William Allen
(1793-1864), Rear-AdmiralEarly Victorian Portraits Catalogue Entry
Sitter in 1 portrait
William Allen entered the Navy in 1802, and rose swiftly through the ranks. He was best known for commanding the steamer Wilberforce in the disastrous Niger expedition of 1841-42, after which was placed on half pay. In 1848 Allen published A Narrative of the Expedition Sent by H.M.'s Government to the River Niger in 1841. The following year he travelled through Syria and Palestine, and published the results in The Dead Sea, a New Route to India. He attracted considerable attention for his advocacy of the construction of a canal between the Mediterranean and the Red Sea. Allen was promoted to retired rear-admiral in 1862.
by William Brockedon
black and red chalk, 1834
NPG 2515(68)
Comments back to top
We are currently unable to accept new comments, but any past comments are available to read below.
If you need information from us, please use our Archive enquiry service . Please note that we cannot provide valuations. You can buy a print or greeting card of most illustrated portraits. Select the portrait of interest to you, then look out for a Buy a Print button. Prices start at around £6 for unframed prints, £16 for framed prints. If you wish to license an image, select the portrait of interest to you, then look out for a Use this image button, or contact our Rights and Images service. We digitise over 8,000 portraits a year and we cannot guarantee being able to digitise images that are not already scheduled.