Sir Charles Knowles, 2nd Baronet

Sir Charles Henry Knowles, 2nd Baronet, GCB (24 August 1754 – 28 November 1831) was an officer of the Royal Navy, who saw service during the American War of Independence, and the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, eventually rising to the rank of Admiral. He was an extraordinary figure and a great tactical innovator. Highly intellectual, he authored a number of signal books and had the chance to put his ideas into practice during his naval career. Knowles was at times beset by problems with discipline aboard his ships, often due to large proportions of raw recruits and untrained seamen. This may have been a factor in his rocky relationship with his superior, Sir John Jervis, which eventually led to Knowles's retirement from active service after the Battle of Cape St Vincent, and his concentration on scholarly studies of the issues affecting the naval service.

Family and early life Knowles was born at Kingston, Jamaica on 24 August 1754, the second son of the Governor of Jamaica Admiral Sir Charles Knowles and his wife Maria Magdalena Theresa de Bouget. He received his initial education at Eton College circa 1764–6, and then subsequently at Glasgow and Edinburgh. He was then aboard the Spithead guard ship the 74-gun under Captain Robert Roddam, before joining the 32-gun under Captain John MacBride, where he served at Plymouth and in the Channel. Whilst at home he took the opportunity to prepare his first signal book, A Set of Signals for a Fleet on a Plan Entirely New, for publication, before returning to the Americas in summer 1777. Knowles claimed to have communicated the work to Lord Howe, and that Howe's tactics at the Glorious First of June reflected Knowles's theories on effective naval tactics. Two days later the Ceres was chased and captured by a squadron under the comte d'Estaing.

Battle of Cape St Vincent The Battle of Cape St Vincent, 14 February 1797 by Robert Cleveley. Knowles was criticised by Jervis for his actions during the engagement. Knowles was still in Jervis's fleet in command of Goliath when the Battle of Cape St Vincent was fought on 14 February 1797. During the engagement Jervis ordered his ships to tack in succession whilst in close action with the enemy. On his return to the battle, Knowles observed an opportunity to pass to windward of the Santísima Trinidad and so becalm her. Jervis however signalled Goliath and ordered Knowles to stop the manoeuvre. and in 1830 he published his largely autobiographical work Observations on Naval Tactics. He was nominated a Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath on 16 May 1820 at the accession of King George IV.

His posthumous reputation is suggested, not by his rocky relationship with Jarvis but, by the words of a simple sailor who served under him at the Battle of Cape St Vincent: “ Not a man on board but would have bled for Sir C. H. Knowles. He was as good a captain as I ever sailed with..” Admiral Charles Henry Knowles died on 28 November 1831 at the age of 77. He was succeeded as baronet by his son Francis Charles Knowles.