Royal Navy officer)
section_title: Family and early life
hierarchical_section_title: James Walker (Royal Navy officer) / Family and early life
context_page_description: James Walker CB, CavTe was an officer of the Royal Navy. He served during the American War of Independence, and the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, rising to the rank of Rear-Admiral.
  Walker spent his early years in the navy at first in British waters during the invasion scares of 1779, and then in North American waters where he saw action at most of the decisive naval battles of the war, particularly at the Chesapeake, St. Kitts and the Saintes. He reached the rank of lieutenant before the end of hostilities and spent the interwar years travelling on the continent. Returning to service with the outbreak of war with the French, he again participated in many of the key naval actions of the period, with his service at the Glorious First of June securing his promotion to his own commands. His career was almost ended with an accusation of disobeying orders, which led to his dismissal from the navy, but he was reinstated in time to develop a plan to subdue the mutinies at Spithead and the Nore. He commanded a ship at the Battle of Camperdown, and another at the Battle of Copenhagen, earning Nelson's praise for his actions.
context_section_description: James Walker was born in 1764, the son of James Walker of Innerdovat, Fife and his wife the novelist, Mary Leslie, the third daughter of Alexander Melville, 5th Earl of Leven. He entered the navy as a midshipman aboard the 32-gun HMS Southampton on 18 December 1776, serving under Captain William Garnier. He went out to Jamaica in January 1777, but returned to British waters for service in the North Sea and then the English Channel with Sir Charles Hardy's fleet during the invasion crisis in 1779. While serving in the Channel in 1780, Southampton captured an 18-gun French privateer off Portland, with 80 men aboard her. Walker was sent to assist in removing the prisoners, and after doing so remained on board to help with the baling and pumping, as the privateer was in danger of sinking. Despite his efforts the privateer suddenly sank, nearly taking Walker down with her. He was in the water for ten minutes before being rescued. 
  William Garnier was succeeded by Philip Affleck in command of Southampton in August, and the ship returned to Jamaica. Walker continued to serve on her until June 1781, when he was transferred to the 98-gun HMS Princess Royal, the flagship of Rear-Admiral Joshua Rowley. Walker was appointed to act as lieutenant on 18 June 1781 and was assigned to HMS Torbay, part of Sir Samuel Hood's squadron despatched to North America. Under Hood Walker saw action at the Battle of the Chesapeake on 5 September 1781, the Battle of St. Kitts on 26 July 1782, and the Battle of the Saintes on 12 April 1782. During the Battle of the Saintes Torbay had ten men killed and 25 wounded.  Walker was then on the verge of being promoted again, due to the intimate friendship between his father and Admiral Sir George Rodney, but before this could be carried out Rodney was superseded by Admiral Hugh Pigot, and Walker remained at his previous rank. He continued on aboard Torbay, and was present at the Action of 18 October 1782, when Torbay and HMS London encountered the French 74-gun Scipion. The British ships chased her into Samana Bay, Haiti, where she ran aground and was wrecked. Walker received his lieutenant's commission on 8 May 1783.
caption: The Battle of the Saintes, 12 April 1782: surrender of the Ville de Paris by Thomas Whitcombe, painted 1783.
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