Gilbert Heathcote (1779 – 22 April 1831) was an officer of the Royal Navy who served during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars. Heathcote was born into a gentry family in 1779, the youngest son of a baronet. He and a brother entered the navy, with Gilbert reaching officer rank during the French Revolutionary Wars. He was promoted to his first command early in the Napoleonic Wars, but his ship was wrecked in a gale. His career survived largely unscathed however, and he commanded several more ships, reaching the rank of post-captain during a period of service in the East Indies, before his health obliged him to return to Britain. He undertook a final spell of active service in the closing years of the Napoleonic Wars in command of a frigate, before retiring ashore, and dying in 183