Sir Edward Hughes | |
|---|---|
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| Born | 1720 Hertfordshire, England |
| Died | 1794 (aged 73–74) |
| Allegiance | Great Britain |
| Branch | Royal Navy |
| Rank | Admiral |
| Commands | HMSLarke HMSSomerset[1] East Indies Station |
| Conflicts | |
AdmiralSir Edward Hughes (c. 1720 – 1794) was aRoyal Navy officer who served in theWar of Jenkins' Ear,Seven Years' War andAmerican War of Independence. He is best known for fighting a series of five inconclusivefleet actions during the American War of Independence with a French fleet underPierre André de Suffren.
Hughes joined theRoyal Navy in 1735, and four years later, was present at thecapture of Porto Bello.[2] In 1740, he was promoted to lieutenant and served in theCartagena expedition of 1741, and at the indecisiveBattle of Toulon in 1744. In HMSWarwick, he participated in the action against theGlorioso, but without proper support from theLark (which was sailing with theWarwick), the enemy escaped. The commander of theLark was subsequently tried and condemned for his conduct, and Hughes received the vacated command. Captain Hughes was withEdward Boscawen at Louisburg and withCharles Saunders atQuebec.[2][3]
He was in continual employment during the peace, and as commodore, commanded theEast Indies Station from 1773 to 1777.[2]Before long, he returned to the East Indies Station as a rear-admiral, with an overwhelming naval force. On his outward voyage, he tookGorée from the French, and he was called upon to conduct only minor operations for the next two years, as the enemy could not muster any force fit to meet the powerful squadron Hughes had brought from the Channel.[3]
With Spain and Great Britain at war during theAmerican Revolutionary War, Spanish authorities in Chile received a warning that Hughes was heading to Chilean coasts for an imminent attack.[4] This attack, however, never happened.[4] In 1782, at the reopening ofhostilities in the East Indies, he stormedTrincomalee a few days before a French fleet underPierre André de Suffren arrived in the area.[2] For the next year, these Indian waters were the scene of one of the most famous of naval campaigns.[2] Suffren was one of the most talented officers to serve in the French navy, but his subordinates were factious and unskilful; Hughes on the other hand, whose ability was that born of long experience rather than genius, was well supported. No fewer than five fiercely contested general actions were fought by the two fleets, neither of them gaining a decisive advantage. In the end, Hughes held his ground.[3]
After the peace, he returned to England, and, though further promotions came to him, he never again hoisted his flag. He had accumulated considerable wealth during his Indian service, which for the most part he spent in unostentatious charity. He died at his seat of Luxborough in Essex in 1794.[2][3] His second wife, Ruth, died in 1800. Hughes' fortune went toEdward Hughes Ball Hughes (c. 1798 – 1863), her grandson by a previous marriage, who became the dandy and wastrel known as "The Golden Ball".[citation needed]
The British East India Company ship theSir Edward Hughes, launched in 1784, was named after him.
One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Hughes, Sir Edward".Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 13 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 660.
Media related toEdward Hughes at Wikimedia Commons| Military offices | ||
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| Preceded by | Commander-in-Chief, East Indies Station 1773–1777 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Commander-in-Chief, East Indies Station 1780–1784 | Succeeded by |
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