Frederick William Beechey | |
|---|---|
 Beechey painted by his brother George Duncan Beechey | |
| President of theRoyal Geographical Society | |
| In office 28 May 1855 – 29 November 1856 (1855-05-28 –1856-11-29) | |
| Preceded by | The Earl of Ellesmere |
| Succeeded by | Sir Roderick Murchison |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1796-02-17)17 February 1796 London, Middlesex, England |
| Died | 29 November 1856(1856-11-29) (aged 60) London, Middlesex, England |
| Children | 5, includingFrances Anne Hopkins |
| Parent(s) | William Beechey Anne Jessop |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance | United Kingdom |
| Branch/service | Royal Navy |
| Years of service | 1806–1856 |
| Rank | Rear-Admiral |
| Commands | HMSBlossom HMSSulphur HMSAfrican HMSLucifer HMSFirefly |
| Battles/wars | |
Rear-AdmiralFrederick William BeecheyFRS (17 February 1796 – 29 November 1856) was an Englishnaval officer, artist, explorer,hydrographer and writer.
He was the son of two painters, SirWilliam Beechey,RA and his second wife,Anne Jessop.[1] Born inLondon on 17 February 1796, his brothers included the British admiral and painterRichard Brydges Beechey, the portraitistHenry William Beechey and the painterGeorge Duncan Beechey. Frederick entered theRoyal Navy at the age of 10 under the command ofJohn Jervis, 1st Earl of St Vincent. He was promoted to midshipman on February 8, 1807 and saw active service during theWar of 1812. He served in theBattle of New Orleans. Because of this, he was promoted to 2nd lieutenant on March 10, 1815[2][3]
In early 1818, and now a lieutenant, Beechey sailed on HMSTrent under LieutenantJohn Franklin inDavid Buchan'sArctic expedition, of which at a later period he published a narrative. In the following year he accompanied LieutenantW. E. Parry inHMS Hecla, sailing as far north asMelville Island.[2] In 1821, as an officer on HMSAdventure, he took part in the survey of theMediterranean coast of Africa under the direction of CaptainWilliam Henry Smyth.[2] His brother, Henry William Beechey, and he made an overland survey of this coast and published a full account of their work in 1828 under the title ofProceedings of the Expedition to Explore the Northern Coast of Africa from Tripoly [sic] Eastward in 1821-1822.[3]
In 1825, Beechey was appointed to commandHMS Blossom. His task was to explore theBering Strait in concert with Franklin and Parry operating from the east. In the summer of 1826, he passed the strait and a barge from his ship reached 71°23'31" N., and 156°21'30" W. nearPoint Barrow, which he named, a point only 146 miles west of that reached by Franklin's expedition from theMackenzie River. The whole voyage lasted more than three years, and in the course of it, Beechey discovered several islands in thePacific, and an excellent harbour nearCape Prince of Wales.[3]
In 1826, he visited a Catholic mission in California. He wrote, "...with whips, canes and goads or sharp, pointed sticks to preserve silence and maintain order, and what seemed more difficult than either, to keep the congregation in their kneeling posture. The goads would reach a long way and inflict a sharp puncture without making any noise. The end of the church was occupied by a guard of soldiers under arms with fixed bayonets."
In July 1826, he named the three islands in the Bering Strait. Two were theDiomede Islands thatVitus Bering had named in 1728: "Ratmanoff Island" (Big Diomede) and "Krusenstern Island" (Little Diomede). Beechey called the uninhabited third islet "Fairway Rock", which is still its contemporary name. One of his crew, Petty Officer John Bechervaise, gave a detailed account of the voyage in hisThirty-six Years of a Seafaring Life by an Old Quartermaster, published privately in 1839.[4] (The crewmember's namesake and great-great-grandsonJohn Béchervaise (1910–1998) was a noted explorer of Antarctica.) In 1831, there appeared Beechey'sNarrative of a Voyage to the Pacific and Bering's Strait to Co-operate with the Polar Expeditions, 1825-1828.
In 1835 and '36, Captain Beechey was employed on the coast survey ofSouth America, and from 1837 to 1847, carried on similar work along theIrish coasts, and in theNorth Sea andEnglish Channel. He carried out detailed tidal surveys during this period, which were published, with charts, in two Royal Society papers in 1848 and 1851. This was the first published work of its kind sinceEdmond Halley's tidal chart appeared in about 1702.[5] He was appointed in 1850 to preside over the Marine Department of theBoard of Trade.[3]
In 1854, he was maderear admiral, and in the following year was elected president of theRoyal Geographical Society.[3]
Beechey Island, where Sir John Franklin wintered, was named by him after his father.[6]
His daughter was painterFrances Anne Hopkins, who lived inCanada for 12 years and painted many scenes of canoe travel.
His parents[1] and three of his brothers were painters: admiral and painterRichard Brydges Beechey, portraitistHenry William Beechey, and portraitistGeorge Duncan Beechey.
This article incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Beechey, Frederick William".Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 3 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 640.
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