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Thursday, August 31, 2006

De Ruyter's flagship in the summer of 1665: the Delfland

Ron van Maanen has the details about the Delfland, which served as Michiel De Ruyter's flagship in the summer of 1665. In his list, Dutch Warships 1600-1800, he says that the Delfland was built for Spain and hired by the Delft chamber of the VOC.
The ship Delfland

Length from stem to sternpost:  153ft
Beam:                            37ft
Hold:                            15ft
Height over hold:                 7-3/4ft

64 guns:
Lower deck:   4-24pdr, 20-18pdr
Upper deck:   20-12pdr
Quarter deck: 16-6pdr
Cabin:        4-3pdr

70 Guns 29 April 1665:  1-36pdr, 4-24pdr, 21-18pdr, 20-12pdr, 24-8pdr 

Wednesday, August 30, 2006

Another mystery solved: the West Cappelle in 1653 and 1654

Ron van Maanen's document "Dutch Warships 1600-1800" provides an answer to another question. We knew that Claes Jansz Sanger's ship, the West Cappelle was taken by the English and destroyed at the Battle of Scheveningen in 1653. Captain Sanger was taken prisoner, in the process. However, the Staet van Oorlog te Water for the year 1654 listed the ship, still as being the ship built in 1638, as did Dr. Elias in an appendix to De Vlootbouw in Nederland. Ron says that a new, smaller West Cappelle was built in 1654, and continued in service until 1667. Ab Hoving, several years ago, told me that he had thought that would prove to be the explanation.

Tuesday, August 29, 2006

The ship Batavia, which fought in the Battle of Lowestoft

Nicolaas Naalhout commanded the ship Batavia at the Battle of Lowestoft. Ron van Maanen says that the Batavia had been purchased on 1 April 1665 at Zaandam by the Rotterdam Chamber of the VOC. The ship was returned to the VOC by the navy in 1666. Ron also has details of the ship in his document:
The ship Batavia, Capt. Naalhout

Length from stem to sternpost:  136ft
Beam:                            29ft
Hold:                            14ft
Height over hold:                 7ft

44 guns:
Lower Deck: 20-12pdr
Upper Deck: 16-8pdr, 8-3pdr

Crew: 148 men

Monday, August 28, 2006

The ship Westfriesland

The Wrangell Collection document has new information about the ship Westfriesland, commanded by Hendrick Huyskens in 1652 and 1653. The ship was said to have been hired for f2000 and the crew employed for f1114. This is the data from the document:
]
The ship Westfriesland, Capt. Huyskens

Length from stem to sternpost:  118ft
Beam:                            28ft
Hold:                            10-1/2ft
Height over hold:                 6-1/2ft (het bovenet)
28 guns:
 4 brass pieces    12 lbs
16 gotelingen       8 lbs
 4 brass pieces     6 lbs
 2 drakes           6 lbs
 2 iron gotelingen  3 lbs

Crew:  90 men

Sunday, August 27, 2006

My listing for the Amsterdam Directors' ship Alexander

This is my listing in my new format for the Amsterdam Directors' ship Alexander:
Adm    Ship                  Date  Acq    Length Beam  Hold  Height Over Hold
A-Dir  Alexander             1652  h      131.5  27.75 13    6.75           

Date        Sailors Soldiers  Guns  Gun list
08/11/1652   95               28    4-br 12pdr,8-12pdr,8-8pdr,6-6pdr,2-3pdr

Note        Commander                    Fate Ship    Fate Captain   Notes
13/03/1652  Jan Meyckes (Maijkers)                                   hired
29/05/1652  Jan Meyckes (Maijkers)                                   Battle of Dover
30/06/1652  Jan Meyckes (Maijkers)                                   with the fleet in Jan Evertsen's squadron
04/08/1652  Jan Meyckes (Maijkers)                                   Voyage to the Shetlands


Sources
Dr. Carl Ballhausen, Der Erste Englisch-Höllandische Seekrieg 1652-1654, 1923
Dr. S.R. Gardiner, Ed., The First Dutch War, Vol.I, 1898
Nationaal Archief  1.03.02 Inv. nr. 8, 8 November 1652
Hendrik de Raedt, Lyste van de schepen van Oorloge onder het beleyt Admirael Marten Harpersz. Tromp, 1652

Saturday, August 26, 2006

From the notes of Ron van Maanen, Cornelis van Velsen's ship Gelderland

Cornelis van Velsen commanded the ship Gelderland during the First Anglo-Dutch War up to the Battle of the Gabbard, when the ship was lost in action due to a gunpowder explosion. Ron van Maanen's notes have the information about the ship:
The ship Gelderland, Capt. Cornelis van Velsen
Length from stem to sternpost:  112ft
Beam:                            28ft
Hold:                            11ft
Height above hold:                6-1/2ft
28 guns:
16-10pdr
10-6pdr
2-3pdr

Crew:  100 men
Sources:
  1. Johan E. Elias, Schetsen uit de geschiedenis van ons zeewezen, Vol.V, 1928
  2. Dr. S.R. Gardiner, Ed., The First Dutch War, Vol.II, 1900
  3. Ron van Maanen, unpublished manuscript "Dutch Warships 1600-1800", undated, but circa 1992

Friday, August 25, 2006

A candidate for Gijsbert Malcontent's ship

My study of Ron van Maanen's list of ships: Dutch Warships 1600-1800 suggests a candidate for Gijsbert Malcontent's ship in 1652 and up to the Three Days' Battle in 1653:
The ship Maagd van Enkhuizen, hired by the Enkhuizen Directors
in service in 1653

Length from stem to sternpost:  120ft
Beam:                            28ft
Hold:                            unknown
Height over hold:                 7ft

28 guns
crew: 110 men
We have hopes of receiving information about Ron's sources for individual ships. They are needed so that we can find the documents he saw, so that we might find information about captains, which Ron did not record.

Thursday, August 24, 2006

The hired ship Jupiter

The Admiralty of Amsterdam hired the ship Jupiter for service in the Mediterranean Sea. The ship was commanded by Cornelis Janszoon. These are the particulars from three pages in the papers of S. Hart, from the Gemeentearchief Amsterdam:
The ship Jupiter, Capt. Cornelis Jansz.

Length from stem to sternpost:  130ft
Beam:                            30ft
Hold:                            14ft
Height over hold:                 7ft

28 guns:
 4-12pdr
10-8pdr
12-6pdr
 2-4pdr
We know from a list in The First Dutch War, Vol.IV, that the crew consisted of 100 men.

Wednesday, August 23, 2006

The fireship Graaf Sonderlandt

The papers of S. Hart, from the Gemeentearchief Amsterdam, has one sheet about the Amsterdam fireship Graaf Sonderlandt:
The fireship Graaf Sonderlandt

Length from stem to sternpost:  107ft
Beam:                            23ft
Hold:                            11ft
Height above hold:            5ft
From the document from the Wrangell Collection, we know that the crew was 18 men.

Tuesday, August 22, 2006

17th Century Naval Wargaming seems to be having trouble (Blogger-type trouble: thanks, Google)

I seem to not able to see this blog, right now, although it has been working today. The problem seems to be with the server that this blog is on.

The extended format for ship information: the Achilles

This is in the style that I am trying for my extended ship information in my document of Dutch ships that served from 1652 to 1654.
Adm    Ship                  Date  Acq    Length Beam  Hold  Height Over Hold
A      Achilles              1652  h      131    29    13    7-7in           

Date        Sailors Soldiers  Guns  Gun list
      1652  100      20       28    4-12pdr,12-8pdr,8-4pdr,2-2pdr

Note        Commander                    Fate Ship    Fate Captain   Notes
    8/1652  Dirck Schey                                              Fitting out in Amsterdam and the Texel
    8/1652  Dirck Schey                                              Lying off the Duijntjes with De With
    9/1652  Dirck Schey                                              at anchor in the Schooneveld
   12/1652  Dirck Schey                                              in Witte de With's squadron
    3/1653  Dirck Schey                                              At Havre de Grace

Sources
De Jonge, Geschiedenis van het Nederlandsche Zeewezen
Wrangell Collection document 1652

Monday, August 21, 2006

The Friesland fireship Vergulde Buys, hired in Amsterdam

Friesland hired their ships in Amsterdam in 1652. One of those ships hired was the ship Vergulde Buys, which served as a fireship. These seem to be the particulars (from the notes of S. Hart, from the Gemeentearchief Amsterdam):
The ship, the Vergulde Buys

Length from stem to sternpost:  112ft
Beam:                            23-1/2ft
Hold:                            10-1/2ft
Height between decks (?):         5ft
Perhaps I will be able to read more in a few days, but that is about the extent of what I can currently read.

Sunday, August 20, 2006

The 136ft Charter ships

The middle-sized ship built as part of the First Anglo-Dutch War building program was 136ft long. Their nominal dimensions were:
Length from stem to sternpost:  136ft
Beam:                            34ft
Hold:                            14ft
Length on the keel:             113ft
Height between decks:             7-1/2ft
Pieter Florissen's flagship Jozua was a prominent member of this charter. The Jozua was apparently completed in 1654 (or was it 1655?), and was mentioned obliquely in the Staet van Oorlog te Water for the year 1654, in July. Of the 64 ships included in the First Anglo-Dutch War building program, 15 ships were to be built to the 136ft Charter. Seven were to built in what Dr. Elias called increment III and eight were in increment IV. Rotterdam was to build some 134ft-long ships and no 136ft ships. The actual dimensions seem to have varied:
Adm Ship              Date  Dimensions 
N   Gelderland        1654  136ft x 36ft x 13-1/2ft
Z   Hof van Zeeland   1653  136ft x 34ft x 13-3/4ft
A   Huis Tijdverdrijf 1655  136ft x 34ft x 14ft
N   Jozua             1654  136ft x 34ft x 14ft
A   Stad en Lande     1653  136ft x 34ft x 14ft
Their armament varied considerably over time:
Date  Adm Ship          Guns
1654  N   Jozua         4-brass 24pdr,18-18pdr,10-12pdr,10-8pdr,4-6pdr,4-4pdr
1666  N   Jozua         18-brass 18pdr,8-brass 12pdr,10-brass 8pdr,2-6pdr,6-4pdr,2-3pdr,2-2pdr,4-unknown
1654  A   Stad en Lande 4-brass 18pdr,18-18pdr,4-brass 8pdr,16-8pdr,6-brass 6pdr drakes
1666  A   Stad en Lande 22-18pdr,22-8pdr,16-3pdr
The arming plan for the Stad en Lande in 1666 seems pretty strange, in that they got the number of guns up to 60 by putting on 16-3pdr guns of little weight and effect. Sources:
  1. Johan E. Elias, De Vlootbouw in Nederland 1596-1655, 1933
  2. H.A. van Foreest and R.E.J. Weber, De Vierdaagse Zeeslag 11-14 Juni 1666, 1984
  3. Ron van Maanen, "De Dutch in Danish Waters", undated
  4. Staet van Oorlog te Water for the year 1654, 1654

Saturday, August 19, 2006

The 130ft Charter ships built in 1653 and 1654

The vast majority of ships built for the Dutch wartime building program initiated from late 1652 were of the 130ft charter. One standard set of dimensions was 130ft x 32ft x 13-1/2ft. The height between decks was 7 feet. As built, a few were armed with just 32 guns, at least in 1654, but the standard armament for much of the 1650's was 40 guns. Of the first 30 ships, 19 were to be built to this charter, although the actual number built was smaller. The Zeeland ships actually were built with a 34ft beam. The Noorderkwartier ships had a hold depth of only 12ft (for example, the Jupiter). The Zeeland ships, at least, had a keel length of 108ft. In July 1654, the Amsterdam ship Landman carried 44 guns: 4-brass 24pdr, 6-brass 12pdr, 18-iron 12pdr, 12-8pdr, and 4-brass 6pdr drakes. The Stavoren was one of the ships initially armed with only 32 guns, in July 1654: 4-brass 24pdr, 4-brass 12pdr, 16-iron 12pdr, 4-iron 9pdr, and 4-brass 6pdr drakes. Sources:
  1. Johan E. Elias, De Vlootbouw in Nederland 1596-1655, 1933
  2. Ron van Maanen, "De Dutch in Danish Waters", undated.
  3. Staet van Oorlog te Water for the year 1654, 1654

Friday, August 18, 2006

English naval officer: Sir John Munden

Sir John Munden served in the English navy in from the 1670's until the early 1700's. He was appointed 2nd Lieutenant of the St. David on 30 November 1677. He was appointed Lieutenant of the Constant Warwick on 16 July 1681. The King appointed him Lieutenant of the Mary Rose on 17 June 1685. On 11 July 1686, the King appointed him as First Lieutenant of the Charles galley. He was appointed to command the Half Moon fireship on 23 July 1688. He was promoted to Captain on 14 December 1688 and the Earl of Dartmouth appointed him to command the Edgar. He fought in the Battle of Beachy Head in 1690, where he commanded the Coronation (90 guns). In 1692, he fought in the Battle of Barfleur, where he commanded the Lennox (70 guns). In 1697, he cruised in the Mediterranean Sea to help suppress piracy. He commanded the Winchester (60 guns). On 14 April 1701, he was appointed Rear-Admiral of the Blue. On 1 July 1701, he was knighted. On 2 September 1701, he commanded an Anglo-Dutch squadron which escorted Admiral Benbow's squadron as they sailed for the Caribbean. On 28 January 1702, he was appointed Rear-Admiral of the White. He had been appointed Rear-Admiral of the Red on 30 June 1701. He was dismissed from the service sometime in 1702. He had commanded a squadron sent to Spain, and tried to intercept 13 French warships, but he could not catch them, and they got into Corunna. He was put before a court martial and was acquitted of all charges. The Queen was unhappy, nonetheless, and had the Lord High Admiral dismiss him from the service. Sir John Munden died in 1718. William Laird Clowes considers that he was mistreated. Sources:
  1. William Laird Clowes, The Royal Navy: A History from the Earliest Times to the Present, Vol.II, 1898
  2. David Syrett, R. L. DiNardo, The Commissioned Sea Officers of the Royal Navy 1660-1815, 1994
  3. J.R. Tanner, A Descriptive Catalogue of the Naval Manuscripts in the Pepysian Library at Magdalene College, Cambridge, Vol.I, 1903

Thursday, August 17, 2006

The ship Hoop (24 guns) hired in 1652

Another ship from the list of ships hired in 1652 is the ship Hoop (24 guns) commanded by Wolphert van Brederode. The Hoop took part in a convoy to Muscovy sometime from August 1652 and was paid off, probably late in the year. These are the details:
The ship the Hoop, Capt. Brederode

Length from stem to sternpost:  120ft
Beam:                            26ft
Hold:                            11-1/2ft
Height between decks:             6ft

24 guns:
 8 gotelingen     8 lbs
12 gotelingen     6 lbs
 6 gotelingen     3 lbs
 2 gotelingen     2 lbs

Crew:  70 men

Wednesday, August 16, 2006

The Frisian ship Breda

Jan Glete had sent me a copy of a document written by Ron van Maanen sometime in the past (presumably the man on the linked page is the same one). That document gives some new dimensions for the Frisian ship Breda. I also know the armament for the Breda from the Staet van Oorlog te Water for the year 1654 (at least the armament at that date):
Length:  120ft
Beam:     28ft or 29ft
Hold:     1x-1/2ft (probably 11-1/2ft).
Height between decks:  7ft

32 guns (all iron):
6-12pdr
10- 8pdr
12- 6pdr
4- 4pdr

Crew: 80 to 112 men
Sources:
  1. Ron van Maanen, "De Dutch in Danish Waters: Part 1. The Dutch fleet in 1658 and 1659", unknown date
  2. Staet van Oorlog te Water for the year 1654

Tuesday, August 15, 2006

I have a document that definitively shows that Jacob Cornelisz Swart commanded the Faam in 1653

I have a document that shows definitively that Jacob Cornelisz Swart was captain of the Amsterdam Director's ship Faam, at least in early 1653. This is the only handwritten document that I recall seeing that has his full name: Jacob Cornelisz Swart with the information about his ship, the Faam. In case that you are not familiar with this ship, which served from early 1652 until at least late 1653, here are the specifications:
The ship, the Faam, kapitein Jacob Cornelisz Swart

Length from stem to sternpost:  116ft
Beam:                            28ft
Hold:                            11ft
Height between decks:             7ft

28 guns:
4-brass 12pdr
8-iron  12pdr
8-iron   8pdr
6-iron   6pdr
2-iron   3pdr

Crew:  105 men

Monday, August 14, 2006

Vreugdenhil was apparently wrong about the two Catarinas possibly being the same ship

In his list, published in 1938, Vreugdenhil speculated that numbers 100 and 230 in his list might be the same ship. Since we now have specifications for both ships, we can see that they were extremely likely to be different ships. Number 100 was the 24-gun ship assigned to the Fishery Protection Squadron, and was captured by the English on 22 July 1652. We have information about the Catarina (28 guns) (as the ship is called) from 30 January 1653 from the Nationaal Archief. The information about the Catharina (24 guns) is from the pages from the Wrangell Collection. The two ships, if you believe the sources, were quite different. The Amsterdam Directors' ship had the following characteristics:
Catarina

hired by the Amsterdam Directors in January 1653

Captain:  Jacob Jansz Coppe

Length from stem to sternpost:  125ft
Beam:                            29-1/4ft (or 28-1/2ft)
Hold:                            12-1/2ft
Height between decks:             7ft

28 guns:
12-12pdr
 6-8pdr
 8-6pdr
 2-3pdr

Crew:  110 men


Catharina

Hired by the Admiralty of Amsterdam on 4 June 1652

Captain:  Dirck Bogaart

Length from stem to sternpost:  116ft
Beam:                            25ft
Hold:                            11-1/2ft
Height between decks:             6-1/2ft

24 guns:

6-8pdr
8-6pdr
4-4pdr
4-3pdr
2-brass bases, 3pdr

Crew: 70 to 80 men

Sunday, August 13, 2006

It turns out that I know the height between decks for more ships than I knew

I had only recently become interested in recording the height between decks for Dutch ships. It turns out that a document provided me by Jan Glete in September 2004 written by Ron van Maanen, has that information for ships involved in operations in 1658. Here are some examples. Note that the actual measurement for the Eendracht's length was 152ft, despite being intended to be 150ft long:
Adm Ship                Date Guns Sailors Soldiers Length    Beam     Hold     Ht bet decks
R   Eendracht           1653 72   240     75       152ft     38ft     15ft-3in  7ft-9in
R   Rotterdam           1639 34    91     20       115ft-5in 27ft-3in 10ft-10in 6ft
R   Wapen van Dordrecht 1655 42   130     30       127ft-7in 32ft-5in 13ft-3in  7ft-4in
A   Landman             1653 40   136              130ft     32ft     13-1/2ft  7ft
A   Zon                 1640 40   115     24       130ft     31-1/2ft 12ft      7ft
A   Westfriesland       1648 28   100              118ft     28ft     10-1/2ft  6-1/2ft
N   Jozua               1653 50   150              136ft     34ft     14ft      7-1/2ft

Saturday, August 12, 2006

Mystery ships and the Admiralty of Amsterdam in 1652 and 1653

Especially with respect to ships built as warships by the Admiralty of Amsterdam, I don't believe in "Mystery Ships". Abraham van der Hulst seemed like a compelling case for the existence of a "Mystery Ship" (one that we did not know about from published sources). The problem with the concept of "Mystery Ships" is that the ships in service with the Admiralty of Amsterdam in 1652 and early 1653 were very well-defined. The relevant documents are the following:
The Board of Admiralty in Amsterdam to the States General, dated 5 August 1652
  This is a summary of the ships in service and their employment, 
  although only captains are mentioned (published in The First Dutch War, Vol.I)

List of ships under the control of the Admiralty Board of Amsterdam
  This is undated by from the contents, appears to be from about mid-March 1653
     (published in The First Dutch War, Vol.IV)

Staat der Nederlandsche Zeemagt, in Maart des jaars 1653
   This is an outline of the strength of the Dutch navy, organized by 
     admiralty, and not listing ship names or captains, but is a 
     summary list. Many ships can be identified from the outline and
     the sailors and soldiers in the crew are specified for the 
     Admiralty of the Maze and the Admiralty of Amsterdam
      (published as Appendix XXII to Vol.I of Geschiedenis van het
        het Nederlandsche Zeewezen)

Friday, August 11, 2006

The Hoop, ship of Joris Collerij (Colerij, or Caullerij)

Another ship in the list from the Wrangel Collection is the 28-gun ship Hoop, commanded by Joris Collerij (Colerij or Caullerij). The Hoop was with Tromp's fleet on 30 June 1652 in Pieter Florissen's squadron. He was also with the fleet on the voyage to the Shetlands, and is listed in Hendrick de Raedt's pamphlet. His ship was paid off either in late 1652 or early 1653. This is the information about the Hoop from the Wrangel Collection document:
the ship, the Hoop, Capt. Collerij
Length from stem to sternpost:  120-1/2ft
Beam:                            25-1/2ft
Height between decks:             6ft-1in
28 guns:
 4 guns            10 lbs
 4 iron gotelingen  8 lbs
12 iron gotelingen  6 lbs
 6 iron gotelingen  3 lbs
 2 iron gotelingen  2 lbs

Crew: 90 men

Thursday, August 10, 2006

The hired ship Patientia from the document from the Wrangel Collection

The Patientia as a 24-gun hired ship commanded by Adriaan van Loenen in 1652. The ship was eventually paid off. The Patientia seems to have been employed as a convoyer. In August, the ship was said to have been allocated to a convoy to the Sound. This is the information from the Wrangel Document. Striking features are the length and narrow beam and the extremely light armament:
The ship Patientia, Capt. van Loenen (it says "von Loenen")
Length from stem to sternpost:  130ft
Beam:                            25ft
Hold:                            11ft
Height between decks:             6-1/2ft
24 guns:
 4 gotelingen        8 lbs
10 gotelingen        6 lbs
 4 gotelingen        4 lbs
 4 gotelingen        3 lbs
 2 gotelingen        2 lbs

Crew:  70 men

Wednesday, August 09, 2006

Built as a warship or hired?

The entire question about which ships were built as warships and which were armed merchant ships that were hired seems to be pretty complicated. There is the document from the Wrangel Collection that lists ships as being hired that other sources say had been built as warships. There are other sources, such as the list of ships in Hendrick de Raedt's pamphlet. That list indicates that Dirck Juynbol's ship, the Gelderland (30 guns) was built as a warship. There are ships specifically listed as being part of the 100 ships of the Extraordinary Equipage:
R=Rotterdam
A=Amsterdam
Z=Zeeland
Adm Ship           Guns Crew Commander
R   Roskam           26 105  Corstiaen Eldertszoon
R   Maria            26 110  Crijn van der Kerckhoff
R   Prins te Paard   38 120  Corstiaen Corstiaenszoon
A   Hoop             28  90  Joris Collerij
A   Keyser           24  80  Jan ter Stegen
Z   a ship           28 100  Lambert Bartelszoon
Z  a fast storeship  20 100  Johannes Michielszoon
Z   Meermin          34*120* Jacob Wolfertszoon
Z   a ship           26* 90* Daniel Cornelisz Brackman
Z   Gecroonde Liefde 24  90* Dingeman Cats
We have thought that the Roskam was built as a warship, circa 1639, but cannot be sure. The Meermin and Gecroonde Liefde were also almost certainly built as warships, as well. We need to see if there is any explanation about why this would be the case, as well as with the Campen and other ships from the Wrangel Collection list that are said to be hired. There are other ships in the Hendrick de Raedt list that were almost certainly hired, but the list is silent on the subject (such as the Roode Leeuw, 24 guns, the ship of Reynst Cornelisz Sevenhuysen).

Tuesday, August 08, 2006

The Campen and the other warships in the 1652 list

The fact that the Campen appears in the list of ships "hired" in 1652 is a concern, in that the ship was almost certainly built as a warship, and was completed in early 1652 (prior to 29 May by some time). There were others that we are certain were built as warships, as well, such as the Edam, Star, Westfriesland, and Gouda. I have had concerns about the Campen (Kampen) before I ever saw the list from the Wrangel Collection. I have been trying to see the funding mechanisms behind the various ships in service from 1648 until 1654. At the Peace of Munster in 1648 at the end of both the Thirty Years War and the Dutch war of indepence, the Staten Generaal authorized funds for forty convoyers. As special operations were planned, additional funding was provided, such as that for Witte de With's expedition to Brazil from late 1647 until early 1650. Another ten ships were sent to Brazil, and these returned in May to June 1652. Starting in 1651, 36 warships that had been inactive were fitted out and manned for service a cruisers. The cruisers were activated because of worsening relations with England. By March 1652, war tensions had been increased, and the Staten Generaal ordered the hiring of 150 ships, fifty by the Directors of the port cities and 100 by the admiralties. There is circumstantial evidence that some of the 100 ships were purpose built warships that had been inactive or that were just completed, such as the Campen. The VOC had agreed to provide 6 ships in 1652, as well. By late 1652, the disadvantage that the Dutch faced against the English was so great that an initial building program of 30 new ships was initiated. Later in 1653, another 30 ships were authorized to be built. When it was clear that the war was coming to an end in late 1653, the Directors' ships were released from service, as were the VOC ships. In fact, some of the VOC ships were released in later 1652, as the large retourschepen were considered largely unsuitable as warships. There were several purchases of ships, as well, starting with the Groningen by the Admiralty of Friesland in later 1652. This whole topic is one that I intend to explore further.

Monday, August 07, 2006

Two 12 gun ships hired by Amsterdam in 1652

An interesting (to me) feature of the document that Jan Glete sent me is that there are two 12 gun vessels mentioned as being hired in 1652. One is named the Adelaar (Adeler) and the other is the Prinses Amelia. The Adelaar was commanded by Arent Warnaertszoon, who the document describes as "Captain". The Adelaar is armed with 8 iron 3pdrs and 4 chambered brass 3pdrs. The ship Prinses (Princesse) Amelia is armed with 6 iron gotelingen of 3 lbs and 2 brass guns of 3 lbs, and 4 drakes of 3 lbs. No commander is mentioned for the Prinses Amelia. I am guessing about this, but I would think that the Adelaar is the ship mentioned in Vreugdenhil's list as number 326 and the Prinses Amelia is probably the "Prinses" mentioned as number 339 in the list.

Sunday, August 06, 2006

Perhaps the 3 pdrs for Claes Sael's ship should be 8 pdrs

The three pounders listed for Claes Sael's ship, the Maria, are in the position where eight pounders would be shown. Perhaps the 3pdr is a copier's error. (This is in the document that I received from Jan Glete, from the Wrangel Collection in the Swedish archives).

Joris van der Zaan's ship, the Campen, in 1652

Joris van der Zaan apparently commanded the Campen from earlier in 1652 up until he was killed in the Three Days Battle (the Battle of Portland). He was present in the confrontation with Anthony Young, at the Start, in May 1652, immediately prior to the outbreak of the war. His brother, Willem van der Zaan appointed captain of the Campen after the Three Days Battle. The Campen, contrary to what I had believed, was hired in 1652 for f3,500. We did know that the ship appeared on the scene in 1652. The Campen was, in fact, one of the Hundred Ships of the Extraordinary Equipage, according to this document. This is the information from the document that Jan Glete sent me:
The ship Campen
Length from stem to sternpost:  128ft
Beam:                            32ft
Hold:                            13ft
Height between decks:             7ft
40 guns:
 4 brass guns       18 lbs
 2 brass guns       12 lbs
 2 brass guns        8 lbs
 2 brass guns        6 lbs
14 iron gotelingen  12 lbs
16 iron gotelingen   6 lbs
Crew: 120 men

Saturday, August 05, 2006

The list of ships hired by the Admiralty of Amsterdam, apparently in early 1652

The list of ships in the document sent me by Jan Glete is very striking. Included are ships that are usually thought of as purpose-built warships. The document is convincing, as it gives the amounts paid to hire the ships. The ships were all part of the "Extraordinary Equipage", the 100 ships to be hired by the five Admiralties in 1652. These are the large ships included in the document, in this order:
Name             Guns Crew Captain
Star               28   90 Jacob Paulusz Cort
Edam               30   90 Barent Cramer
Hollandia          32   90 Albert de Graeff
Hoop               28   90 Joris Collerij (one of many spellings)
Goude Leeuw        24   75 Gillis Thyssen Campen
Marcus Curtius     24   70 Hendrick Kroeger
Hollandsce Tuin    24   70 Hillebrandt Jeroenssen (Jeroenszoon)
Patientia          24   70 Adriaan van Loenen
Catharina          24   70 Dirck Bogaert
Keijser            24   70 Jan ter Stegen
Hoop               24   70 Wolphert van Brederode
Aartsengel Michiel 40  120 Emmanuel Zalingen
Campen             40  120 Joris van der Zaan
Engel Gabriel      36  120 Isaac Sweers
Drie Coningen      36  120 Lucas Albertszoon (Albertssen)
Amsterdam          30  100 Simon van der Aeck
Gouda              28   90 Jan Egbertsz Ooms
Maria              30  100 Claes Sael
Westfriesland      28   90 Hendrick Huyskens
Amelia             28   90 Willem van der Zaan
Sampson            26   90 Hendrick Adriaanszoon
Achillis           28   90 Dirck Schey

Friday, August 04, 2006

The Aartsengel Michiel from the papers from Jan Glete

The Aartsengel Michiel (the papers from Jan Glete just call the ship the Engel Michiel) was hired in 1652, fought in the Battle of Plymouth, under De Ruyter's command, and probably fought in the Battle of the Kentish Knock. Later in 1652, the ship was sent to the Mediterranean Sea, where it operated as a storeship for the fleet there. I have seen the Aartsengel Michiel described as a fluit. The Aartsengel Michiel is number 90 in Vreugdenhil's list. Vreugdenhil had a note that the Aartsengel Michiel's guns were "small", but that was not true in 1652, at least according to the document that Jan Glete sent me from the Wrangel Collection in the Swedish archives. This is what that document has:
The ship, the Engel Michiel

Length from stem to sternpost:   142ft
Beam:                             32-1/2ft
Hold:                             14-1/2ft
Height between decks:              7ft

40 guns:
 4 iron gotelingen of 18lbs
16 iron gotelingen of 12lbs
16 iron gotelingen of  8lbs
 4 iron gotelingen of  4lbs

De huyr van 't schip        3100
de gagie van 't 120 coppen  1490
de matroosen van 120 coppen 1271
Extraordinaris                60
huyr van 20 stucken          400
I do not understand the reference to 120 men twice, as I have understood the presence of the first sort of reference to mean that this was the cost of hiring the crew. The second is a reference to 120 sailors.

Thursday, August 03, 2006

A small, 24 gun hired ship for the Admiralty of Amsterdam

In 1652, Gillis Thijssen Campen (as it is written on the page) commanded the small, 24 gun ship Gouden Leeuw. The striking thing is the light armament carried. This is the data from the information that I received from Jan Glete:
The ship Gouden Leeuw, Capt. Gijllis Thijssen Campen

Length from stem to sternpost:    113ft
Beam:                              26ft
Hold:                              12ft
Height between decks:               6-1/2ft

24 guns:
6 iron gotelingen   8 lbs
8 iron gotelingen   6 lbs
4 iron gotelingen   4 lbs
4 iron gotelingen   3 lbs
2 iron gotelingen   2 lbs

Crew of 75 men
Given that the Gouden Leeuw was essentially used as a small ship of the line, with the fleet, I can see why the ship was paid off in October. It may also have been in poor condition. During the summer of 1652, Gillis Thyssen Campen was assigned to Witte de With's squadron of ten ships.

Wednesday, August 02, 2006

Claes Sael's ship Maria had an odd armament

For a 30-gun ship, Claes Sael's ship Maria had a very light weight of broadside. This is the information:
The ship of Capt. Sael named Maria

Length between stem and sternpost:  134-3/4ft
Beam:                                29ft
Hold:                                13ft-9in
Height between decks:                 6ft-3in

36 guns:
 4 iron gotelingen   12 lbs
16 iron gotelingen    3 lbs
 6 iron gotelingen    6 lbs
 4 iron gotelingen    4 lbs

Tuesday, August 01, 2006

Lucas Albertssen's ship, the Drie Coningen

From the pages that Jan Glete sent me, from the Wrangel Collection at the Swedish National Archives, the ship Drie Coningen is listed. This was the ship commanded in the summer and fall of 1652 by Lucas Albertssen (or Albertszoon). The ship was very long and narrow:
The ship Drie Coningen, kapitein Lucas Albertszoon

Length from stem to sternpost:  145ft
Beam:                            30ft
Hold:                            14-1/2ft

36 guns:
16 gotelingen of 12 lbs
10 gotelingen of  8 lbs
 6 gotelingen of  6 lbs
 4 gotelingen of  4 lbs
The Drie Coningen fought in the Battle of Plymouth in August, in De Ruyter's fleet and then at the Battle of the Kentish Knock on 8 October 1652. The ship very likely continued in service for the rest of the war, although confirming that is more difficult. Lucas Albertssen was likely dismissed in late 1652.

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