Admiral Sir William Cornwallis, (20 February 1744 – 5 July 1819) was a Royal Navy officer and politician. Cornwallis took part in a number of decisive battles including the siege of Louisbourg in 1758, when he was 14, and the Battle of the Saintes but is best known as a friend of Lord Nelson and as the commander-in-chief of the Channel Fleet during the Napoleonic Wars. He is depicted in the Horatio Hornblower novel, Hornblower and the Hotspur. His affectionate contemporary nickname from "the ranks" was Billy Blue, and a sea shanty was written during his period of service, reflecting the admiration his men had for him.
William Cornwallis was born 20 February 1744. His father was Charles, the fifth baron and first earl Cornwallis, and his mother was Elizabeth, daughter of Charles Townshend, 2nd Viscount Townshend. William was the younger brother of General Charles Cornwallis. He went to Eton College in 1753.
The young William entered the navy in 1755 aboard the 80-gun HMS Newark bound for North America in the fleet of Admiral Edward Boscawen. Cornwallis was shortly after exchanged into HMS Kingston and was present in her at the siege of Louisbourg in 1758. The siege was one of the pivotal battles of the war. Louisbourg was the only deep water harbour that the French controlled in North America, and its capture enabled the British to launch an attack on Quebec City. General James Wolfe's attack on Quebec and victory at the Battle of the Plains of Abraham saw the beginning of the end of French colonisation in North America.
When Kingston returned to England in 1759, Cornwallis was taken aboard the 60-gun Dunkirk by Captain Robert Digby. During the planned French invasion of Britain in 1759, Dunkirk was with Admiral Edward Hawke's squadron and took part in the Battle of Quiberon Bay against the French fleet under Admiral Conflans. The victory was part of what became known as Annus Mirabilis of 1759 and in concert with the other victories of that year gave the Royal Navy almost complete dominance over the oceans for over a century. The succession of victories led Horace Walpole to remark "our bells are worn threadbare ringing for victories".
Cornwallis remained in Dunkirk when she was assigned to the Mediterranean fleet then commanded by Admiral Charles Saunders. Dunkirk was detached on blockade duty, ensuring the French fleet remained in the city of Heraklion, Crete. Cornwallis moved to Saunders' flagship HMS Neptune where he remained for little over a year. On 5 April 1761, Cornwallis passed his examination for lieutenant and was promoted into the newly commissioned third-rate HMS Thunderer. In July 1761, Cornwallis was with Thunderer and two other line-of-battle ships blockading Cádiz. Two French ships escaped the blockade and the British squadron set off in pursuit. Thunderer caught up with the 64-gun Achille and captured her in a single-ship action that lasted about half an hour. The British lost seventeen killed and one hundred and thirteen wounded.
In July 1762, Cornwallis received his first command in the 8-gun sloop-of-war HMS Wasp. In 1763, he was given command of the more powerful and newly launched 14-gun HMS Swift. He continued in her into the peace with France after the Treaty of Paris had ended the war in 1763. During the peace in 1765, he was promoted post-captain and given command of the 44-gun HMS Prince Edward. He commanded her until she was paid off and the ship was sold in 1766. In September of the same year, he was given command of HMS Guadeloupe and was variously employed throughout the peace between the Seven Years' War and the outbreak of the American Revolutionary War.
When the French lent their official support to the American cause in 1778 with the Treaty of Alliance and the Treaty of Amity and Commerce, the war between Britain and the United States became a global war. Captain Cornwallis was in command of the newly commissioned HMS Lion. Lion was sent, with Admiral John Byron, to the West Indies.
When war was officially declared, the Comte d'Estaing, the French naval commander in North America swiftly captured the islands of Saint Vincent and Grenada. Byron on hearing the news that Saint Vincent had been captured assembled his forces but on his way to recapture the island he received intelligence that d'Estaing and his fleet were in the process of capturing Grenada. Byron consequently took his fleet to Grenada in the hopes of engaging them and preventing the capture of Grenada. The island however had only held out for two days and was already in French hands.
The Battle of Grenada took place on 6 July 1779. d'Estaing saw the British fleet of 21 ships of the line approaching and weighed anchor. Byron gave chase and attempted to form line of battle as per the Sailing and Fighting Instructions set down by Admiral Blake in 1653. d'Estaing, realising that his force although superior in guns was not so in numbers, had ordered his captains not to engage directly but to bear away when British ships approached and to bear down on any individual ship that might through wind or poor seamanship become separated from the line.
This tactic proved successful and d'Estaing's ships managed to escape the superior force causing considerable damage to three of the British ships. Cornwallis' Lion was one of those ships and when he became separated from the British fleet she was forced to break away and make a run for Jamaica rather than risk capture. Lion suffered a reported 21 killed and 30 wounded.
During his time in the West Indies, Cornwallis came to own, then later free the "doctoress" Cubah Cornwallis. Cubah became Cornwallis' mistress and housekeeper in Port Royal, Jamaica. Later she treated Cornwallis' friend, Captain Horatio Nelson on his return from the disastrous mission to Nicaragua. She also treated Prince William Henry, later William IV, when he was stationed in the West Indies.
Lion remained on the Jamaica station under the orders of Admiral Peter Parker and when she was repaired began a series of cruises in the West Indies. On 20 April 1780 Cornwallis was in command of a small squadron of two line-of-battle ships, Lion and HMS Bristol and one large 44-gun frigate, HMS Janus.
Off Saint-Domingue the small British squadron discovered a convoy under the protection of four ships-of-the-line and one frigate commanded by Monsieur de la Motte Picquet. The French chased and the British ran. The French outsailed the British ships and when in range opened fire. The chase continued throughout the night and into the morning of the 21st. The breeze died and the two squadrons began to repair their damage. When the wind blew once more the chase renewed and continued throughout the night of the 21st and into the 22nd.
On the morning of the 22nd three sails appeared to leeward. The arrival of these new sails would determine the outcome of the battle. The newcomers proved to be the 64-gun HMS Ruby, the 32-gun HMS Niger and the 28-gun HMS Pomona. The French squadron bore away for Cap-Français, leaving the two small British squadrons to repair and make for Jamaica. The British squadron under Cornwallis had lost 12 killed including Captain Glover of the Janus.
Cornwallis returned to England in Lion in June 1781 and took part in the second relief of Gibraltar. He was appointed to command the 74-gun third-rate HMS Canada, and immediately returned to the West Indies under the orders of Admiral Samuel Hood, 1st Viscount Hood.
Canada was with Hood's fleet at the Battle of St. Kitts in 1782. Hood took his 21 ships of the line and lured the French fleet of 29 ships of the line under the Comte de Grasse from its anchorage at Basseterre on St. Kitts and then sailed into the roadstead and anchored. Hood then repulsed de Grasse's efforts to dislodge the British fleet. The Battle of Brimstone Hill sealed the fate of the island despite Hood's efforts and St. Kitts fell into French hands. With the island in enemy hands and the French fleet cruising off the harbour, Hood was forced to withdraw and made his way to Antigua. Canada in Commodore Edmund Affleck's division suffered 1 killed and 12 wounded. On 22 March Hood joined Admiral George Rodney's fleet in Barbados.