A Book or Two to Review (1): Favourite of Fortune

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.

Quilliam's career joined battle experience and Spanish prize wealth to frigate command, then culminated in a War of 1812 court martial brought by his own first lieutenant.

The authorship section explains why the book combines family research, Manx local history, and Andrew Lambert's naval-history scholarship.

The chapter reading introduces the nearly new HMS Amazon, a 38-gun frigate whose 284-person complement and mixed battery made her a prized appointment for a captain or lieutenant.

Amazon's captain Edward Riou had already brought the crippled HMS Guardian back to the Cape after an iceberg collision, while most who abandoned ship were lost.

Edward Riou combined compassion and proven seamanship with strict punishment, demanding work routines, and an intense emphasis on cleanliness aboard Amazon.

Quilliam may first have been intended for HMS Neptune, but his frigate experience and Riou's need for a capable lieutenant made Amazon the better professional fit.

Six weeks of repair and preparation at Spithead gave Amazon's crew time to drill sail handling and measure carronade powder needs under repeated fire.

Amazon's West Indies convoy duty illustrates the escort captain's core tradeoff: drive off enemy cruisers without abandoning the merchant fleet.

Amazon's pursuit of La Julie and the recaptured merchantman Amelie shows how frigates protected trade after leaving convoy duty.

The closing reading links Amazon's North Sea patrols to the League of Armed Neutrality, Baltic access, and the fleet assembled before Copenhagen.

French invasion fears sent Amazon to patrol the Scheldt approaches, where British frigates observed enemy warships and kept their gun crews training.

A reconnaissance run toward Flushing ended with gales and squalls scattering Riou's frigate squadron and revealing wreckage from a smaller vessel.

The Yarmouth fleet's shallow-draught 64-gun ships suited Baltic waters, while Riou had to address the prospect of Danish sailors being ordered to fight their own countrymen.

The fleet assembled under Hyde Parker and Nelson while Amazon combined repairs, stowage, gunnery practice, and small-arms training before returning toward Texel.

The book is recommended for its illustrated hardback presentation, maps, age-of-sail history, personal biography, clear flow, and historical ideas.