The autobiography of a seaman (volume 2 of 2) by Earl of Thomas Cochrane Dundonald
"The autobiography of a seaman (volume 2 of 2)" by Earl of Thomas Cochrane Dundonald is an autobiography written in the mid-19th century. It continues Cochrane’s first-hand account of his naval career and political struggles, focusing on the Basque Roads (Aix Roads) controversy, his conflict with the Admiralty, and his long effort to vindicate his conduct. Expect meticulous critiques of official charts, court-martial procedures, and parliamentary debates, alongside later episodes of legal
and professional adversity. The opening of this volume explains why Cochrane waited decades to present his full case: only recently had sympathetic First Lords allowed him access to official charts and logs long denied by earlier Boards. He recounts persistent refusals to let him inspect key documents, the post hoc alteration of Master Stokes’s chart admitted in affidavits, and unanswered appeals to the Hydrographer; thwarted and under political hostility, he departed for Chile before eventually receiving copies under the Duke of Somerset. He then contrasts accurate French hydrographic charts (Chart A) with the Stokes and Fairfax charts (Charts C and D), arguing they misplaced the aground French ships, invented shoals, and compressed a two-mile channel to one—changes that masked Lord Gambier’s failure to attack on the morning of 12 April—while the court excluded reliable charts and leaned on hearsay-based drawings. At the start of the narrative he also cites later support from officers who were present (notably Admiral Francis W. Austen and, in a letter begun here, Captain Hutchinson) and briefly counters claims of personal reward by describing continued penalties to himself and his family. (This is an automatically generated summary.)
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About this eBook
| Author | Dundonald, Thomas Cochrane, Earl of, 1775-1860 |
|---|---|
| Compiler | Earp, George Butler |
| Contributor | Jackson, William, active 1784?-1862 |
| Title | The autobiography of a seaman (volume 2 of 2) |
| Original Publication | London: Richard Bentley, 1859, copyright 1861. |
| Note | Compiled by G. B. Earp from oral or written material furnished by Lord Dundonald and his secretary, William Jackson. |
| Credits | MWS, KD Weeks and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive/American Libraries.) |
| Language | English |
| LoC Class | DA: History: General and Eastern Hemisphere: Great Britain, Ireland, Central Europe |
| Subject | Admirals -- Great Britain -- Biography |
| Subject | Dundonald, Thomas Cochrane, Earl of, 1775-1860 |
| Subject | Great Britain -- History, Naval -- 19th century |
| Category | Text |
| EBook-No. | 77890 |
| Release Date | Feb 8, 2026 |
| Copyright Status | Public domain in the USA. |
| Downloads | 393 downloads in the last 30 days. |
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