Served in Europe under Wellington. Posted to Raffles Bay then ordered to King George's Sound 19 November 1829 to take command of the garrison when he arrived 3 December 1829. The garrison withdrew 19 March 1831. He was then ordered by Governor Darling to determine whether the entrance to the River Murray was into the Gulf of St Vincent. Captain Barker was speared by natives when attempting to swim across the channel at the mouth of the Murray River, South Australia on 30 April 1831. His name is commemorated in the towns of Mount Barker in Western Australia and South Australia.