Independent frigate commands kept captures outside the commander-in-chief's normal share, giving Bridport a financial reason to resent Pellew's freedom. Pellew himself accumulated a very large fortune in prize and freight money, although one biographer interprets his behaviour as fear of returning to poverty rather than simple greed. Writers also accused Bridport of avarice, drawing on his prize-money disputes and two wealthy marriages. Evidence complicating the charge against Bridport includes the settlement that protected his first wife's fortune and the limited conclusions that can be drawn from a disputed prize-money claim. Financial incentives alone do not establish that greed governed either man's conduct.
Notable Point · 2:42:09-2:46:08
Prize money and the Bridport-Pellew dispute
Prize-money rules help explain hostility between Bridport and Pellew, but competing biographies warn against treating personal greed as a settled motive.