Leviathan
Wood Location
Market Harborough, LEICESTERSHIRE
Ship Information
Ship Commander - Capt Henry William Bayntun
Guns - 74
Constructed at - Chatham
Killed in the battle - 2
Injured in the battle - 22
Wood Information
Size - 7 acres
Owner - Nevil Holt Estate
To be planted - November 2005
The Leviathan Wood site is 7 acres and is being hosted by the Nevil Holt Estate at Medbourne, near Uppingham, Leicestershire.
The site was known as ‘The Bridge’ and if standing on the bridge of Leviathian Wood you can see miles and miles of the beautiful Leicestershire countryside. The site will be planted with a number of native British broadleaved species including; oak, ash, silver birch, field maple and wild cherry with a host of woody shrubs in the perimeter areas.
The new wood will link two existing areas of ancient woodland.
Events in Leviathan Wood
A schools planting day took place in November 2005 for local schools to take part in.
A community planting day took place on Saturday 26th November 2005.
More information
Henry Bayntun
Was the son of Mr Bayntun Consul General at Algiers, and was born in 1766. Entering the service at any early age, he was promoted to the rank of lieutenant in 1783 at the age of sixteen. He saw considerable service during the war with France commencing in 1793. In 1804 he was appointed to the command of the Leviathan (74g) and was employed in the blockade of Toulon under Lord Nelson. He shared in the pursuit of the combined French and Spanish fleets to the West Indies and back, and commanded her at Trafalgar, 1805 – gold medal, the thanks of Parliament, and a sword of honour from the Patriotic Fund. He bore the Guidon at Lord Nelson's funeral, in the water procession from Greenwich. He died in Bath in 1840.
HMS Leviathan
HMS Leviathan was built at Chatham dockyard and launched in 1790, being one of a class of six modelled on the lines of a captured French 74, the Courageux. She had a very active life in the French Revolutionary Wars taking part in the action at Toulon, the battle of the Glorious First of June and numerous other engagements in the West Indies and Mediterranean.
At Trafalgar she was fourth in the column led by HMS Victory abreast of HMS Conqueror and astern of HMS Neptune, and cleared for action to give the guns freedom to fire. The partitions of the officers’ cabins were torn down and went overboard, to be followed by tables, stools, a small desk and other gear. Animals were often kept on board ships at this time to provide fresh eggs and meet, and a sheep given to the ship by Nelson in the West Indies was kept, survived the battle and was taken home by Captain Bayntun to join his family farm.
Leviathan entered the enemy line astern of HMS Neptune and followed Conqueror, all three discharging full broadsides into the Bucentaure (50 guns), the flagship of the French Admiral Villeneuve. Passing on, Leviathan engaged the Spanish Santissima Trinidad (136 guns) and attempted to come up to the French Neptune (84 guns), but the latter stood away and Leviathan instead fired into the Spanish San Augustin (74 guns). Close action followed until at 3.30 Leviathan ran her on board and the San Augustin surrendered. While the San Augustin lay alongside her portside after being boarded, Leviathan was hotly engaged on her opposite side by the French Intrepide (74 guns), but as the Orion, Africa and other British ships moved in the Intrepide pulled away. The San Augustin was later burnt after the crew had been removed as being so badly damaged as to be useless for future service.
Leviathan was laid up as a prison ship at Portsmouth in 1816, later used as a target and broken up in 1846.
Many thanks to Alan Aberg at the Society for Nautical Research for providing us with information on the ships and their commanders.
