flag-ship at Sheerness of Vice-Admiral Thos. Wells. He acted as Lieutenant, from 25 Dec. following until 11 Jan. 1810, in the Thracian sloop, Capt. Jas. Grant, on the Downs station; and on 13 Aug. ensuing, after having again served with Vice-Admiral Wells as a Supernumerary in the Namur, and with Vice-Admiral Billy Douglas in the Roebuck 44 at North Yarmouth, he was officially promoted. He was next, from 7 Oct. 1810 until promoted to the rank of Commander 10 Oct. 1815, employed in the North Sea, Channel, and Mediterranean, in the Berwick 74, Capts. Jas. Macnamara, Sir Robt. Laurie, and Edw. Brace. On 24 March, 1811, he assisted, as Senior of the latter ship, in driving the French frigate Amazon on the rocks near Barfleur lighthouse : he boarded, in the boats, off Cavalacie, 16 May, 1813, La Fortune national xebec of 10 long 9-pounders, 4 swivels, and 95 men, previously abandoned by the enemy, who had fired a shot through the bottom, and left a train to the magazine;[1] and in April, 1814, he commanded a division of boats at the siege of Genoa. Since his last promotion he has been on half-pay.
Commander White is married and has issue. Agents – Hallett and Robinson.
WHITE. (Captain, 1818.)
Martin White entered the Navy, in 1793, on board the Medusa 50, Capt. Jas. Norman, lying at Portsmouth. On 6 Nov. 1794, having removed, as Midshipman, to the Alexander 74, Capt. Rich. Rodney Bligh, he was in that ship captured, after a glorious resistance, attended with a loss to her of 40 men killed and wounded, by five French 74’s and three frigates under Rear-Admiral Nielly. On being restored to liberty he joined the Topaze 36, Capt. Stephen Geo. Church, and sailed for the coast of North America, where he was in company, 28 Aug. 1796, with a squadron under Vice-Admiral Geo. Murray, at the surrender of the French 36-gun frigate Elizabeth. The Topaze was on this occasion the most advanced ship in the pursuit, and was the only one that engaged the enemy. On leaving her Mr. White, who had for some time held the rating of Master’s Mate, was made Lieutenant, 12 Dec. 1800, into the Plyades 18, Capt. Jas. Boorder, in the North Sea. His succeeding appointments were – 21 July, 1802, to the Alcmène frigate, Capt. John Stiles – next, to the command of the Pigmy cutter – 16 March, 1804, to the Queen 98, Capt. Theophilus Jones, lying at Portsmouth – and 6 April and 28 Sept. following and 11 June, 1806, to the command of the Sandwich lugger. Manly gun-brig, and Jackdaw schooner. The Alcmène was employed in the conveyance of troops; the Pigmy in watching the French ports near Chansey [errata 1]; the Sandwich off Ostend and Flushing under Sir Wm. Sidney Smith; the Manly off Boulogne and in the North Sea; and the Jackdaw between Sheerness and Spithead. The Manly, through the ignorance of her pilot, ran on shore, in Jan. 1806, near Rysum, on the Ems, and was there seized by the Dutch in violation of the neutrality of the river. After he had attained the rank of Commander, 25 Sept. 1806, Capt. White was appointed – 27 Nov. 1806, to the Weymouth store-ship – 15 Sept. 1808, to the Vulture guard-ship on the Jersey station, where he remained three years – and in Aug. 1812 and Jan. 1817, to the Fox and Shamrock surveying-vessels, in which he continued successively employed in the English, Irish, and Bristol Channels until 1828. As a reward for his services he was advanced to Post-rank 7 Dec. 1818. He accepted the Retirement 1 Oct. 1846.
Capt. White constructed, in 1824, two charts of the coast of Ireland; others, in 1824, of the islands of Jersey, Guernsey, Sercq, Herm, Alderney, and the Caskets (with plans of Grand, Bordeaux, and St. Sampson’s Harbours, of the Pier at Montergueil, of St. Brelade’s Bay, of Grand Greve, Baleine Bay, and of the anchorage between Herm and Jethou); one also of the English Channel east of Beachy Head; two, in 1829, of Salcombe and Dartmouth Harbours; and, in 1830, one showing the result of his investigations from Cape Carteret to Cape Frehel, including the islands of Jersey, Sercq, and Chausey. His surveys among the Channel Islands and upon the coast of France were associated with those of the eminent French hydrographer M. Beautems Beaupre; and his name now stands recorded upon the pages of that beautiful national work the French Maritime Atlas. In addition to other literary productions, brought forward under the sanction of the Admiralty, Capt. White is the author of a very clever volume, published in 1846, entitled ‘Remarks on the Winds, Tides, and Currents of the Ocean.’ He married, 24 Aug. 1811, and has issue two children. Agents – Messrs. Stilwell.
WHITE. (Lieutenant, 1812. f-p., 28; h-p., 26.)
Peter White was born 1 Aug. 1785.
This officer entered the Navy, 16 July, 1793, on board the Latona 38, Capt. Edw. Thornbrough. In her he assisted at the capture, 27 Nov. following, of La Blonde corvette of 24 guns, and was present in Lord Howe’s action 1 June, 1794. While attached next, from 21 of the latter month until 3 July, 1802, to the Defence 74, Capts. Jas. Gambier, Thos. Wells, Wm. Brown, John Peyton, Thos. Stephenson, and Lord Henry Paulet, he served in the Channel and off Cadiz, fought in Hotham’s second partial action, and at the battle of the Nile, accompanied the expedition of 1801 to Copenhagen, and made a voyage to the West Indies. He saw much boat-service likewise on the coasts of France and Spain. After he left the Defence he joined in succession – 9 Nov. 1802, the Dryad 36, Capts. Thos. Williams and Wm. Domett, stationed in the Channel and on the coast of Ireland – 22 June, 1803, the Prince of Wales 98, flag-ship of Sir Robt. Calder at the blockade of Brest and on the coast of Spain – 2 Aug. 1804, the Wolf sloop, Capt. Hon. John Astley Bennet, employed in affording protection to the trade on the coasts of Spain and Portugal – 25 March, 1805, and 28 Sept. 1806, the Narcissus 32 and Ardent 64, Capts. Ross Donnelly and Edwin Henry Chamberlayne, on the Cape of Good Hope and South American stations – and, 15 Dec. 1807, as Master’s Mate (a rating he had for a period held in the two ships last mentioned), the Sultan 74, Capts. Edw. Griffith and John West. While detached on one occasion in a privateer, Le Prudent, a prize to the Narcissus, he was taken by a French squadron under M. Willaumez, and placed on board La Patriote 74, from which ship however he effected his escape in the Bay of St. Salvador, by opening the quarter lower-deck port and swimming to a pinnace astern. In Feb. 1807, being then Acting-Lieutenant of the Ardent, he landed in command of a party of seamen for the purpose of assisting in a 6-gun breaching battery at the siege of Monte Video. In the Sultan Mr. White united with a squadron under Rear-Admiral Geo. Martin in the pursuit which led to the destruction, in Oct. 1809, of the French ships-of-the-line Robuste and Lion near Cape Cette. He participated also in many boat-affairs in the Gulf of Genoa and along the coast of Italy; where in the early part of 1810 he was in command of the launch when she had 1 man killed and several wounded. In Dec. 1811 he had charge of a boat in an attack made upon three French vessels, Le Castor of 10 guns and 53 men, La Languedocienne of 6 guns and 33 men, and La Rose of 16 guns and 120 men, about at the time to enter the port of Bastia. The Rose escaped, but the two others were boarded and taken. For the conduct he displayed on the occasion Mr. White subsequently received from Lord Exmouth an order to act as Lieutenant. In May, 1812, he landed with a party of seamen and marines and destroyed a large dépôt of timber belonging to the French government up one of the Corsican rivers. In Oct. 1812 (he had been promoted by the Admiralty 16 July in that year) he removed from the Sultan to the Bustard sloop, Capt. Chas. Burrough Strong. He returned to England in the following Dec.: and was appointed afterwards, 11 Aug. 1813, for nine
- ↑ Vide Gaz. 1813, p. 1305.
