Princess Charlotte (1814 ship)

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History
Civil Ensign of the United Kingdom.svgUnited Kingdom
NamePrincess Charlotte
BuilderR & J Bulmer, South Shields [1]
Launched1814
FateWrecked 14 June 1856
General characteristics
Tons burthen3575894, [2] or 3594994 [3] or 360, or 361 (bm)

Princess Charlotte was launched in 1814 at South Shields. She initially sailed as West Indiaman. Then between 1818 and 1819 she made a voyage to India and one to Ceylon, both under a license from the British East India Company (EIC). On her return in 1819, Princess Charlotte became a whaler in the northern whale fishery. She continued whale hunting until ice crushed her on 14 June 1856.

Contents

Career

Princess Charlotte first appeared in Register of Shipping (RS) in 1814 and in Lloyd's Register (LR) in 1815.

YearMasterOwnerTradeSource
1814StephensonBulmerRS
1815Stephenson
Leishman
BullmanLondon–JamaicaLR
1818Lishman
Reynoldson
Blanchard
Somes & Co.
London–Bombay LR

In 1813, the EIC had lost its monopoly on the trade between India and Britain. British ships were then free to sail to India or the Indian Ocean under a license from the EIC. [4]

On 7 March 1818, Princess Charlotte, Leishman, master sailed from Deal for Bombay. She returned to Deal on 11 April 1818.

On 8 July 1818, Princess Charlotte, Rennoldson, master, sailed for Ceylon under a license from the EIC. [5] On 5 April 1819, she was at the Cape of Good Hope, having come from Pointe de Galle. On 8 May, Princess Charlotte was at St Helena. On 1 August, she returned to Deal.

The registers continued to carry Princess Charlotte with unchanged data until 1825–1826 when they showed her master having changed to Adamson and her trade as Dundee.

YearMasterOwnerTradeSource
1825AdamsonBlanchardLondon–Bengal
1826AdamsonJ.HumeDundeeLR

However, in 1820, Princess Charlotte had become a whaler sailing to the Northern Whale Fishery (Greenland and Davis Strait) from Dundee. On 2 January 1820, she entered the graving dock at Dundee. [6] During the 1820 whaling season, she took on board a good part of the oil from Brothers, which had been lost on 29 June at 74°N25°W / 74°N 25°W / 74; -25 . Brothers had taken seven whales before she was lost. [7] In all, Princess Charlotte boiled 150 tons of oil. [8]

In 1821, the Tay Whale Fishing Company paid the carpenter James Smart £854 8s to double Princess Charlotte's hull to strengthen her for whaling in the northern waters. [9]

The data below came primarily from Coltish: [10]

YearMasterWhereWhales Tuns whale oilNotes
1820AdamsonDavis Strait7149
1821AdamsonGreenland (GR)27218
1822AdamsonGr795Newspapers reported eight fish (whales)
1823AdamsonGr12
1824AdamsonGr790
1825AdamsonGr10112
1826AdamsonGr8133
1827AdamsonGr21230
1828AdamsonGr33253 [lower-alpha 1]
1829AdamsonGr7105
1830AdamsonGr00Vessel damaged
1831AdamsonGr230

In 1831, a crew man was killed when he fell from Princess Charlotte's yards. [12]

YearMasterWhereWhales Tuns whale oilNotes
1832AdamsonGr26200Per newspapers; plus 12 tons whale bone
1833AdamsonGr31280Full
1834Adamson31205
1835Adamson118
1836Adamson225
1837Adamson113

In 1837, Princess Charlotte rescued Swan, and her crew. Swan was one of several vessels that had over-wintered in the Arctic, having been trapped by ice. In January 1837, the government offered a bounty of £300 to relief ships that sailed before 5 February, and a further £500 to any vessel that was able to help one of the distressed whalers in the edge of the ice, or £1000 for a vessel fast beset by ice. [13] Princess Charlotte came upon Swan on 5 May and brought her into Whalefish Island Harbour on 22 May. Princess Charlotte received the £500 bounty, and salvage of £700 for having led the recovery of Swan. [14]

YearMasterWhereWhales Tuns whale oilNotes
1838Deuchars23234
1839Deuchars341
1840Deuchars
1841Deuchars457
1842Deuchars11135

During this period (1820–1842), a voyage yielded an average 12 fish (whales) and 118 tuns of whale oil. Thus each fish yielded an average 9.7 tuns of oil.

YearMasterWhereWhales Tuns whale oilNotes
1843660
1844DS110

Princess Charlotte continued to whale for another dozen years.

Fate

In June 1856, Princess Charlotte was in Davis Strait having had reasonable success; she had gathered five whales, 75 tuns of whale oil, and 5 tons of whale bone. On 14 June, as she was sailing between two ice floes in Melville Bay, the ice suddenly closed in on her and crushed her, sinking her. The crew were barely able to get on the ice before she sank, and lost everything. [15] Other whalers, which were following, took on the crew: Captain Deuchars and 24 men went on Advice (of Dundee), eight men went on Chieftain (of Kirkaldy), eight men went on Truelove (of Hull), and seven men went on St Andrew (of Aberdeen). [16]

When the ice crushed Princess Charlotte, Deuchars blew her hull open. This enabled the crew to rescue their clothes, but also the rum ration. [17]

Notes

  1. Full ship. [11]

Citations

  1. Tyne Built Ships – "P".
  2. Hackman (2001), p. 306.
  3. Archibald (2019), p. 177.
  4. Hackman (2001), p. 247.
  5. LR (1819), "Licensed India Ships".
  6. "ABERDEEN SHIPPING". Aberdeen Journal (Aberdeen, Scotland), 12 January 1820; Issue 3757.
  7. Lubbock (1937), p. 217.
  8. Lubbock (1937), p. 218.
  9. Archibald (2019), p. 57.
  10. Coltish (1842).
  11. Lubbock (1937), p. 276.
  12. Archibald (2019), p. 41.
  13. Lubbock (1937), p. 328.
  14. Lubbock (1937), pp. 339–341.
  15. Lubbock (1937), pp. 363–364.
  16. "Local Intelligence." Dundee Courier (Dundee, Scotland), 17 September 1856; Issue 2089.
  17. Archibald (2019), p. 43.

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