The Battle of Saldanha Bay was a naval action that occurred off the Dutch Cape Colony on 21 July 1781 during the Fourth Anglo-Dutch War. A squadron of Royal Navy warships under the command of commodore George Johnstone captured five Dutch East India Company ships; her own crew destroyed a sixth. Casualties on the Dutch side were minimal if any, and there were no British casualties.
British Commodore George Johnstone was given secret orders to capture the Dutch Cape Colony. However, the French learned of his mission, and Admiral Pierre André de Suffren was sent to frustrate it. Suffren was en route to the Indian Ocean, but the French government had warned him so he sought to reach the Cape before Johnstone. After an indecisive chance encounter (Battle of Porto Praya), between the two fleets in the Cape Verde Islands on 16 April 1781, Suffren sailed for the Cape while Johnstone remained at Porto Praya for repairs. As a result, Johnstone found the Dutch settlement well defended when he arrived there in July and decided against an attack.
The Dutch governor Joachim van Plettenberg had, as a precaution, directed the westbound merchant fleet, laden with goods, to anchor in Saldanha Bay and wait for French escort but where they would be concealed from the British fleet. They were under orders to ground and burn their ships if the British were to appear; however they were not vigilant in their watches.
One of Johnstone's frigates, flying French colours, intercepted a Dutch merchantmen that had left the bay several days earlier, heading east. The Dutch vessel was theHeld Woltemade, which had sailed from Saldanha Bay on 28 June carrying stores and £40,000 in bullion to Ceylon. She struck to HMSActive on 1 July.[1][a] From Held Woltemade Johnstone learned of the whereabouts of the Dutch merchantmen.
Bearing off Saldanha Bay Johnstone sighted the Dutch merchant ships, and entered the bay flying French colors. He then raised the British ensign and opened fire, totally surprising the Dutch. The Dutch could not escape and decided to destroy their ships rather than let them fall into British hands. The Dutch cut their cables, loosed their top sails, and drove the vessels on shore. Once this was done they attempted to torch the ships, and the British, now in their boats, attempted to extinguish the fires. The British were successful, taking as prizes Dankbaerheid, Paerl, Honcoop, and Hoogcarspel. Middelburg, however, burnt furiously and was left alone. She blew up after very nearly colliding with two of the prizes.
Rattlesnake surprised and captured a hooker (a type of coastal craft), laden with the sails of the captured ships and hidden away behind Schapin (Schaapen) Island. The Dutch had put the sails on board and hidden the hooker to make seizing the Indiamen more difficult.[3] By the end of the day the British had captured another two hookers, which Johnstone could not easily remove. In order not to leave any marks of "barbarity towards a settlement where our wants had so often been relieved", he gave them back to the Dutch.[3]
Aftermath
After the British Royal Navy captured the Dutch East Indiamen, a boat rowed out to meet the British warships. On board were the "kings of Ternate and Tidore, and the princes of the respective families". The Dutch had long held these captives on Isle Robin, but then had moved them to Saldanha Bay.[3]
The British sent their prizes back to England. Only two reached their destination, and that with difficulty and after some fighting in the English Channel. A French frigate attacked Hoogcarspel, but she succeeded in getting to Mount's Bay where she was escorted. Also, two French privateers attacked Paerl, which succeeded in escaping. Dankbaerheid and Honcoop were lost in January 1782 as the result of a gale at the mouth of the Channel. The prize crew on Dankbaerheid were able to escape and reached Lisbon in safety. Honcoop disappeared and was believed to have foundered with all hands.[4]
Order of battle
Dutch order of battle
The information below on the Dutch vessels captured at Saldhana Bay comes from Lloyd's List,[5] van Niekerk,[6] and Nieuwe Nederlandsche jaerboeken.[7]
Note: inconsistency in the spelling of the Dutch vessels' or their masters' names below reflects inconsistency among the sources.
Burnt; built for the Zeeland Chamber in 1775; cargo value: ƒ 643,543[6]
The British had insured their prizes so when Dankbaerheid and Honcoop were lost in transit to Britain the captors still benefited from the insurance money.[11] The total prize money for Paerl and Hoogcarspel, which was divided between Johnstone's squadron and the Army under the command of General Sir William Meadows, amounted to £68,000.[12]
In addition to the warships, the following troopships also shared in the prize money for the Paerl and Hoogkarspel: San Carlos, Porpoise, Raikes, Royal Charlotte, Resolution, Manilla, and Pondicherry.[13]
Notes
↑ Both Lark and Rattlesnake, and probably the rest of the squadron as well, shared in the prize money for Held woltenmade.[2] That prize money for Held woltenmade was paid suggests that Held woltenmade had arrived safely at a British port and had been condemned there.
↑ Some sources state that HMSTapageur (14-gun cutter), under Lieutenant Philippe d'Auvergne, was part of the squadron, not Lark. However, Tapaguer had sunk a year before. Furthermore, Lark, under d'Auvergne, was part of Johnstone's squadron.
Citations
1 2 The London Magazine, Or, Gentleman's Monthly Intelligencer, Volume 50, pp.503-4.
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