West Indiaman

Last updated
The West Indiaman Britannia Joseph Walter - The West Indiaman "Britannia".jpg
The West Indiaman Britannia

West Indiaman was a general name for any merchantman sailing ship making runs from the Old World to the West Indies and the east coast of the Americas. [1] These ships were generally strong ocean-going ships capable of handling storms in the Atlantic Ocean. [2] The term was used to refer to vessels belonging to the Danish (e.g. Æolus), Dutch, English, and French (e.g. Indispensable) West India companies.

Contents

Similarly, at the time (18th and 19th centuries) people also referred to East Indiamen (ships trading with the East Indies), Guineamen (slave ships), or Greenlandmen (whalers in the North Seas whale fishery).

British West Indiamen tended to be London-built and to sail directly from England (generally London) to the West Indies. Guineamen tended to be built (or owned) in Bristol and Liverpool and to sail from Bristol or Liverpool via West Africa in what is now often referred to as the triangular trade in enslaved people. [3] There were London-based Guineamen, (for example Experiment), and Liverpool-based West Indiamen, (for example Irlam and Irlam).

There were design differences between vessels built for the different trades, but the vessels were not highly specialized. A vessel built as a West Indiaman typically had less height between decks than comparably sized East Indiaman. For instance, William Miles had a height of 5 ft 11 in (1.8 m) in her upper deck and a mere 4 ft 10 in (1.5 m) under her lower deck. Lord William Bentinck, a comparably sized East Indiaman, had a height of 6 ft 9 in (2.1 m) below her deck. The cargoes the two types of vessels were designed to carry dictated the difference. West Indiamen brought semi-liquid sugar back to England in casks laid on their sides that were only laid in one course. East Indiamen carried mostly light goods in bales or cases that could be and were necessarily laid to a greater height. [4]

Often the same vessel would move between roles and routes over the course of her career as entrepreneurial owners chased profitability. Thus Fame started and finished as a West Indiaman, but in between made a voyage for the British East India Company (EIC) as an East Indiaman, and two voyages as a Guineaman. Holderness made one voyage as an East Indiaman for the EIC, then several as a Greenlandman, and ended up a West Indiaman.

See also

Bibliography

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">East Indiaman</span> Merchant ships operating under charter or license to European East India companies

East Indiaman was a general name for any merchant ship operating under charter or licence to any of the East India companies of the major European trading powers of the 17th through the 19th centuries. The term is used to refer to vessels belonging to the Austrian, Danish, Dutch, British, French, Portuguese or Swedish East India companies.

A number of vessels have been named Alexander:

Elizabeth was a merchant ship built at Chepstow, Wales in 1809. She made three voyages transporting convicts from England and Ireland to Australia. Elizabeth is no longer listed after 1832 and may have been lost in 1831.

Several ships have been named Princess Amelia:

Multiple British vessels have been named King George for one of the members of the British monarchs:

Several vessels have been named Harriet, or Harriot:

Several ships have been named Woodford:

Numerous vessels have borne the name Fame:

Elizabeth was launched at Bristol in 1809. She was originally a West Indiaman, but she wrecked in October 1819 at Table Bay while sailing from Bombay to London.

Middlesex was launched in 1783 as an East Indiaman for the British East India Company (EIC). She made five voyages for the EIC. Towards the end of the second of these some of her officers unsuccessfully mutinied. In 1795 she participated as a transport in the British military expedition to the West Indies. She stranded and became a total loss in 1796 as she returned from the expedition.

Busbridge was launched in 1782 as an East Indiaman for the British East India Company (EIC). She made seven voyages for the EIC before she was broken up. In June 1795, during her sixth voyage, she participated in the capture of eight vessels of the Dutch East India Company. She was laid up for several years on her return from her seventh voyage and sold for breaking up in 1805.

Loyalist was launched in 1793. Between 1796 and 1803 she made four voyages for the British East India Company (EIC). She then sailed as a West Indiaman until she was condemned in 1809 as unseaworthy.

Numerous vessels have borne the name Active :

Lord Forbes was launched at Chester in 1803 as a West Indiaman. She soon became an "armed defense ship", but by 1805 had returned to being a West Indiaman. She made two voyages as an "extra" ship for the British East India Company (EIC). She continued trading with India until 1817 when she sustained damage on her way to Bengal. There she was surveyed, condemned and sold.

John was launched at Chepstow in 1804. She then became a West Indiaman, sailing between Bristol and Jamaica. In 1826 she started sailing to Bengal under a license from the British East India Company (EIC). She was wrecked on 30 June 1827 on such a voyage.

Several ships have been named John:

Woodman was launched at Gainsborough in 1808. She traded with northern Spain and then became a West Indiaman, and later a government transport. From 1816 on she made several voyages to India and South East Asia, sailing under a licence from the British East India Company (EIC). She also made two voyages transporting convicts, one to New South Wales (NSW) in 1823 and one to Van Diemen's Land in 1825. She was lost in 1836.

Miranda was launched in Bristol in 1828. In 1829–1830 she made one voyage to Bengal, sailing under a licence from the British East India Company (EIC). On her return she became a West Indiaman, sailing to Jamaica and Antigua. She was broken up around 1851.

A number of vessels have been named Ranger:

William Miles was launched at Bristol in 1808 as a West Indiaman. For 20 years she was the largest vessel built in the port. In 1817 a new owner started sailing her to India, sailing under a licence from the East India Company (EIC). In 1828 she made a voyage transporting convicts to Van Diemen's Land. Thereafter she traded with Sierra Leone, Louisiana, and possibly other ports as well. She was broken up in 1846.

References

  1. ↑ "West Indiaman". Merriam-Webster.com. Retrieved 27 June 2014.
  2. ↑ "West Indiaman ship". Portcities London. Retrieved 27 June 2014.
  3. ↑ Tibbles (2005), p. 33.
  4. ↑ Farr (1971), p. 7.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.