Charles Sotheby (died 1854) was an officer in the Royal Navy who served during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, eventually rising to the rank of Rear Admiral. Sotheby was present as a midshipman at the Battle of the Nile in 1798, serving aboard the 74-gun HMS Alexander, and took part in the Siege of Malta and subsequent operations in Egypt in 1801. Sotheby was made acting lieutenant on the 36-gun frigate HMS Penelope in October 1801, an appointment that was confirmed in January the following year. He served in that capacity in the English Channel and North Sea. In April 1807, he joined HMS Thetis for service in the Anglo-Turkish War.