On Tuesday 2 June 1906, Jonathan Henderson of Westward Ho! died, aged 93. He was almost certainly the last survivor of the Battle of Navarino, which took place in 1837 off the coast of western Greece, between the British, French and Russian forces on the one hand and the Turco-Egyptian forces on the other.
The Ottoman Empire was beginning to crumble, and the Russians were eager to secure a Mediterranean base . The British were anxious for this not to happen, so joined forces with the French and Russians to repel the Ottomans, the decisive battle of which was that at Navarino, and which ultimately led to Greek independence.
Jonathan Henderson was born in October 1813 in Morice Town, near Devonport. He entered the Navy in 1824, joining HMS Genoa as a second class boy, and it was in this ship that he sailed at Navarino.
He retained vivid memories of the battle itself. Admiral Codrington was in supreme command, and sent a boat out from his frigate, presumably with orders on board which he wished the Ottomans to follow, but the enemy misinterpreted his intentions and perceived it as an act of aggression, so the boat was fired upon with a volley of musketry, killing an officer and several men. One of the allied frigates fired a cannon in reply, and the melee began.
Henderson was standing beside two officers, Captains Bathurst and Morse, when they were killed, and another boy named Fisher was decapitated by cannon fire. Henderson himself did not survive without injury., being wounded in four places,, and for years, kept a relic of a piece of shell extracted from his right thigh. He was eventually carried to the cockpit, where the surgeon operated, and remembered seeing a party of marines picking up ‘pieces of humanity.’
The following morning there was so much smoke that the gunners couldn’t see whether they were fighting friend or foe. Nine women on board the Genoa, who had all survived unscathed were seen tending to the wounded ‘with great tenderness’.
The Battle of Navarino was a great allied victory. It was unusual in two respects: it was fought with most of the ships at anchor, and was the last major naval battle to be fought entirely with sailing ships.
After the battle, Henderson was temporarily pensioned off, but rejoined the service again in 1829, plying up and down the south-east coast coast of the USA and the West Indies until 1835, after which he joined the Coastguard Service.
In 1887, he was transferred at his own request to Appledore Coastguard Station, which itself was subsequently moved to Westward Ho! The coastguard cottages were situated at Westbourne Terrace, and he called the one in which he lived (no.4), Navarino House.
He spent the last 36 years of his life in retirement at this address. He was said to be a small, genial man, who took a keen interest in all matters concerning the Royal Navy and the Coastguards. He had one grandson who was already receiving a pension from the Navy when he died, and two others still serving.
He actively participated in the local Trafalgar Day celebrations, and, in 1897, he ran up Nelson’s signal on the cairn at Bone Hill, Northam, where many of the country’s naval heroes are commemorated.
He died on 6 February 1906, aged 92. His wife, Frances Trevorthan, predeceased him on 24 March, 1885. One of his daughters, a milliner and straw-hat maker, was buried with his wife and himself in 1936.
Sources: Wikipaedia, The Battle of Navarino
Westward Ho! History Society paper
Obituary in the Daily Mail, quoted in Queanbeyan Age NSW
One of the dates of death in this article incorrect.
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