Admiral of the Fleet George Byng, 1st Viscount Torrington, (27 January 1663 – 17 January 1733) was a Royal Navy officer and politician who represented Plymouth in the English and British House of Commons from 1705 to 1721. While still a lieutenant, he delivered a letter from various captains to William of Orange, who had just landed at Torbay, assuring the Prince of the captains' support; the Prince gave Byng a response which ultimately led to the Royal Navy switching allegiance to the Prince and the Glorious Revolution of November 1688.
As a captain, Byng saw action at the Battle of Vigo Bay, when the French fleet was defeated, during the War of the Spanish Succession. As a flag officer, he led the bombardment squadron while serving under Admiral Sir George Rooke at the Anglo-Dutch capture of Gibraltar and then took part in the Battle of Málaga at a later stage in the same war.
Byng was sent to the Mediterranean to thwart any attempt by the Spanish to take Sicily. He encountered a Spanish fleet at Naples and, after pursuing it down the Strait of Messina, sent ahead his fastest ships causing the Spanish fleet to split in two. In the ensuing action, known as the Battle of Cape Passaro, the Spanish fleet was dealt a crushing blow at an early and critical stage of the War of the Quadruple Alliance. He went on to serve in a series of high-ranking positions in the Admiralty during the reign of King George II.
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Early career
George Byng was born in Kent village of Wrotham on 27 January 1663. The son of John Byng and Philadelphia Byng (née Johnson), Byng joined the Royal Navy as a King's Letter Boy in May 1678. He initially served in HMS Swallow and then transferred to HMS Reserve in November 1678 and then to HMS Mary Rose in June 1679. Byng sailed onboard HMS Phoenix to Tangier in Summer 1680 and, after a short period of service with the English Army's 2nd Tangier Regiment, he rejoined the Royal Navy as a lieutenant on 23 February 1684 and assigned to HMS Oxford before returning to Phoenix in which he sailed to the East Indies on a mission to put down a rebellion led by Richard Keigwin in Bombay. He transferred to HMS Mordaunt in May 1688 and to HMS Defiance in September 1688.
In October 1688 Byng, still a lieutenant, delivered a letter from several Royal Navy captains to William of Orange, who had just landed at Torbay, assuring William of the captains' support; William gave Byng a response which ultimately led to the Royal Navy switching allegiance as part of the Glorious Revolution of November 1688. Promoted to captain on 22 December 1688, he was given command of HMS Constant Warwick before transferring to the command of HMS Hope in May 1690 in which he saw action at the Battle of Beachy Head in July 1690 during the Nine Years' War. He transferred to the command of HMS Duchess in September 1690 and to HMS Royal Oak in January 1691 before becoming Flag Captain to Admiral Edward Russell in HMS Britannia in December 1693.
Byng was given command of HMS Nassau in June 1702 and participated in the Battle of Vigo Bay on 23 October as part of the War of the Spanish Succession.
Senior command
Promoted to Rear-Admiral of the Red on 12 March 1703, Byng became third-in-command of the Mediterranean Fleet under Admiral Sir Cloudesley Shovell with his flag in HMS Ranelagh later that month. He led the bombardment squadron while serving under Admiral Sir George Rooke at the Anglo-Dutch capture of Gibraltar on 1–4 August 1704 and then took part in the Battle of Málaga on 24 August. Knighted on 22 October, and promoted to Vice-Admiral of the Blue on 24 January 1705, he was elected Member of Parliament for Plymouth later that year.
Byng became Commander-in-Chief, Portsmouth, with his flag in HMS Royal Anne, in late 1705 and then took part in the bombardment of Alicante in June 1706. After taking part in the siege of Toulon in July 1707 and, while sailing aboard his flagship HMS Royal Anne, Byng was present during the Scilly naval disaster of 1707 in October when Shovell and four of his ships were lost, claiming the lives of nearly 2,000 men.
Promoted to Admiral of the Blue on 20 January 1708, Byng was promoted again to Admiral of the White on 1 January 1709 and became Commander-in-Chief, Mediterranean Fleet in the same month. He went on to join the Board of Admiralty led by Russell in November 1709. Byng was advanced to Senior Naval Lord on the Admiralty Board in October 1710. He stood down from the Admiralty Board in January 1714 but was reappointed, as Senior Naval Lord again, on Orford's return to the Admiralty in October 1714.
Byng took part in the suppression of the Jacobite rising of 1715 by cutting off James Francis Edward Stuart's supplies and for this he was created a baronet on 15 November 1715. In 1717 Byng was commanding the Baltic Fleet with full cooperation from Danish naval forces under Admiral Peter Raben.
He was promoted to Admiral of the Fleet on 14 March 1718 and, with his flag in HMS Barfleur, he was sent out as Commander-in-Chief of the Mediterranean Fleet to thwart any attempt by the Spanish to gain or to consolidate their position in Sicily. He encountered the Spanish fleet at Naples and, after pursuing it down the Strait of Messina, sent ahead his fastest ships causing the Spanish fleet to split in two. In the ensuing action on 11 August 1718, which became known as the Battle of Cape Passaro, the Spanish fleet was devastated: eight ships of the line and seven frigates were captured, destroyed or scuttled at this early and critical stage of the War of the Quadruple Alliance.
Marriage and progeny
Byng was married at St Paul's, Covent Garden, on 6 March 1691 to Margaret Master, daughter of James Master of East Langdon in Kent. Together the couple had fifteen children (eleven sons and four daughters) of whom six lived to survive him:
Pattee Byng (1699–1747), 2nd Viscount Torrington, died without surviving progeny.
George Byng (1701–1750), 3rd Viscount Torrington
Robert Byng (1703–1740), Governor of Barbados (1739–1740), from whom the Earls of Strafford stem.
John Byng (1704–1757), Admiral controversially court-martialled and shot at the outbreak of the Seven Years' War in Europe.
Edward Byng (1706–1756)
Sarah Byng (1695–1775)
Death and burial
Byng died on 17 January 1733 of a "Hecktick Cough" and was eventually buried in a vault within the newly constructed Byng Mausoleum attached to the north side of the Church of All Saints in the parish of Southill, Bedfordshire, in which parish was situated his residence of Southill Park. The mausoleum was constructed for his burial, with licence granted by the Bishop of Lincoln in 1733.