Edward Brace
| Sir Edward Brace | |
|---|---|
Rear-Admiral Sir Edward Brace, 1837
Henry William Pickersgill |
|
| Born |
2 June 1770 Kimbolton, Herefordshire |
| Died | 26 December 1843 (aged 73) Nore, Kent |
| Allegiance |
 United Kingdom
|
| Service/branch |
 Royal Navy
|
| Years of service | 1781 — 1843 |
| Rank | Royal Navy Rear-Admiral |
| Commands held | Nore Command |
| Battles/wars |
French Revolutionary War • Expédition d'Irlande • Capture of Loire Napoleonic Wars • Action of 19 May 1808 Bombardment of Algiers |
| Awards |
Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath Military William Order Order of Charles III Order of Saints Maurice and Lazarus |
Rear Admiral Sir Edward Brace, KCB (bap. 2 June 1770 – 26 December 1843) was a senior officer of the British Royal Navy during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars. Most of his career was spent as a successful independent captain, and he was three times involved in successful actions against French or Dutch frigates, resulting in rapid promotion. After the end of the Napoleonic Wars, Brace commanded the first rate HMS Impregnable at the Bombardment of Algiers in 1816, but made a serious mistake in his navigation and exposed his ship to the port's defences unnecessarily. As a result, he suffered 210 casualties and his career suffered as a result. Despite this setback, he continued to rise during the 1820s and gradually became an admiral and a knight. In the 1830s he was made commander in chief at the Nore and died on station in 1843.
Edward Brace was born in June 1770, the son of Francis Brace of Stagbatch. Aged 11 he was entered on the books of the frigate HMS Artois as a captain's servant, progressing through the ranks until entered as a midshipman in 1785. In 1787, Brace joined HMS Victory before moving to HMS Gorgon, HMS Edgar and then HMS Crown over the following year. In 1790 he sailed for the East Indies and there served on HMS Minerva and HMS Ariel, returning to Europe in 1792 as a lieutenant. In January 1793, Brace moved to HMS Iris and in 1794 joined the ship of the line HMS Polyphemus, based at Cork. In 1795 he was briefly given an independent command in the cutter HMS Hazard, but returned to Polyphemus within the year. Polyphemus was then heavily engaged in the Expédition d'Irlande during the winter of 1796–1797, when a French invasion fleet was broken up by storms off Southern Ireland. Polyphemus was able to chase and capture the frigate Tartu 5 January.
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