Samuel Leech (c. 1798–1848) was a young

sailor A sailor, seaman, mariner, or seafarer is a person who works aboard a watercraft as part of its crew, and may work in any one of a number of different fields that are related to the operation and maintenance of a ship. While the term ''sailor'' ...

in the

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 ...

and the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

during 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 ...

. He became notable as one of very few who wrote an account of his experiences, titled, in the manner of the time, ''Thirty Years from Home, or a Voice from the Main Deck; Being the Experience of Samuel Leech, Who Was Six Years in the British and American Navies: Was Captured in the British Frigate ''Macedonian'': Afterwards Entered the American Navy, and Was Taken in the United States Brig ''Syren'', by the British Ship ''Medway. Leech's nautical career began in 1810, at the age of twelve, when Lord William FitzRoy agreed to take Samuel into his

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 ...

, as a favour to FitzRoy's sister Frances, the wife of Francis Spencer, 1st Baron Churchill, Leech being the son of one of her servants.Samuel Leech, ''A Voice from the Main Deck: Being a Record of the Thirty Years' Adventures of Samuel Leech'' (

Naval Institute Press The United States Naval Institute (USNI) is a private non-profit military association that offers independent, nonpartisan forums for debate of national security issues. In addition to publishing magazines and books, the Naval Institute holds se ...

, 1999) hardcover , paperback He was a

powder monkey A powder boy or powder monkey manned naval artillery guns as a member of a warship's crew, primarily during the Age of Sail. Their chief role was to ferry gunpowder from the powder magazine in the ship's hold to the artillery pieces, either i ...

during ''Macedonian's'' duel with the in 1812, and would later vividly describe the carnage on board the British ship before she struck her colours. As a

prisoner of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of war for a ...

, he was due to be exchanged at some point, but when the captured ''Macedonian'' was brought into

Newport, Rhode Island Newport is a seaside city on Aquidneck Island in Rhode Island, United States. It is located in Narragansett Bay, approximately southeast of Providence, Rhode Island, Providence, south of Fall River, Massachusetts, south of Boston, and nort ...

, Leech jumped ship. After failing to gain steady work on land, he returned to the sea, this time signing on to the US Navy, where he compared his treatment favourably to that in the Royal Navy. Leech was serving on the when she was captured by in 1814. His imprisonment seems not to have been too uncomfortable, and did not last long in any case, since the war ended the following year. He was in subsequently. Around 1816 he went ashore, where he worked at various jobs and joined the

Methodist Church Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a Protestant Christianity, Christian Christian tradition, tradition whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's brother ...

. He eventually accumulated enough money to go into business for himself, and became a merchant living in

Wilbraham, Massachusetts Wilbraham is a town in Hampden County, Massachusetts, United States. It is a suburb of the City of Springfield, and part of the Springfield Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 14,613 at the 2020 census. Part of the town comprise ...

with a wife and three children. Many years later he revisited , now a US ship, when it was in port in New York (probably 1840), and reminisced with the sailors there. Perhaps this encounter inspired his book, which was published by Tappen & Dennet in 1843.

References

* Samuel Leech, ''A Voice from the Main Deck: Being a Record of the Thirty Years' Adventures of Samuel Leech'' (

, 1999) hardcover , paperback * James T. de Kay, ''Chronicles of the Frigate Macedonian'' (W.W. Norton, New York, 1995)

External links

''A Voice from the Main Deck''

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Leech, Samuel 1790s births 1848 deaths Royal Navy sailors United States Navy sailors People from Wanstead People from Wilbraham, Massachusetts