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Sir Richard King, 1st Baronet

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For other people named Richard King, see Richard King (disambiguation).

Admiral
Sir Richard King
Bt
Member of the Great Britain Parliament
for Rochester
In office
1794–1800
Preceded byNathaniel Smith
George Best
Succeeded byParliament of the United Kingdom
Member of Parliament
for Rochester
In office
1801–1802
Serving with Henry Tufton
Preceded byParliament of Great Britain
Succeeded bySir Sidney Smith
James Hulkes
Commodore Governor of Newfoundland
In office
1792–1793
Preceded byMark Milbanke
Succeeded bySir James Wallace
Commander-in-Chief, The Downs
In office
1790–1791
Preceded byVacant[c]
Succeeded byVacant[d]
Commander-in-Chief, Plymouth
In office
1794–1796
Preceded byRowland Cotton
Succeeded bySir Richard Onslow
Personal details
Born10 August 1730 (1730-08-10)
Died7 November 1806(1806-11-07) (aged 76)
Military career
Allegiance Kingdom of Great Britain
Branch
 Royal Navy
Rank
Admiral
CommandsHMS Blaze
HMS Grafton
HMS Northumberland
HMS Pallas
HMS Exeter
The Downs
Plymouth Command
Viceregal styles of
Sir Richard King
Reference styleHis Excellency
Spoken styleYour Excellency

Admiral Sir Richard King, 1st Baronet (10 August 1730 – 7 November 1806) was a British naval officer and colonial governor.

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King was born in Gosport, the son of Curtis King and Mary Barnett.

He joined the Royal Navy in 1738 and served on HMS Berwick.[1] In 1745 made a lieutenant in HMS Tiger and in 1756 he was promoted to commander of the fireship HMS Blaze.[1] He took part in the capture of Calcutta in 1756 and commanded the landing party at the capture of Hoogly in 1757.[2]

In 1763 he was given command of HMS Grafton and in 1770 he took over HMS Northumberland.[2] He went on to command HMS Pallas from 1778 and HMS Exeter from 1779.[2]

He was knighted in 1782 for his services near Madras, India.[1] Promoted Rear Admiral in 1787, he was appointed commander-in-chief of The Downs in 1790.[1] In 1792 he became a baronet[3] and was made commander-in-chief and Governor of Newfoundland.[1] While King was in office France had declared war on Britain and King captured St. Pierre and Miquelon for the British[1] and was promoted Vice-Admiral in 1793.

He was elected Member of Parliament for Rochester in 1794, holding the seat until 1802.[4] In 1794 he was appointed Commander-in-Chief, Plymouth[5] and in 1795 promoted to Admiral.[1]

Family

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In 1769 he married Susannah Margaretta Coker; they had four recorded children including his son Richard.

See also

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Notes

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  1. ^ Served from 1794-1796
  2. ^ Served from 1796-1800
  3. ^ Station was not active from 1791-1793
  4. ^ Station was not active from 1782-1790

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g Biography at Government House The Governorship of Newfoundland and Labrador
  2. ^ a b c Sir Richard King at Oxford Dictionary of National Biography
  3. ^ "No. 13436". The London Gazette. 5 July 1792. p. 511.
  4. ^ "KING, Sir Richard, 1st Bt. (1730-1806), of Devonshire Place, Marylebone, Mdx". History of Parliament Online. Retrieved 30 May 2016.
  5. ^ Monthly magazine and British register, Volume 22, p. 600
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