Joseph Denman
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Vice Admiral Joseph Denman (23 June 1810 – 26 November 1874) was a British naval officer, most noted for his actions against the
slave trade Slave trade may refer to: * History of slavery - overview of slavery It may also refer to slave trades in specific countries, areas: * Al-Andalus slave trade * Atlantic slave trade ** Brazilian slave trade ** Bristol slave trade ** Danish sl ...
as a commander of HMS ''Wanderer'' of the
West Africa Squadron The West Africa Squadron, also known as the Preventive Squadron, was a squadron of the Royal Navy whose goal was to suppress the Atlantic slave trade by patrolling the coast of West Africa. Formed in 1808 after the British Parliament passed ...
.


Early life

Denman was born on 23 June 1810, the son of
Thomas Denman, 1st Baron Denman Thomas Denman, 1st Baron Denman, (23 July 177926 September 1854) was an English lawyer, judge and politician. He served as Lord Chief Justice between 1832 and 1850. Background and education Denman was born in London, the son of Dr Thomas De ...
, Lord Chief Justice and a noted abolitionist.


Military career

Joseph entered the Royal Navy on 7 April 1823, and was promoted to Lieutenant in 1831 and commander in 1835. In 1834, Lieutenant Joseph Denman commanded a prize crew aboard the captured slave ship ''Maria da Gloria''. He first sailed her to the Anglo-Brazilian
Mixed Commission Court A Mixed Commission Court was a joint court set up by the British government with Dutch, Spanish or Portuguese representation following treaties agreed in 1817 and 1818. By 1820 there were six such courts. This occurred during a period often referred ...
at
Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro, or simply Rio, is the capital of the Rio de Janeiro (state), state of Rio de Janeiro. It is the List of cities in Brazil by population, second-most-populous city in Brazil (after São Paulo) and the Largest cities in the America ...
, which declined jurisdiction on the grounds that the ship was Portuguese, not Brazilian. Denman then had to sail back across the Atlantic to the Anglo-Portuguese court in Sierra Leone. Seventy-eight of the 400 or so slaves on board died during the back-and-forth, which also severely debilitated the survivors. Denman later testified before parliament about this voyage, stating that he had "witnessed the most dreadful sufferings that human beings can endure". On 26 December 1836 Commander the Honourable Joseph Denman commissioned the
brig-sloop During the 18th and 19th centuries, a sloop-of-war was a warship of the Royal Navy with a single gun deck that carried up to 18 guns. The rating system of the Royal Navy covered all vessels with 20 or more guns; thus, the term encompassed all ...
HMS ''Scylla'' for the Lisbon Station. He remained in command of her there until 17 November 1839.


Suppressing the slave trade

In 1839 Denman took command of the West Africa Squadron's brig-sloop, HMS ''Wanderer''. On 5 April 1840, the ''Wanderer''s boats seized the American slaver ''Eliza Davidson'', which was subsequently condemned in British and Spanish
Mixed Commission Court A Mixed Commission Court was a joint court set up by the British government with Dutch, Spanish or Portuguese representation following treaties agreed in 1817 and 1818. By 1820 there were six such courts. This occurred during a period often referred ...
at
Sierra Leone Sierra Leone, officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country on the southwest coast of West Africa. It is bordered to the southeast by Liberia and by Guinea to the north. Sierra Leone's land area is . It has a tropical climate and envi ...
. On 12 May, Denman took the ''Josephina'', a Portuguese schooner fitted for the slave trade, as a prize. On 3 June, he took 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 ...
''São Paolo de Loando'' as prize. On 9 June he took another schooner fitted for the slave trade, the ''Maria Rosaria''. On 3 July he took the ''Pombinha'', out of Havanah, and fitted for the slave trade; on 29 December 1842, a prize court awarded ''Wanderer''s crew a tonnage bounty and moiety of proceeds for ''Pombinha''. In 1840, while negotiating for the release of two Britons, Denman also negotiated a treaty abolishing the slave trade in the territory of the Gallinas, liberating 841 slaves. At the same time he destroyed the
barracoon A barracoon (an adaptation of Portuguese ''barracão'', an augmentative form of the Catalan loanword ''barraca'' ('hut') through Spanish ''barracón'') is a type of barracks used historically for the internment of enslaved or criminal human bei ...
s (large slave-holding depots) on the banks of the river. The Admiralty initially praised his actions and promoted him to Captain in August 1841, and he left ''Wanderer'' on 23 August. Lord Palmerston stated, "Taking a wasp’s nest…is more effective than catching the wasps one by one". However, the Spanish slavers sued him personally for damages. By 1842 the Admiralty had banned the anti-slavery squadron's policy of blockading rivers and the destruction of property. On his return to England, Denman was on half-pay, awaiting the outcome of the court case. He was active, writing a manual for the squadron, called ''Instructions for the Guidance of Her Majesty’s Naval Officers Employed in the Suppression of the Slave Trade'', which was to be issued to every serving officer. Captain Joseph Denman has been described as one of the most successful and passionate officers to serve on the West Africa squadron and he has been credited with improving the efficiency of the squadron more than any other serving officer. In 1848 the court reached a final decision in the case ''Burón vs. Denman'', one of the last cases in English & Welsh law to regard slaves as property or cargo, finding in Denman's favour as he had been operating as an agent of the British state's policy of suppressing the slave trade when he "trespassed to goods" when destroying the barracoon, rather than as an individual.


Later life and career

Denman ended his career as Rear Admiral in command of the Pacific station from 1864 until his retirement in April 1866. He was promoted to Vice Admiral in retirement. He died on 26 November 1874.


Family

Denman married on 12 February 1844 Grace Watts-Russell, youngest daughter of Jesse Watts-Russell, MP, of Ilam Hall, Staffordshire. She died in London on 18 December 1902. His brother
George Denman George Denman (23 December 1819 – 21 September 1896) was an English barrister, High Court judge, and Liberal politician. Early life Denman was born at 50 Russell Square, London, the fourth son of Thomas Denman, 1st Baron Denman, of Do ...
was a politician and High Court judge.


Legacy

*
Denman Island Denman Island, (also known by Sla-dai-aich or Taystayic, in the Comox language), is one of the Northern Gulf Islands and part of the Comox Valley Regional District of British Columbia, Canada. It is a member of the Islands Trust group of ...
, off the Coast of British Columbia, Canada, is named after him, as is Denman Street in Vancouver.


See also

*


References

* Martinez, Jenny (September–October 2007) "Slave Trade on Trial: Lessons of a great human-rights law success". ''Boston Review'

accessed 24 September 2009. {{DEFAULTSORT:Denman, Joseph Royal Navy rear admirals 1810 births 1874 deaths British abolitionists Younger sons of barons Place of birth missing Place of death missing
Joseph Joseph is a common male name, derived from the Hebrew (). "Joseph" is used, along with " Josef", mostly in English, French and partially German languages. This spelling is also found as a variant in the languages of the modern-day Nordic count ...
Officers of the West Africa Squadron