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WOODCOCK—WOODD—WOODGATE—WOODHAM.
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transports up the unknown part of the Canton river; and was otherwise very actively and usefully employed.[1] From the Sulphur Mr. Wood (he had been promoted by the Admiralty to the rank of Lieutenant 28 June, 1838) was transferred, in July, 1841, to the Wellesley 72, Capt. Thos. Maitland; under whom we find him present, in the course of the same year, at the capture of Amoy, Chusan, and Ningpo. In Jan. 1842, the Wellesley being ordered to England, he was nominated Additional-Lieutenant of the Cornwallis 72, flag-ship of Sir Wm. Parker, and placed in command, at the same time, of the Young Hebe tender. In May, 1842, having been advanced to the rank of Commander by a commission dated 8 Oct. preceding, he returned to England. He has been in command, since 19 March, 1847, of the Philomel sloop, on the coast of Africa.

Commander Wood married, 11 April, 1844, Elizabeth, youngest daughter of the late Rev. Thos. Stedman, M.A., Vicar of St. Chads, Shrewsbury, and widow of the Rev. Edw. Polehampton, M.A., Rector of Greenford, co. Middlesex, and late Fellow of King’s College, Cambridge. Agents – Messrs. Stilwell.



WOODCOCK. (Lieutenant, 1811. f-p., 13; h-p., 29.)

Francis Henry Woodcock died 11 Nov. 1845. This officer entered the Navy, 19 May, 1803, as Fst.-cl. Vol., on board the Galykheid, Capt. David Colby, bearing the flag of the late Sir Edw. Thornbrough, with whom he continued employed as Midshipman and Master’s Hate in the Ruby 64, Eagle and Kent 74’s, and Royal Sovereign 100, on the North Sea, West India, Channel, and Mediterranean stations, until transferred, in Nov. 1809, to the Ville de Paris 110, flag-ship of Admirals Lord Collingwood and Thos. Fras. Fremantle in the Mediterranean also; where he was made Lieutenant, 25 May, 1811, into the Sultan 74, Capt. John West. In command, with Lieut. Anderson, of the boats of the latter ship, he attacked, boarded, and carried, off Bastia, 4 Dec. following, with a loss to the British of only 4 men wounded, and to the enemy of 1 man killed and several wounded, two French national armed vessels, one a settee of 8 guns and 31 men, and the other a brig of 6 guns and 53 men.[2] In May, 1813, he removed to the Ethalion 36, Capts. Edm. Heywood and Wm. Hugh Dobbie; in which frigate he served on the coast of Ireland until paid off in Sept. 1815. This was his last appointment.



WOODD. (Retired Commander, 1844. f-p., 18; h-p., 36.)

Robert Woodd was born 17 April, 1780, and died in 1847. His father, Geo. Woodd, Esq., was a Captain in the West Kent Militia.

This officer entered the Navy, in the spring of 1793, as Captain’s Servant, on board the Defence 74, Capt. J as. Gambier. After having fought as Midshipman in Lord Howe’s action, 1 June, 1794, ho removed with Capt. Gambier to the Prince George 98, fitting in the river Medway; he joined next, in 1795-6, the Eurydice 24 and Ambuscade 32, both commanded by Capt. Thos. Twysden; and in Feb. 1797 he was received on board the Leviathan 74, Capt. (subsequently Rear and Vice Admiral) John Thos. Duckworth. He was much employed, in the Eurydice, in affording protection to convoys in the English and Irish Channels; and in the Ambuscade he came into action with a fort on the island of St. Domingo. While attached to the Leviathan, in which ship (deducting an interval of 13 months, from Aug. ,1799 until Sept. 1800, during which he acted as Lieutenant in the Mermaid 32) he continued until the autumn of 1801, he cruized in the Channel and on the coast of Ireland, assisted at the blockade of Cadiz, served on shore at the reduction of Minorca, contributed to the capture of two Spanish frigates, the El Carmen and Florentina, each laden with 1500 quintals of quicksilver, and was present either afloat or on shore at the capture of Fort St. Elmo, on the coast of Naples, and of the Swedish and Danish islands in the West Indies. He was a participator, too, in many cutting-out affairs; and in one of them, on the coast of Spain, was wounded. His commission as Lieutenant, dated 31 Jan. 1800, was given to him by Lord Nelson. He returned to England from the West Indies in the Daphne 20, Capt. Rich. Matson; and was employed afterwards – from 1803 until 1805, in the Rosario sloop, Capt. Rich. Matson, on the coast of Ireland – from 1805 until March, 1810, in command of a Signal station in Cornwall – from Dec. 1810 until June, 1811, in the Ulysses 44, flag-ship of Vice-Admiral D’Auvergne on the Guernsey station – and from June, 1811, until June, 1813, in command of another Signal station in the island of Jersey. He was placed on the Junior List of Retired Commanders 26 Nov. 1830; and on the Senior 24 July, 1844.

Commander Woodd married in 1804, and again in 1826. By his first wife he has left a family of five children.



WOODGATE. (Commander, 1842.)

Thomas Woodgate is nephew of Commander Rich. Streatfeild, R.N.

This officer attained the rank of Lieutenant 18 Oct. 1839. His succeeding appointments were 21 Oct. 1839, as Additional, to the Stag 46, bearing the broad pendant of Commodore Thos. Ball Sulivan in South America – 18 July, 1840, to the Grecian 16, Capt. Wm. Smyth, at the Cape of Good Hope – 7 March, 1842, as Senior, to the North Star 26, Capt. Sir Jas. Everard Home, under whom he took part in the closing operations of the war in China[3] – and, 17 Nov. following, to the Endymion 44, Capt. Hon. Fred. Wm. Grey, on the East India station. He was presented, in 1843, for his China services, with a Commander’s commission bearing date 23 Dec. 1842;[4] and has since been on half-pay.

Commander Woodgate married, 11 Sept. 1845, Louisa Hay, daughter of the late Lieut. Walker, R.N. Agent – Fred. Dufaur.



WOODHAM. (Lieutenant, 1815.)

William Henry Woodhamwas born 22 July, 1794. One of his brothers, Geo. Horatio, a Midshipman R.N., was lost in the Anacreon 18, in the Bay of Biscay, 28 Feb. 1814 : another, Senior Captain of the 9th Foot, after having fought in most of the Peninsular actions, was killed, while gallantly leading his company, at the storming of St. Sebastian in 1813.

This officer entered the Navy, 4 April, 1805, as Fst.-cl. Vol., on board the Uranie 38, Capt. Hon. Chas. Herbert, stationed on the coast of North America. After serving for about two years in the Canada 74, Capt. John Harvey, in the West Indies (where he was in company with a squadron under Sir Alex. Cochrane during the close pursuit of a French squadron, which lasted for two or three days), he was received as Midshipman, in Jan. 1808, on board the Orion 74, Capt. Sir Arch. Collingwood Dickson, on the Baltic station. Rejoining Capt. Harvey, in June, 1809, on board the Leviathan 74, in the Mediterranean, he united, in Oct. of the same year, in the chase which led to the self-destruction, near Cape Cette, of the ships-of-the- line Robuste and Lion. He continued to serve with Capt. Harvey and with Capts. Wm. Bedford and Jas. Bisset, on the station last named and in the Channel, until transferred, in April, 1813, to the Majestic of 56 guns, Capt. John Hayes. In her he was present at the blockade of the American ship Constitution in the port of Boston; at the capture, 3 Feb. 1814, near the Azores, of the Terpsichore French frigate of 44 guns, after a running action of two hours and a half; in the operations connected with

  1. Vide Gaz. 1841, pp. 1430, 1501, 1505, 2504, 2539.
  2. Vide Gaz. 1812, p. 638.
  3. He served on shore in the attack upon the batteries at Woosung. – Vide Gaz. 1842, p. 3400.
  4. Vide Gaz. 1843, p. 2930.