Page:Protestant Exiles from France Agnew vol 2.djvu/464

 “Biographical Illustrations of St. Paul’s Cathedral,” p. 53). The monument cost £4200 (id. p. 6).

I content myself with the above quotations, because a connected memoir of Riou is given by Mr. Smiles in the Sunday Magazine, vol. vi., p. 389, to which I gladly refer my readers, only borrowing from that memoir the facts which I summarise in the following pedigree:—

 . — The second son of John Gambier, Esq. (see chapter xx.), named James, born in the Bahamas, 13th October 1756, was, while an infant, sent to England to be brought up by his aunt, Lady Middleton. He entered the navy in 1767, and became a captain in 1778. His father died in 1782, and his uncle, Vice-Admiral Gambier, in 1783.

Young Gambier was in the American war. In 1781 he served on shore with the Naval Brigade at the reduction of Charleston, and he captured an American ship-of-war in the same year. In 1793 he commanded H.M.S. Defence (74) in the Bay of Biscay. In May 1794 the British Fleet put to sea, and the naval engagement known as “the action of the 1st of June” took place. The signal was made by Lord Howe to cut through the enemy’s line. The enemy suspecting the intention, had closed and formed in compact line to leeward, opening their fire from van to rear. The Defence led off, distanced the other ships, and cut through the enemy’s line, passing between the seventh and the eighth ship. She had successively three or four ships engaging her, the men being almost from the first divided at their quarters to fight both sides at once. Gambier was on deck all the time. A short time after this action the King said to the First Lord of the Admiralty, Sir Charles Middleton, in allusion to the latter’s notorious aversion to nepotism, “Well, Sir Charles, I hope you are satisfied with your nephew now.” Though not to his Majesty, yet to another person who spoke with equal warmth, Sir Charles replied with immovable composure, “Yes, I always knew James would do his duty.” In 1795 James became a Rear-Admiral and a Lord of the Admiralty. As the principal sea-lord, he was the author of the new code of signals; he also built the Triton (32), and the Plantagenet (74). He was Governor of Newfoundland from 1802 to 1804, and again took his place at the Admiralty Board.

In 1807 he was Commander-in-chief of the naval forces of the expedition to compel the neutrality of Denmark. Canning wrote regarding him, “his conduct from the beginning has been without a fault.” This was on the successful accomplishment of the undertaking, when he was raised to the Peerage as Lord Gambier [Baron Gambier, of Iver, in Buckinghamshire]. A pension of £2000 a year was offered and nobly refused, his Lordship being content with his share of the Copenhagen prize-money. The income arising from this money might have made him richer as a commoner, but did not meet the additional expenditure imposed upon him by the title of nobility. All his life he was a comparatively poor man. His only residence, when he was not living at the Admiralty, was a small copyhold house, with a garden and one field. He never had any landed estate.

In the year 1809 Lord Gambier commanded the fleet in the Basque Roads. Auxiliary fireships were commanded by Lord Cochrane, under Gambier’s directions; the fireships were sent at Gambier’s suggestion, the only alteration being that the direction of them was given to Cochrane and not to Mr. Congreve (as had been intended). On the evening of the 11th April the fireships went into the roads, owing to unfavourable weather they did not destroy the enemy’s ships, but only put them to flight. Then all the French ships, except two, ran aground. Cochrane signalled at 5.48 on the following morning — “Half the fleet can destroy the enemy — seven on shore.” At 6.15 Lord Gambier made for Aix Roads, and at eleven anchored three miles from the fort. At two he sent in various vessels to attack the fleet, and the execution that was done was between that hour and nightfall. The French fleet