Joshua Macer was born in 1779 in Whittlesford, near Cambridge. He joined the Navy in September 1797 and served aboard H.M.S. Belvedere and then H.M.S Monarch. H.M.S Monarch’s battles included in the Battles of Ushant in 1778, , Cape St. Vincent in 1780, Chesapeake in 1781, St. Kitts and then The Saintes in 1782, Muizenberg in 1795 (Monarch was part of the small fleet that captured the Cape of Good Hope from the Dutch VOC), and then Copenhagen in 1801 (as part of Nelson’s fleet).

In The Battle of Copenhagen, a British fleet defeated a Danish-Norwegian fleet anchored just off Copenhagen. Copenhagen is often considered to be Nelson’s hardest fought battle, surpassing even the heavy fighting at Trafalgar. It was during this battle, that H.M.S Monarch suffered the most damage out of the British ships present and during the battle, Joshua lost his right arm.

He was discharged from H.M.S Monarch at Chatham, Kent on 27th April 1802 and Joshua lived to be 79. He died at St Johns Hospital, Huntingdon on 9th June 1858.