James Saumarez, 1st Baron de Saumarez

Admiral James Saumarez, 1st Baron de Saumarez (or Sausmarez), GCB (11 March 1757 – 9 October 1836) was an admiral of the British Royal Navy, notable for his victory at the Battle of Algeciras.

Early life
He was born at St Peter Port, Guernsey to an old island family, the eldest son of Matthew de Sausmarez (1718-1778) and his second wife Carteret, daughter of James Le Marchant. He was a nephew of John de Sausmarez (1706-1774) of Sausmarez Manor and the elder brother of General Sir Thomas Saumarez (1760-1845), Equerry and Groom of the Chamber to the Duke of Kent, and afterwards Commander-in-Chief of New Brunswick. Their sister married Henry Brock, the uncle of Major-General Sir Isaac Brock and Daniel de Lisle Brock. Many of de Sausmarez's ancestors had distinguished themselves in the naval service, and he entered it as midshipman at the age of thirteen. Upon joining the navy, he dropped the second 's' to become de Saumarez.

Early service in the Mediterranean and American Revolutionary War
In 1770, Saumarez joined the HMS Montreal (1761) in the Mediterranean. In 1775 he transferred to Sir Peter Parker's flagship HMS Bristol (1775) in North America. Saumarez distinguished himself under Parker, showing his courage at the attack of Charleston in 1776. He was promoted to lieutenant in 1778. He commanded the 8-gun galley HMS Spitfire (1776), but had to run her ashore and burn her on 30 July 1778 when the French fleet under Admiral d'Estaing arrived at Narrangansett Bay. Saumarez then served on the Victory, then Vice Admiral Hyde Parker's flagship, HMS Fortitude (1780), in which he was present at the Battle of Dogger Bank on 5 August 1781, when he was wounded. He was promoted commander for his gallant services and appointed to the fireship Tisiphone. In 1782, Saumarez sailed his ship to the West Indies with despatches for Samuel Hood and arrived in time to witness the closing stages of Hood's operations at St Kitts on 25 January 1782.

Battle of the Saintes
While commanding the HMS Russell (1764) (74 guns), he contributed to Rodney's victory over de Grasse at the Battle of the Saintes on (12 April 1782). During the battle and under his own iniative, Saumarez took his ship out of line to assist in the capture of De Grasse's flagship, Ville de Paris. This action prompted Admiral Rodney to remark that, "The Russell's captain is a fine fellow, whoever he is."

When the war in America finished, Saumarez went ashore and did not go to sea again until 1793 when he was given command of the frigate, HMS Crescent (1784), a 36-gun fifth rate frigate.

Action of 20 October 1793
It was in Crescent that Saumarez was involved in one of the first major, single ship actions of the war when he captured the French frigate La Reunion, in the Action of 20 October 1793. British casualties were exceptionally light, with only one man wounded during the engagement. In reward, Saumarez was knighted by King George III and given a presentation plate by the City of London, although Saumarez later received a bill for £103 6s 8d (the equivalent of £9,700 as of 2011), from a Mr. Cooke for "the honour of a knighthood". Saumarez refused to pay, telling Cooke to charge whomever had paid for Edward Pellew's knighthood after his successful action. Saumarez later wrote to his brother that "I think it hard to pay so much for an honour which my services have been thought to deserve".

Battle of Cape St Vincent
While in command of a squadron consisting of three frigates and a lugger and cutter, on 8 June 1794 on the way from Plymouth to Guernsey, he encountered a superior French force of two razees, three frigates, and a cutter. The French squadron outgunned the British, but Saumarez, with some masterful maneuvering, succeeded in getting his frigates to safety in Guernsey harbour. (The British lugger and cutter had returned to Plymouth at the start of the action.)

After being promoted in 1795 he was appointed to the 74-gun HMS Orion (1787), in the channel fleet, where he took part in the defeat of the French fleet at the Battle of Groix off Lorient, on 22 June. Orion was one of the ships sent to reinforce Sir John Jervis in February 1797, when Saumarez distinguished himself in the Battle of Cape St. Vincent. During the early stages he helped repel a sustained attack on the British line and covered the retreat of HMS Colossus (1787) when she was forced to retire from the action. Colossus had sustained serious damage, her sails being virtually shot away and it looked as though she would be raked by Spanish warships, until Orion intervened. Later, when the engagement had turned to a general melee, Saumarez forced the Salvador del Mundo to surrender before attacking the Santissima Trinidad with the help of HMS Excellent (1787). Saumarez was certain he had forced her surrender too when the arrival of the remainder of the Spanish fleet forced Jervis to break off the engagement.

Blockade of Cadiz and the Battle of the Nile
Saumarez remained with Jervis's fleet and was present at the blockade of Cadiz from February 1797 to April 1798. In May 1798, the Orion joined the squadron, under Nelson's command, that was sent into the Mediterranean to seek and destroy the French. Saumarez was Admiral Nelson's second in command at the Battle of the Nile where he distinguished himself once more, forcing the surrender of the Peuple Souverain and the 80 gun Franklin.

Battle of Algeciras and Gut of Gibraltar
On his return from Egypt, he received the command of HMS Caesar (1793), of 80 guns, with orders to watch the French fleet off Brest during the winters of 1799 and 1800. In 1801, he was raised to the rank of Rear Admiral of the Blue, was created a baronet, and received the command of a small squadron which was destined to watch the movements of the Spanish fleet at Cadiz. Between 6 and 12 July, he performed a brilliant piece of service, in which after a first repulse at Algeciras he routed a much superior combined force of French and Spanish ships at the Battle of the Gut of Gibraltar. For his services, Saumarez received the Order of the Bath and the Freedom of the City of London. In 1803, the United Kingdom Parliament bestowed upon him an annuity of £1200 a year (Annuity to Admiral Saumarez Act 1803).

During the Peace of Amiens, Saumarez remained at home with his family in Guernsey, and when war broke out again, he was given command of the naval forces defending the Channel Islands. He therefore was not present at the Battle of Trafalgar.

The Baltic Campaign
In 1808 he was given command of the Baltic fleet with his flag in HMS Victory. Saumarez's mission was to protect the British trade which was a vital supply of Royal Navy stores, and to blockade enemy ports such as those under French control in north Germany. The Russian fleet was also kept under blockade until Alexander I reopened Russian ports. Sweden, under pressure from France, declared war in on Britain in November 1810 but Saumarez showed conspicuous tact towards the government of Sweden and her shipping, correctly guessing that the Swedes, in common with their Russian neighbours, would eventually defy Napoleon. Charles XIII later bestowed on him the Grand Cross of the military Order of the Sword. Denmark a French satellite, also needed to be kept under observation until it was invaded by the Swedish Army in 1814. In 1812, furious with Tsar's refusal to cease trading with Britain, Napoleon invaded Russia with half a million troops and Saumarez's fleet was instrumental in hampering French operations.

Latter years
At the Peace of 1814, Saumarez attained the rank of Admiral; and in 1819 he was made Rear-Admiral of the United Kingdom, in 1821 Vice-Admiral of the United Kingdom. From 1824 to 1827 he was Commander-in-Chief, Plymouth. He was raised to the peerage as Baron de Saumarez in 1831, and died in Guernsey in 1836. In celebration of de Saumarez's achievements, there is a statue of him in the National Maritime Museum in London. The public bar at the Duke of Normandie Hotel in St Peter Port was named after Saumarez and features a portrait of him.

Relationship with Nelson
Saumarez and Nelson served together in 1797 and 1798 but their relationship was not a close one. In fact on a number of occasions it became quite strained. They first clashed after the Battle of Cape St Vincent. Saumarez had forced the surrender of the Santissima Trinidad but was unable to capture her because Jervis was forced to break off the engagement. Nelson attempted to console Saumarez by telling him that the Spanish had confirmed the Trinidad had indeed surrendered. Saumarez tersely replied "Whoever doubted it sir? I hope there is no need for such evidence to establish the truth of a report of a British officer".

In May 1798, when Saumarez was appointed to Nelson's squadron in the Mediterranean, Nelson preferred to confer with Troubridge and even though, as the senior captain, Saumarez was technically second in command, he was often left out of their conversations.

After the Battle of the Nile, while in conversation with Nelson, on the quarter deck of HMS Vanguard; Saumarez suggested that the tactic of doubling the French line had been a dangerous one as it meant exposing British ships to 'friendly fire'. Before he had a chance to explain, Nelson cut him short and angrily went below. Nelson decided that Saumarez should escort the prizes home and they never served together again.

Later Nelson wrote a letter saying, "I could have formed no opinion of Orion that was not favourable to her gallant and excellent commander (Saumarez) and crew". However, the awkwardness between them remained.

Family
In 1788 he married Martha le Marchant; they had three sons and four daughters.

Appearances in naval fiction
Saumerez appears as a minor character in C. S. Forester's Hornblower novel 'The Happy Return' as a rear-admiral. He also appears as Admiral of the Gibraltar Squadron in "Master and Commander" and also as Admiral of the Baltic Fleet in "The Surgeon's Mate", books from Patrick O'Brian's Aubrey–Maturin series. In Treachery (2008) (US title "The Privateer's Revenge") by Julian Stockwin, Saumerez's purported orders (actually a forgery) result in the disgrace of Thomas Kydd.