Edward Cooke

Captain Edward Cooke was a Royal Navy officer of the late eighteenth century who was best known for his service during the French Revolutionary Wars. Cooke gained notoriety in the first year of the war as a junior officer when he was entrusted with the surrender negotiations of the French port city of Toulon. Cooke's success under threat of execution led to the British occupation of the city and the ensuing Siege of Toulon. Cooke was promoted for the successful negotiations and given command of the large captured French frigate HMS Sybille in the Indian Ocean. In 1798 he led a successful bloodless raid on the port of Manila in the Spanish Philippines. In the following year Cooke tracked down and engaged the powerful French raiding frigate Forte off the mouth of the Hooghly River at the action of 28 February 1799. In the ensuing battle, Forte was captured but Cooke was struck by grape shot. He would die in Calcutta on 25 May and was interred with full military honours.²