Woodley Losack

He was the youngest of the eight children of Richard (James) Hawkshaw Losack and Christiana Losack (née Maclure). Woodley Losack was born on 5 October 1769 in Basseterre, Saint Kitts.^[1][2] His father Richard was appointed the Lieutenant Governor of the Leeward Islands. His brother George Losack preceded him into the Royal Navy and rose to the rank of admiral.^[3]

As a lieutenant, Losack served on HMS Ville de Paris, the flagship of Admiral William Cornwallis, and participated in the enterprise to cut out la Chevrette, a French corvette, of 20 nine-pounders and 350 men, from under the batteries in Camaret Bay, near Brest, on the night of 21 July 1801. Lieutenant Losack and Lieutenant Keith Maxwell were promoted to the rank of commander for their services in this enterprise.^[4][5]

In 1801, he was appointed captain and held the temporary command of the 36-gun fifth rate HMS Jason in the spring of 1801.^[4] On 1 May 1801, Jason captured la Dorade, a brig privateer of 14 guns and 51 men.^[4] Later that year, he was appointed Captain of HMS Helena (1804), an 18-gun sloop. On 5 June 1805, the Helena captured the Santa Leocadia, a Spanish privateer of 14 guns and 114 men.^[4]

Losack was made post-captain on 22 January 1806.^[4] In 1807, he was appointed as Captain of the second rate ship of the line HMS Prince George. Following the concern in Britain that neutral Denmark was entering an alliance with Napoleon, the Prince George sailed in the squadron in the expedition to occupy the Danish West Indies, with the squadron under the command of Rear-Admiral Alexander Cochrane, who sailed in HMS Belleisle. The squadron, which included HMS Northumberland, HMS Canada, HMS Ramillies and HMS Cerberus, captured the Telemaco, Carvalho and Master on 17 April 1807.^[6]