Beschreibung:

McKINLEY, George, Admiral (1766-1852). Archive of correspondence, orders and other official papers of McKinley, 1799-1806, relating in particular to his part in the Dutch expedition of 1799 and the capture of Vigo in 1809. The papers comprise
McKINLEY, George, Admiral (1766-1852). Archive of correspondence, orders and other official papers of McKinley, 1799-1806, relating in particular to his part in the Dutch expedition of 1799 and the capture of Vigo in 1809. The papers comprise: (i) Letters and documents relating to the Walcheren expedition, 24 September - 16 October 1799, addressed to McKinley in command of the fireship Otter and relating particularly to his command of the captured city of Enkuyssen, including orders, returns of dead and wounded, and of ammunition and stores found at Enkuyssen, 22 documents in total , three in McKinley's hand, two in Dutch, one printed; (ii) Letters and documents relating to the Peninsula War, 1806-1810, the majority Vigo, January - June 1809, including the articles of capitulation for the French garrison at Vigo, 27 March 1809, the correspondents including Sir Samuel HOOD, Sir George Cranfield BERKELEY as commander in chief on the coast of Portugal (series), William Carr Viscount Beresford, Percy 6th Viscount Strangford (2), John 4th Earl of Hopetoun, approx 126 documents in total , including 5 drafts in McKinley's hand, 36 in Spanish, three in French; (iii) Later correspondence of George McKinley, including letters from Henry Richard, 3rd Baron HOLLAND (21 letters, 1809-1839, with 8 others, the early letters relating to the service of Holland's eldest son, Charles, under McKinley's command), Henry ADDINGTON, Viscount Sidmouth (2), Sir John Jervis Earl ST VINCENT (2), WILLIAM IV (2, as Duke of Clarence), Admiral Sir John Thomas Duckworth, Robert Dundas, Viscount MELVILLE, Sir Samuel HOOD, Admiral Sir Sidney SMITH (Paris, 1826), 10th Earl of Westmorland (25 letters, a few from Lady Westmorland, 1806-1813), and Sir William Johnstone Hope (13 letters, 1807-30, with 3 others), together approx 123 letters ; (occasional documents with old damp damage), in 11 blue wallets. Provenance : George McKinley; and by descent (formerly on loan at the National Maritime Museum, MCK/5-11). Admiral George McKinley joined the navy at the age of 7 in 1773; his early service was predominantly in the West Indies; he was on Hood's flagship Barfleur during the battle of the Saints. The present archive chiefly concerns his service in Holland in 1799, when he was placed in charge of the captured town of Enkuyssen, and, having been promoted captain in 1801 after being present at the Battle of Copenhagen, his command of the 38-gun frigate Lively , when he was for some time senior officer on the Lisbon station, being responsible for the evacuation of the British ships in the Tagus; he played a notable role in the capture of Vigo and Santiago in March 1809. At the end of the Napoleonic Wars, he was appointed Captain of the Royal Hospital, Greenwich, in 1817, and Superintendent of the Royal Naval Asylum in 1821. He was promoted Rear-Admiral in 1830, Vice-Admiral in 1841 and Admiral of the Blue in 1851. For a letter to McKinley by Horatio, Lord Nelson, see lot 102 in the present sale; for a dressing table used by McKinley, together with a quantity of his manuscripts, books and personal objects, see lot 42 in the Maritime sale, Christie's South Kensington, 16 May 2007.