322
DYKE—EAGAR—EARLE.
John Orde, Diadem 64, Capt. John Dawson, and to the command, for 13 months, of the Ready gun-brig. On the renewal of hostilities, Mr. Dyer joined, 5 July, 1803, the Sea Fencibles at Rye, in Sussex, where he remained until appointed, 3 July, 1805, First-Lieutenant of the Vesuvius bomb, Capt. Jas. Lillicrap. In Nov. 1805, meditating an attack upon the flotilla in Boulogne Roads, Rear-Admiral Sir Wm. Sidney Smith, then in command of the British squadron off Dover, issued a general notification, expressive of the intention of Government to reward any signal act of bravery that might be performed during the approaching operations. In consequence of this announcement, Mr. Dyer volunteered the command of a boat with only nine hands, and presently had the good fortune, at a distance of four and a half mUes from the squadron, to blow up, by means of a carcass expressly prepared, and in the centre of 26 of the enemy’s vessels, one of the only two that were destroyed on that occasion. Yet, although six of his men had been wounded, he received no other acknowledgment for this very gallant exploit than that of being personally complimented by the Rear-Admiral. Alter a brief attachment to four other ships (under Capt. Wm. Mounsey, Lord St. Vincent, and Capts. Wm. Gordon Rutherford and Edw. Codrington), Mr. Dyer, a few days subsequent to his removal to L’Athenienne 64, Capt. Robt. Raynsford, was wrecked, on the Esquerques Rocks, near Tunis, 27 Oct. 1806, on which occasion the Captain and 396 of the crew perished. By that untoward event he suffered an uncompensated loss of property to the amount of 276l. Until paid off on his return to England in July, 1807, he next served in the Pompée 74, bearing the flag of Sir W. S. Smith, and Juno 32, Capts. Henry Richardson and Hon. Granville Leveson Proby. He also held command for some time of the Centurion receiving-ship at Halifax, and, on 12 July, 1810, was at length, through the influence of the Duke of Kent, promoted to his present rank in the Driver 18. He paid that sloop off 8 Jan. 1811; and has not since been employed.
Sir Thos. Swinnerton Dyer, who is senior Commander of 1810, was admitted to the out-pension of Greenwich Hospital 24 April, 1837. He married, 14 April, 1814, Mary, daughter of John Davis, Esq.
DYKE. (Lieutenant, 1841.)
Charles Dyke entered the Royal Naval College, we believe, in 1828; first embarked 4 July, 1830; passed his examination 27 Aug. 1834; and obtained his commission, while serving as Mate on board the Hecate steam-vessel, Capt. Jas. Hamilton Ward, 23 Nov. 1841. He has been since appointed – 30 Nov. 1841, and 8 Oct. 1842, to the Cambridge 78, and Belvidera 38, Capts. Edw. Barnard and Hon. Geo. Grey, in the Mediterranean – 1 Dec. 1842, to the Vanguard 80, Capt. Sir David Dunn, off Lisbon – and, 16 May, 1843, to the Fisgard 42, Capt. John Alex. Duntze, on the Pacific station, where he is at present employed.
DYKE. (Commander, 1844. f-p., 21; h-p., 8.)
Peché Hart Dyke, born 21 Nov. 1805, is sixth son of Sir Percival Hart Dyke, Bart., of Lullingstone Castle, co. Kent, by Anne, daughter of Robt. Jenner, Esq., of Chislehurst; brother of Lieut. Octavius Hart Dyke, R.N. (1836), who died 8 July, 1844, as also of Augustus Hart Dyke, Esq., E.I. co.’s army; and nephew of Geo. Hart Dyke, Esq., Lieut.-Colonel in the Guards, who died 6 Nov. 1843.
This officer entered the Royal Naval College 5 Nov. 1818; and embarked, 9 Nov. 1821, as Midshipman, on board the Euryalus 42, Capt. Augustus Wm. Jas. Clifford, in which ship, and in the Cambrian 48, Capt. Gawen Wm. Hamilton, he served, on the Mediterranean station, until April, 1826. Passing his examination in the following summer, he next successively joined, as Mate, the Victory 100, flag-ship of Sir Geo. Martin, Hussar 46, Capt. Edw. Boxer, Challenger 28, Capt. Adolphus FitzClarence, Rattlesnake 28, Capts. Chas. Orlando Bridgeman, Sir Thos. Pasley, and Chas. Graham, Pelican 18, Capt. Joseph Gape, and St. Vincent 120, bearing the flag of Hon. Sir Henry Hotham – which ships appear to have been employed on the Home, North American, and Mediterranean stations. As a Lieutenant, to which rank he was promoted 28 Oct. 1831, Mr. Dyke’s appointments, we find, were – 24 July, 1833, to the Wasp 16, Capts. Jas. Burney and John Sam. Foreman, in the West Indies – 24 Jan. 1838, and 11 May, 1839, as Senior Lieutenant, to the Scylla 16, and Tribune 24, Capts. Hon. Joseph Denman and Chas. Hamlyn Williams, under the latter of whom he was wrecked on the Lisbon station, in Jan. 1840 – and, 2 Nov. 1840, in a similar capacity, to the Iris 26, Capts. Hugh Nurse, Wm. Tucker, and Geo. Rodney Mundy. He returned home from the coast of Africa in Aug. 1843; attained his present rank 20 June, 1844; and since 19 May, 1846, has been again employed on the African coast, in command of the Flying Fish 12.
E.
EAGAR. (Commander, 1825. f-p., 18; h-p., 31.)
John Eagar entered the Navy, 1 Sept. 1798, as Midshipman, on board La Minerve, of 42 guns and 286 men, Capt. Geo. Cockburn; under whom, besides witnessing the capture of several privateers, and participating in various cutting-out affairs, he joined in the hostilities against Malta, was present at Lord Keith’s capture, on 19 June, 1799, of three frigates and two brigs under Rear-Admiral Perrée, and assisted at the capture and destruction, 2 Sept. 1801, of the Succès of 32, and Bravoure of 42 guns. Between Oct. 1801 and April, 1805, during which period, in 1804, he was much engaged with the enemy’s batteries and flotilla near Boulogne, he served, chiefly as Master’s Mate, in the Resistance 38, Capt. Henry Digby, Iris and Seine frigates, both commanded by Capt. David Atkins, and Hercule 74, flag-ship in the West Indies of Sir John Thos. Duckworth. He was then appointed Acting-Lieutenant of the Diana 38, Capt. Thos. Jas. Maling, and, being confirmed to that ship 10 Oct. following, afterwards became her First-Lieutenant. Accompanying Capt. Maling in a similar capacity, in Nov. 1807, into the Undaunted 38, Mr. Eagar, on Capt. Rich. Thomas succeeding to the command of that frigate, took charge of her boats and demolished a strong fort on the coast of Catalonia in Sept. 1811; and on 29 April, 1812, in command of the boats of the same ship, and of the Volontaire 38, and Blossom 18, he effected the very spirited capture and destruction of 21, including a national schooner of 4 guns and 74 men, out of a convoy of 26 vessels at anchor near the mouth of the Rhone.[1] Previously to these exploits he appears to have been lent for about eight months, as Senior Lieutenant, to the Achille 74, Capt. Sir Rich. King. He invalided from the Undaunted in Feb. 1813, and from that period remained imemployed until 28 July, 1821, when he was appointed to the command of the Clinker 12, on the Newfoundland station. Since his promotion to his present rank, which took place 27 May, 1825, this officer has been on half-pay.
He married, 29 June, 1824, Catherine, daughter of the late Capt. Bullock, of Prittlewell, co. Essex. Agents – Messrs. Ommanney.
EARLE. (Commander, 1844. f-p., 31; h-p., 9.)
Edward Charles Earle died, while in command of the Rapid, at Sierra Leone, from the effects of imprudently bathing, 11 April, 1845, at the age of 49.
This officer entered the Navy, 6 Feb. 1805, as Third-cl. Boy, on board the Ariadne 20, Capt. Hon. Edw. King, and, after participating in several warm encounters with the Boulogne flotilla, succes-
- ↑ Vide Gaz. 1812, p. 1278.
