BEDFORD, Admiral Sir Frederick George Denham

1838 - 1913

Frederick George Denham Bedford was born in Ayrshire, Scotland on 24 December 1838, son of Rear-Admiral Edward James Bedford (18 August 1810-1 July 1887) and his wife Eliza Ann Swainson (20 January 1819-1887), 2nd daughter of John Goad Swainson, a draper, who married at Trinity Church, Liverpool on 27 March 1838. At the age of 14, Frederick joined the Royal Navy and later served in the Crimean War. Frederick married at St Margaret's Church, Ipswich on 28 October 1880, Ethel Turner, daughter of Edward Rush Turner, engineer. In 1881, Frederick was a Captain in the Royal Navy and director of studies at the Royal Naval College, Greenwich. An amateur artist who kept regular albums and diaries and was a member of Ipswich Fine Art Club 1883-1889 and exhibited from Royal Navy College, Greenwich in 1883 ‘The End of the Voyage-The Thames at Greenwich’ and ‘Hay Barges Unloading at Greenwich’ and a sketch 'Near Bovey Tracey’, his later exhibits include paintings in Egypt 'Street Scene, Cairo', 'The Nile near Girgeh' and 'Bedouins Tents near Alexandria'. In 1891, he was living at 67 Elm Park Gardens, Chelsea with four servants, and his wife Ethel was living at 4 Southsea Terrace, Portsmouth with their two children. Appointed junior Naval Lord in 1889, Commander-in-Chief, Cape of Good Hope in 1892 and second Naval Lord in 1895 and commander-in-chief of the North America & West Indies Station until 24 March 1903 when appointed Governor of Western Australia, a position he held until 22 April 1909. Lady Ethel Bedford accompanied her husband and was mistress of Admiralty House in Halifax, Nova Scotia, until 1902 and as Miss Ethel Turner had also exhibited at Ipswich Fine Art Club. She took an interest in benevolent work and frequently performed, for charitable purposes, as a singer at concerts. Admiral Frederick George Denham Bedford died at Swiss Cottage, Weybridge, Walton-on-Thames, Surrey on 30 January 1913. The couple`s son became Vice Admiral Sir Arthur Edward Frederick Bedford, KCB, CSI, who married Miss Gladys Mort of Sydney, Australia.

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Works by This Artist