Matthew Aylmer, 1st Baron Aylmer
Encyclopedia
Matthew Aylmer, 1st Baron Aylmer (ca. 1650 – 18 August 1720) was an Irish
Irish people
The Irish people are an ethnic group who originate in Ireland, an island in northwestern Europe. Ireland has been populated for around 9,000 years , with the Irish people's earliest ancestors recorded having legends of being descended from groups such as the Nemedians, Fomorians, Fir Bolg, Tuatha...

 Admiral
Admiral
Admiral is the rank, or part of the name of the ranks, of the highest naval officers. It is usually considered a full admiral and above vice admiral and below admiral of the fleet . It is usually abbreviated to "Adm" or "ADM"...

 of the Royal Navy
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...

.

Lord Aylmer, Admiral and Commander-in-Chief, was the second son of Sir Christopher Aylmer of Balrath, County Meath
County Meath
County Meath is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Mid-East Region and is also located in the province of Leinster. It is named after the ancient Kingdom of Mide . Meath County Council is the local authority for the county...

, and entered the Royal Navy
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...

 under the protection of the Duke of Buckingham
George Villiers, 2nd Duke of Buckingham
George Villiers, 2nd Duke of Buckingham, 20th Baron de Ros of Helmsley, KG, PC, FRS was an English statesman and poet.- Upbringing and education :...

, as a Lieutenant
Lieutenant
A lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer in many nations' armed forces. Typically, the rank of lieutenant in naval usage, while still a junior officer rank, is senior to the army rank...

, in 1678. Early in the following year he was advanced to the rank of Captain
Captain (Royal Navy)
Captain is a senior officer rank of the Royal Navy. It ranks above Commander and below Commodore and has a NATO ranking code of OF-5. The rank is equivalent to a Colonel in the British Army or Royal Marines and to a Group Captain in the Royal Air Force. The rank of Group Captain is based on the...

, and he appears to have served almost constantly during the next ten years on the coast of Algiers
Algiers
' is the capital and largest city of Algeria. According to the 1998 census, the population of the city proper was 1,519,570 and that of the urban agglomeration was 2,135,630. In 2009, the population was about 3,500,000...

 and in the Mediterranean.

In October 1688 he was appointed captain of HMS Swallow
HMS Swallow (1653)
Gainsborough was a 40-gun fourth-rate frigate of the English Navy, originally built under the 1652 programme for the navy of the Commonwealth of England by Thomas Taylor at Pitch House , and launched in 1653. She was named for the Parliamentarian victory at the Battle of Gainsborough in 1643.After...

 in the Thames
River Thames
The River Thames flows through southern England. It is the longest river entirely in England and the second longest in the United Kingdom. While it is best known because its lower reaches flow through central London, the river flows alongside several other towns and cities, including Oxford,...

, but at once gave in his allegiance to the cause of the Revolution
Glorious Revolution
The Glorious Revolution, also called the Revolution of 1688, is the overthrow of King James II of England by a union of English Parliamentarians with the Dutch stadtholder William III of Orange-Nassau...

. In 1690 he commanded the Royal Katherine, and, in the battle off Beachy Head
Battle of Beachy Head (1690)
The Battle of Beachy Head was a naval engagement fought on 10 July 1690 during the Nine Years' War. The battle was the greatest French tactical naval victory over their English and Dutch opponents during the war...

, was one of the seconds to Sir Ralph Delaval
Ralph Delaval
Admiral Sir Ralph Delaval was an English naval admiral.He was a member of a junior branch of the Delaval family of Seaton Delaval, Northumberland...

 who commanded the blue squadron. In 1692, still in the Royal Katherine, he was one of the seconds of the Commander-in-Chief at Barfleur
Battles of Barfleur and La Hougue
The related naval battles of Barfleur and La Hogue took place between 29 May and 4 June New Style , 1692 ....

. In February 1693 he was advanced to the rank of Rear Admiral
Rear Admiral
Rear admiral is a naval commissioned officer rank above that of a commodore and captain, and below that of a vice admiral. It is generally regarded as the lowest of the "admiral" ranks, which are also sometimes referred to as "flag officers" or "flag ranks"...

, and to that of Vice Admiral
Vice Admiral
Vice admiral is a senior naval rank of a three-star flag officer, which is equivalent to lieutenant general in the other uniformed services. A vice admiral is typically senior to a rear admiral and junior to an admiral...

 in 1694, when he accompanied Admiral Russell
Edward Russell, 1st Earl of Orford
Admiral of the Fleet Edward Russell, 1st Earl of Orford, PC was the First Lord of the Admiralty under King William III.-Naval career:...

 to the Mediterranean, and was also appointed a Lord of the Admiralty. After the Treaty of Ryswick
Treaty of Ryswick
The Treaty of Ryswick or Ryswyck was signed on 20 September 1697 and named after Ryswick in the Dutch Republic. The treaty settled the Nine Years' War, which pitted France against the Grand Alliance of England, Spain, the Holy Roman Empire and the United Provinces.Negotiations started in May...

 he was sent, in 1698, as Commander-in-Chief, again into the Mediterranean, principally to confirm the treaties with the regencies of Tripoli
Tripoli
Tripoli is the capital and largest city in Libya. It is also known as Western Tripoli , to distinguish it from Tripoli, Lebanon. It is affectionately called The Mermaid of the Mediterranean , describing its turquoise waters and its whitewashed buildings. Tripoli is a Greek name that means "Three...

, Tunis
Tunis
Tunis is the capital of both the Tunisian Republic and the Tunis Governorate. It is Tunisia's largest city, with a population of 728,453 as of 2004; the greater metropolitan area holds some 2,412,500 inhabitants....

, and Algiers. He returned home towards the end of the following year.

In November 1699, being, it is said, dissatisfied at the appointment of Admiral Churchill to the Admiralty
Admiralty
The Admiralty was formerly the authority in the Kingdom of England, and later in the United Kingdom, responsible for the command of the Royal Navy...

, he retired from active service, though he continued to act as one of the Commissioners of the Navy till July 1702. He took no part whatever in naval affairs beyond sitting in Parliament
Parliament of England
The Parliament of England was the legislature of the Kingdom of England. In 1066, William of Normandy introduced a feudal system, by which he sought the advice of a council of tenants-in-chief and ecclesiastics before making laws...

 as Baron or Member
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...

 for Dover
Dover (UK Parliament constituency)
Dover is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election.-Boundaries:...

, till after the death of Prince George, and the retirement of Churchill in November 1709, when he was appointed Commander-in-Chief of the fleet. In the following July, whilst cruising in the Soundings, he fell in with a French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

 squadron
Squadron (naval)
A squadron, or naval squadron, is a unit of 3-4 major warships, transport ships, submarines, or sometimes small craft that may be part of a larger task force or a fleet...

 and convoy
Convoy
A convoy is a group of vehicles, typically motor vehicles or ships, traveling together for mutual support and protection. Often, a convoy is organized with armed defensive support, though it may also be used in a non-military sense, for example when driving through remote areas.-Age of Sail:Naval...

, of which only one merchantman
Cargo ship
A cargo ship or freighter is any sort of ship or vessel that carries cargo, goods, and materials from one port to another. Thousands of cargo carriers ply the world's seas and oceans each year; they handle the bulk of international trade...

 and the Superbe, of 56 guns, were captured. The rest escaped, owing, it was alleged, to the haziness of the weather. The want of success served the new ministry as an excuse to supersede him, which they did in January 1711.

He held no further command till the Accession
Accession Day
An Accession Day is the anniversary of the date on which a monarch succeeds to the throne upon the death of the previous monarch.-Monarchy:The custom of marking this day was inaugurated during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I of England....

 of George I
George I of Great Britain
George I was King of Great Britain and Ireland from 1 August 1714 until his death, and ruler of the Duchy and Electorate of Brunswick-Lüneburg in the Holy Roman Empire from 1698....

, when he was again appointed Commander-in-Chief, Ranger of Greenwich Park
Greenwich Park
Greenwich Park is a former hunting park in Greenwich and one of the largest single green spaces in south east London. One of the Royal Parks of London, and the first to be enclosed , it covers , and is part of the Greenwich World Heritage Site. It commands fine views over the River Thames, Isle of...

, and the second Governor
Governor
A governor is a governing official, usually the executive of a non-sovereign level of government, ranking under the head of state...

 of Greenwich Hospital. This office he held till his death, and during that time succeeded in establishing the hospital school for the sons of seamen, which gradually developed into a magnificent institution. In April 1717 he became one of the Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty, but he resigned the appointment early the next year, when he was promoted to Rear Admiral of the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

, and at the same time raised to the peerage of Ireland as Lord Aylmer of Balrath. He had been elected Whig
British Whig Party
The Whigs were a party in the Parliament of England, Parliament of Great Britain, and Parliament of the United Kingdom, who contested power with the rival Tories from the 1680s to the 1850s. The Whigs' origin lay in constitutional monarchism and opposition to absolute rule...

 M.P. for Portsmouth
Portsmouth (UK Parliament constituency)
Portsmouth was a borough constituency based upon the borough of Portsmouth in Hampshire. It returned two Members of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, elected by the bloc vote system.- History :...

 in 1695, and for Dover in 1697, 1713, and 1715.

A portrait
Portrait
thumb|250px|right|Portrait of [[Thomas Jefferson]] by [[Rembrandt Peale]], 1805. [[New-York Historical Society]].A portrait is a painting, photograph, sculpture, or other artistic representation of a person, in which the face and its expression is predominant. The intent is to display the likeness,...

, half-length, presented by his descendant, the fifth Lord Aylmer
Matthew Whitworth-Aylmer, 5th Baron Aylmer
‎Matthew Whitworth-Aylmer, 5th Baron Aylmer was a British military officer and colonial administrator.- Napoleonic Wars :...

, is in the National Maritime Museum
National Maritime Museum
The National Maritime Museum in Greenwich, England is the leading maritime museum of the United Kingdom and may be the largest museum of its kind in the world. The historic buildings forming part of the Maritime Greenwich World Heritage Site, it also incorporates the Royal Observatory, Greenwich,...

 at Greenwich
Greenwich
Greenwich is a district of south London, England, located in the London Borough of Greenwich.Greenwich is best known for its maritime history and for giving its name to the Greenwich Meridian and Greenwich Mean Time...

.

Family tree

Sir Christopher Aylmer, Baron Balrath = Margaret, Lady Plunkett, dau. of Matthew, 5th Earl of Louth, and Mary Fitzwilliam
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Sir Gerald Aylmer Matthew Aylmer Catherine = Michael Warren of Warrenstown
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Peter Warren
Peter Warren (admiral)
Sir Peter Warren, KB was a British naval officer from Ireland who commanded the naval forces in the attack on the French fortress of Louisbourg, Nova Scotia in 1745...


Source

  • The Peerage.com
  • "White Savage: William Johnson and the Invention of America", Fintan O Toole, 2005.
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