It is not even clear when he entered the Navy, although he was gazetted lieutenant in December 1777 aged 22, quite a bit older than most of his contemporaries.
Dan tidak jelas saat dia masuk ke akademi angkatan laut, meskipun dia dilantik menjadi Letnan pada December 1777 di usia 22 tahun, Lebih tua dari rekan-rekan se akademi.