Sir Thomas Hardy , 1st Baronet Vice - Admiral Sir Thomas Masterman Hardy , 1st Baronet GCB ( 5 April 1769 – 20 September 1839 ) was a Royal Navy officer . He took part in the Battle of Cape St Vincent in February 1797 , the Battle of the Nile in August 1798 and the Battle of Copenhagen in April 1801 during the French Revolutionary Wars . He served as flag captain to Admiral Lord Nelson , and commanded HMS " Victory " at the Battle of Trafalgar in October 1805 during the Napoleonic Wars . Nelson was shot as he paced the decks with Hardy , and as he lay dying , Nelson ' s famous remark of " Kiss me , Hardy " was directed at him . Hardy went on to become First Naval Lord in November 1830 and in that capacity refused to become a Member of Parliament and encouraged the introduction of steam warships . Early life . Born the second son of Joseph Hardy and Nanny Hardy ( née Masterman ) at Kingston Russell House in Long Bredy ( or according to some sources in Winterborne St Martin ) , Hardy joined the navy with his entry aboard the brig on 30 November 1781 as a captain ' s servant , but left her in April 1782 to attend Crewkerne Grammar School in 1782 : during his time at school his name was carried on the books of the sixth - rate and the third - rate . Mediterranean and Nelson . Hardy joined the fifth - rate on 5 February 1790 as a midshipman ; he later transferred to the sixth - rate under Captain Anthony Hunt , and then followed Hunt to the sixth - rate in May 1793 , going out to the Mediterranean in her . Hardy served off Marseilles and Toulon and was commissioned second lieutenant of the fifth - rate under Captain Charles Tyler on 10 November 1793 . Command of " Meleager " passed to Captain George Cockburn in June 1794 ; Cockburn took command of the fifth - rate HMS " Minerve " in August 1796 and Hardy went with him , swiftly rising to the rank of first lieutenant . Horatio Nelson , then a commodore , moved his Broad pennant to the " Minerve " in December 1796 . While en route to Gibraltar , in the action of 19 December 1796 , " Minerve " and her consort , the fifth - rate , engaged two Spanish frigates and forced the " Santa Sabina " to surrender . Lieutenants Hardy and Culverhouse were sent aboard the " Santa Sabina " with a prize crew , and the three ships continued on towards Gibraltar . Before the night was out , Nelson ran into the Spanish fleet and only managed to get away when Hardy drew the Spanish away from " Minerve " and fought until being dismasted and captured . Hardy and Culverhouse were almost immediately exchanged for the captain of the " Santa Sabina " , Don Jacobo Stuart , and were able to rejoin " Minerve " at Gibraltar on 9 February 1797 . With two enemy ships pursuing him , Cockburn ordered more sail . During this operation , a topman fell overboard . The ship hove to and a boat with Hardy in it was lowered to search for the missing mariner . As the enemy ships were closing fast , Cockburn thought it prudent to withdraw , but Nelson overruled him crying " By God , I ' ll not lose Hardy , back that mizzen topsail ! " This confused the Spaniards who checked their own progress , allowing Hardy to return to his ship and make good his escape . Command and the Nile . Hardy remained with " Minerve " until May 1797 when , following a successful cutting out expedition of which he was in charge , he was promoted to master and commander of the newly captured corvette . Under Hardy ' s command , " Mutine " joined a squadron under Captain Thomas Troubridge which met up with Nelson off Toulon in June 1798 , located Napoleon Bonaparte in Egypt and destroyed the French fleet at the Battle of the Nile in August 1798 . Afterwards , Nelson ' s flag captain , Edward Berry was sent home with dispatches and Hardy was promoted to captain of Nelson ' s flagship , , in his place on 2 October 1798 . HMS " Vanguard " carried King Ferdinand IV and the British ambassador Sir William Hamilton and his wife Emma from Naples to safety in Sicily in December 1798 : Hardy did not altogether approve of Lady Hamilton who had once tried to intervene on behalf of a boat ' s crew - Hardy had the crew flogged twice , once for the original offence and again for petitioning the lady . Nelson transferred his flag to the third - rate on 8 June 1799 , taking Hardy with him . In June 1799 , the main fleet , led by " Foudroyant " , landed marines at Naples to assist with the overthrow of the Parthenopean Republic so allowing Ferdinand ' s kingdom to be re - established . Hardy handed over command of " Foudroyant " to Sir Edward Berry on 13 October 1799 , transferred to the fifth - rate and returned to England . Baltic and Copenhagen . After a year ashore , Hardy went to Plymouth Dock in December 1800 to take command of the first - rate , which had just been refitted . He transferred to the second - rate and became Nelson ' s flag captain once more in February 1801 . Nelson was appointed second in command of the Baltic fleet , which had been sent to force the Danes to withdraw from the League of Armed Neutrality . On the night of 1 April 1801 , Hardy was sent in a boat to take soundings around the anchored Danish fleet . Hardy ' s ship drew too much water and so took no part in the Battle of Copenhagen the following day . Hardy ' s work proved to be of great value . The only two ships that went aground , the third - rates and , were taken in by local pilots and did not follow Hardy ' s recommended route . Hardy stayed on as flag captain to the new fleet commander , Vice - Admiral Charles Pole , until August 1801 when he took command of the fourth - rate HMS " Isis " . Mediterranean and West Indies Campaign . In July 1802 , Hardy was appointed to the fifth - rate which after taking the new British ambassador to Lisbon , returned to Portsmouth . Nelson was in Portsmouth , as he was due to hoist his flag in the first - rate in May 1803 , but on finding the ship not ready for him , transferred his flag to the " Amphion " and set sail for the Mediterranean . Nelson and Hardy finally transferred to " Victory " off Toulon on 31 July 1803 . Hardy not only served as Nelson ' s flag captain , but also unofficially as his captain of the fleet . Nelson ' s fleet continued to blockade Toulon until April 1805 , when the French escaped and were pursued to the West Indies and back . After a brief stop at Spithead between 20 August and 14 September 1805 , they set sail for Cadiz arriving on 29 September 1805 . Trafalgar . As " Victory " approached the enemy line on the morning of 21 October 1805 , Hardy urged Nelson to transfer to another ship to avoid the inevitable melee , but Nelson refused . " Victory " , leading the weather column , came under heavy fire in the opening stages of the Battle of Trafalgar . At one point , a splinter took the buckle from Hardy ' s shoe , to which Nelson remarked , " This is too warm work Hardy , to last for long " . Hardy was with Nelson when he was shot and , towards the end of the battle , as Nelson lay below dying , the two had a number of conversations together . Hardy was able to tell Nelson that 14 or 15 British ships had struck the enemy : Nelson replied that he had " bargained for 20 " . In their last conversation , Nelson reminded Hardy to anchor the fleet . Nelson went on to say " take care of my dear Lady Hamilton , Hardy , take care of poor Lady Hamilton . Kiss me , Hardy " and his last words were " God bless you , Hardy " . " Victory " was towed to Gibraltar , arriving on 28 October 1805 , where she underwent major repairs , before setting set sail for England on 4 November 1805 and arriving at Portsmouth on 5 December 1805 . There Nelson ' s body was transferred to the Sheerness Commissioner , Sir George Grey , 1st Baronet ' s yacht " Chatham " to proceed to Greenwich . Hardy carried one of the banners at Nelson ' s funeral procession on 9 January 1806 . Later commands . Hardy was created a baronet on 29 January 1806 and was given command of the third - rate on the North American Station in May 1806 . While in Nova Scotia , he married Anna Louisa Berkley , the daughter of his commander - in - chief , Sir George Cranfield Berkeley . When Admiral Berkley was sent to Lisbon , Hardy went with him as his flag captain in the second - rate . Hardy was made a commodore in the Portuguese Navy in 1811 . In August 1812 , Hardy was given command of the third - rate and was sent back to North America at the outbreak of the War of 1812 . On 11 July 1814 , Hardy in his flagship , assisted by Lieutenant Colonel Andrew Pilkington , led four other warships and several transports carrying 2 , 000 men of the 102nd Regiment of Foot and a company of Royal Artillery against Fort Sullivan . The American defending force of 70 regulars and 250 militiamen gave up without a fight . Hardy and Pilkington issued a proclamation making it clear Great Britain considered Eastport and the several nearby islands to be British territory . Townspeople were required to take an oath of allegiance to the crown or leave . Two thirds of the inhabitants took the oath , while 500 departed . For the few weeks he remained at the place , Hardy became a favourite of the locals , gaining great respect and popularity . However , Hardy ' s next venture , the 9 – 11 August bombardment of Stonington , Connecticut was a defeat ; Royal Navy cannonading set 20 buildings on fire while killing a horse and a goose , while reports indicate the sizeable American defending force killed 21 and wounded 50 British attackers . Hardy was appointed a Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath on 2 January 1815 . Hardy was given command of the royal yacht HMS " Princess Augusta " in July 1816 and , then having been promoted to commodore , became Commander - in - Chief on the South America Station , hoisting his broad pennant in third - rate in August 1819 , with a mission to prevent the Spanish from interfering in the newly emerging republics of Mexico , Colombia and Argentina . Flag rank . Promoted to rear admiral on 27 May 1825 , Hardy hoisted his flag aboard the third rate and escorted 4 , 000 British troops to Lisbon , where they helped to quell a revolution by the eight - year - old queen ' s uncle in December 1826 . He was subsequently given command of an experimental squadron in the Channel , moving his flag from the fifth - rate HMS " Sybille " to the sixth - rate before going ashore for the last time on 21 October 1827 . Hardy became First Naval Lord in the Grey ministry in November 1830 and was advanced to Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath on 13 September 1831 . As first Naval Lord he refused to become a Member of Parliament and encouraged the introduction of steam warships . He resigned in August 1834 to become Governor of Greenwich Hospital . Hardy was promoted to vice admiral on 10 January 1837 and died at Greenwich on 20 September 1839 . He is buried in the mausoleum of the former Hospital , now the Old Royal Naval College . The baronetcy became extinct on his death . Family . On 17 November 1807 Hardy married Louisa Emily Anna Berkeley , daughter of Admiral Sir George Cranfield Berkely , they had three daughters : 1 . Louisa Georgina Hardy born 7 December 1808 , died 1875 . 2 . Emily Georgina Hardy born 30 December 1809 , married in 1850 William Pollett Brown Chatteris , died 1887 . 3 . Mary Charlotte Hardy born 20 March 1813 , married in 1833 Sir John Atholl Murray Macgregor Bt , died 1896 .