References
Chart showing the number of references in each month of the diary’s entries.
Capt. Willoughby Hannam
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Daily entries from the 17th century London diary
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Chart showing the number of references in each month of the diary’s entries.
2 Annotations
First Reading
Terry Foreman • Link
Capt. Willoughby Hannam. 'A very stout able seaman' (Coventry). He had served under the Commonwealth and held seven commissions after 1660; 25 July 1666 he commanded the HMS Resolutions the flagship of Rear-Admiral Sir John Harman in the St. James's Day Battle In the battle she ran aground and was burnt by a Dutch fireship. In 1668 he was Master-Attendant at Woolwich. He was killed in action in 1672. (L&M Companion , Wikipedia)
Second Reading
Bill • Link
HANNAM, or HANHAM, Willoughby,—commanded the Kent, of forty-fix guns, in the year 1660; in the year 1664 he was promoted to the Rainbow, a third rate of fifty-six guns. In the first engagement with the Dutch in the following year, he commanded the Resolution of fifty-six guns, where he neglected not the opportunity afforded him by fortune of signalizing himself exceedingly, it being asserted by some that he sacrificed his ship (which was burnt in this action) by generously interposing between the rear-admiral of the blue (Kempthorne) and a Dutch fireship, which was preparing to board him. Others say that the vice-admiral of Zealand finding the Resolution completely disabled, ordered a fireship to board her: this was performed with success, notwithstanding every effort of her gallant commander to extricate himself, and all the exertion that could possibly be made by sir Edward Spragge, vice-admiral of the blue, for the same purpose. The officers and crew were saved; and captain Hannam was soon afterwards appointed to the Mary, a ship of the same force and rate. In 1668 he was appointed to the Old James, a second rate of seventy guns. In 1672 he commanded the St. George, and was soon removed into the Triumph, a ship of seventy-two guns; in which ship he fatally but gloriously terminated a life, many years of which he had devoted to the service of his country, being killed on the 28th of May 1672, in the action, off Solebay, with the Dutch fleet under the command of De Ruyter.
---Biographia Navalis. J. Charnock, 1794.