Peter Rainier

Peter Rainier
Admiral Peter Rainier, head-and-shoulders portrait
Born	24 November 1741
Died	7 April 1808
Allegiance	United Kingdom
Service/branch	Royal Navy
Rank	Admiral
Commands held	HMS Astraea HMS Monarch HMS Suffolk East Indies Station
Battles/wars	American Revolutionary War French Revolutionary Wars Napoleonic Wars

Peter Rainier (24 November 1741 – 7 April 1808) was a Royal Navy officer who served during the Seven Years' War, the American Revolutionary War and the Napoleonic Wars. From 1794 to 1805, Rainier was commander-in-chief of the Navy's East Indies Station, covering all seas between the Cape of Good Hope and the South China Sea.

Mount Rainier in Washington, USA, is named after him.

Rainier was born in England on 24 November 1741, the grandson of Daniel Regnier, a Huguenot refugee, and the son of Peter Rainier of Sandwich. He enlisted in the Royal Navy in 1756, at the outset of the Seven Years' War. After a period as an ordinary seaman aboard HMS Oxford, Rainier was transferred to HMS Yarmouth in 1758. He later served aboard Norfolk, and Burford. On 26 May 1768, working as the master of one of his family's merchant ships, Rainier was promoted to lieutenant.

During the American Revolutionary War, Rainier was severely wounded on 8 July 1778, while capturing a large American privateer. He was promoted in rank and went on to become Captain of the 32-gun frigate HMS Astraea. He commanded her on the Jamaica Station from 1786 to 1790.

In 1790, he became the commander of HMS Monarch. On 8 May 1792, George Vancouver named Mount Rainier in modern-day Washington after Captain Rainier: