The Seaford MP who hadn't been told of his election

Peter Parker had just as an adventurous life as Admiral Walker and he too had a connection with Seaford, representing the town as its Member of Parliament. Parker was born in 1721, the son of an Admiral, and, like Walker, he also joined the Navy as a boy. He became a post-captain in 1747 and in 1775 set off aboard the Bristol to deal with the troublesome Americans. He attacked Charleston, South Carolina, making an unsuccessful assault on Fort Moultrie in the harbour, which resulted in great loss of life and damage to the British Fleet. He was knighted for his bravery in this and other actions and later accompanied Lord Howe in the attack and capture of New York, when he commanded the squadron which took Rhode Island in 1776. He became Commander of North American Waters and later was the Commander in Chief of Jamaica. In September 1778 Parker was responsible for promoting the 20-year-old Horatio Nelson to Lieutenant on the Bristol and over the coming years ensured that the famous hero made a rapid rise through the ranks. At this time Parker and his wife Margaret lived in Kingston, Jamaica, and when Nelson fell ill, fighting the Spanish at San Juan, Nicaragua, they took him into their home where they nursed him with the assistance of their daughter. In 1780 he was responsible for sending the ailing Nelson back home and two years later had returned to England himself, becoming Commander-in-Chief at Portsmouth. Parker was obviously a popular figure in England, particularly on the south coast as, in 1784, he was elected to be a Member of Parliament for the Cinque Port of Seaford. It is amazing that this was actually done without his knowledge. When he discovered about his election he tried to get his son to stand in for him but the people of Seaford were having none of that. Although the first vote was declared null and void, he was re-elected anyway. It appears that Parker, the reluctant MP, made only two speeches in Parliament but at least they were on a subject he was qualified to talk about '“ Naval promotion. Parker was an active Freemason and was Deputy Grand Master from 1792 where he helped to promote the movement and establish a Masonic school. In 1799 Parker had become Admiral of the Fleet. He remained a close friend of Lord Nelson and his lover, Lady Hamilton. When Nelson's body was returned to England following his death at Trafalgar, it was conveyed on Admiral Parker's barge. He was the chief mourner at the funeral in St Paul's Cathedral in January 1806, representing the Prince of Wales. Peter Parker's daughter Anne married George Ellis (1753-1815) who was a Jamaican landowner and poet. Ellis was cousin to George James Agar Ellis who was also a Seaford MP, and who became the first Baron Seaford. Parker's grandson Peter (1786-1815) also had a lively career in the Navy, serving under Nelson and spending many months harassing the Americans. He was killed during a skirmish in Maryland. Sir Peter Parker, Admiral of the Fleet, and Member of Parliament for Seaford died in 1811. KEVIN GORDON