Royal Naval Biography/Donnelly, Ross

by John Marshall

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ROSS DONNELLY, Esq
Rear-Admiral of the Red.

This officer, a son of the late Dr. Donnelly, entered the naval service early in the American war; served under Vice-Admiral Arbuthnot; and was employed in a battery during the siege of Charlestown, in 1780^[1]. Some time after the capture of that place, he had the misfortune, when in charge of a prize, to be taken prisoner by the enemy, who inhumanly turned him adrift, with his crew, in an open boat, without sails or provisions, and in that helpless condition left him to find his way to Trepassay, where he arrived in a state of exhaustion, after a laborious pull of two days and a night. In the following year, he was promoted by Rear-Admiral Edwards to the rank of Lieutenant, in the Morning Star, of 16 guns, on the Newfoundland station; from which vessel he removed into the Cygnet sloop of war, as first Lieutenant. His next appointment was to the Mediator, 44, commanded by Captain Luttrell, with whom he continued till that ship was put out of comaussion, at the end of the war, in 1783.

We next find Mr. Donnelly serving as Mate of an East Indiaman, in which capacity he continued from 1785 till the commencement of the war with France, in 1793, when he was appointed first Lieutenant of the Montagu, a 74-gun ship, commanded by the gallant Captain James Montagu, who, it will be remembered, fell in the glorious battle of June 1, 1794^[2], on which memorable day Mr. Donnelly particularly distinguished himself, as will be seen by the following extract from Earl Howe’s public letter relative to that important event:–

“Special notice is also due of the Captains Nicholls of the Royal Sovereign, and Hope of the Bellerophon, who became charged with, and well conducted those ships, when the wounded Flag-Officers under whom they respectively served therein, were no longer able to remain at their posts; and the Lieutenants Monkton of the Marlborough, and Donnelly of the Montagu, in similar situations.”

Previous to her breaking through the enemy’s line, the Montagu, then under the direction of Lieutenant Donnelly, was the next ship to the Royal George, bearing the flag of the late Lord Bridport, from whom our officer, shortly after his arrival at Plymouth, received the following kind letter:–

“Portsmouth, June 18, 1794.

“Sir,– I acquaint you that I have transmitted to Lord Chatham your letter, and have given my opinion to his Lordship on your just claim to promotion, which I shall rejoice to see fulfilled. As Lord Chatham is expected here every day, and the King will certainly visit his fleet about the 29th, I have reason to suppose that some promotion will take place, in which I hope you will be included.

“I am, Sir, your sincere and obedient humble servant,
(Signed)“Alex^r. Hood.”

That the claim alluded to by that distinguished commander would have been backed by the testimony of Captain Montagu, had he survived the combat, may be inferred from the contents of a letter written by the present Admiral of that name to Lieutenant Donnelly, dated the same day as the above:

“Dear Sir,– I have taken the liberty of begging your acceptance of a sword belonging to my late poor brother; it will remind you of a man who at all times spoke of you in the highest terms of regard and approbation.

“I am, dear Sir, your most obedient humble servant,
(Signed)“Geo. Montagu^[3].”

Unfortunately for the subject of this memoir, the same liberality in rewarding merit which has been subsequently evinced, was not displayed at that period; and, notwithstandthe expectations raised by the subjoined reply of Lord Howe to an application in his favor from the Earl of Tankerville, he appears not to have been advanced to the rank of Post-Captain till June 24, in the following year:–

“Portsmouth, July 2, 1794.

“My Lord,– I can now have the satisfaction of being able to assure your Lordship, that your wishes in favor of Lieutenant Donnelly will be accomplished. His meritorious conduct in the direction of the Montagu on the fall of her late commander, has not needed any interference of mine for obtaining the promotion he will gain.

“I have the honor to be, with great consideration,
“Your Lordship’s most obedient humble servant,
(Signed)“Howe^[4].”

During the remainder of the war, he commanded in succession the Pegasus and Maidstone frigates; the former employed in the North Sea, the latter principally on the Jamaica station. In the Pegasus, carrying 28 long 9-pounders, and 120 men, he fell in with two Dutch brigs of war, the Echo and De Gier, of 20 Dutch 12’s and 140 men each; and after an arduous chase, during which his ship struck on East Friezeland, drove them both on shore to the eastward of the Texel. This circumstance is alluded to in a letter which he received from his Commander-in-Chief, the heroic Duncan, a few days subsequent to the discomfiture of the Batavian fleet off Camperdown, and which we feel happy in being able to present to our readers:–

“My dear Sir,– I am very sorry I have not had the pleasure of meeting, as I have a great deal to say to you. You are much mistaken in thinking your are forgot. In a conversation I had to-day with Lord Spencer, he mentioned you as a great favorite of his, and am sure I joined most, sincerely in saying you are also of mine. In short, I have a favor to ask of you, and hope you will not refuse me. Should Captain Hope not be able to go to sea, will you be my Captain? I am to have the Tigre^[5]. I leave town to-morrow, and shall be back from Sheerness (where his Majesty is to be) on Tuesday next; you will then find me at my old lodgings. No. 12, Buckingham Street. As to the brigs, I shall only say that Admiral de Winter states they were both lost, and have no doubt the matter, as it respects the head-money, will be cleared up. I have been hurrying about so from place to place, that I have not heard a word from Lady Duncan since my arrival in port; but I have seen letters from her, and I assure you she never forgets your attention to her. Many thanks for your kind congratulations, which are most acceptable, as I am sure they arc sincere. Believe me, with truth and esteem, most faithfully yours,

(Signed)“Duncan.”

On the 30th Nov. 1796, exactly two years and a half after Earl Howe’s action, each of the Captains mentioned in his Lordship’s letter were ordered to be presented with a gold medal, to be worn with their uniforms, in commemoration of the victory they had assisted in achieving. Captain Donnelly’s application for that honorable badge of distinction was replied to as follows, by the excellent nobleman then at the head of naval affairs:

“Sir,– You will I am sure do me the justice to believe that I entertain a very good opinion of your merits and services; but it will really be impossible for me to comply with the request conveyed to me in your letter of yesterday; the medals having been limited by his Majesty’s express command to those Admirals and Post-Captains only who are mentioned in the letter from Lord Howe to the Admiralty relative to those actions, including the Captains of the several Admirals who were honored with the gold chain. As you were not a Post-Captain at the time of the action, you will perceive that this line must necessarily exclude you from the distinction at present conferred^[6].

“I am, Sir,
“Your very obedient, humble Servant,
(Signed)“Spencer.

“Admiralty, Dec. 14th, 1796.”

Previous to his leaving the Maidstone, Captain Donnelly was voted a handsome piece of plate by the merchants concerned in the Oporto trade, for his zealous exertions in protecting a large homeward bound fleet, and bringing it in safety to England, at a time when the enemy’s privateers were very numerous, both in the Bay of Biscay and the Channel. This token of their gratitude, however, he refused to accept; stating, that although a French frigate had hovered about the convoy, which was also surrounded during the passage by privateers, he had had no opportunity of fighting in defence of their property, and must therefore decline, as he had before done on a somewhat similar occasion, receiving any honorary reward for the bare performance of his duty. The fleet consisted of one hundred and twenty sail, on board of which the British factory at Oporto, apprehensive of Portugal being invaded by the French, had shipped no less than 32,000 pipes of port wine – the largest quantity ever imported at one time into England. Captain Donnelly’s zeal for the service induced him on this occasion to take the Netley schooner from her station; and instead of being censured for so doing, he had the gratification of receiving the thanks of Earl St. Vincent, who then presided at the Admiralty.

Towards the latter end of 1801, he was removed into the Narcissus of 32 guns, and ordered to carry out the Algerine Ambassador and his suite, with a great number of valuable presents for the Dey of Algiers, by whom he was presented with a handsome sabre. From Algiers he proceeded to Malta, and thence to the Archipelago, where he made an astronomical survey of all the principal islands.

Whilst on that service, Captain Donnelly discovered a piratical galley in the act of boarding an English merchant ship off Miconi, and immediately made sail in chase of the marauders, who rowed off with amazing swiftness to the Greater Delphos, where they disembarked, and posted themselves very advantageously behind rocks, from whence they kept up a heavy fire of musketry, by which 1 man was killed on board the Narcissus. The galley having been sunk by a broadside from that ship, Captain Donnelly landed a party of seamen, and succeeded in securing 36 of the pirates, whom he placed at the disposal of Lord Elgin, the British Ambassador, who with his family and suite were then on board the Narcissus. The galley, on being weighed and brought alongside, proved to be as long as the frigate, and had a very singular appearance, her hull, masts, sails, colours, and every thing about her being black. She was handed over to the Miconians; and the specie found on board her, about 1000 piastres, given to the widow of the seaman who had been slain. The Capitan Pacha, then at Constantinople, on hearing of her capture, sent Captain Donnelly a valuable Damascus sabre; and it is said that he afterwards refused to liberate the principal corsair, although a sum equal to 10,000l. sterling was offered for his ransom^[7].

We next find our officer with a broad pendant at Alexandria; and he appears to have been there, making preparations for the embarkation of the British troops, &c. &c, at the time when Colonel Sebastiani arrived from Toulon to make a political and military survey of Egypt; the report of which, when published in the Moniteur, by order of the First Consul, produced those angry discussions between Great Britain and France, which terminated in a declaration of war between those countries, and led to the renewal of hostilities throughout Europe.

After the evacuation of Alexandria^[8], Captain Donnelly escorted General Stuart’s army, and a number of French soldiers, &c, who had been taken prisoners during the late campaigns in that quarter, to Malta. From thence he proceeded with the latter to Toulon; and subsequently visited Palermo, where he gave an elegant ball and supper to the King of the Two Sicilies, his family, and court. About the same period he conveyed the present King of Sardinia from Cagliari to Naples.

The Narcissus happening to be at Genoa when intelligence arrived of the British minister having left Paris, Captain Donnelly, eagerly seizing the opportunity that presented itself of evincing his zeal for the public service, issued orders for the vessels belonging to English merchants immediately to depart, and in several instances compelled their commanders to get under weigh and quit the harbour contrary to their inclinations, thereby saving a large sum to the underwriters. He then went to Leghorn (where he found the Active frigate, Captain Davers), adopted similar measures, and by his prompt and spirited conduct prevented property to an immense amount from falling into the hands of the enemy. It is here worthy of remark, that a French 74 and four frigates were then lying in Porto Ferrajo; and although they saw him pass on his way to Malta with the vessels he had thus rescued from the impending danger under his convoy, made no effort to obstruct him, although there can be no doubt that they were aware of the rupture which had taken place, one of their frigates having been chased into that port a day or two before by the Narcissus.

On the 8th July, 1803, Captain Donnelly, being off Sardinia, fell in with, and after a pursuit of twenty-two hours, captured l’Alcion, a French corvette, of 16 guns and 96 men, returning from Alexandria, where she had been on a particular mission. He was subsequently entrusted by Lord Nelson with the command of a squadron of frigates employed in watching the port of Toulon; and so high an opinion did that immortal hero entertain of his abilities, both as an officer and a seaman, that he placed his own relative, the present Captain W. B. Suckling, and several other young gentlemen in whose welfare he felt an interest, under his immediate care^[9].

In July 1804, Captain Donnelly, sent the boats of his squadron to destroy about a dozen of the enemy’s settees lying at la Vandour, in Hiéres Bay, which service was gallantly executed under a tremendous fire of great guns and musketry, as well from the vessels as from a battery, and the houses of the town, close to which they were hauled in, and well secured by hawsers from their keels to the shore.

To those officers who can boast of having served under the immediate command of Lord Nelson, the introduction of the following letter may appear superfluous. To others, however, it will serve as a specimen of the familiar manner in which he always communicated his orders and ideas to those on whose “ability and zeal” he could “rely.” We select it from among many others, which have been placed in our hands by the friends of the various gentlemen to whom they were addressed:

“Victory, July 2, 1804.

“My dear Sir,– I believe your orders are to cruise or anchor as you may judge best for carrying on the service entrusted to you; therefore you will act as you see best. Your boats can be inside at night in moderate weather, and in day-time you can work between the islands (Hiéres); but I should wish you not to be out of reach of the fleet in case Monsieur La Touche should come out of his nest^[10]. I am obliged by your accounts of Hiéres Bay. When our fleet occupied it, the islands were not fortified. The enemy, I am sure, want to get some small ships of war to the eastward, probably for the invasion of Sardinia; and by disappointment for some time, I think the fleet will be ordered out to fight close to Toulon, that they may get their crippled ships in again, oblige us to quit the coast to repair our damages, and thus leave it clear; but my mind is fixed not to fight them unless with a westerly wind outside the Hiéres, or an easterly wind to the eastward of Sicie. I am sure one of these days they will come out; for, besides their degradation in the eyes of all Europe, Marseilles must suffer for want of her usual commerce. I have only again to repeat, that you will keep under sail, or anchor, as you please; and I am sure you will always be upon your guard against a surprise from a superior force. We have nothing new. Algiers is rather better that it was, but not quite so well as we could wish. Phoebe not joined. With my best regards to all your squadron, be assured I am ever, my dear Sir,

“Yours most faithfully,
(Signed)“Nelson & Bronte.

“Captain Donnelly.”

Previous to our officer’s departure from the Mediterranean station, he was employed on several missions to the Barbary States, and succeeded in obtaining the liberation of several English merchantmen that had been carried into Tunis and Algiers by the corsairs. We next find him accompanying the expedition sent against the Cape of Good Hope, under the orders of Sir Home Popham and Sir David Baird. During the passage, the Narcissus was detached to procure intelligence; and proceeding on that service, Captain Donnelly captured a French privateer, of 12 guns and 70 men; retook a large English Guineaman, mounting 22 guns, laden with rum, tobacco, slaves, ivory, &c.; and drove on shore a ship of 32 twenty-four pounders and 250 men, having on board the ordnance of a French frigate, which had recently been wrecked in Table Bay.

After the subjugation of the Cape^[11], Captain Donnelly proceeded with Sir Home Popham and Major-General Beresford, to the Rio de la Plata, from whence he returned to England with those officers’ despatches, relative to the capture of Buenos Ayres, and specie to the amount of 1,086,208 dollars, found in the treasury of that place. The following are extracts from the London Gazette Extraordinary of Sept. 13, 1806:–

Sir Home Popham to the Secretary of the Admiralty.

“Captain Donnelly, who did me the favor of requesting I would go up the river in the Narcissus, and to whom, from his rank, no specific service could be assigned in our small scale of operations, applied himself in every occasion where he could promote the objects of the expedition; and, as he is charged with this despatch, I take the liberty of recommending him to their lordships’ protection, under a full conviction they will obtain, through him, every information which they have a right to expect from an officer of great intelligence, and long meritorious service^[12].”

Major-General Beresford to Sir David Baird.

“I halted two hours on the field,” (near Reduction) “to rest the troops, and to make arrangements for taking with us the enemy’s guns, and our own, which had now, by the exertions of Captain Donnelly, of his Majesty’s ship Narcissus, been extricated from the bog. He had accidentally landed, and accompanied the troops on seeing them advance to the enemy, and I am much indebted to him for his voluntary assistance^[13].”

Immediately on his arrival in England, Captain Donnelly was appointed by the present Earl Grey, then at the head of the Admiralty, to the Ardent, of 64 guns, and ordered to escort a reinforcement of troops commanded by Sir Samuel Auchmuty, to la Plata. The convoy sailed from Falmouth on the 11th Oct., touched at Rio Janeiro for water and refreshments, and formed a junction with Rear-Admiral Stirling off Maldonado, Jan. 5, 1807. Buenos Ayres had in the interim been retaken by the enemy; and the British Commanders, seeing the necessity of securing some strong post before any attempts were made for its recovery, immediately proceeded to invest Monte Video, which fortress, as already stated at pp. 406 and 625, was carried by storm on the 3d of the following month^[14]. Captain Donnelly on that occasion commanded the brigade of seamen and marines landed from the squadron to co-operate with the army; and the assistance rendered by him in transporting the battering train, ammunition, stores, and provisions, from the place of debarkation, a distance of about seven miles, along a heavy sandy road, erecting batteries, &c, was duly acknowledged by Brigadier-General Auchmuty, and the naval Commander-in-Chief, with whose despatches he arrived at the Admiralty on the 12th April, and shortly after had the honor of receiving the thanks of both Houses of Parliament.

Subsequent to this event, Captain Donnelly brought an action, in the Court of Common Pleas, against Sir Home Popham, to recover a sum which he had paid to him in error. In the distribution of some prize-money, he had allowed Sir Home the share of a Flag-Officer having the power of appointing a Captain under him; but he afterwards found that Sir Home had only the temporary rank of Commodore, and no authority to appoint his Captain; consequently his proper share was much less than it had been calculated at. The Judge was of opinion that Captain Donnelly had established his claim; and the jury accordingly returned a verdict for him of 2004l. 17s. 3d., the sum overpaid.

In 1808, our officer was appointed to the Invincible, of 74 guns; and towards the close of the same year, we find him serving off Cadiz under Rear-Admiral Purvis, by whom he was deputed, with 200 men, to fit out the Spanish fleet at the Caraccas; which service, notwithstanding the sad disorder in which he found the ships, and the reluctance with which the Spaniards consented to such a measure, he performed by means of very extraordinary exertions, in the short space of eight days; and thus saved them from falling into the hands of the French, who were endeavouring to obtain possession of them^[15].

From the Cadiz station Captain Donnelly proceeded to the Mediterranean, and joined Lord Collingwood off Toulon at the commencement of 1810, but was soon after compelled, in consequence of a cataract, to resign the command of the Invincible, a circumstance rendered the more mortifying, as he had with infinite pains succeeded in establishing a perfect system of discipline among his young ship’s company. The disease of his eyes continued for about two years, and prevented him from going afloat during that period. Immediately on his recovery, however, he applied for employment, and had the gratification of receiving an appointment, by return of post, to the Devonshire, a new 74; which ship he fitted out with her marines, but never went to sea in, peace taking place before she could be manned. He was advanced to the rank of Rear-Admiral, June 4, 1814^[16].

Our officer has recently lost a son, who, at the time of his demise, commanded the Najib regiment of native cavalry. His eldest daughter is the lady of the Right Hon. Lord Audley, to whom she was married in April, 1816.

Residence.– Sussex House, Hammersmith.

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1. See Retired Captain Sir A. S. Hamond, in our next volume.
2. See note at p. 77. Much has been said by various writers on naval subjects, of the manner in which the French fleet was manned; but no mention has been made of the ineffective state of the British ships, when they first put to sea to meet the republicans. An idea thereof may be formed from the circumstance of the Montagu having joined the grand fleet with only 13 men, including the quarter-masters, able to take the helm; 7 in one watch, 6 in the other. The captain of her fore-top had only been 15 months at sea. The Ramillies was equally destitute of able seamen; and many others nearly so.
3. A memoir of this gallant officer will be found at p. 39.
4. At the general promotion that followed Earl Howe’s victory, Mr. Donnelly, and all the other First Lieutenants of his Lordship’s fleet, were made Commanders, and took rank according to their seniority as Lieutenants.
5. Captain, now Sir William Johnstone Hope, was at that period, as already mentioned at p. 511, labouring under the effects of a violent injury he had sustained about twelve months before.
6. The First Lieutenants of Captains killed in subsequent general actions, have had post rank and the gold medal immediately conferred upon them.
7. The sabre alluded to above was given by Captain Donnelly to the Prince of Orange, three days before the battle of Waterloo, and is the same that H.S.H. fought with on that memorable day.
8. Captain Donnelly and the present Lord Beresford were the last persons who left the Egyptian shore.
9. Among the gentlemen on the quarter-deck of the Narcissus at that period, were the sons of Lord Duncan, Sir Hyde Parker, Admiral Holloway, and Sir Thomas Troubridge. In writing to the latter distinguished officer, March 17, 1804, Lord Nelson says, “Your son cannot be any where so well placed as with Donnelly.” See Clarke and M‘Arthur’s Life of Nelson, 4to edit. Vol. II, p. 360.
10. M. La Touche Treville, who had commanded at Boulogne, in 1801, commanded now at Toulon. “He was sent for on purpose,” said Nelson, “as he beat me at Boulogne, to beat me again; but he seems very loth to try.” One day, while the main body of the British fleet was out of sight of land, the reconnoitring squadron, under Rear-Admiral Campbell, stood in close to the port, and La Touche, with a vastly superior force, pushed out and chased it about 12 miles. The Frenchman, delighted at having found himself in so novel a situation, published a boastful account, affirming that he had given chase to the whole British fleet, and that Nelson had fled before him! In spite of contempt for the gasconader, his lordship was half angered by his impudence. Writing to the present Earl, he said, “You will have seen La Touche’s letter – how he chased me, and how I ran. I keep it; and if I take him, by God he shall eat it.” LaTouche, however, soon after died, according to the French papers, in consequence of walking so often up to the signal post upon Cape Sepet, to watch the British fleet; and thus effectually prevented Nelson from administering to him his own lying letter in a sandwich.
11. See note , at p. 622, et seq.
12. The Narcissus’s appearance in the vicinity of Buenos Ayres, greatly surprised the Spanish Americans, no ship of her size having been so far up la Plata for 80 years preceding her arrival.
13. After the performance of the service alluded to in the Major-General’s letter, Captain Donnelly returned to the transports, all of which, together with the Encounter gun-brig, were at that time lying a-ground off Point Quelmey à Pouichin, where the army had been landed, and by great exertions succeeded in getting them afloat and removing them to a secure anchorage.
14. Having referred the reader to our memoir of Rear-Admiral Stirling, we beg leave to point out two errors which have this moment been discovered by us at p. 406. The Rear-Admiral, instead of escorting the corps under Sir S. Auchmuty to South America, had proceeded thither some time before, for the purpose of superseding Sir Home Popham. The army and naval brigade were landed on the 16th Jan. 1807, and Monte Video was invested on the 20th. By the passage alluded to, both events appear to have taken place on the 18th. This inaccuracy renders it necessary to make similar corrections at pp. 624 and 625.
15. See pp. 239, 240.
16. In Oct. 1805, the freedom of the city of Cork was voted to Captain Donnelly, in consideration of bis cordial reception of, and polite attention to, the Mayor and Corporation, on an occasion which caused them to visit the Narcissus; as well as of his public character.