Exmouth, Edward Pellew, 1st Viscount [key], 1757–1833, English admiral. He entered the navy in 1770 and served in both the American Revolutionary War and the subsequent British conflicts with Revolutionary and Napoleonic France. In 1793 he captured the Cléopâtre, the first French frigate to be taken in the war with France. He was given command of the Mediterranean fleet in 1811 and was created Baron Exmouth in 1814. In 1816 under his command a combined force of British and Dutch ships bombarded Algiers and thereby compelled its Turkish ruler to abolish Christian slavery. As a reward for his achievement at Algiers, he was created Viscount Exmouth.
The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2024, Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.
See more Encyclopedia articles on: British and Irish History: Biographies