Henry William Bayntun

Born in 1766 in Algiers, where his father was the British consul general, Bayntun joined the navy at a young age and received his lieutenancy at just seventeen on 15 April 1783. When war broke out with Revolutionary France in 1793, Bayntun was sent to the West Indies under Admiral Sir John Jervis and, after taking part in the capture of Martinique, he was given command of the sloop . He then commanded ships of the line, including and , with which he won acclaim during a successful blockade of the French Caribbean islands following their return to France under the terms of the Treaty of Amiens. In 1803 he captured the French frigate Créole, along with her convoy and hundreds of troops aboard returning to France. ==Trafalgar campaign==

In 1804 Bayntun returned to England after ten years in the West Indies, and was given command of the fast third rate . She joined Nelson's fleet off Brest and subsequently sailed to the West Indies again in pursuit of the French fleet. After learning that the French had returned to European waters, Leviathan sailed to Gibraltar before arriving off Cádiz on 8 October 1805. Bayntun was the guidon bearer at Nelson's state funeral during the water procession between Greenwich and Whitehall. He was also among the many officers that the Lloyd's Patriotic Fund honoured with gifts. ==Later career==

In 1807 Bayntun participated in the naval aspects of the failed invasion of Argentina, but escaped the condemnation received by other of the officers involved. With the defeat of Napoleon and his exile to Elba, Bayntun was made a Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath in January 1815. Bayntun continued in the Navy as a semi-retired officer slowly gaining promotions, being advanced to rear-admiral of the white on 4 June 1814; rear-admiral of the red on 12 August 1819, and then to vice-admiral of the blue on 19 July 1819. Henry William Bayntun died in Bath in 1840 and is buried in All Saints' Church, Weston, Bath, together with several family members. The Captain-class frigate was named for him. She served during the Second World War. == References ==