Israel Pellew
| Israel Pellew | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Born |
25 August 1758 Dover, England |
| Died | 19 July 1832 (aged 73) Plymouth, England |
| Allegiance |
 United Kingdom |
| Service/branch | Royal Navy |
| Years of service | 1771-1830 |
| Rank | Admiral |
| Battles/wars |
French Revolutionary Wars Napoleonic Wars Second Barbary War |
| Awards | KCB |
| Relations | Edward Pellew, 1st Viscount Exmouth |
Admiral Sir Israel Pellew, KCB, RN (25 August 1758 – 19 July 1832), was an English naval officer who spent his career under the shadow of his more successful older brother Edward Pellew.
Pellew first went to sea aboard the sloop Falcon in 1771, serving in the West Indies. He went to the North American station on the frigate HMS Flora in 1776. Pellew was promoted to lieutenant in the Royal George in April 1779 and then served on the frigates Danae and Apollo. He was placed in command of the cutter Resolution in the North Sea in 1782, and he retained command when she was transferred to the Irish station serving until 1787. In March 1789 he joined Salisbury, and was promoted to commander in 1790, but was not employed again during the peace.
On the outbreak of war in 1793 Pellew was temporarily without a ship, and served as a volunteer aboard his brother's command Nymphe, being in charge of her aft guns when she captured the French frigate Cléopâtre on 18 June, the first British naval victory of the French Revolutionary Wars. For this action, his brother was knighted and Israel Pellew was presented to King George III and made post captain of Squirrel. In April 1795 he was made captain of a larger frigate, Amphion, commanding her off Newfoundland and in the North Sea. In September 1796, sailing to join his brother's squadron in the Channel, Pellew took Amphion into Plymouth for repairs. On 22 September she suddenly exploded alongside the dock. About 300 of her crew and visitors were killed. Pellew survived, being blown through an open stern gallery window on to the deck of a sheer hulk. An inquiry blamed the explosion on the Amphion's gunner, who was suspected of stealing gunpowder which caught fire and blew up the fore magazine. However, Pellew had already complained that the magazine was poorly constructed and unsafe, and questioned the judgement on the deceased gunner.
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