The 1805 Dispatches #22.02 April 2022 1 of 6 THE REGULAR NEWSLETTER OF THE 1805 CLUB www.1805club.org THE 1805 DISPATCHES THE VIEW FROM THE BRIDGE Observations From The Chairman, Capt. John Rodgaard (USN Retd.) With spring now upon us, that is, for those living in the northern latitudes, the change in the season is both welcoming and liberating. However, I can see through my long glass that we still need to be circumspect, as we have yet to clear the rocks and shoals that have forced us to navigate carefully during the last two years. With that, you will note in this editionof The 1805 Dispatches that The Club has laid plans in anticipation that we have clear sailing ahead. See our Events Diary for a summary. I am especially excited to know that we will have an in-person AGM on Saturday 28 May. It will be held at the Army and Navy Club, Pall Mall, London (nicknamed the Rag). I look forward to seeing many of you there, in person. At the AGM, it is my hope the membership will gain a better understanding as to the direction The Club is taking to build a global community of enthusiasts who recognise and promote the role of not only the Royal Navy, but the world’s sailing navies of the Georgian era and their greater legacy that continues into the modern seafaring age. Sadly, we are seeing one aspect of that legacy being played out. Who would have thought that a naval blockade would be established by a descendant of one of the great sailing navies of the Georgian era? As of this writing, the descendant of the Imperial Russian Navy’s Black Sea Fleet is actively blockading Ukraine’s coast and threatening the city of Odessa with bombardment and amphibious assault. The Russian blockade reminded me in a reverse way of the ‘Far Distant Ships’ that formed the bedrock of British naval strategy against Napoleon’s France. Hearing today that the Russian Black Sea Fleet fired hypersonic missiles against Ukrainian targets reminded me of a supposed Nelson quote, ‘a ship’s a fool to fight a fort’. Have we seen the introduction of this weaponry to counter the attribution? We know the ships of the Georgian era navies possessed greater concentration of firepower than land armies of the time; that is until the land armies of the Great War of 1914-18 displayed such massive firepower on the battlefields of France. I do not want to close my view from the bridge without recognising a dear friend of The Club whose announcement in this edition is truly an honour that he has bestowed upon us. Captain Peter Hore, RN Rtd has offered The Club to take on custodianship of his Sons and Daughters of Trafalgar programme. Of the many Danes who served at Trafalgar, I wonder if one is an ancestor of mine? Thank you Peter. I would like to recognise two members, who after many years of voluntary service in key positions within Council, will be piped ashore prior to the AGM. To Barry Scrutton The Club thanks you for your service since 2010 as The Club’s Membership Secretary. He will still be a member, but Barry is literally setting sail on his yacht to cruise the Mediterranean this year. Thank you Barry for your dedication. We truly wish you fair winds and following seas. After 22 years, Josephine Birtwhistle is packing her ones and zeros away, disconnecting her mouse from her terminal and switching off her screen as The Club’s webmaster. Jo, we do so thank you for your patience and skill with updating and maintaining The Club’s webpage. We shall miss you. Yours aye, Detail from: British naval ships moored off Mount Edgcumbe, Plymouth, with the foreground ship and barge flying the flag of the Vice-Admiral of the Blue. Dominic Serres (French, 1719–1793) Oil on panel, 11.6 x 15.6 in. www.artnet.com This editorial must start with an apology for the lateness of this edition of TD, caused by circum-stances outside your Editor’s control. Readers of The Kedge Anchor (KA) will also soon spot that there is a degree of overlap this time, between this edition of TDand the forthcoming spring edition of KA. The first reason for this overlap is that the Spring and Autumn editions of TDcoincide with the preparation of KA, which is not trivial, making it difficult to devote all the attention that TDdeserves. However, the second, and more important reason, is that TDis for everyone, not just Club members, and all those other readers must not be denied some of the gems fromKA. One of these overlaps is the Events Diary on page 4. What a relief! After a couple of years of COVID restrictions we are at last confident to safely proceed with Club activities. And what a list of events, with new things being devised every month at the Events Committee Meetings. We will soon be back sailing large and getting our sea-legs again. EDITORIAL
The 1805 Dispatches #22.02 April 2022 2 of 6 The 1805 Club is proud to have been a financial supporter of the renovation of the Nelson Room in the Old Royal Naval College (ORNC), Greenwich: a project successfully conducted by the Greenwich Foundation, with the Gosling Foundation as the major financial supporter. Discreetly located next to the Upper Hall (the raised section at the end of the magnificent Painted Hall), the Nelson Room is a small space of elegant design by Nicholas Hawksmoor, working within the overall plans by Sir Christopher Wren. Originally it was intended as a firebreak between the Painted Hall and the accommodation spaces of the former Hospital for retired seamen. Since then, and while under the Royal Navy’s ownership, it has been through other uses, during which much of the original fabric was covered up, drilled through, or otherwise put to functional Service purposes. Nevertheless, this has always been the place where Nelson’s heavy coffin was kept from Christmas Eve 1805, until it was moved into the adjacent Upper Hall for its public lying-in-state over 5-7 January 1806. The coffin’s weight was because it was not just one object, but several. Nelson’s body (after its famous transition from Gibraltar in a barrel of spirits of wine, and after its autopsy) was clothed and then placed in a pine coffin made from the mainmast of L’Orient (the French flagship at the Battle of the Nile), which was itself placed in a lead coffin, which was placed inside a coffin of elm. Pending the lying-in-state, the weighty ensemble lay in this room on a large table. The table still exists but is not on display in the conserved room: ironically, it is too big, because the Nelson Room remains an essential thoroughfare between the Painted Hall and other rooms. The Nelson Room was given its name in 1846, following the remarkably late decision to erect the central London memorial we know as Nelson’s Column. From 1873 to 1998, as the Royal Naval College, the whole complex of buildings functioned as the Navy’s university, and the Nelson Room became a kitchen, tiled from floor to ceiling, with the Painted Hall as “the most beautiful dining room in daily use in the whole of Europe”. In readiness for 2005, the “Great Bicentenary”, the tiling was removed, and the walls were replastered and painted to then current tastes. Its present appearance reflects more recent scientific and historical research. The restored room retains its original dimensions but has been repurposed to inform visitors about its unique history and the context of the times. The colours today are those of the original room. The restored marble floor uses stone quarried from the same place in Sweden as the original. Visitors may sit (on benches commemorating the Gosling Foundation, or on the circular bench that echoes the ‘lantern’ above) and follow the story in constantly changing wall displays. We in The 1805 Club were alerted to this Greenwich Foundation project in 2019. It was a comfortable fit with our aims and objectives, and we contributed £2,000 towards the expenses of the conservation. On 17 March 2022, the Club’s present Secretary Stephen Howarth and Council member Genevieve St George attended a sponsors’ preview of the completed Nelson Room, hosted by Matthew Mees (CEO of the Greenwich Foundation), with inspiring talks from Martin Ashley (Surveyor of the Fabric) and Claire Kirk (Head of Learning, Interpretation and Collections). It was a great pleasure to know that The 1805 Club was a contributor to this historic commemoration – and even more so because, in the immediately adjacent Upper Hall, are the Club’s two splendid floor plaques commemorating the lying-instate first of Nelson and then of Collingwood. These were the last additions to the Upper Hall ever to have been permitted, and today they are routinely the endpoint of guided tours to the Painted Hall. Members of The 1805 Club are now invited to a special private afternoon at the ORNC, on Wednesday 18th May 2022, to include guided tours of the Nelson Room (with an introduction from Martin Ashley), the Painted Hall, the Chapel, and the grounds. Details will be emailed to all Club members. THE NELSON ROOM RENOVATION Images courtesy Stephen Howarth and Chloé Nelkin Consulting, the latter having organised the reopening of The Nelson Room. See page 6 for more pix.
The 1805 Dispatches #22.02 April 2022 3 of 6 SHIP’S WORD WHEEL Take a ten-minute break and find as many words as possible, using the letters in the wheel. Each must use the hub letter and at least 3 others, used only once. No plurals (if only made by adding an ‘s’ or ‘es’), no foreign words not in common usage in English, nor proper nouns. There is at least one nine-letter word to be found. 25 = Average; 35 = Good; 45 = Very Good; 50+ = Amazing! Answers on page 4 Internationalism is a hugely valuable part of The 1805 Club's character and, therefore relevant news items from members of all nations are strongly welcomed for TD. Ideally, they should be about 300 words, give or take 100, with images where possible. If you send something longer, then it may have to go intoKA, where they can be as long as you like and will be equally welcomed (but may get edited to fit). Never fear lack of experience – It did not stop me. Ed. INTERNATIONAL NEWS WANTED AND WELCOME The 1805 Club is to become a corporate member of the Royal Maritime Club, Portsmouth. The RMC is a club and hotel not only for naval personnel but also for members of maritime organizations. Room charges are reasonable. The location is convenient to the Dockyard and the Wardroom. Members can use the facilities (bar, restaurant, pool, bedrooms) at a 10% discount. The Club pays an annual fee resulting in all members of The 1805 Club becoming members of the RMC. Details of how Club members can make use of this facility will be circulated to all soon. www.royalmaritimeclub.co.uk BRODIE’S MOURNING RING ON EBAY Described as ‘Antique Georgian 18K Gold Enamel Mourning Ring Alexander Brodie Inventor Navy 11’ on sale on Ebay, available for about £1,133.00 + p&p. ALEXANDER Brodie was born in 1733 in Traquair in Peeblesshire. After serving his apprenticeship with the local blacksmith, Brodie set out for the South with 17s. 6d. in his pocket. Eventually, at his London works Brodie became well known as a maker of household fire-grates and damper, or register, stoves and he also invented a portable stove for the ventilation of ships, of which an undated engraving is to be seen in the draft room of the National Maritime Museum at Greenwich. It is described in the caption as: 'A STOVE, ordered and approved by the Honble. the Commissioners of His Majesty's Navy for AIRING of SHIPS, in a more expeditious safe Way than ever before adopted; having a Hasp, Staple, Padlock & Key to fasten up both Doors at Night, to prevent any Damage from evil disposed or careless Persons taking out the Fire.' But it was by the introduction of his new design of fire-hearths for ships that Brodie most greatly influenced the wellbeing and safety of British seamen. In 1781 Alexander Brodie produced from his Calcutts Ironworks a new safer hearth for ships, comprising two large boilers over a fire-grate, pot-gantries, a spit, a condenser for fresh water and a large bread oven. He was awarded a monopoly by The Admiralty which lasted 29 years, to install this firehearth in RN ships. In 1786, Brodie bought the lease for the Calcutt Ironworks and developed it for casting and boring cannon. Brodie left no heirs so left most of his estate to charities. Above: ‘Antique Georgian 18K Gold Enamel Mourning Ring Alexander Brodie Inventor Navy 11’ www.ebay.co.uk Right: Alexander Brodie, anonymous print, 1800. www.britishmuseum.org/collection/ object/P_1875-0508-673 THE 1805 CLUB MEMBERSHIP OF THE ROYAL MARITIME CLUB This is just a brief reminder that we intend the spring 2022 edition of The Kedge Anchor (due out mid-April 2022) to have the theme, ‘Feeding The Navy’. This will cover all matters arising from the production, delivery and consumption of comestibles and materials. In other words, feeding the men and the machines and how their ‘feed’ arrives aboard. This theme is too ambitious to be adequately covered in one edition, so we expect it to expand into the future. The only way KAcan be produced is if The 1805 Club members and their friends produce usable copy. So, please set to and prepare your article for inclusion next time. It is preferred that you let the Editor know what is coming, but he is always very happy to receive surprises.
The 1805 Dispatches #22.02 April 2022 4 of 6 If you are not a member, and are concerned at missing out on all the fun, please contact our Membership Secretary, who will be delighted to hear from you. Click on : Membership Secretary, The 1805 Club NON-MEMBERS TAKE ACTION NOW! Captain Peter Hore RN (Ret) – author, historian, obituarist and friend of The 1805 Club – has or some years been the organiser of an initiative called ‘Sons and Daughters of Trafalgar’. To date there are over 400 people who have laid claim to this wonderful connection in their family history, but given that there were over 21,000 known men in the Trafalgar rolls, there are undoubtedly many thousands more out there! Derek and Pamela Ayshford are the authors of ‘The Ayshford Trafalgar Roll’, which holds the names of the men who were listed on the musters of British ships on 21st October 1805. Since before 2005 Peter has been using the Roll to search out and organise the names and details of their descendants. In fact, he managed to gather 200 of them together at Portsmouth for the 200th celebrations of the Battle of Trafalgar. We are delighted to let you know that, at Peter’s request, The 1805 Club will soon be taking over full custodian-ship of this programme. More on this soon, but in the meantime, if you already know or suspect that one of your ancestors was present at Trafalgar, please contact kathy.1805club@gmail.com and we will keep you posted on the Sons and Daughters of Trafalgar project and explain how you can be involved. NB Happily, news is just in that Peter is through his major surgery and will hopefully soon be fighting fit. Image of Peter Hore taken from his website www.peterghore.co.uk SONS AND DAUGHTERS OF TRAFALGAR Remember that there is a whole treasure trove of interest on our facebook page https://www.facebook.com/ The1805Club/ Here is an edited transcript from the website of The National Archives (TNA) that will no doubt be of interest to many of our readers. The full website page address is: https:// www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/ about/news/prize-papersresearch-portal-launched/ ‘Court records revealing the details of 1,500 ships captured during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic wars are now searchable online for the first time. Uploaded as part of [TNA’s] Prize Papers project, the digital copies of 55 case books relating to ships seized by the British between 1793 and 1815 will provide insight into the work of the High Court of Admiralty in London in deciding whether the captured vessel was neutral or belonged to the enemy. The new open access portal will allow researchers to search by the name of a ship, ship’s master, geographic area or date, and will include 3.5 million digital pages once the 20-year project has been completed. Since 2018, teams at TNA and the Carl von Ossietzky University of Oldenburg, in Germany, have been working to catalogue the contents of 4,088 boxes, including 160,000 undelivered letters, logbooks, ships papers and bills, poems, drawings, fabrics and playing cards, confiscated from 35,000 ships during 14 wars between 1652 and 1817. The Prize Papers project is part of the Göttingen Academy of Sciences and Humanities, working with the German Historical Institute London, and the VZG. As of 2018, the project has been part of the Academies Programme of the German Union of the Academies of Sciences and Humanities. The papers uploaded to date are from The National Archives’ HCA 45 series and were catalogued with the help of a grant from the William Nelson Cromwell Foundation. To find out more about the Prize Papers, you can find a selection of TNA’s blogs here and also visit the project homepage.’ https:// www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/ ANDERSON MEDAL NEW MEMBERS PRIZE PAPERS RESEARCH PORTAL The Society for Nautical Research has arranged the award of the Anderson Medal for the best maritime publication to, and a presentation by, Richard Endsor, that will take place in the Leopold Muller Lecture Theatre of the National Maritime Museum on Thursday 28th April at 5.00pm followed by a reception. The event is free to all those interested, but confirm your attendance by emailing Sally Archer, Research & Heritage Partnerships Manager, at the National Maritime Museum at sarcher@rmg.co.uk. When contacting Sally write ‘SNR Anderson Medal’ in the subject line. The good news is, The 1805 Club has had a flurry of new members and we have introduced a ‘New Members’ feature inThe Kedge Anchor. Unfortunately, as is the way with such publications, some new members failed to ‘make the cut’ as they joined after KAhad been sent for printing. What we need, is for every new member to make contact with the editor and say a few words about themselves, for inclusion in the next edition, please. ka.editor@1805club.org
The 1805 Dispatches #22.02 April 2022 5 of 6 THE 1805 CLUB Founded in 1990, the Club: • Promotes research into and education about the Royal Navy, merchant maritime service and other state navies of the ‘long Georgian era’; and • Promotes and engages in the preservation of monuments and memorials relating to the Royal Navy and seafaring people of the later sailing-navy era; and • Organises relevant cultural, historical and social events. The Club is charity No. 1071871, registered in England and Wales. Individuals desiring further information may contact: Stephen Howarth, Hon. Club Secretary, The 1805Club Shelton Great Barn, Shelton, Notts, NG23 5JQ, UK Email: secretary@1805club.org Telephone: 01949 851346. For a membership application form please contact: Dr Sue Carr, Hon. Membership Secretary, The 1805 Club Email: membership.secretary@1805club.org Or: Harold E (Pete) Stark, Hon US Secretary, The 1805 Club 1980 Scotts Crossing Way, No. 002, Annapolis MD 21401 USA Email: the.americas.membership.secretary@1805club.org Telephone: 410-269-9760 (mobile) Or: Mark Billings, Hon Canadian Secretary, The 1805 Club 4000 Marlowe Avenue, Montreal, Quebec H4A 3M2 Canada Email: canadian.membership.secretary@1805club.org Telephone: 1-514-296-1641 Visit our website: www.1805club.org Or see us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram Or to join go to: Join The 1805 Club The Newsletter for Anyone Interested in The 1805Club PURPOSE. The purpose of this newsletter is to support and advance the Club’s objectives. The newsletter provides anyone who is interested with brief items of news about the club and its activities, in the hope that the it can help the club attract wider interest in naval history and new members. Much of the content will be a précis of articles that will appear inTheKedge Anchor, the six-monthly club magazine. EDITORIAL POLICY. The editor has full editorial responsibility for the newsletter. Views expressed in the newsletter are those of individual authors, unless claimed by the editor. Articles which appear do not express the of�icial position of The 1805 Club on any subject unless speci�ically noted as such. Content of contributions to the newsletter may be edited for grammar, space allocation, or to better serve the purpose of the newsletter. Contributors wishing to be alerted to editorial decisions should notify the editor at the time that their contribution is submitted. Otherwise the submission will be published within the scope of the editorial policy. ISSUE AND COPY DATES The proposed issue dates for The 1805 Dispatches are: February, April, June, August, October and December. Anyone wishing to contribute an article or news item to the editor for inclusion in the newsletter should do so by the beginning of the month preceding the issue in which it is to be inserted. Any articles that are not time-speci�ic can be submitted at any time, with a note advising him of that fact. All copy is welcome, but not all copy may be used! NAVAL TERMS THAT HAVE ‘COME ASHORE’ Bitter end – The inboard length of an anchor cable was secured to strong timbers called bitts and if the cable was run out all the way it was said to be at the bitter end, which has come to mean anything at its limit. ADMIRALTY, admiral, tardily, radial, aramid, malady, milady, aridly, myriad, damar, drama, adyta, milad, drail, laird, liard, lidar, tidal, daily, diram, admit, triad, dairy, diary, madly, lardy, mardy, tardy, dimly, drily, dirty, aida, data, dial, laid, amid, maid, arid, raid, adit, diya, lard, lady, dram, dart, drat, trad, dray, yard, mild, idly, idyl, dirt, tidy. SHIP’S WORD WHEEL ANSWERS EVENTS DIARY This is the new Events Diary, which we are delighted to resurrect, having been prevented from including one for the past couple of years because of the Coronavirus restrictions. Items indicated in blue are provisional; further details will be advised to Club members as soon as possible. The Events Committee are discussing additions to this calendar on a monthly basis. EventDate Event Title Event Description ClubLead 18 May 2022 Nelson Room Visit Guided Tour of Nelson Room, Painted Hall, Chapel and grounds Stephen Howarth 28 May 2022 Annual General Meeting AGM and Members Day Stephen Howarth 1 June 2022 Cruise on Tall Ship Providence Cruise and Dinner at local restaurant PeteStark 1 June 2022 Jubilee Fund Raising Quiz Seventy quiz questions sent to those paying participants Kathy Brown 4/5 June 2022 The Trafalgar Way at Vintage Nostalgia Fair Vintage cars and themes with trade stands Kathy Brown Autumn 2022 Return of Nelson’s Marriage Certificate Return of the Marriage Certi�icate and Uniform to St Nevis JohnWills 22 October 2022 Trafalgar Night Dinner Commemorate Battle of Trafalgar Stephen Howarth 2023 Unveiling Cornwallis Plaque Ceremony at St Ann’s Church, HRNB Portsmouth Stephen Tregidgo
The 1805 Dispatches #22.02 April 2022 6 of 6 More images of the renovated Nelson Room at the Old Royal Naval College, courtesy of Stephen Howarth and Chloé Nelkin Consulting. Centre below is an image of one of the floor plaques provided by The 1805 Club, to which Stephen alluded in his article seen on page 2. Image courtesy Britain Express. https:// www.britainexpress.com/ photos.htm?attraction=5431
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