Sir Joshua Rowley, 1st Baronet - Battle of Grenada

Battle of Grenada

At the end of 1778 Rowley moved into the 74-gun HMS Suffolk and was sent to the West Indies with a commodore’s Broad pennant in command of a squadron of seven ships, as a reinforcement to Admiral John Byron, whom he joined at Saint Lucia in February 1779. On 19 March he was promoted to rear-admiral of the blue. On 6 July 1779 Rowley once more led the van division against Admiral d’Estaing. The battle was a draw and did little to change the course of the war that was already moving into its closing stages. Later that year Rowley captured two French frigates and a Sloop-of-war. They were, la Fortune (42 guns), La Blanche (36 guns), and Ellis (28 guns). Rowley also led his squadron to capture of a large French convoy, from Marseilles, off Martinique.