Capt. Francis Milbourne Marsh – aged 46/47 – elder brother of Milbourne, Mary and George
Milbourne Marsh – aged 45/46 – Gibraltar
Elizabeth Marsh (ne Evans)
(born 1735) Eliza Marsh (later Crisp) – aged 19/20 – Gibraltar, Morocco
James Crisp – married Eliza(beth) Marsh this year in Gibraltar
Francis Milbourne Marsh – aged 16/17 – son of Milbourne Marsh and Elizabeth
John Marsh – aged 8/9 – second son of Milbourne and Elizabeth.
Mary Duval (ne Marsh) – aged 42/43 – Sister of George and Milbourne
John Duval – husband of Mary Duval
Elizabeth Duval – aged unknown
George Marsh – aged 32/33
Ann Marsh (ne Long) – aged 34/35
George Marsh – aged 4/5
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Statement of the Services and principal Events in the life of the late George Marsh Esq.
A Commissioner of His Majesty’s Navy.
In February 1755 Admiral Mostyn selected Mr.Marsh to accompany him as his Secretary to Plymouth whither he went to superintend the fitting out of the Fleet then preparing at that Port, his own Secretary being at Sea, this duty was most arduous and harrassing but on the 5th April Admiral Mostyn’s Secretary having returned and the Admiral having sailed from Plymouth in the Augusta in which ship his Flag was flying, Mr.Marsh returned to the Navy Office.
In June 1755 Mr.Marsh was ordered to proceed to Portsmouth to attend to the payment of the large Fleet whose rendezvous was at that Port; this duty was extremely laborious requiring his going out almost daily and in all weather to ships lying at St.Helen’s and Spithead.
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1755
Upon the appointment of Sir Arthur Scott Esq who was a Captain in the Navy, to be Commissioner of the Navy to reside in Chatham yard, I became very much respected by him for two reasons, the first was he was sensible Admiral Mathews had a great regard for me, who he much honoured and loved.
The second reason was (and perhaps not the least powerful) that I was enabled and actually drawed out accounts and instructions for him which were infinite service to him, in his new appointment as a Commissioner of the Navy and on dining with him this day (14th January 1755) at the Star and Garter in Pall Mall, he asked me if I would undertake some business for Lord Percival member of Parliament for Bridgewater, who was just come to his Title Earl of Egmont, who he observed was one of the most learned and most able men in England [John Perceval, 2nd Earl of Egmont, 1711-1770].
He observed the business related to a vast number of widows of Bridgewater who had money due in some public office, which the Earl could not get any information of from the Admiralty or Navy Boards, in short he did not know where or what to enquire for, he had got a vast number of certificates of the times of death of seamen belonging to and trading from Bridgewater and of the names of their widows. I replied to Mr Scott that I would to oblige him most certainly undertake to get the business settled, tho’ the fact was I knew no more about it than either of them but concluded I should be able to find it out.
Whereupon he immediately carried me to the Earl’s house and introduced me to him. His Lordship expressed the utmost pleasure in having a prospect of settling this business, and gave me all the papers relating to it, and begged to know when it would be finished, to which I answered it was not in my power to mention the time but that his Lordship might be assured I would not lose a moment’s time in bringing it to a conclusion.
In a few days after I heard that the Naval Officer at Mahon was dead, upon which I applied to Mr Scott for his interest for my brother to succeed him who was appointed accordingly.
After examining and arranging the papers Lord Egmont gave me, I saw plainly the purport of them and that there must be an office some where in London where there was a fund for paying money to the widows of seamen who had served and died in the Service of Merchants at Bridgewater, in proportion to the time of their service which was supported by voluntary subscriptions, but where it was, I was at a loss to know, but after making all the enquiry I could think of to no effect. I thought of an elderly gentleman who had left off business who I had often some years before conversed with at different times who was born and lived in London, and had knowledge of most of the transactions there.
I made enquiry after him at a coffee house he used to frequent and at length found him out, who was as glad to see me, as if I had been his son, who was in a bad state of health in consequence of old age.
Upon relating this business to him he directed me to an office at the top of the Royal Exchange, and upon my application and telling my business there, a clerk gave me hopes he would soon settle it, after he had received the papers, which I immediately went home for, and delivered to him, with a hint that if he would favour me with dispatch, I should be sensible of his favours by making a proper acknowledgment, which he therefore promised, and in about a weeks time, he settled it, and paid me about 300 for these widows and I gave him two Guineas, for which he was very thankful, and I immediately waited upon the Earl of Egmont with it, who was so thankful and pleased that he tendered me Forty Guineas for my trouble, which I declined to accept of, arguing that I did not undertake the business with any such view, but was extremely happy to oblige his Lordship and Mr Scott.
He then repaid me the two guineas and said he feared he never should have it in his power to show his gratitude to me. I replied I had such view neither in undertaking it, and was sufficiently rewarded by the pleasure it gave me to be any way serviceable to his Lordship.
After about two hours conversation with his Lordship I took my leave of him, when he pressed and assured me, it would give him great pleasure if I would very frequently call on him, for he was very fond of Naval affairs of which he said he observed I was well acquainted, and added I could not make my visits too often, for there would always be a plate ready to be placed at his table for me.
However I looked on all this merely as compliment and civility, and as my whole time was engaged in the public and my private business, having no inclination neither to pay too much court to great people, or to the luxuries of their tables, I omitted to even call on his Lordship for many years after, as will be seen in its proper place in point of time, further on in this book. His Lordship’s interest became so powerful at Bridgewater in consequence of this event that he put in both Members of that Borough.
12 February 1755
Mr Mostyn the Comptroller of the Navy being appointed an Admiral, he sent for me late last night and directed me to be ready this morning to set out with him to Plymouth where he was going to take the command of, and equip a Fleet there as fast as possible, to act as his Secretary till his own Secretary could get there to him, without giving me any previous notice.
I accordingly set out with him this morning at 5 o’clock, after being most of the night with my wife packing up my things and from her hurry of spirits on this occasion she was brought to bed of my dear William in a few after I was gone and about ten days sooner than she expected.
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Milbourne Marsh
1755 became Naval Officer at Port Mahon in Menorca using contacts from his brother George. The post was a clerical administrative one. He left Portsmouth in March 1755 for Menorca in the Mediterranean. Also acted as Clerk of the Cheque which was the senior financial officer for the Menorca dock yard as well as acting as Clerk of the Survey which involved drafting maps and plans for new buildings and defenses. In late November of that year experienced the aftershocks of the Lisbon Earthquake. Due to the Seven Years War naval power was drained naval from the Mediterranean area.
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George Marsh Diary
5 April 1755
Returned from Plymouth after having gone through very great fatigue from 5 o’clock every morning till 9 or 10 o’clock at night, every day I was with him, tho’ such great attendance was not necessary but from vanity and an ostentatious show of great business he (Mostyn) would have me in the office by candle light every morning and night, and make me write letters to every poor constable etc etc round the country, under pretence of getting men to man the fleet, and of a night would bring all his Captains into the office to show the vast number of letters he wrote every day, which were spread abroad on the table for that purpose and to show what vast business he went through.
In short he was a man of great vanity, good natural parts mixed with a very tyrannical inhumane turn of mind, and having always had great powerful friends, his prosperity was too much for him. He was so absolute that he never would let me go to my lodgings to breakfast or suffer it to be brought to me, arguing that eating and drinking must give way to public business, at the same time he took care very regularly to eat and drink himself.
Indeed he would have me dine with him every day or rather every night, for he never dined until 6 o’clock, when he took clear to make it very uncomfortable to me by frequently sending to the office for some thing he pretended he wanted to know. (5th April 1755) He was very cruel in this respect to me, who had ever been habituated to regularity in diet and everything else.
In consequence hereof I became very ill for a few days, when he boasted he had killed me with business, but to do him justice he was during my absence from the office remarkably attentive to me, and desired I would send for anything he had which he said I should command.
And when we parted he assured me of his utmost service and interest in anything I might wish for. He caused me to be paid as a pay clerk, and as his secretary too for the time I was with him, which was together about one guinea per day, but by choice I would not go through the same business, treatment and confinement in every respect, with such a man again for twenty guineas a day. He sailed from Plymouth in the Augusta and I returned to London this day.
8 May 1755
Agreed with Mr Barker to dissolve our partnership having sold but 3 or 4 pipes of wine during it (see page 76) and did not get payment for the greatest part thereof, so that we lost very considerably thereby, but my the agency, which was all got by me, I cleared about £500. The dissolving this partnership therefore gave me the greatest pleasure, Mr Barker being a very artful avaricious tho’ sensible man, and as he found I should every year increase my income by the agency of which he had, and was to have half, without the least trouble or interest of his, he wished much to continue it, but my very sincere worthy and learned friend Mr Joseph Hart, happily brought it to a conclusion, for whom Mr Barker had the highest esteem and veneration.
1 June 1755
I was this day ordered to Portsmouth to attend the payments at that port and to pay the fleet two months advance which was fitting out there, upon the breaking out of a war with France, so that I was almost every day at Spithead or St Helens on this service for a great length of time.