Volume 1

The Farington diary / edited by James Greig.

  • Joseph Farington
Date:
[1922?-1928]
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: The Farington diary / edited by James Greig. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    At 2 o’clock in the morning [June n] we were knocked up to put out lights.—Many windows were broke. The Illuminations became general. Lord Stanhopes windows were smashed. June 12.—Fuseli came to me . . . and afterwards dined with me —& we walked out to see the illuminations which to-night were general and began early. The streets undisturbed by mobs and no windows broke. June 13.—Illuminations were again general this evening—the third night. ship I joined on the 5th May, 1793. I was in her in the celebrated action of Lord Howe on the 28th, 29th of May, and 1st of June, 1794, when the Alfred was very near the French ship Vengeur, 74, at the time of her sinking. It was an awful sight to behold her complement of men, more than 700, launched, alas ! un¬ prepared into Eternity, but 213 of her crew were saved by the Alfred's boats, and were received on board in a perfect state of nudity, which the officers humanely commiserated, and quickly supplied both officers and men with the necessary clothing to make them comfortable, although only a few hours before they were our most determined foes with their regicide feelings. However, the English Fleet on that occasion captured six sail of the line, and many more might have been taken had Lord Howe’s energy admitted, or had he been surrounded by colleagues of more adventurous enterprise. [The small number of ships taken was attributed to the undue caution of Sir Roger Curtis, Captain of the Fleet, who, unaware that the French were beaten, ordered his own ships to stand by those that were badly damaged.—Ed.] Homeward Bound. As soon as the Fleet had repaired damages and made sufficiently suitable for returning to port, more especially the Queen with Vice-Admiral Gardner’s Flag on board, which had lost the fore and main masts, and others greatly disabled, the Defence and Bellerophon wholly dismantled, and other ships unfit to be left with¬ out protection, the Commander-in-Chief, Lord Howe, collected his Fleet, being then many leagues to the westward of the British Channel, and proceeded off Plymouth. Then the signal for seven sail of the Line, that is those that had not materially suffered in the action, were ordered to proceed to Plymouth to make good their damages, and the remainder to accompany the Chief to Spithead. About the 8th or 10th of June the Alfred arrived in Plymouth Sound, and forthwith commenced her repairs, which not being of very serious consequence was speedily equipped, but Captain Bazeley, in consequence of the promotion of Flags, was appointed to the Blenheim, of 90 guns, and there being a chaplain in that ship, Rev. A. Lawrence, and being invited by Captain Charles Chamberlain, of the Bombay Castle, to become her chaplain, I was accordingly appointed to her, and joined on 27th November, 1794, and in her proceeded to the Mediterranean. [We are indebted to Miss Gwenllian E. F. Morgan, J.P., for the above hitherto unpublished description of Howe’s great victory on June 1, 1794, written by her kinsman, the Rev. Thomas Morgan, D.D., chaplain of H.M.S. Alfred. It will be seen that the chaplain does not corroborate Barrere’s story that the Vengeur sank with flags flying, and the whole crew crowded on the upper deck, shouting “ Vive la R6publique ! ” If this incident had taken place Mr. Morgan, it was argued, would surely have referred to it.—Ed.].—From the Morning Post, June 1, 1922.