Benjamin Caldwell - Glorious First of June

Glorious First of June

Caldwell moved from the Cumberland after only a short period and took over HMS Impregnable, a 98-gun second rate in the Channel Fleet of Admiral Lord Howe. With the rest of Howe's fleet, Impregnable was present at the Glorious First of June, at which Howe attempted to destroy a large French fleet protecting a grain convoy. The convoy escaped the British, but seven French ships were taken and the rest driven back to France. Impregnable was heavily engaged in the action and suffered 31 casualties but along with many officers, Caldwell was overlooked in Howe's dispatch to the Admiralty. Unmentioned in the dispatch, Caldwell's part in the action was not celebrated in Britain and Caldwell was even denied a commemorative medal issued to the captains who had fought at the battle.

Caldwell was infuriated by this snub, and became even more so when the Admiralty endorsed Howe's version of events despite an outcry from the overlooked officers. Transferred to the West Indies under Sir John Jervis as a vice-admiral in HMS Majestic, Caldwell attempted to put his feelings behind him and was even briefly made commander in chief of the West Indies station when Jervis returned to England. Caldwell's ambitions were however thwarted when the Admiralty appointed John Laforey to replace him after only a few months. Perceiving this second slight to be a consequence of the first, Caldwell returned to England at once and refused to serve at sea again even if the Admiralty, who had been unimpressed by his attitude, offered him employment, which they did not.