His Royal Navy career began at the age of twelve, when he joined HMS Arethusa as servant to Captain Andrew Snape Hamond on the American Station.

[2] In 1794, Murray was given responsibility for the North American Station and on 1 August 1795, rewarded Rose's loyalty with the 16-gun HMS Esperance, and a promotion to Commander.

[5] She proved to be the French vessel, Poisson Volant, formerly Flying Fish of the Royal Navy, prior to her capture by privateers in the Windward Passage, the year before.

[3] On 12 March 1801, Jamaica was sent to the Baltic with a large British fleet, under Admiral Sir Hyde Parker, to disrupt the league of armed neutrality.

[9] Following an inspection of Copenhagen's defences and a council of war, Vice-admiral Horatio Nelson was awarded a squadron, of which Jamaica was part, to attack the city.

Nelson, who had been reappointed, crossed the Channel on 3 August, with thirty gun and bomb vessels, and the next day, attacked the assault craft, gathered at Boulogne.

[17] Nelson remained off Boulogne and directed further attacks on the French flotilla there, the last, a boat action, occurring on the night of 15 August.

[18] Somerville ordered his boats to make their own way as best as they could and by first light, some had successfully attacked a French brig, moored near the pier, but were prevented from towing her out, she being secured by a chain and the men being subjected to heavy fire.

After speaking to the captain, Rose learnt that the flames came from a beached vessel, containing tar and pitch, that the crews of Hound and the 12-gun HMS Mallard had earlier set alight.

When six flatboats came out of nearby Saint Valery, Hound attacked them, forcing them onto the shore where they remained, protected by soldiers and five artillery pieces.

[34] Britain offered the Danes a treaty of alliance and mutual defence, a promise to return their ships after the war, and various subsidies for Danish soldiers but Denmark refused to break her neutrality.

Fearing a victory by the French, who were poised to invade if Denmark did not declare war on Britain, on 2 September, British forces began a bombardment of the capital.

In December, Rose was ordered to Portugal, where Napoleon had been threatening since early 1806 and, following an invasion by troops under General Junot, had forced the closing of her ports to British shipping.

[30][36] Agamemnon left Portsmouth on 6 December and sailed to the Tagus where she joined a squadron under Sir Sidney Smith, blockading the port of Lisbon.

[37] While filling up with water at Cascais Bay on 16 February 1808, Agamemnon received new orders to revictual at Gibraltar then join Sidney Smith's flagship HMS Foudroyant and HM brig Pitt at Tangier.

The last leg of the journey was plagued with bad weather which caused damage to the ship and, with rainwater seeping through the decks, destroyed foodstuffs.

[39] A court martial was held in Rio de Janeiro on 22 July, where Rose claimed he could have saved the ship if it was not in such a state of disrepair.