There is a five acre field at Broomfield Bank called Lennocks Hill. Who then was Lennock?
Charles Adam Lennock was born on 1st June 1777, probably in London. Just before his 16th birthday, in May 1793, he entered the Royal Navy as a First Class Volunteer in the Veteran – 64 guns – commanded by Captain C.E. Nugent. Later that year they sailed in the expedition which was dispatched to capture the French West Indies. The following year he served under Captain E. Harvey in the Santa Margarita (36 guns) which destroyed the French 36 gun frigate Volontaire and two corvettes, Espion and Alert. As a midshipman Lennock again served under Captain Nugent in the Caesar (80 guns) and Pompée (74 guns) and with Captain F. Pickmore in the Royal William.
In March 1796 Mr Lennock joined Assistance (50 guns) in North America where the French frigate Elisabeth (36 guns) was captured in August. He then moved, as Master’s Mate, to the Asia (64 guns), in which ship his brother, George Lennock, was a Lieutenant under Captain Robert Murray. A 64 gun ship had a crew of 500 men and carried 26 x 24 pounder guns, 26 x 12 pounders and 12 x 6 pounders. The Asia, built in Portsmouth, was in service from 1764 until 1804.
Charles Lennock had two tours of duty in the St. Albans (64 guns), first as Acting Lieutenant and then as Lieutenant – commission dated 29 November 1800. Between these sea-going tours he spent from 28th October 1802 to 16th September 1804 with the Sea Fencibles. Then in 1805 he was appointed to the Standard (64 guns) for five and half years under three different captains. They assisted in forcing a passage through the Dardanelles and demolished the defences of the Danish island of Anholt.
Moving to the Bulwark (74 guns) in April 1811, Lieutenant Lennock took part in the defence of Cadiz and from December 1811 to May 1813 he spent his final sea-going appointment in Courageux (74 guns) which was stationed in the Baltic. He had served in the Royal Navy during one of its busiest periods of almost continous active service.
Charles Lennock married Lilias Corson, the fifth daugter of John Corson of Dalwhat, who like her husband had been born in 1777.
In 1821 C.A. Lennock bought Broomfield Cottage (now Broomfield) with a field of a little over 2 Scots acres from James Hastings of Hastingshall, the surgeon. Another one acre field, next to the old millpond was obtained in 1847. Lilias’s sisters, Janet, Jean and Charlotte lived next door, at Broomfield Bank, with a housemaid. At Broomfield Cottage there was a cook, a housemaid Margaret McNaught, and a boy who worked outside.
Charles Lennock was placed on the Junior List of Retired Commanders in 1830 and on the Senior List in 1845. In 1837 he spent £ 3-13-6 on a General Game Certificate which would have enabled him to do some shooting.
As Charles and Lilias had no children the main beneficiary of Charles’s Will was his sister Matilda Lennock who had married, in 1829, George Wallace, minister of Durisdeer and who had six sons and three daughters. Legacies were also bequeathed to a number of funds administered by the Free Church of Scotland.
Commander Charles Adam Lennock died on 26th May 1862, aged 84, and was buried beside his wife under the yew trees in Glencairn churchyard. If he had lived for a few more years he would have inherited from his elder brother, Admiral Lennock, a gold watch and key, a third of the wine at Broomrigg, a Bible and 40 volumes of the Naval Chronicle.
© A.B. Hall
Sources:
A Naval Biographical Dictionary
– W.R. O’Byrne 1849.
Ships of the Royal Navy
– J.J. Colledge 1987.
The Commissioned Sea Officers of the Royal Navy 1660-1815
– D. Syrett and R.L. DiNardo 1994.
Note: Much of the family research was kindly carried out by Mrs Eva Adamson.