A three-quarter-length portrait to the left showing Blight seated in his rear-admiral’s full dress uniform, 1856–78, with a coastal scene visible through a window in the left background.
William Blight entered the Navy as a volunteer in the 64-gun ‘Intrepid’ on 9 May 1793. He continued in her as midshipman, master’s mate and acting lieutenant until confirmed lieutenant on 15 April 1803 and appointed to the 100-gun ‘Britannia’ under the Earl of Northesk. Blight thus saw action at Trafalgar and was sent to take possession of the capture French 74-gun ‘Aigle’, which was lost in the gale that followed the battle. In 1806, he followed Northesk into the ‘Dreadnought’ before being appointed to the ‘Néréide’ that August, seeing action at the Buenos Aires in July 1807. He continued in the ‘Néréide’ to the East Indies, where the crew mutinied. In February 1809, the captain, Robert Corbet, was tried for cruelty in suppressing the mutiny; Blight was the principal witness for the defence.
Between 1812 and 1814, he was agent for transports at Palermo and then first lieutenant of the ‘Queen Charlotte’ at Portsmouth, 1819–21. Blight was promoted commander on 12 February 1821. In May 1828 he returned to the ‘Britannia’, Lord Northesk’s flagship as commander-in-chief at Plymouth, being transferred to the ‘St Vincent’ before posted from her on 22 July 1830. He saw no further naval employment and retired as a captain on 1 October 1850. He was promoted rear-admiral on the retired list on 27 September 1855.