William Bowles (Royal Navy officer)

Admiral of the Fleet Sir William Bowles, KCB (1780 – 2 July 1869) was a senior Royal Navy officer and politician.

Naval career
Bowles joined the Royal Navy in 1796. He was made Lieutenant in 1803, Commander in 1806 and Captain in 1807. In April 1811 he became captain of the frigate HMS Nemesis (1780), and sailed her for the west coast of Africa. He was appointed Captain of the yacht HMS William and Mary in 1822, moving on to be Comptroller-General of the Coast Guard later that year.

Promoted to Rear Admiral in 1841, he became Third Naval Lord in 1844. He was also Member of Parliament (MP) for Launceston in Cornwall from 1844 to 1852.

Promoted Vice-Admiral in 1852 and Admiral in 1857, his last naval appointment was as Commander-in-Chief, Portsmouth in 1859.

Family
On 9 August 1820, he married The Hon. Frances Temple, daughter of the late 2nd Viscount Palmerston and sister of the 3rd Viscount, Secretary at War and later Prime Minister.