Philip Broke

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Sir Philip Bowes Vere Broke

Sir Philip Bowes Vere Broke, 1st Baronet (9 September 1776 – 2 January 1841) was a distinguished officer in the British Royal Navy.

Broke was born at Broke Hall, Nacton, near Ipswich, the eldest son of Philip Bowes Broke. He attended Ipswich School where a house has now been named in his honour. He joined the Royal Naval Academy at Portsmouth Dockyard in 1788, and was began active service as a midshipman in 1792. It was rather unusual for him to have received formal naval education — most of his contemporaries received only "on the job" training. He served as Third Lieutenant on the frigate HMS Southampton during the Battle of Cape St. Vincent in February 1797. He was promoted to Commander in 1799 and Captain in 1801.

His most notable accomplishment was his victory of his vessel, the HMS Shannon, over the USS Chesapeake on 1 June 1813, during the War of 1812. Broke took command of the Shannon, 38-gun frigate, on 31 August 1806. Broke was ordered to take his vessel to Halifax, Nova Scotia in 1811 as the diplomatic position between America and Britain deteriorated. US President James Madison declared war on 18 June 1812. There had been half a dozen naval battles between American and British vessels in the following year. On each occasion, a Royal Naval vessel had fought an United States Navy vessel of equivalent rate and the Americans won all those battles. The tide turned at shortly before 6pm on 1 June 1813 when Shannon defeated Chesapeake as it attempted to evade the blockade of the port of Boston, Massachusetts. Although Chesapeake carried 49 guns and had a substantially larger crew, gunnery was Broke's area of experise, and the crew of Shannon were exceptionally well drilled. Chesapeake was disabled by gunfire, boarded and captured within 15 minutes of opening fire. 56 sailors on Chesapeake were killed, including its Captain, James Lawrence, and 85 wounded. Lawrence's last, prophetic, words were reported to be the command, "Don't Give Up the Ship". On the Shannon, 24 were killed and 59 wounded, including Broke who sustained a serious head wound while leading the boarding party.

Shannon's victory created a sensation in the US and the UK, and Broke became something of a celebrity. In recognition of his service, Broke was created a Baronet on 25 September 1813 and a Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath on 3 January 1815. He was also awarded a Gold Naval Medal, one of only eight awarded for single ship actions between 1794 and 1816. While his wounds precluded further active service, Broke served as a naval gunnery specialist to the Royal Navy. He was promoted to Rear Admiral of the Red on 22 July 1830.

His younger brother, Charles Broke, later Charles Broke Vere, joined the British Army, serving under the Duke of Wellington, ending up as a Major General and was knighted.