Baldwin Wake Walker

Infobox Military Person
name= Admiral Sir Baldwin Wake Walker, 1st Baronet
lived= 6 January 1802 – 12 February 1876
placeofbirth= Port-e-Vullen, near Ramsey, Isle of Man
placeofdeath= Diss, Norfolk


caption=
nickname=
allegiance= flagicon|United Kingdom United Kingdom
serviceyears= 1812 to 1876
rank= Royal Navy Admiral
branch=
commands= HMS "Vanguard" 1836–1838 HMS "Queen" 1845–1846 HMS "Constance" 1846–1847
unit=
battles= Morea expedition, 1828 Bombardment of Acre, 1840
awards= KCB Order of the Iron Crown Order of St. Anna Order of the Red Eagle
laterwork= Surveyor of the Navy, 1848–1861 Commander-in-Chief at the Cape of Good Hope 1861–1864

Admiral Sir Baldwin Wake Walker, 1st Baronet KCB (6 January 1802 – 12 February 1876) was Surveyor of the Navy from 1848 to 1861. [Lambert, "The Last Sailing Battlefleet", p56 ] and was responsible for the Royal Navy's warship construction programme during the 1850s naval arms race and at the time of the introduction of the Ironclad warship; it was his decision to build HMS "Warrior". [cite book | last = Wilson | first = Alastair | authorlink = | coauthors = Joseph F. Callo | title = Who's who in Naval History: From 1550 to the Present | publisher = Routledge | date = 2004 | location = | pages = p. 325 | url = | doi = | id = | isbn = 0415308283] He was created 1st Baronet Wake Walker, of Oakley House in 1856.

Early life

Wake Walker was the eldest son of John Walker of Whitehaven and Frances, daughter of Captain Drury Wake.cite book | last = Moore | first = Arthur William | authorlink = | coauthors = | title = Manx worthies; or, Biographies of notable Manx men and women | publisher = S. K. Broadbent & Company, Limited | date = 1901 | location = | pages = p. 145 | url = http://www.isle-of-man.com/manxnotebook/fulltext/worthies/p145.htm | doi = | id = | isbn = ]

Career

Naval service

Wake Walker entered the Royal Navy in 1812, and was made a Lieutenant in April, 1820. He served 2 years on the Jamaica station, then for 3 years on the coast of South America and the west coast of Africa.

In 1827 he entered service in the Mediterranean aboard HMS "Rattlesnake" and was first lieutenant of the bomb vessel HMS "Aetna" at the attack on Morea Castle during the Morea expedition. For this service he received the crosses of the Légion d'honneur and of the Greek Order of the Redeemer.

He saw further service in the Mediterranean aboard the ships "Asia", "Britannia" and HMS "Barham", being promoted to Commander in 1834. In that rank he served in HMS "Vanguard" from 1836 – 1838.cite web | last = | first = | authorlink = | coauthors = | title = Biography of Baldwin Wake Walker R.N. | work = William Loney RN - Background | publisher = Peter Davis | date = | url = http://www.pdavis.nl/ShowBiog.php?id=711 | format = | doi = | accessdate = 2008-04-15]

Wake Walker married Mary Catherine Sinclair Worth, daughter of Captain John Worth and Catherine Sinclair, on September 9 1834. [cite web | last = | first = | authorlink = | coauthors = | title = thePeerage.com - Person Page 6230 | work = thePeerage.com | publisher = | date = | url = http://www.thepeerage.com/p6230.htm#i62298 | format = | doi = | accessdate = 2008-04-14]

In 1838 Wake Walker was given special permission of the Admiralty to accept a command in the Turkish Navy, in which he was known as Walker Bey and later as Yavir Pasha. In July 1840 the Capitán-Pasha (the chief admiral of the Turkish fleet) took the fleet to Alexandria and delivered it to Muhammad Ali of Egypt, who then refused to part with it. Wake-Walker summoned the Turkish Captains to a Council of War, and proposed a night landing where he would surround the palace, carry off Muhammad Ali, and despatch him to Constantinople. This operation was cancelled due to Muhammad Ali letting the ships go. [DNB]

While serving with the Turkish Navy he commanded the Turkish squadron at the bombardment of Acre in November 1840, for which service he was became a Knight Commander of the Bath on January 12 1841; he also received the second class of the Austrian Order of the Iron Crown, the Russian Order of St. Anna, and the Prussian Order of the Red Eagle.

Following his return to England in 1845 he commanded HMS "Queen" as flag-captain to Sir John West at Devonport, and from 1846 – 1847, the frigate HMS "Constance" in the Pacific.

From 1848 – 1861, he was Surveyor of the Navy (the post being known as Controller of the Navy from 1859). He was created a baronet on July 18 1856, gaining the title "1st Baronet Wake Walker, of Oakley House" [Citation | last = | first = | author-link = | last2 = | first2 = | author2-link = | title = Promotions and Preferments | newspaper = The Gentleman's Magazine | pages = | year = 1856 | date = July 1856 | url = http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=MNYRAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA113] , appointed Rear Admiral of the Blue in 1858 [Citation | last = | first = | author-link = | last2 = | first2 = | author2-link = | title = Admiralty, 21st January 1858 | newspaper = Bulletins and Other State Intelligence for the year 1858 | pages = p. 326 | year = 1858 | date = 1860 | url = http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=09M1AAAAMAAJ&pg=PA326] , and Rear Admiral of the White in 1861 [Citation | last = | first = | author-link = | last2 = | first2 = | author2-link = | title = Promotions and Appointments. Royal Navy. | newspaper = The United Service Magazine | pages = p. 326 | year = | date = 1861 | url = ] , in which year he was also appointed Commander-in-Chief at the Cape of Good Hope. He returned to England in 1864, becoming Vice Admiral in 1865, and Admiral in 1870.

urveyor of the Navy

Wake Walker designed the large wooden screw frigates HMS "Diadem", HMS "Doris", HMS "Ariadne", HMS "Galatea", HMS "Mersey", and HMS "Orlando" which were known simply as "Walker's Big Frigates". These large vessels were designed to compete with the the United States Navy which had decided to build five steam frigates and one steam corvette. The ships had only a short service history as they were both too large for wooden ships and expensive to operate, as they required large crews. It is reported that due to the stresses caused by their powerful engines, "Orlando" and "Mersey" were both broken up after less than 20 years service. [cite web | last = | first = | authorlink = | coauthors = | title = Walker Screw Frigates | work = | publisher = World Naval Ships.com | date = | url = http://www.worldnavalships.com/walker_screw_frigates.htm | format = | doi = | accessdate = 2008-04-15]

When in 1858 the French started building "La Gloire", the first armoured iron-hulled ship, the Admiralty was asked what it was doing to match this "new engine of war". Wake Walker replied that he believed iron hulls would never replace wooden ships. After strong representations by Wake Walker and Henry Corry, the Parliamentary under-secretary to the Admiralty, the Board of Admiralty was moved on 22 November 1858 to call for designs for a wooden-hulled, armour-plated warship, whose dimensions were approximately equal to those of La Gloire. Eventually it was decided to construct an iron-hulled ship and HMS "Warrior" was the result.

Later life

Baldwin Wake Walker died on 12 February 1876 at his house in Diss, Norfolk. He was succeeded as Baronet by his eldest son Baldwin Wake Walker (born 1846–1905) [cite book | last = | first = | authorlink = | coauthors = | title = Debrett's Baronetage and Knightage 1879 | publisher = Debrett's | date = 1879 | location = London | pages = p. 447 | url = | doi = | id = | isbn = ] .

Notes