Examples of Certificates of Service for Warrant Officers

Source: TNA: PRO: ADM 6/128 - Gunners on passing 1803-5

This bound volume of papers appears to be in alphabetical order. Apart from the actual certificates of service themselves there are handwritten statements or printed forms relating to the passings for gunners.

These are to certify By Geo Montague Esqr

Admiral of the Blue and Commander in Chief

Of His Majesty’s Ships and Vessels at Spithead

And in Portsmouth Harbour to us Directed

THAT we have examined Mr. William Charlton in the different ......Articles specified in the Instructions for the Examination of Persons previous to their being appointed to serve as Gunners in the Royal Navy, and report as follows.

He can hand, reef, and steer, knot and splice, and also heave the Lead;

He knows the Use and Exercise of the Great Guns, and how to secure the Muzzle, lash the same on either Deck, and can secure them in bad Weather;

He knows the Proportion of Powder for each Gun, the Method of filling the Cartridges, the Arrangement of them in the Magazine ready for Service;

He knows how to make Wads for Guns of different Calibres, and also the making and filling Musket Cartridges;

He has produced a Specimen of his Writing, and knows the Use of Figures; he has produced to us Certificates of his good Conduct and Sobriety;

And also a Certificate from the Navy Office, of his having served in the Royal Navy more than Four Years;

We therefore certify our Opinion, that he is a Person fitly qualified to be appointed a Gunner of any of His Majesty’s Ships of War of the Third Rate.

Given under our Hands, on Board His Majesty’s

Ship Royal William April 18.1804

James Field....................}.................{ Royal William

Jno Beswick....................} Gunner of { Puifsant

J Shed............................}>>>>…....>{ Pearl

Ships	Place where born	Age at Time of Entry	Entry	Quality	Difcharge	Time
						Y.	M.	W.	D.
Scipio	Shields	20	23 February 1795	Ord	15 September 1797	2	7	1	2
Standard			16 September 1797	Able	27 April 1798	-	8	-	-
Blonde			28 April 1798	Ord	15 June 1798	-	1	3	-
.Do			16 June 1798	Gnr Mte	31 August 1804	6	2	3	-
						9	6	3	2
........................................................................ ..................................Navy Office, 6^th December 1804 These are to Certify, That Mr William Charlton is borne on the Books of His Majesty’s Ships above-mentioned, the Place where born, Age at Time of Entry in each Ship, Time, Qualities and Cause of Discharge, as therein expressed being Nine Years six Months three Wks and two Days N. Dunbar......................................W Wenlow......................................????????????????

Source: TNA: PRO: ADM 29/4 - Boatswains 1817-39

It would appear that individual civil servants were responsible for writing up the certificates of service for specific ranks and rates. In the case of this volume the clerk was extremely sloppy and the entries are scruffy to say the least. There is an additional problem and that is the way that these have been recorded. On negative microfilm, often the writing only becomes decypherable when copies are made on large format (A3).

p.152

William Barnett

.

Alligator	9 May 21	Actg Boat	19 Oct 21
....”	26 Oct 21	Bo	30 Oct 21
Weazel	3 Nov 21	-	9 Sept 23
?Brisk?	10 Sept 23	-	9 Feby 25
Chatham Ord	10 Feby 25	-	21 May 26
Raleigh	22 May 26	-	28 March 28
...Do	2 July 28	-	4 Dec 29
...”	5 Decr 29	-	13 March 30
?Vengeance?	14 March 30	-	31 March 30

Source: TNA: PRO: ADM 29/7 - Cooks 1834-51

Unlike boatswains, these certificates of service are much neater, although can still be difficult to make out due to the poor copying onto negative microfilm.

p.59

.

Francis Fox

.

Pelican	5 Dec 12		Cook		7 Decr 18	- - - 3
Do	8 Dec 18		- “ -		24 June 22	3 7 - 3
Fox	25 June 22		- “ -		7 Mar 34	11 9 - 4
				…21 3 1 3
		Commifsion... 6-0-0-3 Ordinary..... 15-3-1-0 ...…..............21-3-1-3  Admiralty 9^th Apl 34

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