The Midshipman Prince (48 page)
Read The Midshipman Prince Online
Authors: Tom Grundner
Admiral Sir George Rodney was an historical character as depicted. Captain James Saumarez actually received command of the
Russell,
also as depicted, when, as he was leaving the
Formidable
with orders to go home, he literally bumped into a captain who was coming aboard to apply for leave.
CHAPTER TEN
The jockeying of the fleets prior to the Battle of the Saints was exactly as described.
The trigger for the battle was indeed the
Zele
colliding with the
Jason
and then later with the
Ville de Paris
—collisions number three and four in her sorry history. Unfortunately, I was not able to find out her actual captain’s name.
The details of the battle are exactly as they occurred including: the “drag race” to see who would get to windward, Captain George Savage’s verbal abuse of the enemy, and the bantam-cock on the rail of the
Formidable
. The
Diadem
did indeed cause a four-ship pile-up and a hole in the French line, although it was caused by a sudden freak shift in the wind, not because her rudder cable was cut. (Hey, I had to give our heroes
something
to do!)
The argument between Admiral Rodney and Captain Douglas over whether to exploit the break in the French line took place almost word-for-word as described. Midshipman Dashwood, who really did stir the Admiral’s drink with his knife, later became Sir Charles Dashwood and left a letter describing the scene. It is one of those ironies of history that the thing for which Admiral Rodney is most known, “Rodney’s Maneuver” the breaking of the French line at the Saints, occurred because he
lost
an argument with his flag captain. Talk about backing into history.
1
As mentioned above, Sidney Smith, the real one, was also at the Battle of the Saints although not in the capacity described here. He was a lieutenant aboard the
Alcide
(74) and saw a great deal of action. As mentioned above, all future books will be based on the life of this unbelievable character.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Admiral De Grasse was indeed undone when his van, under Admiral De Bougainville, fled the battle. Some historians have argued that De Bougainville did the smart thing. He tried to preserve his ships from a fight he knew was lost. Others have argued that, in fact, he left it up to each of his captains whether to go back or not and only one did. Most people, however, simply view it as an act of cowardice.
The
Glorieux
,
Caesar
,
Hector
,
Ardent
and the
Ville de Paris
all surrendered as described. The fire aboard the
Caesar
and the shark feast that followed actually happened and was one of the more horrible incidents of the war.
The Burial at Sea service is, word for word, the way it was actually done.
EPILOGUE
Most of the epilogue is fictional, of course. I wanted to let you know what became of our heroes upon their return and (of course) set you up for the next book.
Walker’s reminiscences, however, are all accurate. The battle casualty rates were as described and the
Ville de Paris
really did contain 36 strong boxes of gold.
Unbelievably, Rodney was in fact relieved of command
prior
to the battle, but word didn’t get to him until after it was over and he had won.
And that bizarre parade in Bristol? It actually happened, just as I described.
As with the rest of the book, I couldn’t make this stuff up if I tried.
Tom Grundner
Tucson
About the Author
Writing has become a "second career" for Tom Grundner—or maybe a third or fourth career, depending on how you count them.
Dr. Grundner received his undergraduate degree in Psychology from Eastern Michigan University; a masters degree in Human Learning from the Institute for Behavioral Research in Silver Spring, Maryland; a second masters in Education from the University of Southern California; and a doctorate in Educational Philosophy and Psychology, also from USC.
The majority of his working life was spent as a college professor. In 1991, however, he bailed out of academia, ran a nonprofit organization for a while, bailed out of that and, given his background and training, made the only career move he thought to be logical—he became a full time custom golf clubmaker.
His experience as a clubmaker led him to write a series of golf equipment books with noted golf club designer, Tom Wishon. As a result of the success of these books he was able to become one the original investors in Fireship Press.
Today he serves as the “Senior Editor” of Fireship, which also allows him to indulge in his first love—writing books about the 18th Century Royal Navy. His current major project is a series of novels based on the real-life exploits of Sir Sidney Smith; and is currently working on book four of what he projects to be a nine volume series.
Endnotes
- See
FORTUNE’S FAVORITE: Sir Charles Douglas and the Breaking of the Line
, and
NAVAL EVOLUTIONS: A Memoir
, both published by Fireship Press, and both written by Christopher Valin, an American who is the 5X great-grandson of Sir Charles.
♠
DON’T MISS ALL OF THE EXCITING
BOOKS IN THE SIR SIDNEY SMITH SERIES
BY
TOM GRUNDNER
THE MIDSHIPMAN PRINCE
How do you keep a prince alive when the combined forces of three nations (and a smattering of privateers) want him dead? Worse, how do you do it when his life is in the hands of a 17 year old lieutenant, an alcoholic college professor, and a woman who has fired more naval guns than either of them? The first book in the Sir Sidney Smith nautical adventure series.
HMS DIAMOND
After surviving the horrors of the destruction of Toulon, Sir Sidney is given a critical assignment. British gold shipments are going missing. Even worse, the ships are literally disappearing in plain sight of their escorts and the vessels around them. The mystery must be solved, but to do that Sir Sidney must unravel a web of intrigue that leads all the way to the Board of Admiralty.
THE TEMPLE
Napoleon is massing ships, troops, and supplies at Toulon and a number of other ports. He is clearly planning an invasion; but an invasion of who, where, and when, no one knows. The key is a captured message, but it’s encoded in a way that has never been seen before. From a dreary prison in Paris, to an opulent palace in Constantinople, to the horror of the Battle of the Nile—The Temple will take you on a wild ride through 18th Century history.
AND DON’T MISS THE FOURTH BOOK
IN THIS THRILLING SERIES COMING IN 2010
ACRE
From Fireship Press
www.FireshipPress.com
All Fireship Press books are available directly through our website, amazon.com, via leading bookstores from coast-to-coast, and from all major wholesalers in the U.S., Canada, the UK, and Europe.
———————————-
IF YOU ENJOYED THIS BOOK,
YOU’LL ALSO LOVE THE BOOKS IN
ALARIC BOND’S
FIGHTING SAIL SERIES
HIS MAJESTY’S SHIP
The First Book in the Fighting Sail Series
A powerful ship, a questionable crew,
and a mission that must succeed.
In the spring of 1795 HMS Vigilant, a 64 gun ship-of-the-line, is about to leave Spithead as senior escort to a small, seemingly innocent, convoy.
The crew is a jumble of trained seamen, volunteers, and the sweepings of the press; yet, somehow, the officers have to mold them into an effective fighting unit before the French discover the convoy’s true significance.
Based on historical fact, His Majesty’s Ship will take you into the world of Nelson’s Navy, and captivate you all the way to it’s gripping conclusion.
“Bond has an extraordinary talent for describing the sights and sounds of an 18th Century man-of-war.
When you finish this book you genuinely feel like you have been there—and no novel can receive higher praise than that.”
THE JACKASS FRIGATE
The Second Book in the Fighting Sail Series
December 1796. It was a time of unrest and discontent for Britain, made even worse by the war with Revolutionary France and the possibility of imminent invasion. Fresh from the dockyard, HMS Pandora, a 28-gun frigate, is about to set sail to join the Mediterranean Fleet.
For Captain Banks the harsh winter weather and threat of a French invasion are not his only problems. He has an untried ship, a tyrant for a First Lieutenant, a crew that contains at least one murderer, and he is about to sail into one of the biggest naval battles in British history—the Battle of Cape St. Vincent.
True Colours
The Third Book in the Fighting Sail Series
The Royal Navy is immobilised by mutiny, and the only thing that’s standing in the way of an invasion is a commander who is communicating with a fleet that isn’t there.
While Great Britain’s major home fleets are immobilised by a vicious mutiny, Adam Duncan, commander of the North Sea Squadron, has to maintain a constant watch over the Dutch coast, where a powerful invasion force is ready to take advantage of Britannia's weakest moment.
With ship-to-ship duels and fleet engagements, shipwrecks, storms and groundings, True Colours maintains a relentless pace that culminates in one of the most devastating sea battles of the French Revolutionary War—the Battle of Camperdown.
Alaric Bond has stepped into the first rank
of writers of historic naval fiction.
All Fireship Press books are available directly through our website, amazon.com, via leading bookstores from coast-to-coast, and from all major wholesalers in the U.S., Canada, the UK, and Europe.