James Walker (Royal Navy officer)

Lord Howe's action, or the Glorious First of June
Philippe-Jacques de Loutherbourg, 1795.

Niger was attached to the Channel Fleet, and took part of the Atlantic campaign of May 1794 with Lord Howe. She was one of the repeating ships at the Glorious First of June, though she did not take part in the fighting herself.[2] Walker's role as signal lieutenant secured him promotion to commander on 6 July 1794.[2] He went as a volunteer with Legge to HMS Latona, had a stint as acting commander of HMS Gibraltar and in April 1795 he was in temporary command of the bomb vessel HMS Terror.[6][7] He received an appointment on 15 July 1795 to the temporary command of the 50-gun HMS Trusty, and was ordered to escort five East Indiamen to a safe latitude, and then to return to Spithead.[2][8] Having escorted the merchants to the designated point he received news that a fleet of 36 English merchants were assembled at Cadiz, in need of an escort.[2]

Disobeying his orders to return to Spithead, Walker made for Cadiz, gathered the convoy, and escorted them to Britain.[2] It was a controversial action. The merchants claimed the cargoes were worth £1 million, and would have been at considerable risk from enemy vessels were it not for Walker's escort.[1][8] However the Spanish authorities were greatly incensed, arresting five of Trusty's officers while she was at Cadiz on charges of having smuggled the merchant's money out of the port, and demanding Walker be court-martialled. Walker justified himself by pointing to the imminent alliance between France and Spain, but despite the Lords of the Admiralty being sympathetic to his cause, he was found guilty of disobeying orders, and was dismissed from the navy.[1][2][8] The Lords advised him to join the fleet despatched to the West Indies under Sir Hugh Cloberry Christian, but it was dispersed by gales and the ship Walker was travelling on returned to port.[8] There it was suggested that he wait in Britain, and with the Spanish declaration of war, Walker was reinstated on the navy list in March 1797 by an order in council.[2][8]

Shortly afterwards mutiny broke out at Spithead and at the Nore. Walker proposed an attack on the mutinous ships at the Nore using heavily armed gunboats, fitted with carronades, and was commissioned by the Admiralty on 10 June to carry this out.[2][9] Walker set out down the Thames but only got as far as Gravesend before news reached him that the mutineers had submitted and his operation was no longer necessary.[1][8] He was appointed acting-captain of HMS Garland on 16 July 1797 and conveyed a Baltic-bound convoy of merchants as far as Elsinore.[10]

The Battle of Camperdown, 11 October 1797 by Thomas Whitcombe, painted 1798.

On his return he was appointed captain of the 64-gun HMS Monmouth on 20 August, still in an acting capacity.[2] Monmouth had been one of the most mutinous ships of the whole fleet, and was heavily involved in the Nore mutiny.[8] Walker took her to join Admiral Adam Duncan's fleet in the North Sea. Within a short time he was able to restore good order aboard her, and was able to play a significant role in the Battle of Camperdown on 11 October.[8] As she approached the Dutch fleet Walker gathered the crew and addressed them saying 'My lads, you see your enemy; I shall lay you close aboard and give you an opportunity of washing the stain off your characters in the blood of your foes. Now, go to your quarters and do your duty.'[1][2] During the battle Monmouth engaged the Dutch ships Delft and Alkmaar for an hour and a half, forcing both of them to surrender.[2] Monmouth, which had lost five men killed and 22 wounded, took Alkmaar in tow, and despite sailing through a strong gale, reached the shelter of Yarmouth roads five days later.[11] The battle was a decisive victory for the British over the Dutch, and Walker was among those captains rewarded, having his post rank confirmed on 17 October, and receiving the Naval Gold Medal and the thanks of parliament.[1][2][9] He attended the service of thanksgiving at St Paul's Cathedral on 19 December, and assisted in depositing the captured enemy colours.[10]

The Battle of Copenhagen, by Nicholas Pocock

Walker took command of the 64-gun HMS Veteran on 8 February 1798, before transferring in quick succession to the 56-gun HMS Brakel, the 98-gun HMS Prince George, the 90-gun HMS Prince and lastly the 50-gun HMS Isis on 7 October 1800.[2] He commanded Isis in the North Sea, the Skagerrak and in the Baltic Sea, as well as with the Channel Fleet. Isis was assigned to the Baltic expedition under Admiral Sir Hyde Parker, and joined Rear-Admiral Horatio Nelson's squadron for the Battle of Copenhagen on 2 April 1801.[1] The plan of attack had to be improvised at the last minute, after several ships ran aground while trying to enter the harbour, including Nelson's flagship, HMS Elephant. Walker took Isis in to engage both his own target as well as Elephant's, and ended up fighting two Danish blockships and a 14-gun battery.[12] When eventually Nelson was able to work his way down the line he left Walker at his task and took another position. As he passed, Nelson took off his hat, waved it, and cried, 'Well done, brave Walker! Go on as you have begun; nothing can be better'.[1] After four and a half hours of intense fighting Isis silenced her opponents, at the heavy cost of nine officers and 103 men killed or wounded.[13] Nelson came aboard Isis the following morning and thanked Walker and his men for their brave efforts.[13]

Walker received an appointment to command the new 32-gun HMS Tartar on 1 July 1801 and took a convoy of merchants to Jamaica.[10] He continued to be employed, despite the drawdown of the navy following the Peace of Amiens, and received command of the 74-gun HMS Vanguard on 27 January 1802.[1][12] With the resumption of hostilities in 1803 he was assigned to the Blockade of Saint-Domingue, and captured the 44-gun French frigate Créole, bound for Port au Prince with 530 troops under General Morgan.[11] On 25 July he captured the French 74-gun Duquesne.[1][12] After taking his prize to Jamaica Walker returned to his station and on 1 October demanded the surrender of the French garrison at Saint-Marc. The garrison of 1100 men was besieged by the forces of generals Jean-Jacques Dessalines and Henri Christophe, and were short of food. They agreed to surrender to Walker and were taken off in order to save them from the vengeance of the besieging forces.[1][12] In doing so he saved their lives, but as his provisions were rapidly exhausted he was forced to return to port to resupply at the point at which Cape François was about to fall, and so missed out on a considerable sum of prize money.[13]

Walker was then given command of his prize, the Duquesne, on 2 March 1804, and sailed her from Jamaica to Chatham with only 160 men.[12] Also embarked on the Duquesne were an almost equal number of French prisoners, which had to be closely watched during the passage, in case they made an attempt to take the ship.[14] Duquesne arrived in England without incident, and Walker paid her off for repairs.[15] He then received command of the 36-gun HMS Thalia on 1 March 1805 and escorted convoys to the East Indies and Quebec.[1][12] The voyage to the East Indies was made with two ships laden with treasure was made safely and quickly, with Walker arriving back at Spithead ten months to the day of his departure.[16] The voyage to Quebec was made in company with two frigates, which delivered the convoy, but were delayed in port by gales until 1 December 1806. After setting sail Thalia became caught in a gale off the Newfoundland Banks and ran for 1250 miles for five days under bare poles.[16] After returning to Spithead Walker was assigned to the Guernsey station under Sir Edmund Nagle, where he was given command of a squadron of three frigates and a brig to watch the enemy at St Malo.[12][16]

John VI of Portugal. Walker became a confidant during his time in Brazil while John was Prince Regent.

In October 1807 Walker was transferred to the 74-gun HMS Bedford and was sent to Lisbon with Sir Sidney Smith.[12] While there the decision was made to evacuate the Portuguese royal family to Brazil, just prior to the capture of the Portuguese capital, Lisbon, by Napoleonic forces. HMS Bedford joined HMS Monarch, HMS London and HMS Marlborough as an escort for the Portuguese ships, with the British squadron being commanded by Commodore Graham Moore.[16] The fleet was dispersed by heavy gales off Madeira, though Bedford was able to rejoin the ships carrying the royals two days later, and was the only British ship to escort them for the rest of the thirteen-week voyage.[16] Walker struck up a friendship with the Prince Regent, who wanted to create him a member of the Order of Aviz, but owing to Walker's religion, he instead recreated the military Order of the Tower and Sword. The Prince Regent invested himself with the honour, and then immediately created Walker a Knight Commander of the order on 30 April 1816, making him the senior Knight Commander of the order.[14][16] Walker spent two years with the court at Rio de Janeiro, and in addition to the honour, received the Prince Regent's portrait set in brilliants, a valuable diamond ring, and several letters testifying to Walker's good service.[1][16]

On Walker's return to Britain he asked for, and received, orders to join the fleet in the North Sea. Still in command of Bedford, he took part in the blockade of Flushing under Admiral John Ferrier, narrowly avoiding being wrecked in a gale on 14 January 1814.[16] After being repaired she joined Admiral William Young, and then Admiral Scott to go into Flushing.[16] In the summer of 1814 Walker was selected to accompany the Duke of Clarence on his journey to Boulogne to collect Tsar Alexander I of Russia and King Frederick William III of Prussia.[12] Bedford then formed part of the fleet assembled for a Royal review.[16] He then made two trips to bring army units back from the continent. In September 1814 he took command of a squadron carrying the advance guard of an invasion force to occupy New Orleans under Major-General John Keane. During the campaign the senior naval officers, Sir Alexander Cochrane and Rear-Admirals Pulteney Malcolm and Edward Codrington, went ashore, leaving Walker to manage the fleet, which owing to the shoal water, had to be kept a hundred miles offshore.[1][16]