1. Cloudesley Shovell was appointed commander-in-chief of the Navy while at Lisbon the following year.
15 Facts About Cloudesley Shovell
1. 2.
Cloudesley Shovell commanded the naval element of a combined attack on Toulon, base of the main French fleet, in coordination with the Austrian army under Prince Eugene of Savoy in the summer of 1707.
3.
Cloudesley Shovell went to sea as a cabin boy in the care of a paternal relative, Admiral Sir Christopher Myngs, in 1663.
4.
Cloudesley Shovell set himself to study navigation, and, owing to his able seamanship and brave disposition, became a general favourite and obtained quick promotion.
5.
At Barfleur Cloudesley Shovell's flagship was the first ship to break through the enemy's line, and in the latter stages of the battle he organised a fireship attack.
6.
Cloudesley Shovell received a wound in the thigh during the action, which later incapacitated him during preparations for the attack which destroyed the French ships that had taken refuge at La Hogue.
7.
Cloudesley Shovell was Commissioner of the Sewers, responsible for the upkeep of the embankments of the Thames between Deptford and Gravesend.
8.
Cloudesley Shovell was elected Member of Parliament for Rochester again in 1705.
9.
Cloudesley Shovell commanded the naval element of a combined attack on Toulon, base of the main French fleet, in coordination with the Austrian army under Prince Eugene of Savoy in the summer of 1707.
10.
The allies failed to capture the city, but bombardment by Cloudesley Shovell's forces panicked the French into scuttling their own fleet.
11.
Cloudesley Shovell's body was identified by the purser of the third-rate HMS Arundel, who knew the admiral well.
12.
Cloudesley Shovell was temporarily buried on the beach at Porthellick Cove.
13.
Local legend has it that Cloudesley Shovell was alive, at least barely, when he reached the shore of Scilly at Porthellick Cove but was murdered by a woman for the sake of his priceless emerald ring, which had been given to him by a close friend, Captain James Lord Dursley.
14.
Some versions of the legend report that the sailor cursed Cloudesley Shovell to suffer a watery grave before his execution.
15.
In 1691 Cloudesley Shovell married Elizabeth Hill, Lady Narborough, the widow of his former commander, Rear Admiral Sir John Narborough.