A Naval Biographical Dictionary/Smail, William Archibald
SMAIL. (Lieut., 1812. f-p., 12; h-p., 29.)
William Archibald Smail (brother of the present Lieut. Jas. Smail, R.N., and of Lieut. John Smail, R.N., who died in 1804) is nephew of the late Admirals Wm. Dickson and Sir Arch. Dickson, Bart.
This officer entered the Navy, 16 June, 1806, as Sec.-cl. Boy, on board the Nassau 64, Capt. Robt. Campbell; under whom, after blockading the Texel and accompanying the expedition against Copenhagen, we find him (on being extricated from a mass of ice in which the Nassau had been blocked up during the whole winter) assisting, 22 March, 1808, in company with the Stately 64, at the capture and destruction, on the coast of Zealand, of the Danish 74 Prindts Christian Frederic – an exploit accomplished at the end of a running fight of great length and obstinacy productive of a loss to the Nassau of 2 men killed and 16 wounded. In Nov. 1809 Mr. Smail, who had attained the rating of Midshipman in Sept. 1806, and had made a voyage to St. Helena, removed to the Orion 74, Capt. Sir Archibald Collingwood Dickson. In that ship, in which he continued until the summer of 1812, he served at the blockade of Carlskrona and Danzig, and visited the coast of Portugal. On leaving her he was ordered to join, with the rank of Acting-Lieutenant, the flotilla employed in the defence of Riga. Before, however, he could reach that place the siege was raised, and his services in consequence were not required. He had become attached in the mean time, as a Supernumerary, to the Cressy 74 and Hamadryad 36, Capts. Chas. Dudley Pater and Edw. Chetham; in the boats of which latter ship and the Clio 18, commanded by Lieut. Horace Petley, he contributed, 14 Oct. 1812, to the capture, off Hermeren, after a chase of 14 hours, of Le Pilotin French privateer, carrying 4 12-pounder carronades and 31 men. On 15 Nov. in the same year he was placed as Acting-Lieutenant on board the Sweaborg, bearing the flag of the Russian Commander-in-Chief, for the purpose of keeping up a communication between the English and Russian fleets on their passage to England. For the services he performed on this occasion he was officially promoted 17 Dec. following. His last appointments were – 23 May, 1813, to the Akbar 50, Capts. Archibald Dickson and Chas. Bullen, employed on the Brazilian, North Sea, and Halifax stations – and 8 April, 1817, after three months of half-pay, to the Rochfort 80, guard-ship at Portsmouth, Capt. Sir A. C. Dickson, with whom he continued until paid off in Aug. 1818.