Captain Alexander Hood (23 April 175821 April 1798) was an officer of the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against ...

, one of several members of the Hood family to serve at sea, including his brother Sir Samuel Hood, who were both sponsored into the Royal Navy by their cousins once removed, Viscount Hood and Alexander Hood.

Career

He entered the Royal Navy in 1767, and accompanied Captain James Cook in his second voyage of exploration from 1772 to 1775. During the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...

, under Admirals

Richard Howe Admiral of the Fleet Richard Howe, 1st Earl Howe, (8 March 1726 – 5 August 1799) was a British naval officer. After serving throughout the War of the Austrian Succession, he gained a reputation for his role in amphibious operations a ...

and

George Rodney Admiral George Brydges Rodney, 1st Baron Rodney, KB ( bap. 13 February 1718 – 24 May 1792), was a British naval officer. He is best known for his commands in the American War of Independence, particularly his victory over the French at th ...

, when he had command of the cutter ''Ranger'' in March 1780, he distinguished himself in the

West Indies The West Indies is a subregion of North America, surrounded by the North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea that includes 13 independent island countries and 18 dependencies and other territories in three major archipelagos: the Greate ...

, and in July 1781 at the age of 23 he was promoted to captain. Shortly thereafter, he was given command of the 98-gun

second rate In the rating system of the Royal Navy used to categorise sailing warships, a second-rate was a ship of the line which by the start of the 18th century mounted 90 to 98 guns on three gun decks; earlier 17th-century second rates had fewer guns ...

ship of the line, . It was not uncommon for an extremely junior captain to find himself commanding a large ship-of-the-line, if that ship were the flagship of an experienced admiral, who would be able to keep a close eye on the new captain. In this case, the ''Barfleur'' was the flagship of his cousin, Admiral Sir Samuel Hood. On 5 September they took the ''Barfleur'' into battle at the

Battle of the Chesapeake The Battle of the Chesapeake, also known as the Battle of the Virginia Capes or simply the Battle of the Capes, was a crucial naval battle in the American Revolutionary War that took place near the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay on 5 September 17 ...

, where the ship served as flagship of the Van of Sir Thomas Graves' fleet. At the

Battle of the Saintes The Battle of the Saintes (known to the French as the Bataille de la Dominique), also known as the Battle of Dominica, was an important naval battle in the Caribbean between the British and the French that took place 9–12 April 1782. The Brit ...

on 12 April 1782, Hood was in command of one of Rodney's

frigates A frigate () is a type of warship. In different eras, the roles and capabilities of ships classified as frigates have varied somewhat. The name frigate in the 17th to early 18th centuries was given to any full-rigged ship built for speed and ...

, . Later, again under his cousin's command, he proceeded to the

Mona Passage The Mona Passage ( es, Canal de la Mona) is a strait that separates the islands of Hispaniola and Puerto Rico. The Mona Passage connects the Atlantic Ocean to the Caribbean Sea and is an important shipping route between the Atlantic and the Panama ...

, where he captured the French corvette ''Cérès'', a former British warship that the Navy took into service as HMS ''Raven''. Hood became close friends with the commander of his prize, the Baron de Peroy, and during the peace of 1783–1792 paid a long visit to France as his former prisoner's guest. Also married Elizabeth Periam on 11 July 1792. his son was

Sir Alexander Hood, 2nd Baronet Sir Alexander Hood, 2nd Baronet (5 July 1793 – 7 March 1851), was an English Conservative Party politician. He was a Member of Parliament (MP) for Somerset West from 1847 until his death in 1851. References 1793 births 1851 ...

. In the early part of the

French Revolutionary Wars The French Revolutionary Wars (french: Guerres de la Révolution française) were a series of sweeping military conflicts lasting from 1792 until 1802 and resulting from the French Revolution. They pitted France against Britain, Austria, Prussia ...

, ill health kept him at home, and it was not until 1797 that he went afloat again. His first experience was bitter; his ship, the 74-gun

third-rate In the rating system of the Royal Navy, a third rate was a ship of the line which from the 1720s mounted between 64 and 80 guns, typically built with two gun decks (thus the related term two-decker). Years of experience proved that the third r ...

''Mars'', was unenviably prominent in the Spithead mutiny. On 21 April 1798 ''Mars'' fought the Battle of the Raz de Sein with the French ship '' Hercule'' in the dusk near the

Pointe du Raz The Pointe du Raz is a promontory that extends into the Atlantic from western Brittany, in France. The local Breton name is ''Beg ar Raz''. It is the western point of the ''commune'' of Plogoff, Finistère. It is named after the ''Raz de Sein' ...

on the coast of

Brittany Brittany (; french: link=no, Bretagne ; br, Breizh, or ; Gallo: ''Bertaèyn'' ) is a peninsula, historical country and cultural area in the west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known as Armorica during the period ...

. ''Hercule'' attempted to escape through the Passage du Raz but the tide was running in the wrong direction and she was forced to anchor, giving Hood the chance to attack at close quarters. The two ships were of equal force, both seventy-fours, but ''Hercule'' was newly commissioned; after more than an hour and a half of bloody fighting at close quarters she struck her flag, having lost over three hundred men. On ''Mars'' 31 men were killed and 60 wounded. Among the dead was Captain Hood, mortally wounded in the thigh – he had been cut in the

femoral artery The femoral artery is a large artery in the thigh and the main arterial supply to the thigh and leg. The femoral artery gives off the deep femoral artery or profunda femoris artery and descends along the anteromedial part of the thigh in the f ...

. He is said to have died just as the sword of the French captain L'Hériter was being put in his hand. Hood has a house named after him at

The Royal Hospital School ) , established = 1694 Royal Charter1712 Greenwich1933 Holbrook, Suffolk, Holbrook , type = Public school (UK), Public School Independent school (UK), Independent day and boarding School Royal Foundation , founders = William ...

, Suffolk.

Notes

References

*William James, ''Naval History of Great Britain, 1793–1827''. {{DEFAULTSORT:Hood, Alexander 1758 births 1798 deaths People from West Dorset District Royal Navy officers Royal Navy personnel of the French Revolutionary Wars British military personnel killed in the French Revolutionary Wars Royal Navy personnel of the American Revolutionary War

Alexander Alexander is a male given name. The most prominent bearer of the name is Alexander the Great, the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia who created one of the largest empires in ancient history. Variants listed here are Aleksandar, Al ...

Career

See also

Notes

References