Transport vessels for the British expedition to the Red Sea (1801)

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For the British expedition to the Red Sea (1801) the British government hired a number of transport vessels. The transports supported Major-General Sir David Baird's expedition in 1801 to the Red Sea. Baird was in command of the Indian army that was going to Egypt to help General Ralph Abercromby expel the French there. Baird landed at Kosseir, on the Egyptian side of the Red Sea. He then led his troops army across the desert to Kena on the Nile, and then to Cairo. He arrived in time for the battle of Alexandria. Captain Hardie of Shah Kaikusroo was appointed Commodore of the fleet of country ships.

Contents

Most of the transports were "country ships". Country ships were vessels that were registered in ports of British India such as Bombay and Calcutta, and that traded around India, with Southeast Asia, and China, but that did not sail to England without special authorization from the EIC. In addition, some of the transports were "regular ships" of the British East India Company (EIC), and some were "extra ships". Regular ships were on a long-term contract with the EIC, and extra ships were vessels the EIC had chartered for one or more voyages.

The data in the table below comes primarily from an 1814 report from a Select Committee of the House of Commons of the British Parliament, which provided the data only on country ships, giving the names of a large number of vessels, and their burthen (bm).

Also, transliteration of non-English names shows no consistency across sources, making it extremely difficult to try to find more information about the vessels in question.

Country ships

NameBurthenWhere builtNotes
Admiral Nelson122
Ann and Amelia 800 Whitby, 1781Becomes HMS Mediator, 1804
Ann and Eliza350
Anna Maria450
Anstruther 450–654Calcutta, 1800Stranded 22 September 1803 in Balabac Strait [1]
Auspicious 400 / 462British, 1798Sold 1821
Bly Merchant480
Byram Gore456
Candidate700 / 709Calcutta, 1797Foundered in the Bay of Bengal, 1804 [2]
Cecilia 478Contradictory informationWrecked at Madeira, 1803
Commerce413 / 450Rangoon?The French privateer Caroline captured her on 15 November 1805. [3]
Cornwallis 633Surat, 1789Burnt 1841 at Bombay
Cuvera 936Calcutta, 1798Broken up 1853
Brig Dundas176 / 187 [4] Probably Philip Dundas, built at Bombay Dockyard in 1798 for the Bengal Pilot Service [4] Newbiggin, master; lost at Foul Bay between January 1801 and June 1802 [5]
Eliza400 / 350RangoonGibson, master; north of Jiddah between January 1801 and June 1802 [5]
Expedition70
Fancy brig125 / 100
Fortune182Ketch; Jolliffe, master; near Mt. Agerib between January 1801 and June 1802 [5]
Friendship400Rangoon
Friendship872Demaun, 1794 [6]
Fyze Allum700Baird, master; Cape Orfin (or Cape Orsoy) on the coast of Africa, [5] 7 June 1801; [7]
Gabriel 825Calcutta, 1794Lost on the expedition; crew and passengers saved
Ganges450
Griffin400
Hercules485
Hope500 / 580Calcutta, 1800
Jehanguire

Shaw Jehangire

780 / 705Deman
JuliaLost between January 1801 and June 1802 [5]
London350
Lowjee Family926Bombay, 1791 [6] Destroyed by fire in Bombay Harbour, 1849
Milford 679 / 655 Bombay Dockyard, 1786Wrecked in the Hooghly River in August 1829
Minerva987 / 1057Demaun, 1790 [6] Launched as Amelia; captured 1808 by Al Qasimi pirates and almost the entire crew massacred. [8]
Mornington450
Moorad Bux279
Raheem Shah270 / 275Bombay [9]
Ruby 300Calcutta, 1800 or 1797Lost 1814 or later
Pearl450
Serrah/Sarah 935Bombay, 1792 [10] "Lost in the French War" [10]
Shah Ardasheer
Shah Ardaseer 		868Bombay, 1786, [6] or 1787 [11] Burnt at Bombay Harbour on 14 September 1809 [12]
Shah Kaikusroo 1046Bombay, 1799Broken up 1864
Shannon90
Sophia
Sullimany, or Sulimanny679 Demaun, 1797 [6]
Superb650Calcutta, 1795 [13] Lost 1814 or so
Susannah244Drysdale, master; lost between January 1801 and June 1802 [5]
Taz Balish436
Upton Castle 675 Bombay Dockyard, 1793Burnt at Saugor, 1817
Warren Hastings 443Calcutta, 1789
William 393 / 400Bombay Dockyard, 1800 [6]

EIC naval vessels

The following vessels were listed in the 1814 report as country ships, [14] but were actually vessels of the EIC's navy, the Bombay Marine.

NameBurthenWhere builtNotes
FuryEIC schooner of 6 guns [15]
Strombolo
(or Stromboli)		485Bombay, 1793EIC bomb ketch [16] /gun vessel of 12 × 3-pounder guns [17]
WaspEIC schooner of 6 guns

Citations

  1. ↑ Phipps (1840), p. 116.
  2. ↑ Phipps (1840), p. 172.
  3. ↑ Roman (2007), p. 174.
  4. 1 2 Wadia (1986), p. 336.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 The Asiatic Annual Register, Or, a View of the History of Hindustan and of the Politics, Commerce and Literature of Asia, (1804), Vol. 5. pp.15-6.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Reports... (1809), p.242.
  7. ↑ Calcutta Monthly Journal, Nov. 1801, Vol. 7, №86, p.3067 & p.3069.
  8. ↑ Low (1877), p. 320.
  9. ↑ East-India register and directory (1803), pp.269-70.
  10. 1 2 Wadia (1986), p. 335.
  11. ↑ Wadia (1986), p. 334.
  12. ↑ Lloyd's List №4425.
  13. ↑ Hackman (2001), p. 244.
  14. ↑ House of Commons (1814), p. 654–655.
  15. ↑ East-India register and directory (1803), pp.96-9.
  16. ↑ Hackman (2001), p. 341.
  17. ↑ Bombay Almanack and Register...for 1798, p.101.

References

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