English Captain: John Day

John Day served in both the Commonwealth and Restoration navies. Andrew says that he saw a reference that shows that John Day commanded the Old Warwick (20 guns and a crew of 80 men) in 1651. In 1652, he was captain of the Advice (42 guns) and fought at the Battle of the Kentish Knock. R. C. Anderson lists John Day as the captain of the hired merchantman Sapphire in 1650. Michael Baumber says that John Day was wounded at the Battle of Portland, while commanding the Advice. In 1938, Anderson did not list John Day and the Advice as being at the Kentish Knock. He writes that George Deakins was in command at the Kentish Knock. The Advice was not present at the Gabbard, and at Scheveningen, Jeremy Smith was captain. In 1664, John Day was Lieutenant of the Royal Katherine. In 1666, he was appointed as captain of the Baltimore (48 guns). Sir Thomas Allin criticized John Day at the St. James's Day Battle for not bringing his ship into the line, along with others. He was in Sir Thomas Teddiman's division in the battle. Sources:

1. R. C. Anderson, "English Fleet-Lists in the First Dutch War," The Mariner's Mirror, Vol.XXIV No.4, October 1938.
2. R. C. Anderson, List of English Naval Captains 1642-1660, 1964.
3. Michael Baumber, General-at-Sea, 1989.
4. Frank Fox, A Distant Storm: the Four Days' Battle of 1666, 1996.
5. J.R. Tanner, A Descriptive Catalogue of the Naval Manuscripts in the Pepysian Library at Magdalene College, Cambridge, Vol.I, 1903.