William Johnstone Hope
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Sir William Johnstone Hope | |
|---|---|
| 16 August 1766 – 2 May 1831 | |
 |
|
| Place of birth | Finchley, Middlesex |
| Place of death | Bath, Somerset |
| Allegiance |  United Kingdom |
| Service/branch |  Royal Navy |
| Years of service | 1777 to 1830 |
| Rank | Royal Navy Vice-Admiral |
| Battles/wars | American Revolutionary War French Revolutionary Wars • Glorious First of June • Invasion of the Batavian Republic Napoleonic Wars |
| Awards | Commander of the Order of St John Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath |
| Other work | Lord of the Admiralty MP for Dumfries Burghs, 1800-1804 MP for Dumfriesshire, 1804-1830 |
Vice-Admiral Sir William Johnstone Hope, GCB, C.St.J was a prominent and controversial naval officer and politician in later eighteenth and early nineteenth century Britain, whose career endured fleet actions, disputes with royalty, party politics and entry to both Russian and British orders of chivalry. A popular officer, Hope served with Nelson, Duncan and Lord Keith through several campaigns, making connections which enabled him to secure a plumb political career after his retirement from the Royal Navy in 1804 due to ill-health. In 26 years in Parliament Hope was largely inactive and instead served as a Lord of the Admiralty and commissioner of Greenwich Naval Hospital. He died in 1832 after a long career and was buried in the family plot in Scotland.
Contents |
[edit] Early career
William Hope was born the third son of John Hope,a prominent Scottish writer and politician, and his wife Mary Breton who committed suicide before William was a year old. The Hope's were descended from the first Earl of Hopetoun and maintained strong political links with the family; his brothers were also prominent figures, Charles Hope later became Lord Granton and Sir John Hope served as a brigadier under Wellington in the Peninsular War.[1]
William Hope was educated at Edinburgh High School between 1774 and 1776 and the following year, aged 12, he entered the Royal Navy as a midshipman in HMS Weazel, a sloop commanded by his uncle Captain Charles Hope.[1] As his uncle's protégé, William traveled with his relative thorough various commands, serving during the American Revolutionary War off the Home, Lisbon and Newfoundland Stations. In 1782 he was promoted to lieutenant and left his uncle, taking a position on the frigate HMS Daedalus in Newfoundland. At the conclusion of the war, Hope returned home on Daedalus and remained on her until 1785 when his uncle returned him to his own ship, now the guardship HMS Sampson at Plymouth.[1]
In 1786, Hope's career suffered a blow when he was stationed aboard the frigate HMS Pegasus, commanded by Prince William Henry, a notoriously difficult officer to serve alongside. Hope and the Prince fell out badly and in less than a year hope had been transferred to the frigate HMS Boreas, at that time commanded by Captain Horatio Nelson, with whom Hope had good relations.[1] Two years later Hope transferred yet again, being requested by Sir Richard Hughes as lieutenant on HMS Adamant. When Hughes reached flag rank in 1790 whilst stationed in Newfoundland, he promoted Hope to commander and gave him command of Adamant.
[edit] French Revolutionary War
Hope continued in command of small ships for several years, pausing in 1792 to marry Lady Anne Hope Johnstone, a distant cousin. The couple would have two daughters and four sons before Alice's death in 1818. In 1794, Hope was in command of HMS Incendiary a fireship of the Channel Fleet attached to Lord Howe's force sent to engage the French. In March, Hope was given his step to post captain, taking command of the ship of the line HMS Bellerophon, flag ship of Admiral Thomas Pasley.[1]
Hope was still in command of Bellerophon three months later when she was heavily engaged in the van of Howe's fleet at the Glorious First of June, when an equally sized French fleet was roundly defeated 200 miles out in the Atlantic Ocean. At the start of 1795, Hope joined HMS Tremendous, but within two months was requested as flag captain by Admiral Duncan in HMS Venerable. A serious accidental head injury left Hope and invalid for two years in 1796, consequently missing Duncan's victory at the Battle of Camperdown and keeping him off service until 1798.[1]
Returning from his long convalescence, Hope was again requested by Duncan and commanded his flag ship HMS Kent for the next three years. Kent was Duncan's flagship in supporting the Anglo-Russian invasion of the Batavian Republic in 1799, Hope being present at the surrender of the Dutch fleet in the Texel to the Royal Navy. Sent to Britain with the dispatches proclaiming the surrender, Hope was lauded by both the British and Russian courts, King George III presenting him with £500 and Tsar Paul I making him a Commander of the Order of St John.[1]
In 1801 in the Mediterranean, Kent carried Sir Ralph Abercromby and his headquarters for the invasion of Egypt, a successful campaign which forced the surrender of the French occupying force. Hope however was not present for the conclusion of the action, returning to Britain with Admiral Duncan after Sir Richard Bickerton raised his flag on Kent. In 1800, Hope had begun his second career, gaining the seat of Dumfries Burghs in the House of Commons through family influence.[1] Hope rarely visited his constituency and equally rarely appeared in parliament. He lost the constituency to his brother in 1802, but in 1804 was elected to the seat of Dumfriesshire, again through family connections. He retained this post until his retirement from public life in 1830.[1]
[edit] Retirement from the fleet
In 1804, at the end of the Peace of Amiens, Hope took command of HMS Atlas, but it soon became clear that his health was failing and he could no longer maintain an active naval career. Retiring from the navy on half-pay, Hope was an invalid from 104 until 1807, when a return to health permitted him to take a post as a Lord of the Admiralty. Hope changed positions several times in this role, but he held onto the position on and off for twenty years as a political favourite, a status maintained by being almost totally politically inactive.[1] In 1812, Hope was advanced to rear-admiral and in 1815 he was knighted into the Order of the Bath.
From 1813, Hope served as commander-in-chief at Leith until 1818 and in 1819 he was again promoted, to vice-admiral. In 1820 he was recalled to the Admiralty and remained there for seven years without participating in any of the important decisions and innovations of the period.[1] He remarried in 1821 to Maria, Countess of Athlone and in 1825 was advanced to Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath. In 1827, in the chaotic aftermath of the collapse of Lord Liverpool's government, Hope was retired in favour of Sir George Cockburn and was given the favourable role of treasurer and later commissioner of the Royal Naval Hospital in Greenwich. Hope died in May 1831, a few months after giving up his seat in Parliament. Although he died in Bath, his remains were returned to the family crypt at Johnstone Church, Johnstone, Dumfriesshire.[1]
[edit] Notes
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Hope, Sir William Johnstone, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, J. K. Laughton, Retrieved 14 December 2007
[edit] References
| Parliament of Great Britain | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Alexander Hope |
Member of Parliament for Dumfries Burghs 1800–1801 |
Succeeded by Parliament of the United Kingdom |
| Parliament of the United Kingdom | ||
| Preceded by Parliament of Great Britain |
Member of Parliament for Dumfries Burghs 1801–1802 |
Succeeded by Lord Granton |
| Preceded by Sir Robert Laurie |
Member of Parliament for Dumfriesshire 1804–1830 |
Succeeded by John Johnstone |
| Persondata | |
|---|---|
| NAME | Hope, William Johnstone |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | |
| SHORT DESCRIPTION | British Royal Navy admiral and politician |
| DATE OF BIRTH | 16 August 1766 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Finchley, Middlesex |
| DATE OF DEATH | 2 May 1831 |
| PLACE OF DEATH | Bath, Somerset |
