William Lechmere

He spent time ashore during the years of peace, marrying and receiving a promotion to post captain before the outbreak of the French Revolutionary Wars.

Lechmere had missed one of the most decisive battles of his career, but he went on to command other ships and receive further promotions, eventually dying at the close of the Napoleonic Wars in 1815.

[2] Lechmere took advantage of the peace and married Elizabeth, the daughter of Sir John Dashwood-King, at St Martin-in-the-Fields, Westminster on 31 October 1787.

He was promoted to post captain on 21 September 1790, but it was not until August 1794, after the outbreak of the French Revolutionary Wars, that he took up his first independent command, the 74-gun HMS Saturn.

During this time Jupiter flew the broad pennant of Commodore John Willett Payne and also served as a Royal escort for Princess Caroline of Brunswick.

[5] Lechmere took command of the 64-gun HMS St Albans in 1796, during which time she was the flagship of Vice-Admiral George Vandeput on the Halifax station.

[7] He then appears to have been unemployed for a period, as he is not recorded in command of a ship until April 1805, when he superseded Captain William Bedford, and commissioned the 74-gun HMS Thunderer.

[8][10] Thunderer, HMS Malta and several of the frigates had drifted some six miles distant of the admiral on the morning of 23 July, and took no part in the second indecisive clash of the battle.

After sending several ships, including Thunderer, into port, Calder sailed south to join Vice-Admiral Cuthbert Collingwood off Cadiz.

[1] Among them was his eldest son, Charles, who was born on 4 December 1789 and died in command of HMS Leven off the West African coast on 9 November 1822.