Robert Napier (21 June 1791 – 23 June 1876) was a Scottish marine engineer known for his contributions to Clyde

shipbuilding Shipbuilding is the construction of ships and other Watercraft, floating vessels. In modern times, it normally takes place in a specialized facility known as a shipyard. Shipbuilders, also called shipwrights, follow a specialized occupation th ...

Early life

Robert Napier was born in

Dumbarton Dumbarton (; , or ; or , meaning 'fort of the Britons (historical), Britons') is a town in West Dunbartonshire, Scotland, on the north bank of the River Clyde where the River Leven, Dunbartonshire, River Leven flows into the Clyde estuary. ...

at the height of the

Industrial Revolution The Industrial Revolution, sometimes divided into the First Industrial Revolution and Second Industrial Revolution, was a transitional period of the global economy toward more widespread, efficient and stable manufacturing processes, succee ...

, to James and Jean Napier. James was of a line of esteemed bell-wrights, blacksmiths, and engineers, with a brother (also named Robert) who served as

blacksmith A blacksmith is a metalsmith who creates objects primarily from wrought iron or steel, but sometimes from #Other metals, other metals, by forging the metal, using tools to hammer, bend, and cut (cf. tinsmith). Blacksmiths produce objects such ...

for the

Duke of Argyll Duke of Argyll () is a title created in the peerage of Scotland in 1701 and in the peerage of the United Kingdom in 1892. The earls, marquesses, and dukes of Argyll were for several centuries among the most powerful noble families in Scotlan ...

Inveraray Castle Inveraray Castle (pronounced or ; Scottish Gaelic ''Caisteal Inbhir Aora'' ) is a country house near Inveraray in the county of Argyll, in western Scotland, on the shore of Loch Fyne, Scotland's longest sea loch. It is one of the earliest ex ...

. Napier was educated at the

burgh A burgh ( ) is an Autonomy, autonomous municipal corporation in Scotland, usually a city, town, or toun in Scots language, Scots. This type of administrative division existed from the 12th century, when David I of Scotland, King David I created ...

school where he took an interest in drawing, which reflected in his later life in an interest in painting and fine arts. Against his father's hopes that he would become a minister in the

Church of Scotland The Church of Scotland (CoS; ; ) is a Presbyterian denomination of Christianity that holds the status of the national church in Scotland. It is one of the country's largest, having 245,000 members in 2024 and 259,200 members in 2023. While mem ...

, he developed an interest in the family business. At age sixteen, he was confronted by a

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 ...

press gang who intended to conscript him into service during the

Napoleonic Wars {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Napoleonic Wars , partof = the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars , image = Napoleonic Wars (revision).jpg , caption = Left to right, top to bottom:Battl ...

. Instead of allowing his son to be conscripted, James Napier signed a contract of formal

indenture An indenture is a legal contract that reflects an agreement between two parties. Although the term is most familiarly used to refer to a labor contract between an employer and a laborer with an indentured servant status, historically indentures we ...

with his son, making him immune to conscription. Napier's apprenticeship with his father lasted for five years, after which time he moved to

Edinburgh Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. The city is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh ...

and worked for Robert Stevenson, builder of the Bell Rock Lighthouse.

Robert Napier and Sons

Napier set up his own business in 1815, and in August 1815 was admitted to the Incorporation of the Hammermen of Glasgow, following the example of his father and grandfather. In 1841 he took his sons James and John into partnership and their firm's name became Robert Napier and Sons.

Marine engines and shipbuilding

In 1823 he won a contract to build a

steam engine A steam engine is a heat engine that performs Work (physics), mechanical work using steam as its working fluid. The steam engine uses the force produced by steam pressure to push a piston back and forth inside a Cylinder (locomotive), cyl ...

for the paddle steamer ''Leven''. The engine was so good that it was later fitted to another ship, the paddle steamer ''Queen of Beauty''. The Leven engine – his first engine – now rests at the Denny Ship Model Experiment Tank branch of the Scottish Maritime Museum in Dumbarton. In 1827, Napier had the unique distinction of having built the engines of both of the two fastest ships to compete in the Northern Yacht Club's August

Regatta Boat racing is a sport in which boats, or other types of watercraft, race on water. Boat racing powered by oars is recorded as having occurred in ancient Egypt, and it is likely that people have engaged in races involving boats and other wa ...

, namely the paddle steamers ''Clarence'' and ''Helensburgh''. This earned him a reputation as a shipbuilder, which furthered his career, as did his co-operation on hull design with Thomas Assheton Smith, for whom he built the ''Menai'' (400 tons and 120 hp) followed by several more

steam yacht A steam yacht is a class of luxury or commercial yacht with primary or secondary steam propulsion in addition to the sails usually carried by yachts. Origin of the name The English steamboat entrepreneur George Dodd (1783–1827) used the term ...

s. In 1828 he established Glasgow's Vulcan Foundry. Many of Scotland's most esteemed shipbuilders apprenticed under Napier, including James and

George Thomson George Thomson may refer to: Government and politics * George Thomson (MP for Southwark) (c. 1607–1691), English merchant and Parliamentarian soldier, official and politician * George Thomson, Baron Thomson of Monifieth (1921–2008), Scottish p ...

, who founded the J & G Thomson shipyard (now known as

John Brown & Company John Brown and Company of Clydebank was a Scottish Naval architecture, marine engineering and shipbuilding firm. It built many notable and world-famous ships including , , , , , and ''Queen Elizabeth 2 (ship), Queen Elizabeth 2''. At its heig ...

), and John Elder of the Fairfield Shipbuilding and Engineering Company. Napier continued building steamship engines, eventually expanding into steam engines for ocean-going vessels. In 1835 he procured a controversial contract with the

East India Company The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company that was founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to Indian Ocean trade, trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (South A ...

to build an engine for their ship, the paddle steamer ''Berenice'' which, built by David Napier, (Napier's cousin) and using Napier's engine, proved faster than her sister ship, the paddle steamer ''Atalanta'' (built on the Thames) – beating her to India by 18 days on their maiden voyage. In 1838, Napier was contracted by the Admiralty to produce 280 NHP engines for two of their ships, the first class paddle steamer sloops ''Stromboli'' and ''Vesuvius''; but after that, orders ceased. When Napier had this queried in

Parliament In modern politics and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...

, the reply proved that Napier's engines were cheaper and more reliable than those built in the Admiralty's usual shipyards on the

Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after th ...

. Thereafter, Napier was the Admiralty's primary engine builder. Napier's greatest success, however, came from his business deals with

Samuel Cunard Sir Samuel Cunard, 1st Baronet (21 November 1787 – 28 April 1865), was a British-Canadian shipping magnate, born in Halifax, Nova Scotia, who founded the Cunard Line, establishing the first scheduled steamship connection with North America. ...

. Together with Cunard, James Donaldson, Sir George Burns, and David MacIver, he co-founded the British and North American Royal Mail Steam Packet Company. It seems that Napier could be considered responsible for the livery of the Cunard funnels, since the vermilion colour and black hoops were already used on earlier Napier-engined ships, as evidenced by the shipbuilder's model of P.S. "Menai" of 1830 in the Scottish Transport Museum in Glasgow. In 1841 he expanded his company to include an iron shipbuilding yard in

Govan Govan ( ; Cumbric: ''Gwovan''; Scots language, Scots: ''Gouan''; Scottish Gaelic: ''Baile a' Ghobhainn'') is a district, parish, and former burgh now part of southwest Glasgow, Scotland. It is situated west of Glasgow city centre, on the sout ...

and the

Parkhead Parkhead () is a district in the East End of Glasgow. Its name comes from a small weaving hamlet (place), hamlet at the meeting place of the Great Eastern Road (now the Gallowgate and Tollcross Road) and Westmuir Street. Glasgow's Eastern Necro ...

Forge Steelworks, and in 1843 they produced their first ship, the ''Vanguard''. He also procured a contract with the Royal Navy to produce vessels, notably the ''

Jackal Jackals are Canidae, canids native to Africa and Eurasia. While the word has historically been used for many canines of the subtribe Canina (subtribe), canina, in modern use it most commonly refers to three species: the closely related black-b ...

'', the ''

Lizard Lizard is the common name used for all Squamata, squamate reptiles other than snakes (and to a lesser extent amphisbaenians), encompassing over 7,000 species, ranging across all continents except Antarctica, as well as most Island#Oceanic isla ...

'', and the ''

Bloodhound The bloodhound is a large scent hound, originally bred for hunting deer, wild boar, rabbits, and since the Middle Ages, for tracking people. Believed to be descended from hounds once kept at the Abbey of Saint-Hubert, Belgium, in French it is ...

'', which became the first iron vessels in the Royal Navy. He allowed naval officers in training to visit the shipyard to familiarise themselves with the new vessels. The Parkhead Forge was acquired by

William Beardmore and Company William Beardmore and Company was a British engineering and shipbuilding Conglomerate (company), conglomerate based in Glasgow and the surrounding Clydeside area. It was active from 1886 to the mid-1930s and at its peak employed about 40,000 peo ...

in 1886. Napier's shipyard in Govan was also later acquired by Beardmore's in 1900 before being sold on to

Harland & Wolff Harland & Wolff Holdings plc is a British shipbuilding and Metal fabrication, fabrication company headquartered in London with sites in Belfast, Arnish yard, Arnish, Appledore, Torridge, Appledore and Methil. It specialises in ship repair, ship ...

in 1912, and finally closed in 1962. The Parkhead Forge would eventually close in 1976.

Honours and awards

*In 1851 he served as a juror at the Crystal Palace Exhibition *Appointed a Chevalier of the

Légion d'honneur The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and Civil society, civil. Currently consisting of five cl ...

Napoleon III Napoleon III (Charles-Louis Napoléon Bonaparte; 20 April 18089 January 1873) was President of France from 1848 to 1852 and then Emperor of the French from 1852 until his deposition in 1870. He was the first president, second emperor, and last ...

. *In 1863, he became President of the

Institution of Mechanical Engineers The Institution of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE) is an independent professional association and learned society headquartered in London, United Kingdom, that represents mechanical engineers and the engineering profession. With over 110,000 member ...

. *In 1867, Napoleon III made him Royal Commissioner of the Paris Exhibition, and presented him to Empress Eugenie. *In 1868 he was made Commander of the Most Ancient Order of Dannebrog by King Christian IX of

Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...

. Napier's yard had built the iron battleship "Rolf Krake" for the Danish Navy in 1863. *In 2014 he was inducted into the

Scottish Engineering Hall of Fame The Scottish Engineering Hall of Fame honours "those engineers from, or closely associated with, Scotland who have achieved, or deserve to achieve, greatness", as selected by an independent panel representing Scottish engineering institutions, aca ...

Art patronage

Napier never lost his early interest in art. He built his home in Shandon, by the Gareloch, to house his sizeable art collection, which included work by artists such as

Henry Raeburn Sir Henry Raeburn (; 4 March 1756 – 8 July 1823) was a Scottish portrait painter. He served as Portrait Painter to King George IV in Scotland. Biography Raeburn was born the son of a manufacturer in Stockbridge, on the Water of Leith: a f ...

and Horatio McCulloch, as well as art by Dutch, French and

Italian masters Since ancient times, the Italian peninsula has been home to diverse civilizations: the Greeks in the south, the Etruscans in the centre, and the Celts in the north. The numerous Rock Drawings in Valcamonica date back as far as 8,000 BC. Rich a ...

Death

In 1875 his wife of 57 years, Isabella, died. Shortly afterwards, Napier fell seriously ill, and died the next year, in 1876. He is buried in the Parish Kirkyard, in Dumbarton.

References

External links

Memoirs and portraits of one hundred Glasgow men: Robert Napier
– Glasgow Digital Library, University of Strathclyde

–

Gazetteer for Scotland The ''Gazetteer for Scotland'' is a gazetteer covering the geography, history and people of Scotland. It was conceived in 1995 by Bruce Gittings of the University of Edinburgh and David Munro of the Royal Scottish Geographical Society, and co ...

* – reproduced at amostcuriousmurder.com

Literature

* James Napier
''Life of Robert Napier of West Shandon''
Publisher: William Blackwood and sons, Edinburgh and London 1904
APPENDIX – I. Copy of original contract for first Cunard steamers, 18 March 1839
in: Life of Robert Napier of West Shandon. By James Napier
APPENDIX – II. Particulars of some of the leading contracts executed by Mr. Napier
{{DEFAULTSORT:Napier, Robert Napier, Robert (engineer) Napier, Robert (engineer) Napier, Robert (engineer) Robert (engineer) Scottish engineers 19th-century Scottish businesspeople Scottish company founders British marine engineers Napier, Robert (engineer) Napier, Robert (engineer) Burgesses in Scotland Napier, Robert (engineer) Napier, Robert (engineer) Napier, Robert (engineer) Scottish Engineering Hall of Fame inductees