Alexander Graeme

Alexander Graeme
Born	December 9, 1741 Graemeshall, Orkney
Died	August 5, 1818 (aged 76) Edinburgh
Allegiance	Kingdom of Great Britain
Service/branch	Royal Navy
Rank	Admiral
Commands held	HMS Kingfisher HMS Tartar Santa Margarita HMS Glory Nore Command
Battles/wars	American Revolutionary War French Revolutionary Wars

The grave of Admiral Alexander Graeme, Greyfriars Kirkyard

Admiral Alexander Graeme (9 December 1741 – 5 August 1818) was a Royal Navy officer who became Commander-in-Chief, The Nore.

Naval career

Born at Graemeshall in Orkney,^[1] Graeme became commanding officer of the sloop HMS Kingfisher in February 1776 and saw action at the Battle of Turtle Gut Inlet in June 1776 during the American Revolutionary War.^[2] He went on to be commanding officer of the sixth-rate HMS Tartar in July 1779, in which he took part in the action of 11 November 1779, seizing the Spanish 38-gun frigate Santa Margarita off Cape Finisterre.^[3] After that he became commanding officer of the fourth-rate HMS Preston, in which he lost his arm during an action off Dogger Bank, in November 1781 and then became commanding officer of the second-rate HMS Glory in January 1795.^[4] He was appointed Commander-in-Chief, The Nore in June 1799 and retired as Admiral of the White.^[4]

Graeme lived his later life at 87 Princes Street in Edinburgh's New Town.^[5]

Graeme died in Edinburgh on 5 August 1818 aged 76 and was buried in Greyfriars Kirkyard in the centre of Edinburgh.^[6]

References

1. "The Graemes of Graemeshall in Orkney". Retrieved 19 December 2015.
2. Williams 2008, p. 75
3. Allen, p. 255
4. "Alexander Graeme". Robert Whitton. Retrieved 1 January 2015.
5. Edinburgh and Leith Post Office Directory, 1816-17
6. "Alexander Graeme". Maritime Memorials. Retrieved 19 December 2015.

Sources

• Allen, Joseph (1853). Battles of the British Navy 1. H.G. Bohn.
• Williams, Thomas (2008). America's First Flag Officer - Father of the American Navy. Bloomington, Indiana: AuthorHouse. ISBN 978-1-4343-8653-3.