Naval General Service 1793-1840, 2 clasps, 1 June 1794, St Vincent (William Bell.) edge...

Naval General Service 1793-1840, 2 clasps, 1 June 1794, St Vincent (William Bell.) edge bruise, otherwise toned, extremely fine £4,000-£5,000 --- Importation Duty This lot is subject to importation duty of 5% on the hammer price unless exported outside the UK --- --- Provenance: Edward Hyde Gregg Collection 1879; Glendining’s, May 1992; Colin Message Collection, August 1999. William Bell is confirmed as a Landsman aboard the Alfred at the Glorious First of June, and as Able Seaman aboard the Blenheim at St Vincent. Three other men of this name are shown on the rolls, one for Trafalgar, one for 1 November Boat Service 1809, and a third for 4 November 1805 and Implacable 1808 - none of which are recorded as having been on the market. Bell joined Blenheim 98, rated Landsman, on 13 November 1794, being advanced to Able Seaman on 1 May 1796, which may indicate previous sea service. He came from West Smithfield, London and his age on joining was given as 22. On 5 January 1843, he was admitted a pensioner of Greenwich Hospital, when his age was given as 73. He was stated to have had 14 years service, to have been born in the parish of St Sepulchre, Middlesex, in the Smithfield area of London. By then Bell was a widower and was by trade a last-maker. He had been injured in the left thigh off Cape Finisterre when on the Ramillies 74 and died in the Hospital on 20 February 1851, aged about 81. At ‘The Glorious First of June’, the British under Lord Richard Howe, had intercepted a French fleet in the Western Approaches, which had put to sea to cover the return from America of a desperately needed grain convoy. After an indecisive action on 28 May the two fleets remained close, but fog prevented further hostilities. However on 1 June visibility had improved and the two admirals found themselves only six miles apart. Action was joined at 09.00 and after three or four hours the French had suffered a severe reverse, losing one man o'war sunk and having six captured. The grain convoy though, was able to reach port. Alfred had only six men wounded at the action. The Spanish were the enemy at Cape St Vincent, being brought to battle on 14 February 1797, by the redoubtable Sir John Jervis aboard the great ship Victory. He had only 14 ships of the line against more than 30, but the Spanish were acutely short of trained seamen and this was to prove an insurmountable handicap. When the fighting was over Jervis had taken two three-deckers and two two-deckers. Several others had struck, but so many British ships were themselves so badly damaged that they were unable to board, and several Spaniards were able to limp away. Blenheim, in the forefront of the battle, suffered 12 killed and 49 wounded.