Daniel Pring ( 1788 – 29 November 1846) was an officer in the British

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...

. He is best known for the part he played in the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 was fought by the United States and its allies against the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom and its allies in North America. It began when the United States United States declaration of war on the Uni ...

between Britain and the

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. He was born near

Honiton Honiton () is a market town and civil parish in East Devon, situated close to the River Otter, Devon, River Otter, north east of Exeter in the county of Devon. Honiton has a population estimated at 12,154 (based on 2021 census). History The ...

Devon Devon ( ; historically also known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel to the north, Somerset and Dorset to the east, the English Channel to the south, and Cornwall to the west ...

. He entered the Navy in 1800, and evidently took part in the abortive

British invasions of the Río de la Plata The British invasions of the River Plate were two unsuccessful British attempts to seize control of the Spanish colony of the Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata, located around the Río de la Plata in South America – in present-day Argenti ...

, as in 1807 he was appointed Lieutenant and commander of the

schooner A schooner ( ) is a type of sailing ship, sailing vessel defined by its Rig (sailing), rig: fore-and-aft rigged on all of two or more Mast (sailing), masts and, in the case of a two-masted schooner, the foremast generally being shorter than t ...

, taken as a prize at

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. His promotion to Lieutenant was confirmed in 1808. In 1810, he married Sarah Anne Wemyss from Dundee. In 1811, he was serving aboard HMS ''Africa'', the flagship of Vice Admiral Sir Herbert Sawyer, the commander in chief of the North American station based at

Halifax, Nova Scotia Halifax is the capital and most populous municipality of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Nova Scotia, and the most populous municipality in Atlantic Canada. As of 2024, it is estimated that the population of the H ...

. The following year, he transferred to , the flagship of Sawyer's successor, Vice Admiral Sir

John Borlase Warren Admiral Sir John Borlase Warren, 1st Baronet (2 September 1753 – 27 February 1822) was a Royal Navy officer, diplomat and politician who sat in the British House of Commons between 1774 and 1807. Early life Born in Stapleford, Nottinghamshir ...

. He was one of three Lieutenants (the other two being Robert Finnis and Robert Heriot Barclay) detached by Warren to the naval establishment on the

Great Lakes The Great Lakes, also called the Great Lakes of North America, are a series of large interconnected freshwater lakes spanning the Canada–United States border. The five lakes are Lake Superior, Superior, Lake Michigan, Michigan, Lake Huron, H ...

, with the acting rank of Commander. The Admiralty however had independently appointed Captain Sir James Lucas Yeo as Commodore to command on the lakes. During the early part of 1813, Pring served as commander of HMS ''Wolfe'', which carried Yeo's broad pendant. Later in 1813, Pring was appointed to the naval establishment on

Lake Champlain Lake Champlain ( ; , ) is a natural freshwater lake in North America. It mostly lies between the U.S. states of New York (state), New York and Vermont, but also extends north into the Canadian province of Quebec. The cities of Burlington, Ve ...

, based at Ile aux Noix in the

Richelieu River The Richelieu River () is a river of Quebec, Canada, and a major right-bank tributary of the St. Lawrence River. It rises at Lake Champlain, from which it flows northward through Quebec and empties into the St. Lawrence. It was formerly kno ...

. He was temporarily superseded by Commander Thomas Everard (who was senior to Pring) during several destructive raids against American outposts and depots on Lake Champlain during the late summer of 1813. During the early months of 1814, Pring commanded gunboats which played a part in the Battle of Lacolle Mills. In the spring of 1814, the Americans constructed a substantial flotilla on Lake Champlain, which outmatched Pring's force. In response, the British laid down the

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 N ...

frigate HMS ''Confiance''. This was a ship which required a Post Captain in command, so Pring was superseded by Captain George Downie. Pring took charge of the 16-gun

brig A brig is a type of sailing vessel defined by its rig: two masts which are both square rig, square-rigged. Brigs originated in the second half of the 18th century and were a common type of smaller merchant vessel or warship from then until the l ...

''Linnet''. During the

Battle of Plattsburgh The Battle of Plattsburgh, also known as the Battle of Lake Champlain, ended the final British invasion of the northern states of the United States during the War of 1812. Two British forces, an army under Lieutenant General Sir George Prévos ...

, Pring anchored the ''Linnet'' across the head of the American line of battle and did great damage, but Downie was killed and the ''Confiance'' and two other British armed vessels were forced to surrender. Left isolated and unable to escape, Pring fought on until the ''Linnet'' was battered almost to the point of sinking. In his report, Pring paid tribute to the gallantry of Downie, and also to the care paid to the prisoners and wounded by his opponent, Master Commandant Thomas Macdonough. As was customary after any defeat, Pring faced a

court martial A court-martial (plural ''courts-martial'' or ''courts martial'', as "martial" is a postpositive adjective) is a military court or a trial conducted in such a court. A court-martial is empowered to determine the guilt of members of the mili ...

between 18 and 21 August 1815 aboard HMS ''Gladiator'', but was exonerated and honourably commended. The next year, he was promoted Post Captain. He briefly commanded the naval establishment on

Lake Erie Lake Erie ( ) is the fourth-largest lake by surface area of the five Great Lakes in North America and the eleventh-largest globally. It is the southernmost, shallowest, and smallest by volume of the Great Lakes and also has the shortest avera ...

, but this was soon closed down. Pring then went on half pay for 20 years, living at Ivedon Penn near Honiton. In 1836, he returned to active service, in command of the frigate HMS ''Inconstant''. From 1841 until 1843, he commanded the

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 A ship of the line was a type of naval warship constructed during the Age of Sail from the 17th century to the mid-19th century. The ship of the line was designed for the naval tactics in the Age of Sail, naval tactic known as the line of battl ...

HMS ''Thunderer''. In 1845, he commanded the 76-gun ship of the line, HMS ''Imaum'', and was appointed Commodore of the Jamaica Division as well as the shore establishment Jamaica Dockyard. He died late in 1846 at

Port Royal Port Royal () was a town located at the end of the Palisadoes, at the mouth of Kingston Harbour, in southeastern Jamaica. Founded in 1494 by the Spanish, it was once the largest and most prosperous city in the Caribbean, functioning as the cen ...

, Jamaica, possibly of yellow fever. He and his wife apparently left no children.

References

*Forester, C. S. ''The Age of Fighting Sail'', New English Library, . *Hitsman, J. Mackay, ''The Incredible War of 1812'', University of Toronto Press, .

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Pring, Daniel Royal Navy personnel of the War of 1812 1780s births 1847 deaths People from Honiton Royal Navy captains Military personnel from Devon 18th-century Royal Navy personnel