Hawke joined the navy in February 1720 and was promoted to rear admiral for his distinguished service against the French in the War of the Austrian Succession (1740–48). In October 1747 he captured six French warships in a brilliant action that took place off the coast of Brittany.

As commander of the fleet blockading the French naval station of Brest in 1759, Hawke played a vital role in the conquest of Canada by the British when he prevented reinforcements from reaching the French army in Canada. The French decided, as a counteroffensive, to invade Great Britain; the French fleet at Brest was crucial to this plan. On Nov. 14, 1759, the French admiral Hubert de Brienne, Count de Conflans, taking advantage of an opening in Hawke's blockade, headed southeast from Brest along the French coast to pick up troops for the invasion. Six days later Hawke's fleet of some 23 ships caught up with Conflans' 21-vessel squadron and drove it into Quiberon Bay. During a three-hour battle and its aftermath, nine French ships were destroyed, and the French unit was rendered incapable of further aggressive action. Hawke then retired from sea duty. He served as first lord of the Admiralty from 1766 to 1771 and was made a baron in 1776.