Codrington, Sir Edward

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Codrington, Sir Edward (1770–1851). Codrington was of the Gloucestershire family of baronets and entered the navy in 1783. He served with distinction at the Glorious First of June in 1794 and was given his first command later that year. At Trafalgar he captained the Orion. At the end of the war he was knighted and was promoted vice-admiral in 1825. In 1827 he was given a difficult command in the eastern Mediterranean, where the Greeks were in rebellion against the Turks. His squadron, with Russian and French contingents, was intended to enforce an armistice but on 20 October an accidental clash with a Turkish fleet led to the Turks' annihilation in Navarino Bay, on the south-west of the Morea. The British government, while praising Codrington, explained the battle as an ‘untoward event’. The sequel became acrimonious and Codrington's orders appear vague. He was promoted admiral of the blue in 1837 and commanded the Channel fleet from 1839 to 1842.

J. A. Cannon

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Sir Edward Codrington

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