rank in the royal navy, of which, being insensible
myself, I desire their lordships would be pleased
to inform me in what it consists, having both in
action and advice, always, to the best of my judg-
ment, endeavoured to serve our royal master with
a zeal and activity becoming a faithful and loyal
subject, and having hitherto received the public
approbation of your board.Vernon’s career in the navy was essentially over be-
cause of his two defeats. Elected as a member of Par-
liament for Ipswich in 1741, he took his seat in the
Commons, but his fortunes changed in 1745 when the
British Admiralty named him commander of the North
Sea fleet. However, he resigned before taking control be-
cause his demand that he be named commander in chief
was refused. He was disciplined, removed from com-
mand, and struck off the list of flag officers. This time,
his career really was over.
Vernon died early in the morning of 28 October
1757 after he told his servant of lingering chest pains.
Historian Cyril Hartmann, who studied the last years
of Vernon’s life, writes: “Admiral Vernon was buried
in a vault he had made in the churchyard at Nacton.
The entry in the Parish Register reads: ‘Edward Vernon,
Esq. Buried Nov 7th in linen.’ To be buried in linen
had become the privilege of the upper classes, since, in
an attempt to revive the languishing woolen industry,
Parliament had enacted that shrouds for the dead were
henceforth to be woven of wool. But this was the sole
mark of distinction according to the Admiral at his fu-
neral, for he himself had left instructions in his will that
he was to be buried ‘in a Christian manner without any
unnecessary pomp or vain pageantry.’ ”
Historians Anthony Bruce and William Cogar write
that Vernon may be best be known for his introduction
of “grog” into the English vernacular: “Vernon himself
had been nicknamed ‘Old Grog’ because he normally
wore a grogram coat—a silk and wool mixture—when
on board ship.” In 1740, Vernon had ordered that the
ration of rum given to each sailor be watered down to
save money and supplies, and perhaps because of the
anger over this order, the new mixture became known
as “grog.” One other historical sidenote is that, in the
1740 fight at Cartagena, one of Vernon’s officers was
Lawrence Washington, eldest brother of the future Gen-
eral George Washington. When he left the service
of the British navy, Lawrence Washington went to the
American colonies and built an estate there which he
named in honor of his former commander, calling it
Mount Vernon.References: Bruce, Anthony, and William Cogar, “Ver-
non, Edward,” in An Encyclopedia of Naval History (New
York: Checkmark Books, 1999), 387; Charnock, John,
Biographia Navalis; or, Impartial Memoirs of the Lives and
Characters of Officers of the Navy of Great Britain, From
the Year 1660 to the Present Time... , 4 vols. (London:
Printed for R. Faulder, 1794–98), III:349–374; Ford,
Douglas, Admiral Vernon and the Navy: A Memoir and
Vindication (London: T. Fisher Unwin, 1907); Hard-
ing, Richard, “Edward Vernon, 1684–1757,” in Precur-
sors of Nelson: British Admirals of the Eighteenth Century,
edited by Peter Le Fevre and Richard Harding (London:
Chatham Publishing, 2000), 151–176; Hartmann, Cyril
Hughes, The Angry Admiral: The Later Career of Edward
Vernon, Admiral of the White (Melbourne, New South
Wales, Australia: William Heinemann Ltd., 1953).0 veRnon, eDwARD