Royal Naval Biography/Mackenzie, Kenneth

by John Marshall

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KENNETH MACKENZIE, Esq.
[Post-Captain of 1804.]

This officer completed his time as a Midshipman under the flag of the late Sir Henry Harvey, K.B. by whom he was made a Lieutenant and appointed to the Requin brig, at the Leeward Islands, in 1798. He subsequently commanded a small sloop employed as a tender to the Daphne of 20 guns, on the same station.

After taking several privateers and recapturing many merchant vessels, Mr. Mackenzie established his character as a brave officer, by boarding and carrying l’Eclair a French national schooner, moored under the batteries at Trois Rivieres, Guadaloupe, and fully prepared for action. The particulars of this exploit are thus detailed by Rear-Admiral Duckworth in a letter to the Admiralty, dated Feb. 9, 1801:

“Captain Matson, of the Daphne, informs me that on the 16th ultimo, observing some coasters near the shore, under convoy of a schooner, he detached Lieutenant Mackenzie, with the boats of the Cyane, under Lieutenant Peachey; but on their approaching, all the enemy’s vessels succeeded in getting under cover of the batteries at Basseterre, one excepted, which anchored near Vieux fort, but in the course of the night was boarded and brought off by Lieutenant Mackenzie, under a heavy cannonade. The next morning they observed, from the Saintes, the above-mentioned schooner work up in shore, and anchor at Trois Rivières, covered by a battery, and flanked by two others, Notwithstanding these difficulties, Lieutenants Mackenzie and Peachey volunteered to bring her out, which Captain Matson was at last prevailed upon to sanction j but, for want of wind, this gallant attempt was not made until after sun-rise on the 18th, when Mr. Mackenzie, in a manner which exceeds all praise, ran the schooner on board, though a superior enemy, and evidently prepared for him. He then entered with Lieutenant Peachey and 30 men, and after a contest of fifteen minutes, succeeded in bringing her off under a most tremendous fire from the batteries, she being moored so close to the shore as to have a stern hawser fast on the beach. In this contest the French Captain, his 2 Lieutenants, and 6 men, were wounded; besides 1 killed and 2 drowned. In the tender, 2 men were killed and 3 wounded. Though I was not an observer of this exploit, which appears to be amongst the first traits of gallantry in the course of the war, their Lordships will be able to appreciate the value of Lieutenant Mackenzie’s conduct, which, I must further add, is, in its probable consequences, of the greatest moment to the trade of our islands, as l’Eclair sails rapidly, and when fully armed will carry 12 six-pounders, besides 20 one and a half-pounder brass guns, mounted as swivels. She was going to Point Petre to complete her armament, having left Rochefort with only 4 brass 4-pounders, the 20 small guns and 50 men.”

For this gallant action, Lieutenant Mackenzie was deservedly rewarded with the command of l’Eclair, in which vessel he continued till the peace of Amiens, when he obtained the rank of Commander and was appointed to the Guachapin a small brig of 14 guns, in which vessel we find him assisting at the capture of Tobago and St. Lucia, soon after the renewal of hostilities in 1803. His zealous conduct during the expedition against Surinam, in 1804, has already been noticed at p. 800 of this volume.

Captain Mackenzie’s next appointment was to the Hippomenes of 14 guns, a much more desirable vessel than the Guachapin, but wretchedly manned, her crew consisting chiefly of discontented foreigners.

On the 21st June, 1804, he fell in with one of the largest privateers belonging to Guadaloupe, le Buonaparte, of 18 long 9-pounders and 146 men. Captain Mackenzie was then cruising to windward of Antigua, and had disguised his ship as a Guineaman, purposely to decoy the enemy’s cruisers. The stratagem succeeded in this instance, and an action commenced with tolerable spirit on both sides. In the course of ten or twelve minutes, le Buonaparte became entangled with her antagonist, and Captain Mackenzie instantly ordered the enemy’s bowsprit to be lashed to his own mainmast: he then jumped on her deck, sword in hand, followed by his officers and a few brave seamen; but unfortunately the remainder of his crew shrunk from so close a contest. With this small force, however, he obtained a footing, the Frenchmen retreating abaft the main-mast, where they rallied on finding that their assaillants were not more than 18 in number. Of this gallant little band, 5 were killed, 8 wounded, and the remainder obliged to retreat. Only 9, including 4 of the wounded, succeeded in regaining their own ship before the lashing gave way, and le Buonaparte made off under all sail, her commander having no wish to renew the combat, and the Hippomenes being left without a single officer capable of giving orders for pursuit, even if her dastardly crew had felt inclined to obey them. Captain Mackenzie himself received many severe wounds, and fell senseless in the Hippomenes’ main-chains the moment he had quitted the enemy. Le Buonaparte’s loss has never been ascertained.

In 1806, we find Captain Mackenzie commanding the Carysfort 28, and assisting at the capture of la Lutine, French national brig, of 18 guns and 100 men, from l’Orient bound to Martinique, with despatches^[1]; his subsequent appointments were to the Champion 24, and Venus frigate, in which latter ship he continued until the termination of the war in 1814. On the 10th June 1815, he obtained a pension of 250l. per annum, for the wounds he had received in the above action, the effects of which, we have reason to believe, were a source of great affliction to his family for some time previous to his demise. He died at Salisbury, Nov. 5, 1824; aged 45 years.

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1. See Vol. I. p. 779.