entered the royal navy under the protection of his maternal uncle, the late gallant and worthy Admiral Sir John Borlase Warren, Bart. G.C.B.[1], with whom he served in la Pomone frigate, from July 19, 1790, till Aug. 1797; at which latter period he was removed to the Phoebe 44, commanded by Captain (now Sir Robert) Barlow, whom he afterwards accompanied into the Triumph 74, and continued with until appointed a Lieutenant of the Active frigate, Feb. 28, 1803. This appointment was confirmed by the Admiralty, on the first of April following.
Whilst in la Pomone, Mr. Pechell saw much active service on the enemy’s coast; and in the Phoebe he assisted at the capture of two French frigates (la Nereide and l’Africaine), one large corvette, three privateers, and a letter of marque; carrying altogether 170 guns and 1780 men[2].
In 1800, Lieutenant Pechell left the Active to join his uncle’s flag-ship, the Foudroyant 80, in which he was present at the capture of Rear-Admiral Linois, an event noticed at p. 130 of our first volume. His advancement to the rank of Commander took place about Mar. 1807, and on that occasion he was appointed to the Ferret sloop of war, on the Jamaica station. From thence he proceeded to Halifax, where he was promoted by Sir J. B. Warren into the Cleopatra frigate, mounting 26 long 12-pounders, 2 nines, and 10
- ↑ The important services rendered to his country by Sir John B.Warren, are too well known to require repetition. He possessed the sincerity of a seaman, without any of the roughness of the old school; and dislayed the elegance of a man of fashion, without dissipation or duplicity. To strangers he had sometimes the appearance of a distant reserve; to his friends his manner was open and impressive. He felt the honest ambition that impels the brave, without the parade or boast of vanity: he commanded without asperity; and gained obedience and respect, without the appearance of terror: his courage proceeded from an improved mind, and was consequently uniform; his principles were founded on the basis of Christian faith, and were therefore stedfast. He died, whilst on a visit to Sir Richard G. Keats, at the Royal Hospital, Greenwich, Feb. 27, 1822. A memoir of this excellent offcer appeared in the “Annual Biography and Obituary for 1823.”
- ↑ See Vol. II. Part I. p. 46 et seq.
