Admiral Sir Henry Trollope, GCB (20 April 1756 – 2 November 1839) was an officer of the

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Early life

Henry Trollope was born the son of the Reverend John Trollope of

Bucklebury Bucklebury is a village and Civil parishes in England, civil parish in West Berkshire, England, about north-east of Newbury, Berkshire, Newbury and north of the A4 road (England), A4 road. The parish has a population of 2,116, but the village ...

on 20 April 1756. His paternal grandfather, also named Henry, was the brother of Sir Thomas Trollope, 4th Baronet.

Early career

Trollope entered the

at the age of fourteen in April 1771. He joined the

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 ''Captain'',

flagship A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of navy, naval ships, characteristically a flag officer entitled by custom to fly a distinguishing flag. Used more loosely, it is the lead ship in a fleet of vessels, typically ...

of Rear-Admiral John Montagu, which subsequently sailed to the

North America Station The North America and West Indies Station was a formation (military), formation or Command (military formation), command of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom's Royal Navy stationed in North American waters from 174 ...

. While on board ''Captain'' Trollope rose from captain's servant to

able seaman An able seaman (AB) is a seaman and member of the deck department of a merchant ship with more than two years' experience at sea and considered "well acquainted with his duty". An AB may work as a watchstander, a day worker, or a combination ...

and then to

midshipman A midshipman is an officer of the lowest Military rank#Subordinate/student officer, rank in the Royal Navy, United States Navy, and many Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth navies. Commonwealth countries which use the rank include Royal Cana ...

. The ship returned to England in 1774 and Trollope then transferred to the ship of the line HMS ''Asia'', also on the North America Station, to serve in 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 the armed conflict that comprised the final eight years of the broader American Revolution, in which Am ...

. As such he fought at the

Battle of Lexington The Battles of Lexington and Concord on April 19, 1775 were the first major military actions of the American Revolutionary War between the Kingdom of Great Britain and Patriot (American Revolution), Patriot militias from America's Thirteen Co ...

on 19 April 1775 and at the

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 peri ...

on 17 June. At both battles he served in ''Asia''s small boats, covering the British retreat at Lexington and assisting in landing the troops at Bunker Hill. His actions during these battles resulted in him being temporarily assigned to HMS ''Kingfisher'' soon afterwards to assist in the British response to the rising up of Virginia. Trollope subsequently fought at the

Siege of Boston The siege of Boston (April 19, 1775 – March 17, 1776) was the opening phase of the American Revolutionary War. In the siege, Patriot (American Revolution), American patriot militia led by newly-installed Continental Army commander George Wash ...

before in 1777 reverting to his position on board ''Asia'' to return to England. He was promoted to

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a Junior officer, junior commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations, as well as fire services, emergency medical services, Security agency, security services ...

on 25 April 1777 and as such joined the

fourth-rate In 1603 all English warships with a complement of fewer than 160 men were known as 'small ships'. In 1625/26 to establish pay rates for officers, a six-tier naval ship rating system was introduced.Winfield 2009 These small ships were divided ...

''Bristol'' as her third lieutenant. ''Bristol'' soon sailed to

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

conveying a group of

troop ship A troopship (also troop ship or troop transport or trooper) is a ship used to carry soldiers, either in peacetime or wartime. Troopships were often drafted from commercial shipping fleets, and were unable to land troops directly on shore, typic ...

s. Upon arriving Trollope was chosen to take ''Bristol''s boats up the North River in an attempt to reinforce the army of General

John Burgoyne General (United Kingdom), General John "Gentleman Johnny" Burgoyne (24 February 1722 – 4 August 1792) was a British Army officer, playwright and politician who sat in the House of Commons of Great Britain from 1761 to 1792. He first saw acti ...

with more soldiers. Burgoyne surrendered before Trollope could reach him and he returned to ''Bristol''. The ship joined the fleet of Vice-Admiral Lord Howe off

Delaware Delaware ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic and South Atlantic states, South Atlantic regions of the United States. It borders Maryland to its south and west, Pennsylvania to its north, New Jersey ...

and subsequently participated in the capture of Philadelphia on 26 September. After this Trollope transferred to the fourth-rate HMS ''Chatham'' which returned to England for a

refit Refitting or refit of boats and marine vessels includes repairing, fixing, restoring, renewing, mending, and renovating an old vessel. Refitting has become one of the most important activities inside a shipyard. It offers a variety of services for ...

, arriving at

Sheerness Dockyard Sheerness Dockyard was a Royal Navy Dockyard located on the Sheerness peninsula, at the mouth of the River Medway in Kent. It was opened in the 1660s and closed in 1960. Location In the Age of Sail, the Royal Navy would often establish shore ...

in early 1778. Trollope had become the

first lieutenant First lieutenant is a commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces; in some forces, it is an appointment. The rank of lieutenant has different meanings in different military formations, but in most forces it is sub-divided into a se ...

of ''Chatham'' by this time, but after France entered the war on the United States' side he successfully petitioned to be given command of the cutter HMS ''Kite''. ''Kite'' was stationed on the Downs Station and Trollope saw the opportunity for early promotion through commanding her against the newly hostile France. ''Kite'' sailed from port on 14 March, one day after France officially entered the war, and the same day he captured a French

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 ...

off

Calais Calais ( , , traditionally , ) is a French port city in the Pas-de-Calais department, of which it is a subprefecture. Calais is the largest city in Pas-de-Calais. The population of the city proper is 67,544; that of the urban area is 144,6 ...

. ''Kite'' was kept busy over the ensuing months examining merchant vessels for enemy goods and taking a number of them as

prize A prize is an award to be given to a person or a group of people (such as sporting teams and organizations) to recognize and reward their actions and achievements.

. Trollope was sailing in ''Kite'' off

Portland Portland most commonly refers to: *Portland, Oregon, the most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon *Portland, Maine, the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maine *Isle of Portland, a tied island in the English Channel Portland may also r ...

on 30 March when he discovered a French 28-gun

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

chasing thirty British merchant ships; he engaged the frigate and successfully chased her away from her prey. A day later he similarly attacked and forced the withdrawal of an 18-gun brig. In this action ''Kite''s

rigging Rigging comprises the system of ropes, cables and chains, which support and control a sailing ship or sail boat's masts and sails. ''Standing rigging'' is the fixed rigging that supports masts including shrouds and stays. ''Running rigg ...

was heavily damaged and Trollope was forced to go to

Portsmouth Dockyard His Majesty's Naval Base, Portsmouth (HMNB Portsmouth) is one of three operating bases in the United Kingdom for the Royal Navy (the others being HMNB Clyde and HMNB Devonport). Portsmouth Naval Base is part of the city of Portsmouth; it is loc ...

for repairs. For his successes during this period he was promoted to

commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank as well as a job title in many army, armies. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countri ...

on 16 April 1779.

Post Captain

He was promoted to

Post Captain Post-captain or post captain is an obsolete alternative form of the rank of captain in the Royal Navy. The term "post-captain" was descriptive only; it was never used as a title in the form "Post-Captain John Smith". The term served to di ...

in 1781. Following the peace of 1783 between Britain and the United States of America, he lived in Wales before returning to sea in 1790 as the captain of the 38-gun

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 ...

''Prudente''. Trollope, described as "

carronade A carronade is a short, smoothbore, cast-iron cannon which was used by the Royal Navy. It was first produced by the Carron Company, an ironworks in Falkirk, Scotland, and was used from the last quarter of the 18th century to the mid-19th cen ...

-crazy" in Gardiner's ''Warships of the Napoleonic Era,'' commanded two ships armed entirely with carronades: ''Rainbow'', a 44-gun

with which he stunned the French frigate ''Hébé'' (1782) into surrendering without resistance; and ''Glatton'', with which he routed a French squadron of four

s, two

corvette A corvette is a small warship. It is traditionally the smallest class of vessel considered to be a proper (or " rated") warship. The warship class above the corvette is that of the frigate, while the class below was historically that of the sloo ...

s, a

and a cutter, and drove them into Flushing. On the deck of HMS Glatton

The Nore Mutiny

In March–April 1797, Trollope kept ''Glatton''s crew from joining the Nore mutiny. By threatening to fire on the 64-gun ''Overyssel'' and the 40-gun ''Beaulieu'', which were in open mutiny, he convinced their crews to return to duty.Stephen ''et al.'' (1921), Vol. 19, 1174.

The battle of Camperdown

Later in 1797 he commanded the

74-gun The "seventy-four" was a type of two- decked sailing ship of the line, which nominally carried 74 guns. It was developed by the French navy in the 1740s, replacing earlier classes of 60- and 62-gun ships, as a larger complement to the recently de ...

''Russell'' at the

Battle of Camperdown The Battle of Camperdown (Dutch language, Dutch: ''Zeeslag bij Kamperduin'') was fought on 11 October 1797 between the Royal Navy's Commander-in-Chief, North Sea, North Sea Fleet under Admiral Adam Duncan, 1st Viscount Duncan, Adam Duncan and a ...

. For his part in this victory he was made a Knight Companion of the

Order of the Bath The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by King George I of Great Britain, George I on 18 May 1725. Recipients of the Order are usually senior British Armed Forces, military officers or senior Civil Service ...

and elevated as a Knight Grand Cross in 1831.

Retirement

He was promoted to rear admiral on 1 January 1801 and to Admiral in 1812, but did not serve in an active role. He committed suicide at Freshford, near

Bath Bath may refer to: * Bathing, immersion in a fluid ** Bathtub, a large open container for water, in which a person may wash their body ** Public bathing, a public place where people bathe * Thermae, ancient Roman public bathing facilities Plac ...

on 2 November 1839.

Legacy

The Captain-class

HMS ''Trollope'' was named for him.

Notes and citations

Notes

Citations

References

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