Lucius Curtis

Sir Lucius Curtis, Bt
Portrait of Sir Lucius Curtis (with the frigate HMS Magicienne burning in the background) on a pub sign in Southampton
Born	(1786-06-03)3 June 1786 Portsea, Hampshire
Died	14 January 1869(1869-01-14) (aged 82) Portsdown Hill, Hampshire
Allegiance	United Kingdom
Service/branch	Royal Navy
Years of service	1800–1869
Rank	Admiral of the Fleet
Commands held	HMS Jalouse HMS Rose HMS Magicienne HMS Iphigenia HMS Madagascar Malta Dockyard
Battles/wars	Napoleonic Wars • Battle of Grand Port
Awards	Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath

Admiral of the Fleet Sir Lucius Curtis, 2nd Baronet, KCB, DL (3 June 1786 – 14 January 1869) was a senior officer of the Royal Navy during the nineteenth century. The son of Sir Roger Curtis, 1st Baronet, Lord Howe's flag captain at the Glorious First of June, Lucius served during the Napoleonic Wars and was heavily involved in the Mauritius campaign of 1810. During this campaign, Curtis commanded the frigate HMS Magicienne with the blockade squadron under Josias Rowley and was still in command when the ship was destroyed at the Battle of Grand Port. Magicienne grounded on a coral reef early in the engagement and despite the best efforts of Curtis and his crew, the ship had to be abandoned, Curtis setting her on fire to prevent her subsequent capture.

After Curtis was freed from captivity in December 1810, he was cleared of any wrongdoing in the loss of his ship and returned to his naval career. He later rose to become an Admiral of the Fleet. As his eldest son predeceased him, the baronetcy in 1869 passed to his second son, Arthur.

Born the second son of Captain Roger Curtis and his wife Jane Sarah Brady, Curtis joined the Royal Navy in June 1795, by which time his father was an admiral and a senior but controversial figure in the Admiralty. He was appointed to the first-rate HMS Queen Charlotte in the Channel Squadron and then, having been promoted to midshipman, transferred to the second-rate HMS Prince also in the Channel Squadron in August 1798. Promoted to lieutenant on 11 August 1801, he joined the third-rate HMS Lancaster, flagship of the Cape of Good Hope Station, later that month. In 1802, Curtis' elder brother, also named Roger, died suddenly in naval service: as the remaining son, Curtis received strong patronage due to his family links. He transferred to the third-rate HMS Excellent in September 1803 and, having been promoted to commander on 16 November 1804, became commanding officer of the sloop HMS Jalouse in the Mediterranean Fleet later that month and then commanding officer of the sloop HMS Rose in June 1805.