Sidney Smith (Royal Navy officer)

Admiral

Sir Sidney Smith

GCB FRS
Admiral; Sir Sidney Smith; GCB FRS
	Portrait by Robert Ker Porter, 1820
Born	21 June 1764; Westminster, London
Died	26 May 1840 (aged 75); Paris, France
Allegiance	Great Britain ; Sweden ; United Kingdom
Branch	Royal Navy ; Swedish Navy
Service years	1777–1815
Rank	Admiral (Royal Navy)
Conflicts	American War of Independence Battle of Cape St. Vincent (1780); Battle of the Chesapeake; Battle of the Saintes; ; Russo-Swedish War (1788–1790) Battle of Vyborg Bay (1790); Battle of Svensksund (1790); ; French Revolutionary Wars Siege of Toulon (1793); Capture of Îles Saint-Marcouf; Croisière du Grand Hiver; French invasion of Egypt and Syria Siege of Acre (1799); Battle of Abukir (1799); Battle of Abukir (1801); Battle of Alexandria (1801); Siege of Cairo; Siege of Alexandria (1801); ; ; Napoleonic Wars Channel Coast campaign; Battle of Ostend (1804); Raid on Boulogne; Invasion of Naples (1806); Battle of Maida; Dardanelles operation; ; Peninsular War; Hundred Days Reduction of the French fortresses in 1815; Occupation of Paris; ;
Awards	Order of the Sword; Order of the Tower and Sword; Knight Commander of the Bath; Knight Grand Cross of the Most Honourable Order of the Bath

Admiral Sir William Sidney Smith (21 June 1764 – 26 May 1840) was a British naval officer and politician. Serving in the American War of Independence and French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, he rose to the rank of admiral in the Royal Navy. Smith was known for his outspoken character and penchant for acting on his own initiative, which caused a great deal of friction with many of his superiors and colleagues.

Smith's military skill, personal intelligence and enterprise led to his involvement in a variety of tasks which involved warfare, diplomacy and espionage. He became a hero in Britain for leading the successful defence of Acre in 1799, thwarting Napoleon's plans of further conquest in Ottoman Syria. Napoleon, reminiscing later in his life, reportedly said of him: "That man made me miss my destiny".