British Royal Navy Officer. He is remembered for the court martial against him during the American Revolutionary War. He served in the French and Indian War or Seven Years War along with the American Revolution. As a younger son of a wealthy aristocratic father who was wasteful with his inheritance, he was one of fifteen children and went to sea at an early age to start a career. By 1742, he had sailed around the world establishing a career in the Royal Navy and in 1749, was promoted to the rank of commodore. Between 1755 and 1761, he held the office of Member of Parliament for Chichester. He fought against the French in the capture of the Island of Goree in 1759, and in the defeat of Admiral Conflans on November 20, 1759. He held the office of Groom of Bedchamber between 1761 and 1765 and a Member of Parliament for Windsor between 1761 to 1780 representing the Whig Party, where he acquired many allies in high positions. He was second-in-command in August of 1762 at the Siege of Havana, Cuba during the Seven Years War. Along with many members of the military in Cuba, he became ill with a fever, but moved up the rank to Rear-Admiral the same year, then from 1765 to 1766 held the office of Lord Admiralty, and by 1770 the rank of Vice-Admiral. On July 27, 1778 during the American Revolutionary War at the island of Ushant in the English Channel, he came into a notorious dispute with Sir Hugh Palliser, his third-in-command. Knowing each other for twenty years, the two officers had a professional friendship, hence the question that needs to be answered is “was the dispute a simple misunderstanding or a malice act of a third party?” Palliser claimed that Keppel was indecisive in his leadership causing the French fleet, who were supporting the American colonists, to escape, thus losing the Battle of Ushant. Publicly, Keppel returned a response that the problem was Palliser. There was a leak to the local newspaper about the situation and each blamed the other for that. This negative publicity was an embarrassment to the Royal Navy and led to Keppel being court martial for derelict of duty with the death sentence, but later acquitted of charges. Then in retaliation of this, Palliser was court martial for insubordination, but he too was acquitted. Being well-educated with many political and professional connections, Keppel did have the upper hand in the court system. Since Palliser was a Troy and Keppell a Whig, this entire incident became a nasty political tug of war with members of Parliament being divided on which man to support. This division rippled down causing many Naval careers to be destroyed, but neither of the charged men were found guilty. As the American Revolutionary War continued, he gained the rank of Admiral of Blue in 1778, the rank of Admiral of the White in 1782 and, after Lord Sandwich's retirement, held the office of First Lord of the Admiralty between March 1782 and January 1783. Representing the Whig Party for Surrey, he held the office of Member of Parliament from 1780 to 1782, was invested as a Privy Counselor on March 27, 1782 and created 1st Viscount Keppel of Elveden the same year. Although never an outstanding public official, he once again held the office of First Lord of the Admiralty between April and December in 1783, when he bitterly resigned protesting the Treaty of Paris being signed ending the American Revolution. He never married. Several places were named in his honor: Great Keppel Island and the Keppel Bay both in Australia, the Keppel Island in the Falkland Island, and the Keppel's Column in Rotherham, England. There are at least six paintings and at one sculpture of him in British museums. He appears in author Patrick O'Brian's 1956 historical novel, “The Golden Ocean” as a midshipman aboard the H.M.S. Centurion; he did serve on that ship as a midshipman in 1741 and fought at the capture of Paita. Due to his appearance after having scurvy from being at sea for many years without any source of Vitamin C, he is often the comic relief appearing as a bald, toothless old man. He is also known as August van Keppel.