Quilliam's career extended far beyond his position on HMS Victory's quarterdeck. He rose from dockyard work at Portsmouth through Camperdown and Copenhagen before becoming Victory's first lieutenant at Trafalgar. Spanish prize wealth, later frigate commands in the Baltic and Newfoundland, and a War of 1812 court martial show the rewards and hazards of a Georgian naval career. A contemporary called him a "favourite of fortune" because he repeatedly found himself at decisive moments. The biography uses one officer's advancement, combat service, rewards, and command responsibilities to open up the workings of the Royal Navy.
Chapter · 0:18-4:40
John Quilliam's career beyond Trafalgar
The review introduces Favourite of Fortune as a biography of John Quilliam, a Manx officer whose career ran through Trafalgar, Camperdown, Copenhagen, the Baltic, and the War of 1812.