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Administrative / biographical background
Thomas Boulden Thompson first went to sea in 1778 with his uncle and guardian Commodore Edward Thompson. He was promoted to lieutenant in 1782 and in 1783 was appointed to HMS GRAMPUS, of which his uncle Edward Thompson was commodore. Upon his uncle's death he was appointed commander, a promotion which was later confirmed. In 1787 he went on half-pay. He was advanced to post rank in 1790 but had no employment until 1796, when he was appointed to HMS LEANDER, and in 1798 was sent as part of a squadron to the Mediterranean to assist Nelson. He took part in the Battle of the Nile but Thompson was wounded later when the LEANDER was captured by the French ship GENEREUX. He was acquitted at a court-martial and praised for his defence of the ship. He was knighted and awarded a pension. In 1799 he was appointed to HMS BELLONA where he stayed until 1801 when the ship stuck fast on a shoal at Copenhagen and came under attack from the Danish fleet. Thompson was wounded and lost his leg. In 1806 he was created a baronet and was appointed Comptroller of the Navy, a post he held until 1816. He became a rear-admiral in 1809, and vice-admiral in 1814. He was also Member of Parliament for Rochester, from 1807-1818. In 1816 he was appointed Treasurer of Greenwich Hospital and Director of the Chatham Chest, a post he held until his death, at his home at Hartsbourne, Hertfordshire, in 1828. Please see THM/101-135 for further personal papers related to Thomas Boulden Thompson.