A Naval Biographical Dictionary/Price, David
PRICE. (Captain, 1815. f-p., 18; h-p., 28.)
David Price, born about 1790, is descended paternally from the Prices of Bulch Trebanne, co. Caermarthen; and maternally from the Powells of Abersenny, co. Brecknock.
This officer entered the Navy, 1 Jan. 1801, as Fst.-cl. Vol., on board the Ardent 64, Capts. Thos. Bertie and Geo. M‘Kinley, and on 2 April following was present in the action off Copenhagen. In July, 1802, he joined the Blenheim 74, Capts. Philip Turner Bover, Murray Maxwell, Henry Matson, and Thos. Graves, employed at first as a guard-ship at Portsmouth, and afterwards under the broad pendant of Sir Sam. Hood in the West Indies, where he was frequently under fire from the batteries at Martinique. In the course of 1804-5 he removed in succession, on the station last named, to the Osprey and St. Lucia sloops, Capts. Wm. Henry Byam Martin and Geo. Edm. Byron Bettesworth, Centaur 74, Commodore Sir Sam. Hood, and Galatea and Hyaena frigates, both commanded by Capt. Murray Maxwell. Returning in the latter vessel with convoy to England in Nov. 1805, he again, in Eeb. 1806, joined Sir Sam. Hood on board the Centaur. While in that ship he assisted as Signal Midshipman, in company with the Mars and Monarch 74’s, at the capture, 25 Sept. 1806, of four heavy French frigates from Rochefort, after an action in which Sir Sam. Hood lost his arm. Accompanying also Admiral Gambier’s expedition against the Danish capital in 1807, he was employed during the bombardment of Copenhagen, in the Centaur’s guard-boats, in preventing the arrival of supplies for the besieged from the Baltic side. On the surrender of the enemy he aided in fitting out and conducting to England one of the prizes taken, the Norge 74. He subsequently witnessed the occupapation of Madeira; and on his return to the Baltic in 1808 was wounded in the hand by a spent musketball while engaged in one of the Centaur’s cutters, under the command of Lieut. Jas. Shea (who was killed), in an ultimately successful attempt to obtain possession of a Danish despatch-boat which had run on shore under the protection of a body of troops posted, with several pieces of cannon, upon a high cliff on the island of Möen. On 26 Aug. in the same year we find him, in company with the Implacable 74, contributing, within sight of the whole Russian fleet near Rogerswick, to the capture of the 74-gun ship Sewolod, at the end of a close and furious conflict, in which the Centaur had 3 of her people killed and 27 wounded, and the enemy 180 killed and wounded. Being nominated, 7 April, 1809, Acting-Lieutenant of the Ardent 64, Capt. Robt. Honyman, Mr. Price was frequently employed in the boats of that ship in protecting the trade passing through the Great Belt. On one occasion, while watering with a small party at the island of Ronsoe, he fell into the hands of 300 Danes, by whom, however, he was detained but a very short period. When subsequently in charge of a small prize which he had captured, he was cast away and again endured a brief captivity. On finally leaving the Ardent, to which ship the Admiralty had confirmed him by a commission bearing date 28 Sept. 1809, he joined, as Second Lieutenant, in Feb. 1811, the Hawke brig, of 16 guns, Capts. Henry Bourchier and Geo. Wyndham. Under Capt. Bourchier Mr. Price was present, 25 March, 1811, at the destruction, near Cape Barfleur, of the French 40-gun frigate Amazone, On 17 Aug. following we find him cutting out, with the Hawke’s jolly-boat, a French vessel, protected by a galling fire from the shore, in the same vicinity; and, two days afterwards, participating in a very gallant action fought between the Hawke on one side, and on the other three gun-brigs, carrying each from 10 to 16 guns, and two luggers of from 8 to 10 guns each, in escort of a large convoy. The contest was maintained until the two luggers, together with two of the gun-brigs and 15 of the merchantmen, were driven on shore. The Hawke shortly afterwards, while in the act of wearing to prevent the third brig from raking her, unfortunately took the ground, and thereby enabled the latter, with a few of the convoy, although they had struck, to effect their escape. One hour and a-half elapsing before the British vessel could be again got afloat, she lay exposed during the whole of that period to an incessant discharge of artillery and musketry from the shore. Being then brought to an anchor for the purpose of repairing her damaged rigging, Mr. Price, owing to the absence of the First Lieutenant in a prize, was sent with the boats to bring out or destroy as many of the enemy’s vessels as practicable. Although exposed to a galling fire of musketry from the beach, which was lined with troops. he assisted in bringing out Le Héron national brig of 10 guns (pierced for 16), and three large transports laden with timber for ship-building: the remainder were all on their broadsides and bilged, and were only prevented from being burnt by the strength of the tide being in their favour. “I feel,” says Capt. Bourchier in his despatch narrating the particulars of the exploit, “I am only barely doing justice to the merits of Lieut. Price in recommending him most strongly to their Lordship’s notice for his spirited conduct in the action, as also in the boats, and in short on all occasions; he is a most deserving and meritorious young oflacer, to whom I feel myself much indebted.”[1] Capt. Bourchier’s own conduct, we may add, was rewarded with a Post commission. Not long afterwards Mr, Price was again highly spoken of by Capt. Wyndham for the manner in which, in a small gig, he made prize of L’Hirondelle schooner in the river Isere, although opposed by a smart fire of musketry from the shore. On 21 Oct. 1811, with two of the Hawke’s boats, one of them commanded by Mr. Smith the Master, he made a dash at one of several brigs lying in Barfleur harbour, and was received by a heavy fire which killed 2 and wounded 3 of his companions. He nevertheless boarded, with but one follower, and maintained an obstinate struggle until the two were wounded (himself by a thrust of a bayonet) and disarmed. He then, trusting to the chance of being picked up rather than to the certainty of being taken prisoner, jumped overboard, and contrived to keep himself afloat until happily fallen in with by the cutter under Mr. Smith, who had been foiled in his attempts to gain the deck of the French vessel. The boats of the Theban frigate had been sent to co-operate in the attack, but did not arrive in time to afford any support. On the return of the Hawke to Portsmouth Mr. Price was sent to the hospital at Haslar, where, after three months of protracted suffering, it was discovered that, instead of his hip-bone, as had been supposed, being fractured, four inches of the bayonet-steel had remained lodged in his side. As soon as the state of his health would permit, which was not until Sept. 1812, he was appointed to the Mulgrave 74, Capt. Thos. Jas. Maling, stationed off Cherbourg. He next, in Jan. 1813, joined the San Josef 110, Capts. Henry Bourchier and Wm. Stewart, in which ship, although but the third in seniority, he was selected by Sir Rich. King, whose flag was at the time flying on board, to perform the duties of First-Lieutenant in the partial action fought with the French fleet off Toulon 5 Nov. 1813. Being advanced to the rank of Commander 6 Dec. in the same year, and appointed to the Volcano bomb, he volunteered, in the summer of 1814, to join in the hostilities then rife on the coast of North America. Proceeding thither accordingly, and arriving in time to form a part in the expedition against Baltimore, he covered the landing at North Point, assisted at the bombardment of Fort M‘Henry, and was the last, after having covered the re-embarkation of the troops, to leave the Patapsco. When subsequently aide-de-camp to Rear-Admiral Pulteney Malcolm in the Potomac, he led on part of the forces up the Yocomoco, while Capt. Rich. Kenah of the Aetna bomb, who was killed, led the other up the Coan. On 31 Oct. 1814, being then in the windward passage with a transport under convoy bound to Jamaica, the Volcano fell in with and, after two broadsides, put to flight the Saucy Jack American schooner privateer, a vessel of far superior force, 7 of whose people were killed and 14 wounded, with a loss to the British of an officer (Lieut. J. P. Furzer, R.M.A.) and 2 men killed. At the commencement of the operations against New Orleans Capt. Price was employed, in conjunction with Capt. Hon. Robt. Cavendish Spencer, in surprising the American piquet posted at the entrance of the Bayou Catalan, and so effectually was the service executed that not a man escaped, and the British troops were in consequence enabled to land without resistance. On General Keane’s army being attacked, on the evening of the 24th, by the enemy, Capt. Price was despatched to acquaint him with the approach of reinforcements. In carrying out his instructions he fell in with a party of the enemy, who fired at and shot him through the thigh. “In this state,” reports Rear-Admiral Malcolm, “he not only made his escape, but secured an American soldier: I trust his wound is not dangerous, as he is a gallant young man and an excellent officer.” The Volcano subsequently aided in the bombardment of Fort St. Philip, and continued on the Mississippi until the retreat of the British army. In Feb. 1815, after landing a body of troops on Dauphin Island, Capt. Price took a zealous and active part in the attack on Fort Bowyer. During the proximate siege of Fort Mobile he was sent in charge of a division of boats to intercept a force of 800 men which had been sent from the town of Mobile for the purpose of raising it. Successful in the object of his mission, he effected the capture of two schooners, in one of which were found despatches of consequence from the American General Blew.[2] The importance of Capt. Price’s performance was acknowledged in Major-General Lambert’s public letter to the War-Office. On the intelligence of peace arriving from England he was sent with a flag-of-truce to communicate the information to the Americans at Mobile, and to restore Fort Bowyer to the proper authorities. On his return to England he was advanced to his present rank 13 June, 1815. When next in command, from 1 May, 1834, until the spring of 1838, of the Portland 52, on the Mediterranean station, he was presented by King Otho with the Order of the Redeemer for his services to the Greek Government. The assistance afforded by him to jhe British mission was also acknowledged in the official letters of Sir Edm. Lyons, the Minister Plenipotentiary at the court of Athens. Since 10 Nov. 1846 he has been employed as Superintendent of the dockyard at Sheerness and Captain of the Ocean 80 and Wellington 72.
Capt. Price is a Magistrate for Brecknockshire. He married, 30 July, 1844, Elizabeth, eldest daughter of the late John Taylor, Esq., and niece of the late Admiral Wm. Taylor (1830), of Maize Hill, Greenwich. Agents – Hallett and Robinson,