Acton, SIR JOHN FRANCIS EDWARD

Acton, SIR JOHN FRANCIS EDWARD, minister of Ferdinand IV. of Naples, was the son of an English physician, and was born at Besançon in 1737. After acquiring distinction in the naval service of Tuscany, he became successively admiral and generalissimo in that of Naples, and soon managed the entire administration. His measures, able but arbitrary, ultimately caused a reaction against the royal family of Naples, and in favour of the French party. Acton fell from power in 1806, and died August 12, 1811, at Palermo.