Sir Thomas Teddeman († 13 May 1668

Old Style Old Style (O.S.) and New Style (N.S.) indicate dating systems before and after a calendar change, respectively. Usually, they refer to the change from the Julian calendar to the Gregorian calendar as enacted in various European countries betwe ...

) was an English

admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in many navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force. Admiral is ranked above vice admiral and below admiral of ...

of the 17th century. His name was also written as ''Teddiman'', ''Tyddiman'' or ''Teddyman''. The early career of Thomas Teddeman is unknown; he was not a naval captain during the

First Anglo-Dutch War The First Anglo-Dutch War, or First Dutch War, was a naval conflict between the Commonwealth of England and the Dutch Republic. Largely caused by disputes over trade, it began with English attacks on Dutch merchant shipping, but expanded to vast ...

. He was the namesake of his father, who descended from a family of ship-owners in

Dover Dover ( ) is a town and major ferry port in Kent, southeast England. It faces France across the Strait of Dover, the narrowest part of the English Channel at from Cap Gris Nez in France. It lies southeast of Canterbury and east of Maidstone. ...

. His cousin was the naval captain Henry Teddeman. Teddeman, first serving the

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, commanded from 1659 till 1660 the (after the

English Restoration The Stuart Restoration was the reinstatement in May 1660 of the Stuart monarchy in Kingdom of England, England, Kingdom of Scotland, Scotland, and Kingdom of Ireland, Ireland. It replaced the Commonwealth of England, established in January 164 ...

renamed to HMS ''Resolution'') in the Mediterranean during the Anglo-Spanish War. From 31 May till 10 June 1660 he chased six Spanish vessels he encountered off

Algiers Algiers is the capital city of Algeria as well as the capital of the Algiers Province; it extends over many Communes of Algeria, communes without having its own separate governing body. With 2,988,145 residents in 2008Census 14 April 2008: Offi ...

. In May 1661 he became captain of and in 1663 commanded on which he brought the English ambassador to

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, the

Earl of Carlisle Earl of Carlisle is a title that has been created three times in the Peerage of England. History The first creation came in 1322, when Andrew Harclay, 1st Baron Harclay, was made Earl of Carlisle. He had already been summoned to Parliamen ...

, to

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in July. In May 1664 Teddeman was made commander of and the same year promoted to captain of . In 1665, during the

Second Anglo-Dutch War The Second Anglo-Dutch War, began on 4 March 1665, and concluded with the signing of the Treaty of Breda (1667), Treaty of Breda on 31 July 1667. It was one in a series of Anglo-Dutch Wars, naval wars between Kingdom of England, England and the D ...

, he distinguished himself as

rear admiral Rear admiral is a flag officer rank used by English-speaking navies. In most European navies, the equivalent rank is called counter admiral. Rear admiral is usually immediately senior to commodore and immediately below vice admiral. It is ...

of the Blue Squadron in the

Battle of Lowestoft The Battle of Lowestoft took place on during the Second Anglo-Dutch War. A fleet of more than a hundred ships of the Dutch Republic, United Provinces commanded by Lieutenant-Admiral Jacob van Wassenaer Obdam, Jacob van Wassenaer, Lord Obdam, at ...

, with as flagship the new second rate , and was knighted on 30 June (Old Style). In August 1665 Teddeman was sent on the ''Revenge'' to

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to capture a Dutch treasure fleet with a flotilla of frigates but was defeated in the

Battle of Vågen The Battle of Vågen was a naval battle between a Dutch merchant and treasure fleet and an English flotilla of warships in 2 August 1665 as part of the Second Anglo-Dutch War. The battle took place in Vågen (meaning "the bay, voe" in Norwe ...

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Pieter de Bitter Pieter de Bitter (15June 1666) was a 17th-century Dutch officer of the Dutch East India Company (, commonly abbreviated to VOC). On 12August 1665 (New Style) he won the Battle of Vågen against an English flotilla commanded by Thomas Teddem ...

. Though this was a major disappointment to

Charles II of England Charles II (29 May 1630 – 6 February 1685) was King of Scotland from 1649 until 1651 and King of England, Scotland, and King of Ireland, Ireland from the 1660 Restoration of the monarchy until his death in 1685. Charles II was the eldest su ...

, Teddeman's career did not suffer much and he fought, again on the ''Katherine'', the next year as

vice admiral Vice admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, usually equivalent to lieutenant general and air marshal. A vice admiral is typically senior to a rear admiral and junior to an admiral. Australia In the Royal Australian Navy, the rank of Vice ...

of the Blue in the

Four Days Battle The Four Days' Battle was a naval engagement fought from 11 to 14 June 1666 (1–4 June O.S.) during the Second Anglo-Dutch War. It began off the Flemish coast and ended near the English coast, and remains one of the longest naval battles in ...

and as vice-admiral of the White in the

St James's Day Battle The St James' Day Battle took place on 25 July 1666 (4 August 1666 in the Gregorian calendar), during the Second Anglo-Dutch War. It was fought between an English fleet commanded jointly by Prince Rupert of the Rhine and George Monck, and a ...

. In 1667 Teddeman had no command, the main vessels of the English fleet having been laid up. In 1668 he commanded on {{HMS, Cambridge, 1666, 6, but was the subject of an investigation by

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, trying to establish the causes of the lost war, by which he was much troubled. On 13 May he died from a fever caused by a thrush in the mouth.

Literature

R.C. Anderson, 1964, ''List of English Naval Captains 1642–1660'' Royal Navy vice admirals Royal Navy personnel of the Second Anglo-Dutch War 1668 deaths Year of birth missing