Person FitzRoy; Robert (1805 - 1865); hydrographer and meteorologist FitzRoy Robert hydrographer and meteorologist Fitz Roy 1805 - 1865 British Male Ampton Hall, Suffolk, England 05 July 1805 Upper Norwood, London 30 April 1865

25 Lowndes Square, Belgravia (1841) Norland Square, Bayswater (1851)

Hydrography Meteorology Education: Rottingdean; Harrow School (1817-1818); Royal Naval College, Portsmouth - winner of mathematical prize (1819) Career: Volunteer, later midshipman, 'Owen Glendower'; served on the 'Hind' and 'Cambrian' in the Mediterranean; served on the 'Seringapatam' on the English Channel; Lieutenants examination - first out of 27 candidates; served on the 'Thetis' as lieutenant, flag-lieutenant, 'Ganges'; commanded the 'Beagle' charting the coasts of southern South America under Captain Philip Parker King - spent 33 days in an open whaleboat during subantarctic winter; carried four Fuegians back to England, one of whom died, educated the remaining three at his own expense; sailed in the 'Beagle' to return Fuegians to their homeland and continue survey, accompanied by Charles Darwin (November 1831 - October 1836); published a narrative of the 'Beagle' voyages (1839); elected elder brother of Trinity House (July 1839); Gold medal, Royal Geographical Society (1836); MP for Tory seat in Co Durham (1841); Governor of New Zealand (1843-1845); Superintendent, Woolwich Dockyard (September 1848); retired from active service (February 1850), Rear Admiral (1857), Vice Admiral (1863); managing director, General Screw Steam Shipping Company; personal secretary to Lord Hardinge (his uncle); member of Athenaeum (1852); meteorological statist, Meteorological Department, Board of Trade (1854); committee of management, Royal National Lifeboat Institution (1859); co-ordinated first storm warning signals (February 1861), published in newspapers (August 1861); initiated use of term 'forecast'; published 'Weather Book' (1863); Board of Trade demanded that forecasts cease; committed suicide at his home, Lyndhurst, Westwood Hill, Upper Norwood, Surrey. Memberships: RGS Son of Lord Charles Fitzroy (1764-1829) and Lady Frances Anne Stewart (d 1810); married (1836) Maria Henrietta (d 5 April 1852), daughter of Major General Edward James O'Brien; married (1854) Maria Isabella Smyth Fellow 05/06/1851 Sources: Bulloch's Roll; DNB; DSB; DNZB; authority from Charter book signature and Obituary notice Obituaries: Proc Roy Soc 1866-1867 vol 15 pp xxi-xxiii References: Sir Gavin de Beer, ed, 'Some Unpublished Letters of Charles Darwin' in NR 1959 vol 14 pp 12-66 Gregory Estes, K Thalia Grant and Peter R Grant, 'Darwin in the Galapagos: his footsteps through the Archipelago' in NR 2000 vol 54 pp 343-368 D Carr Agnew, 'Robert Fitzroy and the myth of 'Marsden Square': Transatlantic rivalries in early marine meteorology' in NR 2004 vol 58 pp 21-46 F Kurzer, 'The life and work of Charles Tomlinson FRS: A Career in Victorian Science and Technology' in NR 2004 vol 58 pp 203-226 International Standard Archival Authority Record for Corporate Bodies, Persons and Families - ISAAR(CPF) - Ottawa 1996 ISBN 0-9696035-3-3 National Council on Archives, Rules for the Construction of Personal, Place and Corporate Names, 1997 5 Jul 1805 - 30 Apr 1865 NA6774 21/11/2001 Andyg Pmab 28/03/2023 RS_NET\JonathanB Yes http://viaf.org/viaf/32057224 23715e24-e155-4962-8d67-2d170ec08c66