Augustus Brine

Augustus Brine was born into a naval family in 1769, the eldest son of James Brine, who became an admiral and commanded a ship at the Battle of the Chesapeake. Augustus's brother, George, also entered the navy and became a captain.{{cite book|last=O'Byrne|title=A Naval Biographical Dictionary|page=125}}{{cite book|title=The Gentleman's Magazine|year=1840|page=97}} Little is known about his early service, but he entered the navy at the age of thirteen in 1782 and served as a midshipman aboard his father's ship, {{HMS|Belliqueux|1780|6}}. His portrait was painted at about this time by John Singleton Copley.{{cite web|title=Midshipman Augustus Brine, 1782|url=http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/works-of-art/43.86.4|publisher=The Metropolitan Museum of Art|work=Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History|date=October 2006|accessdate=10 March 2012}} He was commissioned a lieutenant on 20 November 1790, and a commander on 6 December 1798.{{cite book|last=Marshall|title=Royal Naval Biography|page=666}} He commissioned the 14-gun sloop {{HMS|Hope|1795|6}} that year and commanded her at the Cape of Good Hope until paying her off in February 1800.{{cite book |last=Winfield |title=British Warships of the Age of Sail 1793–1814|page=272}}

While cruising off Madagascar on 8 May 1799 Brine was informed by a member of the crew that some of the sailors were planning to seize control of the sloop, confine the officers, and sail the Hope into a French-controlled port. Brine promptly arrested the supposed ringleaders and began the voyage back to the Cape.{{cite book |last=O'Neill |title=Patrick O'Brian's Navy|page=143}} By 2 July the danger had still not passed, as Brine was informed that more men were now involved in the plot to mutiny. Brine decided that "if [he] had confined the whole of the ship's company, there would have been great difficulty in working the ship, the officers were therefore divided" into two watches, armed with their servants who kept a constant and good lookout on those still out of confinement. On 15 July he arrested two more ringleaders, and ordered his officers to shoot any man who appeared on deck while his watch was below, and informed his crew that if two men were seen talking together before the main mast during the night, they would be shot. An outbreak of a violent illness amongst the officers and some of the loyal members of the crew on 22 July was attributed to an attempt by the mutineers to poison them. When Hope finally anchored in Simon's Bay on 30 July, Brine brought two companies of marines on board from {{HMS|Oiseau|1783|6}} and {{HMS|Camel|1798|6}}, and placed the ship's company in confinement.

File:HMS Bellerophon and Napoleon-cropped.jpg. Brine commanded her on patrols in the North Sea between 1810 and 1813.]]

Brine was promoted to post-captain on 29 April 1802, but did not receive an active seagoing command for some time. Instead in May 1805 he was given command of a unit of the Sea Fencibles, with responsibilities for the coast between St Alban's Head and Puncknowle.{{cite book|last=Marshall|title=Royal Naval Biography|page=667}} He finally received a ship towards the end of the Napoleonic Wars, taking command of the 74-gun {{HMS|Bellerophon|1786|6}} on 5 November 1810.{{cite book |last=Goodwin |title=The Ships of Trafalgar|page=66}} Brine commanded Bellerophon until 10 February 1813, mostly spent on cruises in the North Sea and off the Dutch coast.{{cite book |last=Goodwin |title=The Ships of Trafalgar|page=70}} He then briefly took command of the 74-gun {{HMS|Stirling Castle|1811|6}} later in 1813.{{cite book |last=Winfield |title=British Warships of the Age of Sail 1793–1814|page=74}} He was not in command for long, in April 1813 he transferred to the 74-gun {{HMS|Medway|1812|6}} and became flag captain to Vice-Admiral Charles Tyler. Brine then took Medway out to the Cape.

Brine sailed from the Cape in mid-1814 to search for American shipping, and while sailing through the Atlantic Medway came across the 16-gun {{USS|Syren|1803|6}}, bound for the United States. The Syren mistook the Medway for a large merchant vessel and approached her. On realising his mistake, Syren{{'}}s commander, Lieutenant N. J. Nicholson, tried to outrun the British warship. After failing to escape and being unable to fight the more powerful vessel, he surrendered his ship to Brine.{{cite book |last=McCranie|title=Utmost Gallantry|page=210}}{{Ref_label|A|a|none}}

Brine does not appear to have commanded any other ships after paying Medway off after the end of the Napoleonic Wars, but was promoted to rear-admiral in 1837. He died at Boldre Hill, Hampshire, on 28 January 1840 at the age of 70. Brine married Martha-Maria Dansey on 14 May 1803 at Blandford and had one son, Rev. Augustus James Brine (later changing his last name to Knapton) on 26 January 1805.{{cite book|last=College of Arms (Great Britain)|title=Visitation of England and Wales, Volume 4|year=1896|publisher=Privately printed|page=16|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3tUKAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA16}} Martha-Maria predeceased Brine, dying at Lymington on 31 December 1831.{{cite book|title=The Gentleman's Magazine|year=1832|page=93}}

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a. {{Note_label|A|a|none}} The captured Syren was not commissioned into the Royal Navy, but found some employment as a lazaretto from 1815, and was discarded soon afterwards.{{cite book |last=Winfield |title=British Warships of the Age of Sail 1793–1814|page=307}}

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{{Reflist|colwidth=33em}}

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• {{cite book |year=1832|title=The Gentleman's Magazine |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rDwDw0HkYPkC&pg=PA93|publisher=F. Jefferies|volume=102}}
• {{cite book |year=1840|title=The Gentleman's Magazine |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2lkdAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA97|publisher=William Pickering; John Bowyer Nichols and Son|volume=14}}
• {{cite book |last= Goodwin|first=Peter|authorlink=Peter Goodwin (maritime author)|year=2005|title=The Ships of Trafalgar: The British, French and Spanish Fleets October 1805|publisher=Conway Maritime Press|isbn= 1-84486-015-9}}
• {{cite book |first=Kevin D.|last=McCranie|title=Utmost Gallantry: The U.S. and Royal Navies at Sea in the War of 1812|publisher=Naval Institute Press|year=2011|isbn=9781591145042}}
• {{cite book |first=William R.|last=O'Byrne|authorlink=William Richard O'Byrne|year=1849|title=A Naval Biographical Dictionary: Comprising the Life and Services of Every Living Officer in Her Majesty's Navy, from the Rank of Admiral of the Fleet to that of Lieutenant, Inclusive|publisher=J. Murray|volume=1}}
• {{cite book |first=Richard|last=O'Neill|authorlink=Richard O'Neill (author)|title=Patrick O'Brian's Navy: The Illustrated Companion to Jack Aubrey's World|publisher=Salamander Books|location=London|year=2003|isbn=9780762415403}}
• {{cite book |first=Rif|last=Winfield|title=British Warships in the Age of Sail 1793–1817: Design, Construction, Careers and Fates|publisher=Seaforth|year=2007|isbn=978-1-86176-246-7}}

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Category:1769 births

Category:1840 deaths

Category:Royal Navy rear admirals

Category:Royal Navy personnel of the American Revolutionary War

Category:Royal Navy personnel of the French Revolutionary Wars

Category:Royal Navy personnel of the Napoleonic Wars