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Robert Pitcairn (Royal Navy Officer)
Robert Pitcairn (6 May 1752 – ) was a Scottish midshipman in the Royal Navy. Pitcairn Island was named after him; he was the first person to spot the island, on 2 July 1767 (ship's time), while serving in a voyage in the South Pacific on , captained by Philip Carteret. Early life and family Pitcairn was born in Burntisland, Fife, in 1752. His father, John Pitcairn (1722–75), was a major in the Royal Marines who commanded the British advance party at the Battle of Lexington where the "shot heard round the world" was fired, and who died from wounds after the Battle of Bunker Hill in 1775. His paternal grandfather, David Pitcairn, was a clergyman at Dysart, Fife, and his paternal grandmother Katherine was the daughter of William Hamilton. His mother Elizabeth (1724–1809) was the daughter of Robert Dalrymple. His uncle William Pitcairn (1712–91) was a doctor at St Bartholomew's Hospital in London. Among his eight siblings (four other sons and four daughters) were: * His br ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Burntisland
Burntisland ( , ) is a former Royal burgh and parish in Fife, Scotland, on the northern shore of the Firth of Forth. It was previously known as Wester Kinghorn or Little Kinghorn. The town has a population of 6,269 (2011). Burntisland is known locally for its award-winning sandy beach, the 15th-century Rossend Castle, as well as the traditional summer fair and Highland games day. To the north of the town a hill called The Binn is a landmark of the Fife coastline; a volcanic plug, it rises above sea level. History Early evidence of human activity in this area has been found in rock carvings on the Binn, thought to be about 4,000 years old. The Roman Empire, Roman commander Gnaeus Julius Agricola, Agricola may have used the natural harbour and set up camp at the nearby Dunearn Hill in AD 83. The earliest historical record of the town was in the 12th century, when the monks of Dunfermline Abbey owned the harbour and neighbouring lands. The settlement was known as ''Wester Ki ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Battle Of Bunker Hill
The Battle of Bunker Hill was fought on June 17, 1775, during the Siege of Boston in the first stage of the American Revolutionary War. The battle is named after Bunker Hill in Charlestown, Boston, Charlestown, Massachusetts, which was peripherally involved. It was the original objective of both the colonial and British troops, though the majority of combat took place on the adjacent hill, which became known as Breed's Hill. On June 13, 1775, the leaders of the colonial forces besieging Boston learned that the British were planning to send troops out from the city to fortify the unoccupied hills surrounding the city, which would give them control of Boston Harbor. In response, 1,200 colonial troops under the command of William Prescott stealthily occupied Bunker Hill and Breed's Hill. They constructed a strong redoubt on Breed's Hill overnight, as well as smaller fortified lines across the Charlestown Peninsula. By daybreak of June 17, the British became aware of the presen ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Strait Of Magellan
The Strait of Magellan (), also called the Straits of Magellan, is a navigable sea route in southern Chile separating mainland South America to the north and the Tierra del Fuego archipelago to the south. Considered the most important natural passage between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, the strait is approximately long and wide at its narrowest point. In 1520, the Spanish expedition of the Portuguese navigator Ferdinand Magellan, after whom the strait is named, became the first Europeans to discover it. Magellan's original name for the strait was ''Estrecho de Todos los Santos'' ("Strait of All Saints"). The King of Spain, Emperor Charles V, who sponsored the Magellan-Elcano expedition, changed the name to the Strait of Magellan in honor of Magellan. The route is difficult to navigate due to frequent narrows and unpredictable winds and currents. Maritime piloting is now compulsory. The strait is shorter and more sheltered than the Drake Passage, the often storm ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Samuel Wallis
Post-captain, Captain Samuel Wallis (23 April 1728 – 21 January 1795) was a Royal Navy officer and explorer who made the first recorded visit by a European navigator to Tahiti. Biography Wallis was born at Fenteroon Farm, near Camelford, Cornwall. He served under John Byron. In 1757, he was promoted to Royal Navy ranks, rates, and uniforms of the 18th and 19th centuries, captain and was given the command of HMS Dolphin (1751), HMS ''Dolphin'' as commander of an expedition accompanied by Philip Carteret on with an assignment to circumnavigate the globe.Quanchi, ''Historical Dictionary of the Discovery and Exploration of the Pacific Islands'', p. 248 As was reported in the press, he was also tasked with discovering the Southern Continent. The two ships were parted by a storm shortly after sailing through the Strait of Magellan. In June 1767, the expedition made the first European landfall on Tahiti, which he named "George III, King George the Third's Island" in honour of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sixth-rate
In the rating system of the Royal Navy used to categorise sailing warships, a sixth-rate was the designation for small warships mounting between 20 and 28 carriage-mounted guns on a single deck, sometimes with smaller guns on the upper works and sometimes without. It thus encompassed ships with up to 30 guns in all. In the first half of the 18th century the main battery guns were 6-pounders, but by mid-century these were supplanted by 9-pounders. 28-gun sixth-rates were classed as frigates, those smaller as 'post ships', indicating that they were still commanded by a full ('post') captain, as opposed to sloops of 18 guns and less, which were under commanders. Rating Sixth-rate ships typically had a crew of about 150–240 men, and measured between 450 and 550 tons. A 28-gun ship would have about 19 officers; commissioned officers would include the captain, and two lieutenants; warrant officers would include the master, ship's surgeon, and purser. The other quarterdeck off ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fifth-rate
In the rating system of the Royal Navy used to categorise sailing warships, a fifth rate was the second-smallest class of warships in a hierarchical system of six " ratings" based on size and firepower. Rating The rating system in the Royal Navy as originally devised had just four rates, but early in the reign of Charles I, the original fourth rate (derived from the "Small Ships" category under his father, James I) was divided into new classifications of fourth, fifth, and sixth rates. While a fourth-rate ship was defined as a ship of the line, fifth and the smaller sixth-rate ships were never included among ships-of-the-line. Nevertheless, during the Anglo-Dutch Wars of the 17th century, fifth rates often found themselves involved among the battle fleet in major actions. Structurally, these were two-deckers, with a complete battery on the lower deck, and fewer guns on the upper deck (below the forecastle and quarter decks, usually with no guns in the waist on this deck). ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pitcairn Island NOAA
The Pitcairn Islands ( ; Pitkern: '), officially Pitcairn, Henderson, Ducie and Oeno Islands, are a group of four volcanic islands in the southern Pacific Ocean that form the sole British Overseas Territory in the Pacific Ocean. The four islands—Pitcairn, Henderson, Ducie and Oeno—are scattered across several hundred kilometres of ocean and have a combined land area of about 47 square kilometres (18 square miles). Henderson Island accounts for 86% of the land area, but only Pitcairn Island is inhabited. The inhabited islands nearest to the Pitcairn Islands are Mangareva (of French Polynesia), 688 km to the west, as well as Easter Island, 1,929 km to the east. The Pitcairn Islanders are descended mostly from nine British HMS ''Bounty'' mutineers and twelve Tahitian women. In 2023, the territory had 35 permanent inhabitants, rendering it the smallest territory in the world in terms of permanent resident population. History Polynesian settlement Various f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Thomas Cochrane, 10th Earl Of Dundonald
Admiral Thomas Cochrane, 10th Earl of Dundonald (14 December 1775 – 31 October 1860), styled Lord Cochrane between 1778 and 1831, was a British naval officer, politician and mercenary. Serving during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars in the Royal Navy, his naval successes led Napoleon to nickname him ''le Loup des Mers'' (the Sea Wolf). He was successful in virtually all of his naval actions. Cochrane was dismissed from the Royal Navy in 1814 after a controversial conviction for fraud on the London Stock Exchange. Travelling to South America, he helped to organise and lead the revolutionary navies of Chile and Brazil during their respective wars of independence during the 1820s. While commanding the Chilean Navy, Cochrane also contributed to Peruvian independence through his participation in the Liberating Expedition of Peru. He was also hired to help the Greek Revolutionary Navy during the Greek War of Independence, but ultimately had little impact. In 1832, C ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Thomas Cochrane, 8th Earl Of Dundonald
Major Thomas Cochrane, 8th Earl of Dundonald (1691 – 31 October 1778) was a British Army officer and politician. He was Member of Parliament for Renfrewshire, 1722–1727. He served as Commissioner of the Excise for Scotland from 1730 until 1764. He acceded to the title of Earl of Dundonald in 1758 on the death of his cousin, William Cochrane, 7th Earl of Dundonald. Early life and education Thomas was born in 1691, the seventh son of William Cochrane of Ochiltree, and his wife Lady Mary Bruce, eldest daughter of Alexander Bruce, 2nd Earl of Kincardine. As a younger son, he would not inherit his father's property, so he entered the army. He became a cornet in the Royal Regiment of Dragoons in 1713, and a captain in the 27th Regiment of Foot in 1716. He rose to the rank of major in 1718 and was Fort Major at Fort St Philip on Menorca. He became Member of Parliament for Renfrewshire in 1722, and represented the constituency until 1727. He was appointed as Commissioner of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Siege Of Yorktown
The siege of Yorktown, also known as the Battle of Yorktown and the surrender at Yorktown, was the final battle of the American Revolutionary War. It was won decisively by the Continental Army, led by George Washington, with support from the Marquis de Lafayette and French Army troops, led by the Comte de Rochambeau, and a French Navy force commanded by the Comte de Grasse over the British Army commanded by British Lieutenant General Charles Cornwallis. The siege began on September 28, 1781, and ended on October 19, 1781, at exactly 10:30 am in Yorktown, Virginia. The victory of Washington and the Continental Army at Yorktown led to the capture of both Cornwallis and the British Army, who subsequently surrendered, leading the British to negotiate an end to the conflict. The British defeat at Yorktown led to the Treaty of Paris in 1783, in which the British acknowledged the independence and sovereignty of the Thirteen Colonies and subsequently to the establishment of the Uni ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
David Pitcairn
David Pitcairn M.D. (1749–1809) was a Scottish physician. Life Born on 1 May 1749 in Fife, he was eldest son of Major John Pitcairn, who was killed at the battle of Bunker's Hill; Robert Pitcairn (1752–) was his brother. He was sent to Edinburgh High School, the university of Glasgow, and then to the University of Edinburgh. He went on in 1773 to Corpus Christi College, Cambridge, where he graduated M.B. in 1779 and M.D. in 1784. In 1779 Pitcairn began practice in London, and was elected a fellow of the Royal College of Physicians on 15 Aug. 1785. He was five times censor, and in 1786 was also Gulstonian lecturer and Harveian orator. On the resignation of his uncle William Pitcairn, he was, on 10 February 1780, elected physician to St Bartholomew's Hospital, and held the post till 1793, when he resigned. He attained a large private practice. John Latham mentioned, in his treatise on gout and rheumatism, that David Pitcairn was the first to discover that valvular disea ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
