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Sir Charles Douglasand the Breaking

of the Line

Christopher J. Valin

When you think of the great heroes of the 18th Century Royal Navy, you would probably think of Horatio Nelson, possibly Sir Sidney Smith; but would the name Sir Char-les Douglas spring to mind? If it doesnʼt—it should.

Sir Charles Douglas played a pivotal role in many of the most important events of the late eighteenth century, and yet his name appears only in short passages and foot-notes of works on naval history and the American Revolu-tion.

In Fortuneʼs Favorite: Sir Charles Douglas and the Break-ing of the Line, the Royal Navy captain finally receives the attention he deserves for his part in the Relief of Quebec, the Battle of Valcour Island, his naval gunnery innova-tions, and the Battle of the Saints, including his contribu-tion to the “breaking of the line” maneuver, which has been a subject of controversy for nearly two centuries.

Written by an American descendent of Sir Charles, For-tuneʼs Favorite is the definitive work on this most extraor-dinary man.

CHAPTER ONE

Introduction

Charles Douglas was the kind of naval officer whom con-temporaries referred to as one of ‘Fortune’s favorites’.

William Fowler

Historians and other readers have experienced the American Revolution through the eyes of many of the participants. Usually these figures are some of the best-known military leaders and poli-ticians in history from both sides of the War: Washington and Franklin, Burgoyne and Cornwallis, even Benedict Arnold. Thou-sands of pages are also written in books and articles about lesser-known figures such as Daniel Morgan and Sir Guy Carleton. Yet still, occasionally, there remains a person who has been all but overlooked in historical circles and is virtually unknown to the general public, but whose actions helped shape the course of his-tory by playing a vital role in one of the world’s most important wars. Sir Charles Douglas is just such a person.

Sir Charles Douglas, 1st Baronet of Carr, was born in 1727 to one of the proudest and most influential families in Scotland. He was a direct descendant of the Earls of Morton, and his son’s biog-rapher claims he would have inherited that title had not a distant relative produced a son late in life. Regardless, he must have had some education, as evidenced by his ability to speak six languages

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fluently and his fondness for mathematical computation.1 His na-val career began at the age of twelve and included service in Hol-land, and for a short time following the Seven Years’ War he was in St. Petersburg helping Catherine the Great reorganize the Russian Navy. But most of his long and distinguished career was spent in the Royal Navy of Great Britain, and he was involved in many of the most important military events of the eighteenth century. Douglas took part in the siege of Louisburg in 1745 as a mid-shipman. As captain of the Syren off Newfoundland, it was he who first reported the French attack on St. John’s in 1762 during the Seven Years’ War. During the American Revolutionary War, his ship broke through the ice in the Gulf of St. Lawrence and contin-ued up the frozen river to relieve Quebec from the siege of the Americans under Benedict Arnold. He was also the man who was tasked by the British government with cobbling together a fleet of vessels to take back Lake Champlain from the American re-bels—what historian William Fowler calls “the Herculean ef-forts…at St. John’s.”2 In Those Damned Rebels, Michael Pearson describes the result of those efforts:

It was a quaint little fleet…a masterpiece of improvisation and engineering. Most of the craft had been dragged up past the rapids in pieces and reassembled on the stocks at St. Johns. Others had been fabricated from original designs that were packed with experimental ideas, such as the movable keel that could be raised through the bottom boards of a flatboat in shallow water.3

For his service in Quebec, Douglas was made a baronet, a he-reditary title below baron but above a knight, in 1777. He also par-ticipated in the Battle of Ushant, and was Admiral Lord Rodney’s captain-of-the-fleet (with duties similar to an adjutant general) at the Battle of the Saints on 12 April 1782. He was twice made commander-in-chief of North America at Halifax Station, and be-came a rear-admiral before his untimely death of apoplexy in 1789. Sir Charles’ promotion to Flag Rank on September 24, 1787, was the subject of some controversy, as the London Times men-tioned in its announcement on September 26:

Sir Charles Douglas has been made a Rear-Admiral, for the purpose of having command of a squadron of ships in the fleet now getting ready for sea. This gentleman’s name finds in the Admiralty list the 52d in the rank of Captain, so that a great number of old Captains must have been set

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aside and provided for in some other manner, in order to make way for his promotion.

The following day, another article listed all of the captains promoted to flag, followed by a list of “Captains not promoted in the present Promotions of Field Officers, who were entitled by their seniority.”2 According to the naval biographer John Char-nock, it was reported by some that Sir Charles was promoted above other, more senior captains, “at the particular instance, and by the command of his majesty.”3 Douglas must have had quite a reputation for the King to step in and order his promotion under those circumstances. This reputation, however, was well deserved. One of the first references to Douglas in any context is in a letter from Captain (later Rear Admiral) Richard Tyrell to then Lord of the Admiralty George Grenville, in which he stated that, “Mr. Douglas my fifth lieutenant…is a good clever sensible man.” 4 Dr. James Currie said of him “he is of that temperament of mind to which great men belong.”5 Sir Gilbert Blane, Rodney’s physician to the fleet, called him “the most enlightened and scientific naval officer with whom I was ever acquainted.” Naval expert and historian A. T. Mahan re-ferred to him as “an eminent officer of active and ingenious turn of mind.” The author George Cupples was particularly complimen-tary:

His well-known repute in the sea service of the day resem-bled that of Sir Sidney Smith or Lord Cochrane afterwards; he was the most indefatigable, not only of his friends, but of naval officers. His singular activity ranged from the minutest mechanical requirements of ships and fleets—their sheathing with copper, their use of carronades, patent gunlocks, safety-rudders and boat-davits, improved sig-nals, and combined tactical evolutions—to the professional bearings of a parliamentary election, or a Cabinet Minis-ter’s family connections.3

Even Lord Loughborough, the Lord Chancellor when the case on his personal succession was appealed to the House of Lords, had this to say in his legal opinion:

I will…take it upon me to say, that his mind and inclina-tions were so attached to his profession, and his zeal and ingenuity for the improvement of the navy so great, that I am convinced he could not have been at rest for any great length of time in any situation, but where he had an oppor-tunity of shewing and putting these in practice.

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Christopher J. Valin is a writer, artist, historian, and teacher living in the Los Angeles area with his wife and two children. He received his Master’s Degree with Honors in Military History with a concentration in American Revolution Studies from American Mili-tary University, his Bachelor’s Degree in History from the Univer-sity of Colorado at Colorado Springs, and his teaching degree from Regis University. Christopher has been writing in many forms since he was a child, including short stories, screenplays, and comic books, for which he has also worked as an artist. His short stories have appeared in two anthologies: The Artifact: An Anthology and Keys: Unlocking the Universe. His reviews of television shows and movies have appeared on various websites, including PopSyndicate.com, Mediasharx.com, and ZENtertainment.com. Christopher was the winner of Part 9 of the Cowrite Screenwrit-ing Contest, Chapter 16 of the L.A. Times “Birds of Paradise” Col-laborative Novel Contest, and Week 3 of the FanLib.com Kirk vs. Picard Screenwriting Contest, and his other screenplays and tele-plays have won or placed in several other competitions, including the Scriptwriters’ Network Producers Outreach Program, the Nicholl Fellowship in Screenwriting, the Chesterfield Fellowship Screenwriting Competition, the Fade In Awards, the Screenwriting Expo Cyberspace Open, the Austin Film Festival Screenwriting Contest, Scriptapalooza, and Scriptapalooza TV. Christopher Valin is also the 5x great-grandson of the subject of this book— Sir Charles Douglas.

About the Author——-

ChristopherValin