A Naval Biographical Dictionary/Forster, Robert
FORSTER. (Commander, 1815. f-p.,. 18; h-p., 21.)
Robert Forster, of the ancient family of Forster of Bamborough, co. Northumberland, is the eldest of ten brothers, all of whom were in the service of their country – six in the army, the others in the navy. Seven of these gentlemen died in actual service abroad, and an eighth, the late Capt. John Forster, R.N. (1838), died, in 1841, from the effects of wounds he had received when Lieutenant of the Apollo, in a desperate cutting-out affair in the Bay of Rosas, in 1809. Commander Forster’s only surviving brother, Hugh Percy, is District Paymaster, N.B.
This officer entered the Navy, 27 Dec. 1795, as Fst.-cl. Vol., on board the Camelion 18, Capt. Rich. Henry Alex. Bennett, whom he soon afterwards accompanied into the Eurydice 24. Between 1796 and 1802 he successively served, on the Home and Mediterranean stations, in the Garland 28, Capt. John Erskine Douglas, Ville de Paris, flag-ship of Earl St. Vincent, Alcmene 32, and Majestic 74, both commanded by Capt. Geo. Hope, Kent 74, and Ville de Paris again, bearing the respective flags of Lord Duncan and Earl St. Vincent, and Leda 38, Capt. G. Hope. After acting for a few weeks as Lieutenant of the Foudroyant 80, flag-ship of Lord Keith, Mr. Forster was confirmed, 20 July, 1802, into the Nemesis 28, Capt. Philip Somerville; after which he served, from April, 1803, until promoted to the rank of Commander, 13 June, 1815 (nearly the whole time as First Lieutenant), in the Charwell 18, Capt. Philip Dumaresq, Gibraltar 80, and Mars 74, both commanded by Capt. Wm. Lukin, Owen Glendower 36, Capt. Wm. Selby, Pompée 74, Capt. Sir Jas. Athol Wood, Asia 74, Capt. Geo. Scott, and Tonnant 80, and Asia again, both flag-ships of Sir Alex. Cochrane. During that period he assisted in the Charwell at the bombardment of Granville and Havre in 1803 – was on board the Mars at the capture, by a squadron under Sir Sam. Hood, of four heavy French frigates, two of which, the Gloire 46, and Infatigable 44, struck to the Mars, off Rochefort, 25 Sept. 1806 – and (while in the same ship) attended the expedition to Copenhagen in 1807, where he landed as Senior Lieutenant of the Naval Brigade. He also, in 1808-9, among other detached services, commanded the gun-boats at Gottenborg, and a fire-ship at Rogerwick. At the reduction, in May, 1809, of the island of Anholt, Mr. Forster, then Senior of the Owen Glendower, landed in command of the seamen; and he afterwards, when First of the Asia, obtained the especial notice of Sir Alex. Cochrane for the destruction, under a fire from field-pieces and small arms, of a deeply-laden schooner lying in Cherryston Creek, in the Chesapeake.[1] During the ensuing operations against New Orleans he commanded a division of boats which crossed the Mississippi on the morning of the attack. He subsequently officiated as Beach Master at the capture of Fort BoWyer, in Feb. 1816, and on that occasion was officially mentioned by General Sir John Lambert. On 2 March, 1819, in consequence of his having entered into the naval service of Chili, Commander Forster was struck off the list of British officers, but he was restored in 1832, and has since been on half-pay.
For his foreign services, the greater portion of which were performed in the capacity of Commander-in-Chief, the Government of Peru bestowed upon Commander Forster the highest conferrable military honour – the first class of the “Founder of the Order of the Sun.” Agents – Messrs. Ommanney.
- ↑ Vide Gaz. 1814, p. 1964.