John Bligh | |
|---|---|
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| Born | August 1770 Guildford, Surrey |
| Died | 19 January 1831 (aged 60) Hambledon, Hampshire |
| Allegiance | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland |
| Service | &sq=&lang=&file=File:Naval_Ensign_of_the_United_Kingdom.svg){kind=small} Royal Navy |
| Years of service | 1780 – 1831 |
| Rank | Rear-Admiral |
| Commands | |
| Battles / wars | |
| Awards | Companion of the Order of the Bath |
| Relations | Richard Rodney Bligh (uncle) |
Rear-Admiral John Bligh CB (August 1770 – 19 January 1831) was an officer in the Royal Navy who served during the American War of Independence and the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars.
Bligh was born into a naval family and served on a variety of ships from a young age, moving up through the ranks to lieutenant prior to the outbreak of the wars with France. He was in the East Indies when war broke out, but returning to Britain he saw action in the Mediterranean during the early attacks on Corsica, the Siege of Toulon and the Battle of Cape St Vincent. Promoted to his own commands in 1797, he was the victim of a mutiny on his ship, when his crew joined the larger mutinies at Spithead, and was sent ashore. He returned after it had ended and went on to serve at Newfoundland, before beginning a long period of distinguished service in the Caribbean. He was active in the Blockade of Saint-Domingue after the outbreak of the Napoleonic Wars, and arranged the surrender and evacuation of several French-held positions. He then took charge of an expedition to Curaçao, but withdrew his forces in the face of heavy opposition. His final actions there involved several successes against enemy privateers and merchant shipping.
Returning to Britain in 1806, Bligh went out with the fleet to the Baltic and was present at the Battle of Copenhagen. He then sailed to the Portuguese coast, where he was active landing troops and supporting the army's operations there. He was involved in the Battle of the Basque Roads in 1809, directing efforts to destroy several grounded French ships. While cruising off Belle Île in 1810 he had the good fortune to intercept a French vessel carrying the wealth of the merchants of Île de France back to France. Suddenly wealthy from the prize money and in weakening health after his long service in the tropics, Bligh retired ashore. He settled on the south coast, receiving an appointment as a Companion of the Bath, and a promotion to rear-admiral before his death in 1831.