References: Windrow, Martin, and Francis K. Mason,
“Blücher, Gebhard Leberecht von, Prince of Wahlstadt,”
in The Wordsworth Dictionary of Military Biography
(Hertfordshire, U.K.: Wordsworth Editions Ltd., 1997),
28–31; Henderson, Ernest F., Blücher and the Uprising
of Prussia against Napoleon, 1806–16 (New York: G. P.
Putnam’s Sons, 1911); “Blücher, Gebhard,” in Command:
From Alexander the Great to Zhukov—The Greatest Com-
manders of World History, edited by James Lucas (London:
Bloomsbury Publishing, 1988), 68–69; Lanning, Michael
Lee, “Gebhard Leberecht von Blücher,” in The Military
100: A Ranking of the Most Influential Military Leaders
of All Time (New York: Barnes and Noble Books, 1996),
231–233.
Boadicea See boudicca.
Boscawen, Edward (1711–1761)
British admiral
Edward Boscawen was born on 19 August 1711, the
third of five sons of Hugh Boscawen, first viscount Fal-
mouth, and his wife Charlotte, who was the niece of
John churchill, duke of Marlborough. Boscawen
entered the British navy at 15 and was assigned to the
warship Superbe, setting sail for the West Indies in April
- He served on her for three years and then saw
service on several other ships in the Mediterranean and
in British waters.
In 1732, Boscawen was promoted to the rank of
lieutenant. Five years later, he was given the command of
the Shoreham, a 20-gun warship. When war began with
Spain the following year, he was ordered to the West In-
dies in the Shoreham. While en route, it ran aground on
the western end of the island of Cuba, and Boscawen
and his crew were forced to abandon the ship. He joined
the famed British admiral Edward Vernon, who was
sailing to attack the Spanish at Port Bello. The attack
was successful, and Boscawen helped to destroy the
Spanish fort’s defenses.
For the next year or so, following the recovery and
repair of the Shoreham, Boscawen and his crew cruised
the Caribbean between what is now Cuba and Florida,
attacking and capturing Spanish vessels. In 1741, he was
reassigned to Vernon’s squadron and saw action at Carta-
gena (in today’s Colombia), where he led a raiding party
that took a battery of 15 cannons (24-pounders). In a
letter to the governor of Jamaica, Vernon later wrote,
“Captain Boscawen, all say made a prudent general in
the disposing his men landing in as good order as could
be expected for night work in an unknown country.”
Vernon then placed Boscawen in charge of destroying
the defenses of the fort at Boca Chica, farther along the
coast.
Because of his service, Boscawen was promoted
to the rank of captain, and he succeeded Lord Aubrey
Beauclerk as commander of the 70-gun warship Prince
Frederick. He sailed this ship back to England for new
orders, but when he arrived in May 1742 he was placed
in command of the warship Dreadnought, which he
sailed to the Azores off Spain. There he spent much of
1742 and 1743 intercepting Spanish ships.
In 1742, Boscawen was elected to a seat in the
House of Commons from Truro, but he did not for-
mally sit in the Commons for nearly 20 years, instead
concentrating on his military career. In late 1743, he
was recalled and assigned to the Home Fleet under Sir
John Norris, a force whose main goal was to defend the
English isles. The first major threat during Boscawen’s
time in the Home Fleet came in early 1744, when a
French armada under Admiral Jacques Aymar, comte de
Roquefeuil, sailed into the English Channel to assist in
a French invasion of England. Norris initially tried to
fight the French with Boscawen’s assistance, but strong
weather drove the fleets apart, and the invasion was
cancelled. In April 1744, Boscawen was assigned to a
squadron commanded by Sir Charles Hardy escorting
ships to the Mediterranean. On 24 April, Boscawen’s
ship sighted the French 26-gun frigate Medée southwest
of Ushant. He gave chase, and after several hours the
French ship was captured (later to become the English
privateer Boscawen). Boscawen later fought a limited
battle with French forces (July 1744), but he was able to
escape without being captured. In the next several years,
he commanded other ships in the Home Fleet, defend-
ing England against invasion.
In 1746, as commander of the Namur, Boscawen
was assigned to the western squadron under George
anson. During the latter part of that year, he helped
capture the French hospital ship the Mercure. In May
1747, the first major sea battle of the War of the Austrian
Succession took place off Cape Finisterre, Spain. The
French, under Admiral Jacques-Pierre de la Jonquière,
were escorting a convoy of merchant ships. Anson was
victorious and captured 10 French ships. According toboScAwen, eDwARD