Anna Catharina

Last updated
Anna Catharina
History
Flag of the Dutch East India Company.svg Dutch Republic
NameAnna Catharina
Owner
Completed1728
Fate Wrecked at the Scheldt estuary on 3 February 1735
General characteristics
Type East Indiaman
Length130 feet
Sail plan3 masts
Capacity175 people [1] and loading capacity of 600 tons

Anna Catharina was an 18th-century East Indiaman or "mirror return ship" (Dutch : spiegelretourschip) of the Dutch East India Company.

Contents

During her third voyage to Batavia, she wrecked at the Scheldt estuary, Dutch Republic, on 3 February 1735. All 175 people on board drowned.

Ship details

Anna Catharina was built in 1728 in Middelburg for the Chamber of Zeeland  [ nl ]. She was 130 feet long and had a loading capacity of 600 tons. [2] She was a wooden full-rigged ship with 3 masts. [1]

History and fate

After two voyages to Batavia, in January 1736 she went for her third voyage to Batavia under command of Jacob de Prinse with 175 soldiers and passengers. The ship was heavily loaded. [1] [3] She was accompanied by her bigger sister ship 't Vliegend Hert commanded by captain Cornelis van der Horst. The ships transported a cargo of wood, building materials, iron, gunpowder and wine, as well as several chests with gold and silver coins.

Due to the bad weather the ships waited at Fort Rammekens  [ nl ]. On 3 February 1735 at around noon the ships continued their journey, accompanied by the Mercurius with a maritime pilot onboard, to guide them through the North Sea and the Channel. Due to the strong easterly wind, the water level was lower than expected. The wind caused that the ships reached the shallowest part too early. Around 6pm both ships stranded in the Scheldt estuary on the sandbanks around Duerloo Channel. Anna Catharina sank with all hands within two hours. [4] 't Vliegend Hert wrecked several kilometers further away. [5]

Both ships had fired emergency shots. Mercurius was only half a mile behind them, but the boat could not get closer to the ships and save the crew due to the high seas. [5]

Aftermath

Shortly after the disaster the Chamber of Zeeland informed the other Chambers and took measures to prevent that cargo would be stolen. As four English ships were observed fishing for the wrecks, a vessel was used to prevent other ships from diving to the wrecks. [5]

The VOC sent an accountant to the site of the stranding to claim the goods and to ask help from the beach finders. The government supported the VOC with a beachcomber. In the days after the disaster, barrels with jenever, beer and oil washed ashore on the beaches of Blankenberge and Nieuwpoort. Parts of the wrecks washed ashore or were fished up, and were subsequently brought to the beachcombers in accordance with regulations. For example, the accountant received goods from various fishermen and it was registered where it was found. A map was subsequently created by the mapmaker of the Chamber of Zeeland Abraham Anias  [ nl ] (1694-1750) with the locations of the wrecks and information about the sea depth of the area. [5]

Investigation

The skipper of Mercurius blamed the maritime pilot. Also the crew members of Mercurius shared this opinion and showed dissatisfaction with the policy of the maritime pilot. Ultimately, after the investigation the maritime pilot was fired. [5]

The investigation continued over the years. The important question was if people of the Mercurius could and/or should have attempted to rescue the people. The investigation continued until 56 years after the disaster, but the conclusion remained the same: it was impossible. [5]

Related Research Articles

<i>Batavia</i> (1628 ship) Dutch East India Company flagship

Batavia was a ship of the Dutch East India Company (VOC). She was built in Amsterdam in 1628 as the flagship of one of the three annual fleets of company ships and sailed that year on her maiden voyage for Batavia, capital of the Dutch East Indies. On 4 June 1629, Batavia was wrecked on the Houtman Abrolhos, a chain of small islands off Western Australia.

<i>Amsterdam</i> (1748) 18th-century cargo ship of the Dutch East India Company

The Amsterdam was an 18th-century cargo ship of the Dutch East India Company. The ship started its maiden voyage from Texel to Batavia on 8 January 1749, but was wrecked in a storm on the English Channel on 26 January 1749. The shipwreck was discovered in 1969 in the bay of Bulverhythe, near Hastings on the English south coast, and is sometimes visible during low tides. The location in 1969 was found by Bill Young, the site agent/project manager for the sewage outfall being built by the William Press Group. With time on his hands during the long stay away from home, he followed up the rumour of the going aground. He was castigated by the Museum of London for scooping out the interior of the bow with a digger as it could have led to the structure collapsing. However, it uncovered the initial items which led to a more extensive excavation of the cargo which reflected life at the time. The wreck is a Protected Wreck managed by Historic England. Some of the findings from the site are in The Shipwreck Museum in Hastings. A replica of the ship is on display in Amsterdam.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Zeeland</span> Province of the Netherlands

Zeeland is the westernmost and least populous province of the Netherlands. The province, located in the southwest of the country, borders North Brabant to the east, South Holland to the north, as well as the country of Belgium to the south and west. It consists of a number of islands and peninsulas and a strip bordering the Flemish provinces of East and West Flanders. Its capital is Middelburg with a population of 48,544 as of November 2019, although the largest municipality in Zeeland is Terneuzen. Zeeland has two seaports: Vlissingen and Terneuzen. Its area is 2,933 square kilometres (1,132 sq mi), of which 1,154 square kilometres (446 sq mi) is water; it had a population of about 391,000 as of January 2023.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Walcheren</span> Former Island in Zeeland, Netherlands

Walcheren is a region and former island in the Dutch province of Zeeland at the mouth of the Scheldt estuary. It lies between the Eastern Scheldt in the north and the Western Scheldt in the south and is roughly the shape of a rhombus. The two sides facing the North Sea consist of dunes and the rest of its coastline is made up of dykes. Middelburg, the provincial capital, lies at Walcheren's centre. Vlissingen, 9 kilometres (5.6 mi) to the south, is the main harbour and the third municipality is Veere.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Western Scheldt</span> Estuary of the Scheldt river

The Western Scheldt in the province of Zeeland in the southwestern Netherlands, is the estuary of the Scheldt river. This river once had several estuaries, but the others are now disconnected from the Scheldt, leaving the Westerschelde as its only direct route to the sea. The Western Scheldt is an important shipping route to the Port of Antwerp, Belgium. Unlike the Eastern Scheldt estuary, it could not be closed off from the sea by a dam as part of the Delta Works. Instead, the dykes around it have been heightened and reinforced.

Jacob Roggeveen was a Dutch explorer who was sent to find Terra Australis and Davis Land, but instead found Easter Island. Jacob Roggeveen also found Bora Bora and Maupiti of the Society Islands, as well as Samoa. He planned the expedition along with his brother Jan Roggeveen, who stayed in the Netherlands.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">François Thijssen</span> Dutch-French explorer

François Thijssen or Frans Thijsz was a Dutch-French explorer who explored the southern coast of Australia.

<i>Zeewijk</i> Dutch trading ship

The Zeewijk was an 18th-century East Indiaman of the Dutch East India Company that was shipwrecked at the Houtman Abrolhos, off the coast of Western Australia, on 9 June 1727. The survivors built a second ship, the Sloepie, enabling 82 out of the initial crew of 208 to reach their initial destination of Batavia on 30 April 1728. Since the 19th century many objects have been found near the wreck site, which are now in the Western Australian Museum. The shipwreck itself was found in 1968 by divers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of the Scheldt (1574)</span> 1574 battle of the Eighty Years War

The Battle of the Scheldt also known as the Battle of Walcheren was a naval battle that took place on 29 January 1574 during the Eighty Years' War and the Anglo–Spanish War. The battle was fought between a Dutch rebel Sea Beggar fleet under Lodewijk van Boisot and a Spanish fleet under Julián Romero. The Spanish fleet was attempting to relieve the Spanish held town of Middelburg which was under siege but the fleet under Boisot intercepted them and were victorious with the destruction or capture of nearly fifteen ships. Middelburg as a result then surrendered only nine days later along with Arnemuiden.

Aagtekerke was a ship of the Dutch East India Company built in 1724. It was lost without trace during its maiden voyage in 1725–26, sailing from Cape of Good Hope in the Dutch Cape Colony to Batavia in the Dutch East Indies.

Ravesteyn, also written as Ravensteyn, Ravenstein or Ravestein, was an 18th-century East Indiaman of the Dutch East India Company.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Reynier de Klerck</span> Dutch colonial governor

Reynier de Klerck (1710–1780) was Governor-General of the Dutch East Indies from 1778 until 1780.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stephanus Versluys</span>

Stephanus Versluijs or Versluys was the 21st Governor of Dutch Ceylon.

<i>t Vliegend Hert</i>

't Vliegent Hart, also sometimes listed as 't Vliegent Hert, was an 18th-century East Indiaman or "mirror return ship" of the Dutch East India Company. 't Vliegend Hart was built in 1729 in Middelburg for the Chamber of Zeeland. Her maiden voyage was in December 1730, departing from Fort Rammekens (Netherlands) to Batavia, commanded by captain Abraham van der Hart.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Zeeuws Maritiem muZEEum</span>

The Zeeuws Maritime MuZEEum is a maritime museum in the center of Vlissingen, situated on the marina of the city. It is the successor of the Stedelijk Museum in Vlissingen. It is housed in a building once owned by the Lampsins family, prominent in the shipping business in the 17th century.

The Schoonenberg, also spelled Schonenberg and Schonenbergh, was a trading ship operated by the VOC between 1717 and 1722. The ship, a Spiegelretourschip or Dutch East Indiaman, was damaged beyond repair in an accident at Struisbaai, South Africa on 20 November 1722, during a return voyage to the Netherlands from Batavia, and was later burned and destroyed. This happened on the second of two calamitous voyages; on the maiden sailing in 1720, 75 of the crew died when the ship ran out of water and food on the leg from Cape Town to Ceylon, before finally reaching the diversion port of Mocha after spending 6 months stranded in present-day Somalia.

Horstendaal, also written as Horftendaal and Horstendael, was an 18th-century East Indiaman of the Dutch East India Company.

<i>Jonge Thomas</i> Dutch ship (1764–1773)

Jonge Thomas, also written as De Jonge Thomas was an 18th-century East Indiaman of the Dutch East India Company.

<i>Oosterland</i> (1684) 17th-century large East Indiaman of the Dutch East India Company

The Oosterland was a large 17th-century East Indiaman of the Dutch East India Company. The VOC was established in 1602. The ship was wrecked along with another ship by the ship the Kallendijk on 24 May 1695. The shipwreck was discovered by amateur divers in 1988 on the South African coast a few hundred metres from the entrance to Milnerton Lagoon at the mouth of the Salt River. Excavation of the wreck started in the early 1990s in combination with the University of Cape Town and was led by Bruno Werz.

Middelburg, also written as Middelburgh, was an 18th-century East Indiaman of the Dutch East India Company.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Anna Catharina (+1735)". wrecksite.eu.
  2. "Anna Catharina (1728)". VOC—site (in Dutch).
  3. "Anna Catharina (+1735)". cultureelerfgoed.nl (in Dutch).
  4. "Middelburg den 5 February". Amsterdamse Courant (in Dutch). 10 February 1735. Retrieved 10 December 2023 via Delpher.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 van Dissel, A.M.C. (31 August 2017). "Responsabiliteit van het Redden | Over schip, goed en schipbreukeling in de vroegmoderne tijd" (in Dutch). Leiden University. pp. 39–42. Retrieved 10 December 2023.