Provo Wallis
| Sir Provo William Parry Wallis | |
|---|---|
Wallis (1813) by Robert Field
|
|
| Born |
12 April 1791 Halifax, Nova Scotia |
| Died | 13 February 1892 (aged 100) Funtington, England |
| Allegiance |
 United Kingdom
|
| Service/branch |
 Royal Navy
|
| Years of service | 1795–1892 |
| Rank | Admiral of the Fleet |
| Commands held |
HMS Snipe HMS Niemen HMS Madagascar Senior Naval Officer, Gibraltar South East Coast of America Station |
| Battles/wars |
War of 1812 Pastry War |
| Awards | Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath |
Admiral of the Fleet Sir Provo William Parry Wallis, GCB (12 April 1791 – 13 February 1892) was a Royal Navy officer. As a junior officer, following the capture of USS Chesapeake by the frigate HMS Shannon during the War of 1812, the wounding of HMS Shannon's captain and the death of her first lieutenant in the action, he served as the temporary captain of HMS Shannon for a period of exactly six days as she made her way back to Halifax, Nova Scotia, with Chesapeake flying the Blue Ensign above the Stars and Stripes.
As commanding officer of the fifth-rate HMS Madagascar, Wallis earned the thanks of the people of Veracruz in Mexico when he protected them from French bombardment during the Pastry War. He went on to be Senior Naval Officer, Gibraltar and then Commander-in-Chief on the South East Coast of America Station. Wallis was promoted to senior flag officer positions and was still carried on the active list at 100 years old when he died.
Born the son of Provo Featherstone Wallis, a clerk at the Royal Navy's Halifax Naval Yard, and Elizabeth Wallis (née Lawlor), Wallis benefited from his father's desire to secure a naval career for his son: knowing the rules for officers' entry into the navy, his father managed to get him officially registered in May 1795 as an able seaman on the 36-gun frigate HMS Oiseau at the age of four, by convincing her captain, Robert Murray to list him on the ship's books as an able seaman. In May 1798 young Provo became a volunteer in the 40-gun frigate HMS Prévoyante where he remained (on paper at least) until September 1799 when he joined the 64-gun third-rate HMS Asia. He served on HMS Asia until September 1800, when he was promoted to midshipman in the 32-gun fifth-rate HMS Cleopatra. HMS Cleopatra was the first ship he physically served aboard – he physically joined the ship in October 1804 – but by now he had amassed nearly a decade of seniority. In an action on 16 February 1805, HMS Cleopatra was captured by the French frigate Ville de Milan and the ship's company taken prisoner of war. Wallis was freed a week later when Ville de Milan was itself captured by the Royal Navy: he transferred to Ville de Milan which now became a British ship.
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Wikipedia