James Brisbane

Captain Sir James Brisbane, CB (1774 – 19 December 1826) was a British Royal Navy officer of the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars. Although never engaged in any major actions, Brisbane served under both Lord Howe and Horatio Nelson and performed important work at the Cape of Good Hope, prior to the Battle of Copenhagen and in the Adriatic campaign of 1807–1814. In later life Brisbane became commander-in-chief in the East Indies. He contracted dysentery in Burma and arrived in Port Jackson in Sydney aboard , where he died on 19 December 1826. He was a cousin of General Sir Thomas Brisbane who had earlier been governor of New South Wales.

Career James Brisbane was born in 1774, the fifth son of Admiral John Brisbane and the younger brother of future Admiral Charles Brisbane. In 1787, Brisbane went to sea aboard and by 1794 he was signal midshipman aboard Lord Howe's flagship . Brisbane served in this capacity at the Glorious First of June, where Queen Charlotte was heavily engaged and badly damaged. In the aftermath of the battle, Brisbane was promoted to lieutenant and was sent to the Cape of Good Hope, later joining George Elphinstone's flagship and being present at the surrender of a Dutch squadron in Saldanha Bay.

He was appointed a Companion of the Order of the Bath on 16 September 1815. In 1816, Pembroke was attached to the force under Lord Exmouth that bombarded Algiers and on his return home, as captain of , Brisbane was knighted.

In 1825, Brisbane was made commander-in-chief of the East Indies Station and sailed there as commodore, arriving in 1826 and taking part in the latter stages of the First Anglo-Burmese War, in which he had some success in riverine operations. During the campaign however he contracted a fatal illness and died from it aboard in Sydney in 1826.

Brisbane is remembered as a popular and capable commander whose expertise was focused on coastal and riverine operations, which he conducted with success throughout his career.

Memorial A memorial to Sir James Brisbane was erected in St James' Church, Sydney in 1830.