File:Sir Charles Wager (1666-1743) RMG L9769.jpg

A three-quarter length portrait, showing Wager standing to right and facing slightly to the left. He wears a grey velvet coat with gold buttons, lightly embroidered buttonholes and a grey full bottom wig. His right hand rests on his baton, his left on his hip. In the right background is his flagship in action, blue at the fore, but with a red ensign.

In 1692 he was a lieutenant in the ‘Britannia’ at the battle of Barfleur. He served under Sir Cloudesley Shovell in the Mediterranean and took part in the capture of Barcelona in 1705. In 1707 he went as Commodore to Jamaica, where he intercepted a Spanish treasure fleet in May 1708. With only three ships, he was much weaker in force than the Spaniards and was further hindered by lack of support from two of his captains. Alone in his ship the ‘Expedition’, Wager attacked the principal Spanish flagship which blew up. He captured the Spanish rear admiral, but discovered that the treasure had either been destroyed in the flagship or escaped in the vice admiral’s ship. Only a small proportion was found in the rear admiral’s flagship. In 1715 he became Comptroller of the Navy until 1716 when he was appointed a commissioner of the Admiralty, a position he held until he became First Lord in 1733. During this time he took a fleet to the Baltic in 1726 and helped thwart the ambitions of Russia. The following year he was again engaged in the Mediterranean. He then continued in commands in the Channel and the Mediterranean until 1731. He was First Lord of the Admiralty 1733-42. The navy benefited greatly from Wager’s constant interest and care for the improvement in the conditions of service and he was an early innovator in the use of citrus fruits against scurvy. The portrait was painted in 1710 when Wager was aged 54. The blue flag was an addition after 1716. It is signed and dated ‘G. Kneller. Eques 1710’ and was presented by George IV to Greenwich Hospital Collection in 1824.