Thomas Cochrane, 10th Earl of Dundonald

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Image:Thomas Cochrane, 10th Earl of Dundonald.jpg Thomas Cochrane, 10th Earl of Dundonald (14 December 1775 – 31 October 1860), styled Lord Cochrane between 1778 and 1831, was a politician and naval adventurer. He was one of the most daring and successful captains of the Napoleonic Wars, leading the French to nickname him "le loup des mers" ("the sea wolf"). His life and exploits served as inspiration for the naval fiction of 20th century novelists C. S. Forester and Patrick O'Brian.

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Early life and career

Thomas Cochrane was born at Annsfield, near Hamilton, South Lanarkshire, Scotland, the son of Archibald Cochrane, 9th Earl of Dundonald (later 9th Earl of Dundonald) and nephew of Admiral Sir Alexander Cochrane. As a child he was fictitiously listed on the ship's books of the Royal Navy ship commanded by his uncle but officially joined in 1793 at the age of seventeen, upon the outbreak of the French Revolutionary Wars. He first served aboard HMS Hind and in 1795 was appointed acting lieutenant on HMS Thetis. The following year he was confirmed in the rank. In 1798 he transferred to HMS Barfleur. During his service on this ship he was court-martialled for being disrespectful to Lieutenant Philip Beaver.

In 1800 Cochrane was appointed to command the sloop HMS Speedy in which he achieved his most famous exploit, the capture of the Spanish xebec El Gamo, 32 guns and 319 men compared to Speedy's 14 guns and 54 men, on 6 May 1801. On 8 August 1801 he was promoted to the rank of Post-Captain. He served with distinction in the frigates HMS Pallas and HMS Imperieuse. On 11 April 1809 he was responsible for the destruction of much of the French fleet in the Battle of the Basque Roads at Rochefort using fire ships.

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Political career

Cochrane pursued a very active political career, serving as Member of Parliament for Honiton in England from 1806 to 1807 and for Westminster, London, from 1807 to 1815, and campaigning for parliamentary reform in Britain, being allied with such Radicals as William Cobbett and Henry Hunt. His outspoken criticism of the conduct of the war and the corruption in the Navy made him powerful enemies in the government, and his criticism of Admiral Gambier's conduct in the Basque Roads operation (so severe as to require a court-martial of Gambier) made him enemies in the Admiralty.

Cochrane was tried and convicted as a conspirator in the Great Stock Exchange Fraud of 1814, although he maintained his innocence throughout his life. Most historians agree however that although Ellenborough's summing up was biased, the weight of circumstantial evidence against Cochrane indicated that at the least he had been the pawn of his uncle, a conspirator. He was sentenced to the pillory (a more severe form of the stocks) and a year's imprisonment. He was also expelled from Parliament and the Navy. As an additional humiliation he was stripped of his knighthood and a Degradation Ceremony performed. He was, however, immediately re-elected for Westminster. There was considerable public anger at his trial and sentence, especially the degrading pillory. The administration backed down: the Foreign Secretary, Lord Castlereagh, announced that Cochrane and others had received a Royal Pardon. The sentence of pillorying has not been used in the United Kingdom since.

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Service in foreign navies and return to the Royal Navy

He left Britain in official disgrace, but went on to command the Chilean (1817–1822), Brazilian (1823–1825) and Greek (1826–1828) navies in those countries' wars of independence.

In 1828, Cochrane returned to Britain to appeal for a pardon and reinstatement in the Royal Navy. His appeal was successful and in 1832 he was appointed a Rear Admiral. By the time of his retirement, he had served as Commander-in-Chief of the Royal Navy's North American and East India/China stations and in 1851 had been appointed an Admiral.

He died on October 31, 1860, in Kensington.

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Cochrane's influence on naval fiction

His career inspired a number of writers of nautical fiction. The first was Captain Marryat who had served under him as a midshipman. In the 20th century, the fictional careers of Horatio Hornblower in the novels by C. S. Forester and of Jack Aubrey in the Aubrey–Maturin series of novels by Patrick O'Brian were in part modelled on his exploits. He also features, as himself, in Sharpe's Devil, one of the Richard Sharpe novels by Bernard Cornwell. Indirectly inspired by him was the science fiction author David Weber, author of the Honor Harrington novels.

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Lord Cochrane in Fiction

In the The Domination, Lord Cochrane leads the occupation of Cape Colony.

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References

  • Dundonald, Thomas Cochrane, Earl of, 1775-1860. The Autobiography of a Seaman. Introduction by Richard Woodman. New York: Lyons Press, 2000.
  • Grimble, Ian. The Sea Wolf: The Life of Admiral Cochrane. Rev. ed. Edinburgh: Birlinn, 2000. Original edition 1978, London: Blond & Briggs.
  • Harvey, Robert. Cochrane: The Life and Exploits of a Fighting Captain. New York: Carroll & Graf, 2000.
  • Thomas, Donald. Cochrane: Britannia's Sea Wolf. 2nd Edition 2001, Cassell Military Paperbacks, London, 383pp, ISBN 030435659X.
  • Vale, Brian. The Audacious Admiral Cochrane: The True Life of A Naval Legend. London: Conway Maritime Press, 2004, ISBN 0-85177-986-7.
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External links

es:Thomas Cochrane pt:Thomas Cochrane

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