Admiral Mark Milbanke (12 April 1724 – 9 June 1805) was a British naval officer and colonial governor.

Mark Milbanke
Born12 April 1724 (1724-04-12)
Halnaby Hall, Darlington
Died9 June 1805 (1805-06-10) (aged 81)
London, England
AllegianceUnited Kingdom
Service / branchRoyal Navy
Years of service1736–1805
RankAdmiral
CommandsHMS Serpent
HMS Inverness
HMS Romney
HMS Guernsey
HMS Barfleur
HMS Princess Royal
HMS Namur
North Sea Fleet
Plymouth Command
Newfoundland Command
Portsmouth Command
Battles / wars
Spouse(s)Mary Webber
RelationsSir Ralph Milbanke, 4th Baronet (father)

Military career

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Milbanke was born into an aristocratic Yorkshire family with naval connections, his father was Sir Ralph Milbanke, 4th Baronet. Mark Milbanke graduated from the Royal Naval Academy, Portsmouth in 1740.[1] He was made Lieutenant in 1744[1] and in 1746 was given command of HMS Serpent.[2] He became Port Admiral at Plymouth in 1783.[3]

In 1789, Milbanke was appointed governor of Newfoundland.[1] In the years when settlement was prohibited on the Island of Newfoundland, Milbanke did his best to enforce this prohibition.[1] He did so by demolishing buildings, and by limiting the number of Irish people immigrating to Newfoundland.[1] He also refused to allow the building of a Roman Catholic chapel at Ferryland.[1]

He was appointed Commander-in-Chief, Portsmouth in 1799.[4]

Milbanke was promoted to admiral of the white in 1795.[1] In 1805 he fell over the banisters at his home and died from his injuries.[2]

Family

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Milbanke married Mary Webber (died 1812); they had a son and two daughters. Ralph (died 1823) was a naval captain. Elizabeth Mary, the younger daughter, married William Huskisson.[3] Harriet, the elder daughter, married Philemon Tilghman, son of James Tilghman.[5]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g Biography at Government House The Governorship of Newfoundland and Labrador
  2. ^ a b Dictionary of Canadian Biography
  3. ^ a b Morriss, Roger. "Mark Milbanke". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/18689. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
  4. ^ History in Portsmouth Archived 27 June 2015 at the Wayback Machine
  5. ^ Tillman, Stephen Frederick (1946). Tilghman-Tillman family, 1225-1945. Ann Arbor, Mich.: Lithoprinted by Edwards Bros. p. 88.
Military offices
Preceded by Commander-in-Chief, Plymouth
1783–1786
Succeeded by
Political offices
Preceded by Commodore Governor of Newfoundland
1789–1791
Succeeded by
Military offices
Preceded by Commander-in-Chief, Portsmouth
1799–1803
Succeeded by