Temple Hardy

Captain Temple Hardy (d. c.1814) was a British naval officer active during the French Revolutionary Wars, perhaps most notable for his role in the capture of the Cape Colony in 1795.

He was a son of Admiral Charles Hardy, from whom he inherited a house at Rawlins, in Oxfordshire, and £3,000, on his father's death in 1780. ["Hardy, Sir Charles, the younger (bap. 1717, d. 1780)", "Oxford Dictionary of National Biography", Oxford University Press, 2004] Like his father, he entered the Royal Navy; he was appointed to the rank of Lieutenant on 4 November 1790, and to Commander on 1 June 1794."Commissioned Sea Officers of the Royal Navy 1660-1815", vol. 2. ed. David Syrett]

In 1795, he commanded the sloop HMS "Echo" in the expedition to capture Cape Town. He commanded a battalion of sailors from the fleet at the Battle of Muizenberg, with "Echo" being commanded by a lieutenant from "Monarch" [ [http://www.pbenyon.plus.com/Naval_History/Vol_I/P_300.html Naval History of Great Britain] ] . He was mentioned in both the Army and Navy despatches:

:: [The engagement was] "... only remarkable for the steadiness displayed by the 1st battalion of seamen, commanded by Captain Hardy of the "Echo", who ... received the enemy's fire without returning a shot, and manoeuvered with a regularity which would not have discredited veteran troops". — Major-General Craig. [Despatches of Major-General Craig, September 21, 1795. Printed in "The Times", November 25, 1795] ::"I must more particularly beg leave to note the eminent services of Captains Hardy and Spranger ... you will perceive I have given command of the "Princess" to Captain Hardy, whose acknowledged merit will, I trust, justify my election, and recommend him to their Lordships' confirmation". — Admiral Elphinstone. [Despatches of Admiral Elphinstone, September 23, 1795. Printed in "The Times", November 25, 1795]

A Dutch Indiaman, the "Willemstadt en Boetzlaar", which was captured in Table Bay after the engagement was taken into British service as HMS "Princess", and as mentioned above briefly commanded by Hardy [ [http://www.cronab.demon.co.uk/PQ.htm Sailing ships of the Royal Navy, P-Q] ] . He was promoted to Captain on November 24, 1795; this was the day before the despatches were in the London press, with the Admiralty presumably confirming Elphinstone's appointment on receipt.

In 1800 he commanded the "Thunderer", a 74-gun third-rate, at Jamaica. [ [http://www.cronab.demon.co.uk/T.HTM Sailing ships of the Royal Navy, T] ] In 1801, when his mother died, he was still resident at Rawlins and her only surviving son. ["Notes and Queries", Number 28, May 11, 1850. [http://www.gutenberg.org/etext/13684 Project Gutenberg etext] ] He married Elizabeth Lucy Warre [ [http://stirnet.com/HTML/genie/british/ww/warre1.htm Warre genealogy list] ] in 1800, in the parish of Westminster St James. [Record in ""] By 1804 he and his wife were resident in Eastley End House in Thorpe, Surrey. [ [http://www.southfarm.plus.com/Cartulary/PL_8.html Quitclaim regarding the Manor of Rawlins, 1804] ] ["Captain Hardy" is mentioned briefly in Volume 3 of the Surrey edition of the Victoria County Histories, where he is apparently mistaken for T.M. Hardy. [http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.asp?compid=43002 Online copy at british-history.ac.uk] ]

In May 1805 he was not assigned any command [ [http://www.pbenyon.plus.com/Navy_List_1805/Officers/Captains.html Captains Serving in the Royal Navy - May 1805] ] , and in April 1806 was in command of the third-rate "Ruby", where he took three Prussian merchantmen as prizes. [LondonGazette|issue=16206|startpage=1647|date=3 December 1808|accessdate=2008-09-10] In November 1806, he had to turn down command of the third-rate "Defence" through illness. [Letter from Thomas Grenville to the Marquis of Buckingham, Nov. 8th 1806. Printed in vol. 4 of the "Memoirs of the Court and Cabinets of George III", ed. by the Duke of Buckingham and Chandos. Hurst & Blackett, London, 1855] In 1810 he was in command of the third-rate "Resolution", escorting convoys in the Danish straits. [LondonGazette|issue=16427|startpage=1861|date=20 November 1810|accessdate=2008-09-10] He remained in command when the "Resolution" was put in ordinary at Portsmouth in 1811 [ [http://www.cronab.demon.co.uk/R.HTM Sailing ships of the Royal Navy, R] ] , and it appears that later in the year he took command of "Swiftsure". [Entry for Samuel Rosser Protheroe, p.936. "A Naval Biographical Dictionary...", William R. O'Byrne. London, England: John Murray, 1849]

The date of his death is not known, but his will was proven in London on June 9, 1814. The will, dated September 11 1811, left his possessions to his wife and to his two unmarried sisters, Clare and Rachael Emilia; minor valuables, and any outstanding prize money were left to his family, his executors, and Captains Blackwood and Otway. The executors, along with his wife, were the Rev. Francis Annesley, of Eydon in Northamptonshire; Captain John William Spranger; and William Groom of Lincoln's Inn Fields. ["Will of Temple Hardy, Captain in His Majesty's Navy" at the National Archives, catalogue reference PROB 11/1557] Elizabeth outlived him by twenty years, dying on April 2 1835, aged 71. ["The Gentleman's Magazine", January-June 1835. vol.3 p.669] The naval officers in his will all became Rear-Admirals through seniority on June 4 1814, shortly after his death; if he had survived a few months longer, he would likely have attained this rank before his death.

References

Note that it is difficult to trace Hardy's career in the Navy. He was serving at the same time as his far more renowned compatriot Sir Thomas Hardy, and contemporary records usually mentioned no more than "Captain Hardy" or "Captain T. Hardy", making it possible that many references to the one may have been confused with the other.