Archive Results For: Caribbean
‘Avarice and Rapacity’ and ‘Treasonable Correspondence’ in ‘an Emporium for All the World’: The British capture of St Eustatius, 1781
In the Revolutionary War the American rebels relied on supplies of munitions, especially gunpowder, from Europe. To circumvent the embargo and avoid seizure by the British, many of those supplies were routed through the neutral Dutch West Indian island of St Eustatius. To cut off supplies to the Americans, the British invaded and occupied that […] Read More
Filed under: American Revolution | Caribbean
Subjects include: Strategy & Diplomacy
Eyewitness Images of Buccaneers and their Vessels
This article describes and discusses several eyewitness illustrations of buccaneers (flibustiers) created by cartographers who made maps and charts of French Caribbean ports during the 1680s. The illustrations are highly detailed and provide new information regarding the appearance and arms of these famous sea rovers, as well as of at least one of their vessels. […] Read More
Filed under: Other (Early Modern) | Caribbean
Subjects include: Art & Music | Pirates, Corsairs & Privateers
Note: Lost and Found: the discovery of HMS Solebay at Nevis
The wreck of HMS Solebay off Nevis in 1782 was unidentified until an old chart was examined. The causes of the wreck are examined. Read More
Filed under: American Revolution | Caribbean | Shipwrecks
Subjects include: Battles & Tactics | Science & Exploration
A Memorial to Hibberts
The hull of a West Indiaman is nearly complete in artificial stone, intended to be placed over the grand entrance into the West India Docks at Blackwall. The length from stem to stern is upwards of ten feet, with height in proportion. The sides are beautifully adorned with all the minute appendages of a vessel […] Read More
Filed under: Atlantic | English Channel | French Revolution | Other (Early Modern) | Other (Twentieth C) | Other (Nineteenth C) | Other (Eighteenth C) | Caribbean
Subjects include: Administration | Harbours & Dockyards | Historic Vessels, Museums & Restoration | Merchant Marines | Navies | Pirates, Corsairs & Privateers | Ship Models & Figureheads | Shipbuilding & Design
‘Eminent Service’: War, Slavery and the Politics of Public Recognition in the British Caribbean and the Cape of Good Hope c. 1782–1807
The presentation of gifts to successful naval officers in recognition of their achievements provides insights into the political and commercial priorities of those who made the presentations. Many of these ‘objects of esteem’ are in the National Maritime Museum. They provide important insight into the social and economic context and the motives of the donors, […] Read More
Filed under: Napoleonic War | Other (Eighteenth C) | Caribbean | East India Company
Subjects include: Administration | Navies | Strategy & Diplomacy
The Sinking of the Galleon San Jose on 8 June 1708: an Exercise in Historical Detective Work
In 1708 a Spanish fleet sailed from the Isthmus of Panama to Cartagena on the northern coast of South America carrying a large amount of gold, silver and other valuables. The Spanish ships were attacked by an English squadron and following a battle, the Spanish flagship San José exploded and sank. No-one knows exactly where […] Read More
Filed under: Spanish Succession | Caribbean
Subjects include: Battles & Tactics | Navies
From Private to Official Hydrography: the Charts and Sailing Directions of Joseph Dessiou (1743–1822) and his Son, Joseph Foss Dessiou (1769–1853)
Joseph Dessiou of Dartmouth was of a seafaring family engaged in the Newfoundland trade. He undertook hydrographic surveys during his seagoing career as a master and in later life turned to chart compilation for commercial publishers. His son Joseph Foss Dessiou, a master first in the merchant marine and then in the Royal Navy, also […] Read More
Filed under: Atlantic | Baltic | English Channel | North Sea | Mediterranean | Other (Nineteenth C) | Other (Eighteenth C) | Caribbean
Subjects include: Biography | Merchant Marines | Navies | Science & Exploration
Nelson and the Perfect Muster Book
Nelson in 1790-91 was out of favour with the Admiralty, which is usually attributed to his support for Prince William Henry in the Prince’s dispute with Lieutenant Schomberg. But Nelson had also been censured for supporting the Prince when in 1786 he failed to deliver a complete muster book at Antigua. This perhaps was seen […] Read More
Filed under: Nelson | French Revolution | Caribbean
Subjects include: Administration
Between Newfoundland and the Malacca Strait: a Survey of the Golden Age of Piracy, 1695-1725
In terms of the intensity of activity the thirty years between 1695 and 1725 were the “Golden Age” of piracy afloat. Early modern piracy flourished because it offered material gains rather than being a proletarian reaction to harsh working conditions at sea. Three widely-separated areas saw intense activity in turn between 1695 and 1725: the […] Read More
Filed under: Atlantic | Other (Early Modern) | Pirates | Other (Eighteenth C) | Indian Ocean | Caribbean | East India Company
Subjects include: Manpower & Life at Sea | Pirates, Corsairs & Privateers
Note: The Quasi-War and American Fears of a French Invasion in 1798
The tensions between revolutionary France and the newly independent American stae are outlined, and the possibility of an invasion explored. Read More
Filed under: French Revolution | Caribbean
Subjects include: Strategy & Diplomacy