THE MUDDLE FAMILIES

THE LINEAGE & HISTORY OF THE MUDDLE FAMILIES OF THE WORLD

INCLUDING VARIANTS MUDDEL, MUDDELL, MUDLE & MODDLE

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Edward Muddle – A Sailor who Served at Trafalgar

Knowledge of Edward Muddle’s life is confined to his naval service spanning the period 1800 to 1808, which includes his service on HMS Leviathan at what is probably Britain’s most famous naval victory, the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805, when the British Navy destroyed the combined might of the French and Spanish Navies.

It's not know where Edward fits into the lineage of the Muddle families; his naval records give his birth as being at Portsmouth in about 1779 but no record of his baptism there has been found. He is thought to possibly be the son of John and Sarah Muddle of the 'Harrietsham Muddles', who were living at Stoke Damerel near Plymouth in Devon when Edward would have been born but moved to Portsmouth in 1795. There seem to be several children of this couple whose baptisms have not been found and Edward was a name that had been used in every generation of this family, who had been mariners and then Naval Dockyard workers.

Edward entered service with the Royal Navy on 4 June 1800, at the age of 21, as a volunteer, and he joined his first ship HMS Zealand five days later, on 9 June, as a landman. Zealand was a depot ship station on the Nore sandbank in the Thames Estuary between Shoeburyness on the Essex coast and Sheerness on the Isle of Sheppey in Kent. Edward was only on the Zealand for nineteen days during which time he purchased on credit from the purser bedding for 13s (presumably this was a hammock) and slop cloaths (cheap ready-made clothes) for 9s 3d, this would all be later deducted from his pay. So it seems likely that Edward was on the Zealand as a raw recruit to get kitted-out and possibly be given some basic training in seamanship.[1]

On 27 June 1800 Edward transferred to HMS Tromp as a sailmaker’s mate. While Edward was on the Tromp it sailed the four thousand plus miles across the Atlantic to Fort Royal (now Fort-de-France) on the island of Martinique in the Caribbean. Martinique is a French island that in 1800 was occupied by the British. During the four months that he was on the Tromp Edward purchased more slop cloaths for £1 19s 8d and also bid £1 0s 6d at an auction for some dead men’s cloaths, so it seems Edward was continuing to kit himself out for life at sea. He also spent 6s 4d on tobacco and received two months wages of £2 2s 0d, which mostly went on paying off some of his debt to the navy. There seems to be a difference of 1s 3d between what Edward owed less his pay, and what he owed when he joined his next ship, this may have gone into Edward’s packet for his own use, because after arrival at Fort Royal Bay Edward and several other members of the crew were discharged to shore leave on 27 October 1800 as the complement of the Tromp was being reduced to 81 on the orders of Rear Admiral Duckworth.[2] [3]

On 28 October 1800 Edward entered into service on HMS Leviathan as an able seaman, but enjoyed a full month of shore leave on Martinique before he joined the ship on 29 November. The Leviathan was a third-rate or two-decker ship of the line of 1707 tons and 74 guns launched on 9 October 1790. The ship’s muster book records that the ship’s company was read the Articles of War and the Abstracts of the Acts of Parliament by E D King, Captain; George Holbrook, Master; Richard Gilbert, Purser; and Thomas Hayles, Boatswain; so it looks as if this ship was preparing to go to war.[4] After serving on the Leviathan for four years Edward was promoted from able seaman to sailmaker’s crew on 1 November 1804.

Captain Henry William Bayntun took over the command of the Leviathan in 1804, and while she was in his command, and Edward was still serving on her, she was part of Nelson’s fleet that took part in the blockade of the French Mediterranean port of Toulon, and then the pursuit of the combined French and Spanish fleets to the West Indies and back.

Edward was on the Leviathan under the command of Captain Henry William Bayntun at the Battle of Trafalgar on 21 October 1805. The Leviathan was four ships behind HMS Victory in the British Weather Column as they sailed towards the enemy’s line of ships. The lead ships of this column, Victory and Tameraire engaged the French ship Redoutable forcing her surrender, and also the French flagship Bucentaure, which after they had isolated it was engaged and destroyed by the British ships Neptune, Leviathan and Conqueror, who also destroyed the mighty Spanish ship Santisima Trinidad. This was the main engagement that the Leviathan was involved in during the battle, and at the end of the day Leviathan had suffered 4 men killed and 22 wounded out of total British casualties of 449 killed and 1241 wounded. Of those British ships that actually engaged the enemy the Leviathan had a relatively small number of casualties, compared with say the Victory with 57 killed, including Nelson, and 102 wounded. Edward came through the battle unscathed and was awarded Prize Money of £1 17s 8d.

Two months after the Battle of Trafalgar, and after having served on the Leviathan for five years, Edward transferred to HMS Prince Frederick on 30 December 1805 while the Leviathan was moored in the Hamoaze at Plymouth.[5] [6] The Hamoaze is the estuary of rivers Tamer, Tavy and Lynher where they enter Plymouth Sound and flow past Devonport Dockyards.

Edward and several other crew members from the Leviathan joined the crew of the Prince Frederick at Plymouth on 30 December 1805, Edward as sailmaker’s crew. Edward served for eleven weeks on the Prince Frederick, being discharged at Plymouth to HMS Salvador del Mundo on 18 March 1806.[7]

Edward and several of his crewmates who had been on both the Leviathan and the Prince Frederick joined the crew of the Salvador del Mundo at Plymouth on 19 March 1806, Edward as sailmaker’s crew. The Salvador del Mundo had originally been a Spanish 112 gun first-rate ship of the line that was captured by Nelson at the Battle of Cape St Vincent in 1797. In 1803 she was commissioned as the receiving ship at Plymouth and station in the Hamoaze as the harbour guardship. She was also the local Admiral’s flagship and as such was an administrative centre where such things as court martials were held. As a receiving ship Salvador del Mundo would have taken onboard men pressed into service until they were allocated to a ship, and also seamen who had completed service on one ship and wished to remain in the navy would join her crew, usually for just a few days, until they could join their next ship. Edward was between ships and on the Salvador del Mundo for only four days, being discharged at Plymouth to the schooner HMS Pilchard on 22 March 1806.[8] [9]

Edward joined the crew of the Pilchard at Plymouth on 23 March 1806 as an ordinary seaman. Then after three months, on his promotion to able seaman, Edward was discharged to HMS Sampson on 1 July 1806 while the Pilchard was moored in the Hamoaze at Plymouth.[10] [11]

Edward joined the crew of the Sampson at Plymouth on 2 July 1806 as an able seaman, and then on the Acting Order of Rear Admiral Stirling he was made a sailmaker (a petty officer) on 18 September 1806.[12] Edward served for eleven months on the Sampson, and at the end of her voyage she was moored at Chatham waiting to go into the dockyards when Edward and the remainder of the crew, who had been employed in unloading the ship of stores and equipment, were transferred to HMS Zealand on 12 May 1807.[13] [14]

The Zealand was still a depot ship moored at the Nore in the Thames Estuary and Edward was on her as an able seaman for seven weeks before he was found another ship to serve on and he was discharged to HMS Inflexible on 30 June 1807.[15] [16]

Edward joined the crew of the Inflexible as an able seaman on 1 July 1807 and then by a Warrant dated 31 July 1807 he was again made a sailmaker.[17] Edward served for thirteen months on the Inflexible, being discharged at Chatham with 41 other seamen to HMS Leyden on 31 July 1808.[18]

Edward joined the crew of the Leyden at Chatham on 1 February 1808 as an acting sailmaker, and then under a Warrant dated 10 February 1808 he was again made a sailmaker. It seems that a new warrant was required to make him a sailmaker, that is a petty officer, on each ship he served on in this capacity. The Leyden sailed out to the anchorage at the Nore in the Thames Estuary on 26 February and then two days later sailed on down the estuary. Edward served for four months on the Leyden, being discharged at Sheerness Harbour with 11 other petty officers to HMS Pompee, as per the order of Rear Admiral Wells, on 3 May 1808.[19] [20]

Edward can not be found in the relevant musters and pay books for Pompee so it has so far not been possible to trace his service further, and no other records of Edward have been found to suggest a life after the navy.

[1] TNA ADM 36/14281 Ship’s Musters for HMS Zealand February – June 1800.

[2] TNA ADM 36/15319 Ship’s Musters for HMS Tromp May 1800 – June 1801.

[3] TNA ADM 51/1349 Captain’s Log for HMS Tromp 15 May 1800 – 27 October 1800.

[4] TNA ADM 36/14754 Ship’s Musters for HMS Leviathan October 1800 – May 1801.

[5] TNA ADM 36/15837 Ship’s Musters for HMS Leviathan July – December 1805.

[6] TNA ADM 51/1526 Captain’s Log for HMS Leviathan 22 July 1805 – 31 December 1805.

[7] TNA ADM 36/16240 Ship’s Musters for HMS Prince Frederick January – July 1806.

[8] TNA ADM 36/16417 Ship’s Musters for HMS Salvador del Mundo March – April 1806.

[9] TNA ADM 52/3696 Master’s Log for HMS Salvador del Mundo 3 April 1803 – 1 January 1807.

[10] TNA ADM 36/16589 Ship’s Musters for HMS Pilchard November 1804 – December 1806.

[11] TNA ADM 51/2653 Captain’s Log for HMS Pilchard 31 August 1804 – 5 November 1806.

[12] TNA ADM 36/16933 Ship’s Musters for HMS Sampson April – August 1806.

[13] TNA ADM 36/16934 Ship’s Musters for HMS Sampson October 1806 – May 1807.

[14] TNA ADM 51/1612 Captain’s Log for HMS Sampson 16 May 1806 – 14 May 1807.

[15] TNA ADM 36/17293 Ship’s Musters for HMS Zealand April – September 1807.

[16] TNA ADM 51/1698 Captain’s Log for HMS Zealand 27 May 1807 – 28 September 1807.

[17] TNA ADM 36/17371 Ship’s Musters for HMS Inflexible March – August 1807.

[18] TNA ADM 36/17372 Ship’s Musters for HMS Inflexible September 1807 – February 1808.

[19] TNA ADM 36/17467 Ship’s Musters forHMS Leyden November 1807 – February 1808.

[20] TNA ADM 51/1703 Captain’s Log for HMS Leyden 7 March 1807 – 11 May 1808.

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