Page:Dictionary of National Biography volume 52.djvu/169

  

SHOVELL, CLOWDISLEY (1650–1707), admiral of the fleet, was baptised at Cockthorpe in Norfolk on 25 Nov. 1650. His father, John Shovell (1625–1654) of Cockthorpe, a man of some property, was the younger son of Nathaniel Shovell, ‘gentleman,’ buried at Binham, near Wells, in 1636, and probably the same Nathaniel who was baptised at St. Saviour's, Norwich, in 1601, son of John Shovell, sheriff of Norwich 1606–7. The family appears to have been settled from early in the preceding century at Norwich, where a John Shovell was admitted a citizen on 21 Sept. 1554. His mother, Anne, was the daughter of Henry Jenkinson of Cley, by his wife Lucy, eldest daughter of Thomas Clowdisley of Cley. The neighbouring registers for the seventeenth century contain numerous entries of births, marriages, or deaths of Shovells and Clowdisleys; and during the latter part of the seventeenth and the early part of the eighteenth century there were many men of these names serving in the navy, for the most part in a subordinate rank.

Clowdisley Shovell first went to sea in 1664, under the care of his countryman, and probably kinsman, Sir [q. v.]; and, after Myngs's death, closely followed the fortunes of another countryman, also probably a kinsman, Sir [q. v.] That he was with Narbrough in his voyage to the South Sea and the battle of Solebay is probable but uncertain. The story of his swimming under the enemy's fire, with despatches in his mouth, though vouched for by family tradition, cannot be localised or dated. It is said to have happened while he was still a boy, which would fix it to the Dutch war of 1665–7. On 25 Sept. 1673 he was appointed second lieutenant of the Henrietta, in which he went out to the Mediterranean, and followed Narbrough to the Harwich in 1675. On 14 Jan. 1675–6 he commanded the boats of the squadron at the burning of the ships in the port of Tripoli, and on 3 May 1677 was appointed by Narbrough captain of the Sapphire, from which, in April 1679, he was moved by Herbert to the Phœnix; in May 1679 back again to the Sapphire by Narbrough; in July 1680 to the Nonsuch by Herbert; in September 1680 to the Sapphire again; and in April 1681 to the James galley—always in the Mediterranean, engaged in almost constant cruising against the Barbary pirates, and capturing or assisting in the capture of several of their ships, two of which, the Golden Horse and Half Moon, were bought into the service, and appeared in the navy lists for several years afterwards. He appears to have continued in the James galley till his return to England in November 1686. In 1687 he was appointed to the Anne, a 70-gun ship, from which in the following spring he was moved into the Dover of 48 guns, one of the fleet afterwards assembled under Lord Dartmouth to prevent the landing of the Prince of Orange [see ].

Shovell had no difficulty in transferring his allegiance to the new king, and in the next year commanded the Edgar in the battle of Bantry Bay, after which, on the return of the fleet to Spithead, he was knighted [see ]. He was then appointed to the command of a squadron in the Irish Sea, and in the spring of 1690, still on the same service, was promoted to be rear-admiral of the blue. When the French fleet under Tourville came into the Channel and fought the battle of Beachy Head, Shovell brought his squadron to Plymouth, where, being joined by (d. 1712) [q. v.], they had a force the threat of which was able to some extent to control the movements of the French. Towards the close of the year he co-operated with General Kirke in the reduction of Duncannon Castle, and in the following January was with the squadron under Sir George Rooke that convoyed the king to Holland. On his return he joined the grand fleet under Admiral Russell; and though detached in the autumn, and again in the spring of 1692, to convoy the king from and to Holland, was with it in May, when, as rear-admiral of the red squadron, he had a very important share in the battle of Barfleur, and by breaking through the French line commenced the manœuvre which resulted in the complete defeat of the French [see ]. As junior admiral in the fleet after the death of [q. v.], it would have fallen to him in due course to command at the destruction of the French ships which took refuge in the bay of La Hogue. Unfortunately he was prevented by a sudden and sharp indisposition, and the duty fell to the lot of Sir [q. v.]

In 1691 he was nominated major of the first regiment of marines; in 1692 he was