Forbes, John, 1714-1796

British admiral.

British naval officer.

Admiral John Forbes (1714-1796) was the second son of George Forbes, 3rd Earl of Granard. He entered the Royal Navy at a young age, and had risen to the rank of Rear Admiral by 1747. in 1749 he was created Commander-in-Chief of the Mediterranean. As a Lord of the Admiralty, Forbes refused to sign the death warrant of Admiral John Byng in protest at the harshness of the sentence, and as a consequence of this disagreement with his colleagues retired from the Board of Admiralty on 6 April. He was reappointed on 29 June 1757. Created a Vice Admiral in 1755, Forbes became an Admiral of the Blue, 1758, General of Marines, 1763, Admiral of the White, 1770, and Admiral of the Fleet, 1781. He also published a Memoir of the Earls of Granard (1868). He died in 1796. Admiral John Byng (1704-1757) was court-martialed, convicted and sentenced to death in 1757, following an abortive attempt in 1756 to to relieve the British garrison in Port Mahon, Menorca, from French forces. He was executed by firing squad on the deck of HMS Monarch on 14 March 1757.