Robert Blake (admiral)

Robert Blake was an English naval officer who served as general at sea and the Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports from 1656 to 1657. Blake served under Oliver Cromwell during the English Civil War and Anglo-Spanish War, and as the commanding Admiral of the State's Navy during the First Anglo-Dutch War. Blake is recognized as the "chief founder of England's naval supremacy", a dominance subsequently inherited by the British Royal Navy well into the early 20th century. Despite this, due to deliberate attempts to expunge the Parliamentarians from historical records following the Stuart Restoration, Blake's achievements tend to remain relatively unrecognized. Blake's successes, however, are considered to have "never been excelled, not even by Nelson" according to one biographer, while Blake is often compared with Nelson by others.

27 September 1598

Born on the same birth day (27 September): Al MacNeil • Conrad Heidkamp • Dion Lewis • Indira Varma • Jean-Marc Barr • Jon Rauch • Lawrence Sullivan Ross • Lil Wayne • Matt Harding • Peter Bonetti • Ricardo Risatti

Born in the same month (September 1598): Eleonora Gonzaga (1598–1655)