Philip de Saumarez
Born(1710-11-17)17 November 1710
St Peter Port, Guernsey
Died14 October 1747(1747-10-14) (aged 35)
Off Cape Finisterre, Atlantic Ocean
Buried
Westminster Abbey
Allegiance United Kingdom
Service/branch Royal Navy
Years of service1726–1747
RankCaptain
Commands heldHMS Sandwich (1679)
HMS York (1706)
HMS Nottingham (1703)
Battles/warsWar of Jenkins' Ear
Anson Expedition
First Battle of Cape Finisterre (1747)
Second Battle of Cape Finisterre (1747)
RelationsJames Saumarez, 1st Baron de Saumarez (nephew)
Richard Saumarez (nephew)
Thomas Saumarez (nephew)

Captain Philip de Saumarez (1710–1747) was a British naval officer, notable for his role as captain of HMS Nottingham in capturing the French ship Mars and as the first lieutenant of George Anson,1st Baron Anson in his voyage around the world.[1] He designed what would eventually be the first uniforms for the Royal Navy.[2]

Early life

Philip de Saumarez was born in 1710, to Matthew de Saumarez and Anne Durell,[3] daughter of John Durell and Ann Dumaresq.[4] Saumarez had many notable naval officers in his family. His uncle was Captain Thomas Durell who was famous for the capture of the Spanish Princesa.[5] His nephew was an even more famous de Saumarez, Admiral James Saumarez, 1st Baron de Saumarez. He was also cousins with Admiral Thomas Dumaresq and Vice-Admiral Philip Durell.

Global expedition

Phillip de Saumarez served as first lieutenant on HMS Centurion under commodore George Anson,1st Baron Anson during his voyage around the world.[6] As first lieutenant, Saumarez was very involved in the expedition, and at times took active command of Centurion, such as at the Isle of Tinian.[1] Saumarez also took part in the boarding party and capture of the Spanish Nuestra Señora de Covadonga, and became its captain.[7] During this expedition, Saumarez wrote logs for the Centurion that would later be used by author Leo Heaps in his novel Log of the Centurion: Based on the original papers of Captain Philip Saumarez on board HMS Centurion, Lord Anson's flagship during his circumnavigation, 1740-1744.[8]

The Capture of the 'Nuestra Señora de Cavadonga' by the 'Centurion', 20 June 1743 RMG BHC0360

Capture of the Mars

While Captain of HMS Nottingham, Saumarez would be locked in combat with a French 64-gun ship, Mars. After two hours of combat the Nottingham, under Saumarez, was able to capture the vessel and bring it to Plymouth.[9]

Action between Nottingham and Mars at Cape Clear in 1746, by Charles Dixon

Philip Saumarez was the original designer of the very first naval officer uniforms for the Royal Navy, as George Anson and himself would experience the value of a uniform to symbolising service of the Crown while conducting their voyage around the world and meeting with dignitaries and officers of foreign nations. It is said that for one meeting in China the Officers resorted to wearing the uniforms of the Marines on board when such a meeting occurred.[2] Saumarez would in large be the designer of these new uniforms, however he would die in battle before they were realised.[10]

Death

Philip de Sausmarez memorial, Westminster Abbey

Captain Saumarez was killed in the Second Battle of Cape Finisterre while Captain of HMS Nottingham under Rear-Admiral Edward Hawke, 1st Baron Hawke. Saumarez is said to have been killed at the end of the battle on October 14, 1747.[9]

A monument was erected to his memory in Westminster Abbey sculpted by Henry Cheere.[11]

References

  1. 1 2 "Philip de Sausmarez". Westminster Abbey. Retrieved 24 May 2021.
  2. 1 2 Arthur, Herman (2004). To Rule the Waves: How the British Navy Shaped the Modern World. HarperCollins. ISBN 9780060534257.
  3. ↑ "Philip Saumarez (1710-1747)". threedecks.org. Retrieved 24 May 2021.
  4. ↑ Payne, J. Bertrand (1865). Armorial of Jersey : being an account, heraldic and antiquarian, of its chief native families, with pedigrees, biographical notices, and illustrative data; to which are added, a brief history of heraldry, and remarks on the mediæval antiquities of the island. Subscribers' private issue. OCLC 1038122898.
  5. ↑ Coss, Stephen (2016). The fever of 1721 : the epidemic that revolutionized medicine and American politics. Simon & Schuster. p. 51. ISBN 978-1-4767-8311-6. OCLC 944464408.
  6. ↑ "Lord James Saumarez". more than Nelson. Retrieved 24 May 2021.
  7. ↑ "British Fifth Rate galleon 'Centurion's Prize' (1741)". threedecks.org. Retrieved 24 May 2021.
  8. ↑ Courtemanche, Regis A. (1 September 1974). "Log of the Centurion: Based on the original papers of Captain Philip Saumarez on board HMS Centurion, Lord Anson's flagship during his circumnavigation 1740–44". History: Reviews of New Books. 2 (10): 239. doi:10.1080/03612759.1974.9946575. ISSN 0361-2759.
  9. 1 2 Laughton, John Knox (1897). "Saumarez, Philip" . Dictionary of National Biography. Vol. 50. pp. 317–318.
  10. ↑ De Sausmarez, Sir Havilland (1936). Captain Philip Saumarez, 1710-1747, and His Contemporaries. From Letters and Portraits at Sausmarez Manor, Guernsey. And an Account of the Origin of the Naval Uniform as Designed by Him. Guernsey: Guernsey Press Company.
  11. ↑ Dictionary of British Sculptors 1660-1851 by Rupert Gunnis
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