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George Brydges Rodney (1718-1792), later Admiral Lord Rodney, had anything but a conventional career. His promising early career, which left him marked for advancement, had run into the sand during the long years of peace after the Seven Years War (1756-1763). Indeed when Britain and France found themselves at war again in 1778 as a result of the latter's support for the American colonists, Rodney had exiled himself in France to escape his creditors. It was only due to he generosity of a French nobleman that he was able to return to England.The main emphasis of this work is on Rodney's final two years of active service as Commander-in-Chief of the Leeward Islands during the closing stages of the American War of Independence Of the 21 enemy ships of the line captured or destroyed by the Royal Navy during the whole of that War, Rodney accounted for 15. His years of glory culminated in the defeat of the Comte de Grasse's fleet at the Battle of the Saintes fought off Dominica on 12 April 1782, where he famously broke the French line.Despite his undoubted fighting qualities, Rodney was a hard superior and difficult subordinate. His aloof and autocratic character won him few friends and he was also accused of letting his desire for prize money cloud his professional judgment. But there is no question that his prowess inspired others , not least Nelson himself.For a better understanding of both this complex character and maritime history during the American War of Independence, Rodney and the Breaking of the Line can be strongly recommended.(First published as a hardback in 2006 by Pen & Sword Military)

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Publié par	eBookPartnership.com
Date de parution	12 août 2013
Nombre de lectures	0
EAN13	9781783011636
Langue	English
Poids de l'ouvrage	1 Mo

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RODNEY AND THE BREAKING OF THE LINE
PETER TREW
First published in 2006 by Pen & Sword Military • Barnsley • South Yorkshire • S70 2AS
This edition first published in 2013 by eBookPartnership.com
ISBN: 978-1-78301-163-6
Copyright © Peter Trew, 2006
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publisher and copyright holder.
Peter Trew has asserted the moral right to be identified as the author of this work.
Table of Contents
Copyright
Also by Peter Trew
Dedication
Maps and Diagrams
Acknowledgements
Note on Money, Measurements and Terminology
Chronology
Introduction
Chapter 1: Early Life
Chapter 2: Flag Rank
Chapter 3: The Moonlight Battle
Chapter 4: De Guichen
Chapter 5: De Grasse
Chapter 6: St Eustatius
Chapter 7: The Chesapeake
Chapter 8: The Saintes – Preliminaries
Chapter 9: The Battle of the Saintes
Chapter 10: Aftermath
Appendix 1
Appendix 2
Appendix 3
Appendix 4
Appendix 5
Appendix 6
Appendix 7
Appendix 8
Bibliography
Index
Paintings and Drawings
Endnotes
Also by Peter Trew
The Boer War Generals , Sutton Publishing, 1999
IN MEMORY OF JOAN TREW
1936-2005
A life devoted to others
Maps and Diagrams
1. The Caribbean in the Late Eighteenth Century
2. The Lesser Antilles - St Vincent to St Eustatius
3. The Moonlight Battle, 16-17 January 1780
4. Rodney v. de Guichen off Martinique, 17 April 1780 - Rodney’s First Attempt at Concentration
5. Rodney v. de Guichen off Martinique, 17 April 1780- Rodney’s Second Attempt at Concentration
6. Rodney v. de Guichen off Martinique, 17 April 1780- Closing Stages
7. Rodney v. de Guichen off Martinique, 15 May 1780- Opening Stages
8. Rodney v. de Guichen off Martinique, 15 May 1780- Closing Stages
9. Rodney v. de Guichen off Martinique, 19 May 1780- Opening Stages
10. Rodney v. de Guichen off Martinique, 19 May 1780- Closing Stages
11. Hood v. de Grasse off Martinique, 29 April 1781- Opening Stages
12. Hood v. de Grasse off Martinique, 29 April 1781- Closing Stages
13. The Battle of the Chesapeake, 5 September 1781
14. Hood v. de Grasse at St Kitts, 24-26 January 1782
15. The Battle of the Saintes, 12 April 1782- Start of Action
16. The Battle of the Saintes, 12 April 1782- The Breaking of the Line
Acknowledgements
I am grateful to Conway Maritime for including my original article 'Rodney and the Breaking of the Line' in Volume 2 of The Age of Sail which was published in 2003.
In writing this book I have benefited greatly from the work of those who have gone before me, not only the distinguished authors who have written on and around the subject, but also those who have edited, published, collated or otherwise made more accessible the relevant parts of the great corpus of naval records. My thanks are due also to the staff of the London Library, the British Library, the National Archives (Public Record Office), the National Maritime Museum, the Admiralty Library and the Historical Manuscripts Commission. I am grateful to Lord Rodney for allowing me to reproduce in full Rodney's advice to his son, Captain John Rodney, on the duties of a captain (Appendix 8). Commander David Barraclough and my son, Martin Trew, read the manuscript between them and made valuable suggestions. Martin helped additionally with the Spanish account of the Moonlight Battle. My son-in-law Glen Miller continued my education in computer graphics and helped with the maps. Philip Ferris kindly helped me with research into Rodney's connections with Old Alresford. I am indebted to those who have allowed me to reproduce pictures in their possession and their contributions are acknowledged separately. It has been a pleasure to work with the team at Pen & Sword and in particular Bobby Gainher, my editor. Finally the book would not have been written without the support and forbearance of my wife, Jo, who died before she could see it in print and to whose memory it is dedicated.
Note on Money, Measurements and Terminology
MONEY
Any rule for arriving at the present-day value of the English Pound in the late eighteenth century has to be used with caution. It depends very much on what the money was spent on. With that proviso I have used the House of Commons Library Research Paper 02.44 11 Jul 2002 – Inflation: The Value of the Pound 1750-2001.
The French Livre was equal approximately to one English shilling, i.e. to one-twentieth of a Pound. 1
MEASUREMENTS
Distances expressed in miles in the text have in some cases been converted from distances expressed in leagues in the relevant sources, on the basis of 3 nautical miles to the league. Confusingly, the French 'lieue' is translated as 'league', but it is a different unit of measurement, probably equivalent in the late eighteenth century to approximately 2.4 nautical miles, and I have used that conversion factor where appropriate. 2
The cable, in Rodney's day, equalled 240 yards, i.e. 120 fathoms, the standard length of an anchor cable.
TERMINOLOGY
For greater clarity I have used 'port' and 'starboard' to define the two sides of a ship instead of 'larboard' and 'starboard', which would be more correct historically.
Chronology
1718, 13 February, George Brydges Rodney Baptized in St Giles-in-the-Field, London
1732, July, Entered Navy as King's letter boy in Sunderland (60) Capt. Robert Man
1734, January, Joined Dreadnought (60) Capt. Alexander Geddes (Capt. Henry Medley from Dec 1734)
1738, May, Transferred to Romney (50) Capt. Henry Medley
1739, July, Joined Somerset (80) flagship of Rear Adm. Nicholas Haddock
1739, Joined Dolphin, frigate, Capt. Lord Aubrey Beauclerk (Rodney's uncle)
1741, Lieutenant of the Essex under Sir John Norris
1742, To Med with Adm. Mathews, rising to first lieutenant of Namur (90)
1742, 9 November, Promoted captain of Plymouth (60) then under orders for England
1743, August, Captain of Sheerness, 24-gun frigate
1744, September, Ludlow Castle, Employed during the following year in the North Sea under Adm. Edward Vernon
1746, Captain of Eagle (60), Initially employed on trade protection in Western Approaches
1747, With Commodore Fox in successful cruise to westward
1747, 14 October, Participates in defeat of French fleet under l'Etanduère
1749, Captain of Rainbow (40) as Governor of Newfoundland
1751, Elected MP for Saltash and thereafter successively MP for Okehampton and Penryn as a nominee of the government or the Duke of Newcastle until 1768
1952, Autumn, Rainbow paid off. In the following years Rodney commanded Kent, Fougueux, Prince George and Monarch
1753, Married Jane (d. 1757), daughter of Charles Compton, brother of the fifth Earl of Northampton
1756, December, In London on leave. Excused sitting Byng's court martial on grounds of illness
1758, February, Captain of the Dublin
1757, Autumn, Dublin with Hawke's fleet in abortive expedition to Basque Roads
1759, Dublin with Boscawen on coast of North America
1759, 19 May, Appointed rear admiral and appointed, with flag in Achilles, to command of squadron including several bomb-ketches
1759, 5 to 7 July, Bombarded Le Havre destroying stores and flat-bottomed boats intended for invasion of England. Off Le Havre for remainder of year and again in 1760
1761, To West Indies as C-in-C of Leeward Islands station
1762, February, Reduced Martinique and took possession of St Lucia, Grenada and St Vincent
1762, 21 October, Promoted vice admiral
1763, August, Returned to England
1764, 21 January, Created baronet
1764, Married Henrietta (d.1829), daughter of John Clies of Lisbon
1765, 16 December, Appointed Governor of Greenwich Hospital
1768, Elected MP for Northampton on own resources and said to have incurred expenditure of £30,000
1771, (early), Accepts command at Jamaica
1771, August, Nominated Rear Admiral of Great Britain
1775, (early), Takes up residence in Paris
1778, May, Returns to England with financial assistance from the Maréchal de Biron
1778, 29 January, Promoted admiral
1779, 29 December, Sails from Plymouth Sound for the West Indies via Gibraltar having accepted command of the fleet on the Leeward Islands station
1780, 16 to 17 January, Defeats inferior Spanish force under Don Juan de Lángara south of Cape St Vincent and relieves Gibraltar. Nominated extra Knight of the Bath and presented with freedom of the City of London
1780, 17 March, Rodney reaches Barbados with four ships of the line
1780, 22 March, Comte de Guichen takes command of French fleet in Martinique
1780, 17 April, Rodney and de Guichen in inconclusive action west of Martinique
1780, 15 May, Rodney and de Guichen in inconclusive action east of Martinique
1780, 19 May, Rodney and de Guichen in inconclusive action east of Martinique
1780, 16 August, de Guichen returns to Europe, accompanied by de Grasse
1780, 15 September, Rodney arrives in New York with ten ships of the line
1780 Rodney elected MP for Westminster
1780, 16 November, Rodney leaves America
1780, 6 December, Rodney arrives in Barbados
1780, 20 December, Britain declares war on Holland
1781, 7 January, Rodney joined in the West Indies by Sir Samuel Hood with a large reinforcement
1781, 27 January, Rodney receives news of war with Holland and a recommendation to attack Dutch possessions in the West Indies
1781, 3 February, Rodney receives surrender of St Eustatius
1781, 22 March, de Grasse appointed lieutenant general and sails from Brest for the West Indies
1781, 29 April, de Grasse in skirmishes with Hood off Martinique
1781, 6 May, de Grasse enters Fort Royal, Martinique.
1781, 1 June, de Bouillé and de Grasse capture Tobago.
1781, 16 July, de Grasse arrives at Cap Fran ais, St Domingo
1781, 1 August, Rodney sails for England having resigned his command to Hood
1781, 5 August, de Grasse