Page:A Naval Biographical Dictionary.djvu/1277

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WEBB.
1263

him successively, until promoted to the rank of Lieutenant 16 Feb. 1815, employed, on the Home and North American stations, in the Desirée 36, Capt. Arthur Farquhar, Maidstone 36, Capt. Geo. Burdett, San Domingo 74, flag-ship of Sir John Borlase Warren, Niobe 40, Ruby 64, Capt. Andrew Fitzherbert Evans, Centurion 50, bearing the flag of the late Sir Edw. Griffith Colpoys, and Bulwark 74, Capt. Farmery Predam Epworth. On 3 April, 1813, being then in the Maidstone, he accompanied a brilliant boat-expedition 15 miles up the Rappahannock river, where, in the launch under Lieut. Matthew Liddon, he assisted, in conjunction with the large cutter of the Statira 38, in gallantly boarding and carrying the Dolphin schooner of 12 guns and 98 men. His conduct on this occasion elicited the public thanks of Rear-Admiral Cockburn, and obtained for him, we believe, a recommendation to the Commander-in-Chief, Sir J. B. Warren. While serving in the Bulwark he aided in bringing troops home from Quebec. After his promotion he served in the Coast Blockade, from 29 Nov. 1825 until 1827, and again from 7 Nov. 1829 until 1831, as a Supernumerary-Lieutenant of the Ramillies 74 and Hyperion 42, Capts. Hugh Pigot and Wm. Jas. Mingaye; he officiated next as Admiralty Agent on board a contract mail steam-vessel in the West Indies, from 15 Jan. 1845 until compelled by repeated attacks of yellow fever to invalid about the close of the same year; and from 29 Sept. 1846 until the period of his death he had charge of a station in the Coast Guard. While his name was on the books of the Ramillies, Lieut. Webb had the good fortune to save the lives of a Midshipman (Mr. Trench) and 14 men from drowning, off Kingsgate. For this he received a letter of thanks from the Royal Humane Society, as at another time he did from Mr. Phelps, Master of the brig Elizabeth of Plymouth, for a similar service. We may add that he was the means, on one occasion, of saving the life of H.R.H. the Duke of Kent, father of Her present Majesty. His eldest son, an officer of the Lizard steamer, was killed during the operations in the Panama in 1846 (see Lieut. H. M. Tylden). One of his daughters is the wife of Commander Alex. Pretyman, R.N. Agents – Goode and Lawrence.



WEBB. (Commander, 1828.)

Joseph Richard Raggett Webb, born 14 Sept. 1788, at Penzance, co. Cornwall, is son of Mr. Webb, Purser R.N., who died in the Alfred 74, in the West Indies; and nephew of the late Rear-Admiral Rich. Raggett.

This officer entered the Navy, in 1798, as Fst.-cl. Vol., on board the Galykheid, in which vessel, and in the Bristol and Snipe, commanded by Lieuts. Marsden, Joseph Withers, and Chas. Champion, he continued employed in the river Medway and in the Downs and North Sea, the greater part of the time as Midshipman, until transferred, in Aug. 1803, to the Romney 50, Capts. Wm. Brown and Hon. John Colville. In that ship, after visiting the coast of Africa and the West Indies, he was wrecked in the Texel 19 Nov. 1804. He next, in the early part of’the following year, joined the Namur 74 and Leopard 50, flag-ships (the latter commanded by his uncle) of Admirals Rowley and Billy Douglas at the Nore and in the Downs; and on 17 March, 1806 he was made Lieutenant into the Anson 40, Capt. Chas. Lydiard, fitting for a voyage to Bermuda. His succeeding appointments, we believe, were – 13 July, 1806, to the command of the Laura, in which vessel he returned to England – 14 Feb. 1807, for three months, to the Pandora sloop, Capt. Henry Hume Spence, lying at Sheerness – 13 June, 1808, to the Cherokee of 10 guns and 70 men, Capt. Rich. Arthur – early in 1810, to the Franchise 36, Capts. John Allen and Rich. Buck, with whom he served on the Newfoundland and Mediterranean stations until Sept. 1814 – 19 June, 1815, to the Royal Sovereign 100, Capt. Wm. Robt. Broughton, lying at Plymouth, where he remained until 28 Aug. ensuing – 21 March, 1816, to the Prince 98, from which ship, commanded at Portsmouth by Capt. Robt. Hall, he was superseded in March, 1819 – and, in 1820-1-6, to the command, on the Home station, of the Hind and Dove Revenue-cruizers, and Swan cutter. In the Cherokee, besides sharing in the operations connected with the expedition to the Walcheren, he assisted, we believe, at the capture (detailed in our memoir of Rear-Admiral Arthur) of L’Aimable Nelly privateer of 16 guns and 60 men. He attained his present rank 1 May, 1828; and was lastly, from 28 Feb. 1839 until March, 1842, employed in the Ocean 80, guard-ship at Sheerness, Capts. Sir John Hill and Peter Fisher.

Commander Webb married, first, 12 June, 1814, Charlotte Sophia Emily Ulrich, daughter of the Danish Consul at Algiers; and, secondly, 21 Jan. 1841, Elizabeth, widow of the late Thos. Edis, Esq., of Broad-street Buildings, London. He has had issue seven children. His eldest son died while serving with the Niger expedition, aged 24. Agents – Holmes and Folkard.



WEBB. (Lieut., 1814. f-p., 14; h-p., 30.)

Nicholas Webb entered the Navy, 25 July, 1803, as Fst.-cl. Vol., on board the St. Albans 64, Capt. John Temple, stationed in the North Sea. Removing as Midshipman, in March, 1805, to the Favorite 18, Capt. John Davie, he sailed in that vessel for the coast of Africa, where he assisted, 28 Dec. following, at the capture, after an action of 20 minutes, of Le Général Blanchard privateer of 16 guns and 130 men, 11 of whom were killed and 25 wounded. On 6 of the following month the Favorite was herself taken by a French squadron under M. L’Hermite, but her officers and crew were immediately sent in a cartel to England, during the whole of their passage whither, two months and two days, they were under the necessity of being limited to half-a-pint of water each a-day. Soon after his arrival Mr. Webb was received, in April, 1806, on board the Uranie 38, Capt. Christopher Laroche, on leaving which ship, in Aug. 1807, he joined the Horatio of 46 guns and 270 men, Capt. Geo. Scott. In her he appears to have been present, in company with the Latona 38, and Supérieure and Driver sloops, at the capture, 10 Feb. 1809, off the Virgin Islands, of La Junon French frigate of 42 guns and 323 men, after a close and sanguinary action of nearly three hours, attended with a loss to the enemy of 130 killed and wounded, and to the Horatio of not more than 7 killed and 26 wounded. In the summer of the same year we find him sharing, in the Galgo rocket-ship, Lieut.-Commander M‘Killop, in the operations connected with the expedition to the Walcheren; on his return whence he was transferred to the Implacable 74 Capts. Thos. Byam Martin and Geo. Cockburn. Under the latter officer he accompanied an expedition sent to Quiberon Bay to co-operate with the Baron de Kolli in an attempt to liberate Ferdinand VII. of Spain from his confinement at Valençay. He served next at the defence of Cadiz and then escorted two Spanish line-of-battle ships, of 120 guns each, to the Havana; after which he proceeded to Vera Cruz, and returned with 2,000,000 dollars to Cadiz, where, and off Lisbon, he continued employed, from April, 1811, until Aug. 1813 in the Alfred 74, Capts. Wm. Shepheard and Joshua Sydney Horton, and as Acting-Lieutenant (original order dated 23 April, 1812) in the Grampus 50, Commodore Cockburn, and Myrtle 20, Capt. Clement Sneyd. He was then ordered a passage home in the Coquette 20, Capt. John Simpson. He sailed shortly afterwards for the coast of North America in the Severn 40, Capt. Joseph Nourse and was there, until May, 1815, employed as Midishipman, and again as Acting-Lieutenant, in the Albion 74, flag-ship of Rear-Admiral Cockburn Dragon 74, Capt. Robt. Barrie, and Junon 38, Capt. Clotworthy Upton. His commission bears date 19 July, 1814. He was appointed for three