Digby Dent (Royal Navy officer, born 1739)

He was baptised in Portsmouth on 16 November 1739 one of eight children of Captain Cotton Dent RN and his wife, Catherine ("Kitty") Bowerbank (1717-1804).

[2] He transferred to HMS Newcastle the day after the latter battle to replace Captain Colin Michie who was killed in the engagement but remained stationed off Pondicherry.

[7] Boreas sprung a leak in the English Channel and was condemned causing another period of leave from February 1769 to April 1770, which allowed him time to be with his second wife and young family.

Arethusa's task was protecting the harbour against feared attach by John Paul Jones but was also asked to do convoy work to St Helena.

[9] On Boxing Day 1776 he was given the 80-gun HMS Princess Amelia to command but despite two years with the ship saw no action and was again mainly based in Portsmouth.

[11] In December 1778 he was given active command of the 64-gun HMS Vigilant and took her to the West Indies where on 6 July 1779 he took part in the Battle of Grenada.

However his main task with Royal Oak was to return her to England to refit with a copper bottom, arriving Portsmouth on 4 December 1779.

In 1787, his son, Commodore Digby Dent, served as best man at Horatio Nelson's wedding on Nevis in the West Indies.