17 Facts About Edward Vernon

Admiral Edward Vernon was a Royal Navy officer and politician.

Edward Vernon had a long and distinguished career, rising to the rank of admiral after 46 years service.

Edward Vernon was known for wearing coats made of grogram cloth, earning him the nickname of "Old Grog", which in turn came to mean the diluted rum that he first introduced into his naval squadron.

Edward Vernon is the eponym of George Washington's estate Mount Vernon, and thereby the many places in the United States named after it.

Edward Vernon had one other sibling, James who became British envoy to Denmark and served as a member of parliament and Clerk of the Privy Council.

Edward Vernon was the commodore on the Jamaica Station in 1720.

Edward Vernon took up the case of the Welshman Robert Jenkins, a merchant seaman who claimed to have had his ear cut off after his vessel was boarded by Spanish privateers Coast guards or privateers guardacostas in 1731.

The accumulation of Spanish-British conflicts led to the War of Jenkins' Ear in 1739, in which Vice Admiral Edward Vernon led a fleet along with Major General Thomas Wentworth.

Edward Vernon captured Portobelo, Panama, a Spanish colonial possession, as a result of which he was granted the Freedom of the City of London.

Edward Vernon was granted the Freedom of the City of London and commemorative medals were produced.

Edward Vernon's expedition continued its operations in the Caribbean without further success after the failed attack on Santiago de Cuba, thanks to the defence plan deployed by Governor Francisco Cagigal de la Vega and the French engineer Francisco de Langle.

Edward Vernon returned to Parliament and continued to harass the government on naval affairs.

Edward Vernon wrote two pamphlets about his disagreements with the Admiralty.

Edward Vernon introduced new instructions to improve the flexibility of handling fleets in battle and formed the basis of continuing improvement to Admiralty fighting instructions by subsequent naval commanders.

Edward Vernon's enduring claim to fame was his 1740 order that his sailors' rum should be diluted with water.

Some writers have claimed that Edward Vernon added citrus juice to prevent spoilage and that it was found to prevent scurvy.

Edward Vernon named his Virginia estate Mount Vernon in honour of his former commander, a name retained by George Washington.