Francis William Drake

(b. 1724, Buckland Monachorum, Plymouth, Devon – d. 1788, London, England )

Gender: M

Francis William Drake (1724-1788/9) was born in Devon, and was descended from the Elizabethan naval hero Sir Francis Drake. He joined the navy as a boy and was promoted through the ranks, serving as Governor of Newfoundland in 1752. He commanded the HMS Edgar throughout the Seven Years’ War, and in 1759 served under Admiral Edward Boscawen. He retired on half-pay in 1763 and was MP for Bere Alston from 1771-1774. He was promoted to Rear-Admiral, took command in the Downs in 1779, and commanded the Channel Fleet in 1780.

Also known as:

Francis William Drake

No transcribed letters| show transcribed only

Please note that all dates and location information are provisional, initially taken from the library and archive catalogues. As our section editors continue to work through the material we will update our database and the changes will be reflected across the edition.

Browser support: The website works best using the Chrome, Edge, and Firefox browsers on the PC, and only Chrome and Firefox on the Mac.