1. Admiral of the Fleet Sir Francis William Austen, was a Royal Navy officer and an elder brother of the novelist Jane Austen.
14 Facts About Francis Austen
1. 2.
Francis Austen took part in the blockade of Genoa in May 1800 and, having been promoted to captain on 13 May 1800, was present at the blockade of Abu Qir in August 1800.
3.
Francis Austen became Flag Captain to Lord Gambier, in the second-rate HMS Neptune in August 1801 and earned a reputation for seeing to the welfare and health of his men.
4.
Francis Austen went on to be commanding officer of the fourth-rate HMS Leopard, flagship of Rear Admiral Sir Thomas Louis, in May 1804 and then took part in the blockade of Boulogne.
5.
Francis Austen next became commanding officer of the third-rate HMS Canopus, a French ship of the line captured in the Battle of the Nile, early in 1805.
6.
Francis Austen was temporarily detached from the fleet for convoy duty in the Mediterranean and missed the Battle of Trafalgar.
7.
Francis Austen went on to be commanding officer of the third-rate HMS St Albans in March 1807.
8.
Francis Austen became Flag Captain to Lord Gambier, Commander-in-Chief of the Channel Squadron, in the first-rate HMS Caledonia in September 1810.
9.
Francis Austen went on to be commanding officer of the third-rate HMS Elephant in the North Sea in 1811 and took part in a blockade of the Scheldt.
10.
Francis Austen was appointed a Companion of the Order of the Bath on 4 June 1815.
11.
Francis Austen became Commander-in-Chief, North America and West Indies Station, with his flag in the third-rate HMS Vindictive, in December 1844.
12.
Francis Austen was promoted to Admiral of the Fleet on 27 April 1863.
13.
Francis Austen died at his home Portsdown Lodge at Widley in Hampshire on 10 August 1865 and was buried in the churchyard at St Peter and St Paul, Wymering, Portsmouth.
14.
In July 1806 Francis Austen married Mary Gibson ; they had ten children.