1 of 7 December 2023 The 1805 Dispatches #23.06 THE 1805 DISPATCHES THE VIEW FROM THE BRIDGE From The Chairman, Capt. John Rodgaard USN (Ret) Shipmates, another year is about to come to an end, and from my vantage point (I hope you all will agree), 2023 has been a successful year for The 1805 Club. It has certainly been a transitional one for our Club. Having lost a few, the Club has rebounded in the total number of members, and today I can safely say our membership is truly an international one, with members from 21 countries. We have also established relationships with like-minded organizations, including The British United Service Club of Los Angeles, and The Army & Navy Club (The Rag), London. We certainly enhanced our relationship with The Society for Nautical Research (SNR), many of whose members joined us at our annual Trafalgar Night Dinner (See the following page). With Milford on Sea Historic Records Society we completed a decade-long project, culminating in the remembrance service and unveiling of a memorial stone to Admiral William Cornwallis in the grounds of St. Ann’s Church at His Majesty’s Naval Base Portsmouth (See the August issue of The 1805 Dispatches). In addition, the Club has successfully transitioned from an unincorporated charity to one that is now a Charitable Incorporated Organization (CIO) under the Charity Commission of England and Wales. The Club’s status has been strengthened as a heritage organization whose mission is the preservation of the history and heritage of the Georgian era age of sail and to record the influence this period has on the maritime world through the succeeding years and into the twenty-first century. This transition could not have happened without the work of my fellow Trustees and Council members, for which I give them all thanks. My wish for the upcoming festive season is that you will continue to sail with us in 2024 with your membership subscription renewal. Be mindful that the Club membership subscription is now £45/year (or equivalent exchange rate, i.e. US$57.00). This increase is due principally to major increases in production and shipment of our publications to you. I look forward to seeing one and all around the waterfront next year and meanwhile send my warmest thanks to you for your continued support of The 1805 Club. May happiness and good health be with us all in 2024. Yours aye, Above: The Rescue Detail Just over a month ago the Club’s Trafalgar Night Dinner at HMS NELSON Wardroom, Portsmouth, could have been a disaster for your Editor, when he discovered that his dress-shirt studs (detachable shirt-front buttons) were still in Suffolk. His partner, Liz, through her laughter, suggested glueing or sewing him into his shirt, but, in the absence of glue or thread he rolled up his sleeves and attached two cufflinks to his chest instead. This still left a danger of exposure, so he was rescued at table by The Reverend James Francis, who, at great risk to his own dignity but with even more laughter, slid a collar-stud across the table. The mental image of a clerical collar twang-ing apart at some crucial stage was fortunately not turned into reality. The one redeeming factor was the entertainment it afforded Liz, though it did ruin her eye make-up, through tears of laughter. To borrow a favourite phrase of our Chairman, “What a HOOT!” EDITORIAL Newsletter of The 1805 Club De Secrete Macht in de haven van Vlissingen [The Secret Power in the Port of Flushing] By Engel Hoogerheyden (1740-1807) Middelburg 1805 This painting, in the Scheepvaartmuseum, Amsterdam, shows part of Napoleon’s invasion flotilla of small ships.
2 of 7 December 2023 The 1805 Dispatches #23.06 THE 1805 CLUB TRAFALGAR NIGHT DINNER – 2023 Left: Portrait of Admiral Horatio, Lord Nelson, at his desk in HMS Victory. Right: Portrait of Admiral Horatio, Lord Nelson, No 2. Both by member Jessica Turgoose Members of the Top Table, L to R Adm Sir Jonathon Band, Lisa Krivoruchkina, Mary Montagu-Scott, Capt Penny Mordaunt MP RNR, Lady Band, Angela McCarthy, Stephanie Hayes, Dr Judy Pearson, Cdr Leigh Hayes RN, John McCarthy Jr, Capt John Rodgaard USN (Ret). As many readers will already know from first-hand experience, The 1805 Club had another very successful Trafalgar Night Dinner, this time on the very anniversary, 21 October 2023. This year fireworks were reintroduced, which were great fun and almost worked perfectly, any irregularities not being the fault of compere Chairman John Rodgaard, who handled the situation with his usual aplomb. Our very successful guest speaker was The Right Honourable Capt Penny Mordaunt, MP RNR, MP for Portsmouth North, Lord President of the Council and Leader of the House of Commons. Chris Hobby, Chairman of MoSHRS, presented a generous cheque to Sir Jonathon for the Club, as seen below. This very special event, the highlight of our social year, is simultaneously a commemoration, a party, and a major fund-raiser for the Club. This year, as well as the now regular fun quiz and premium-quality raffle, it included ‘The Bookshop’, selling excellent second-hand books donated to the Club, and ‘The Art Shop’, selling by Silent Auction two unique signed and dated prints of original oil-on-canvas Nelson paintings by the talented artist and Club member Jessica Turgoose. Other prints of these fine paintings are EXCLUSIVELY available through the Club’s online Shop in our website www.1805club.org, with standard unsigned prints at £100.00, and limited edition signed and numbered prints at £185.00. (Photos thanks to Stephen Howarth and Bryan Gaggs)
3 of 7 December 2023 The 1805 Dispatches #23.06 At 1100 on 21 October 2023, the annual ceremony of Wreath-Laying took place at the tomb of Admiral Lord Nelson in the Crypt of St Paul’s Cathedral, led by the Reverend Canon Neil Evans, Steward, Canon in Residence. The General Order was read by Captain Neil Downing RD, RN, the Nelson Prayer was read this year by POC Erin Williams of the London Area Sea Cadets and wreaths were laid by various organisations, including The 1805 Club’s wreath laid by Vice President and past Club Chairman, Bill White, as pictured. This occasion was attended by members of The 1805 Club, including Bill White and Meryl Balchin, with husband Chris, the event having been originally organised by past Club Chairman, the late Peter Warwick. Old friend of the Club, Genevieve St George also attended. Note that the wreath and the photograph were supplied by Meryl Balchin,the wreath comprising laurel leaves from her garden. TRAFALGAR DAY WREATH-LAYING AT ST PAUL’S CATHEDRAL The 1805 Club is the custodian of The Trafalgar Way and responsible for the maintenance of the 39 plaques which mark the route of the Trafalgar messenger, Lt John Richards Lapenotiere, as he raced back to London from Trafalgar with the news of victory and tragedy following the Battle of Trafalgar. So it was with some dismay that we learned a few months ago that one of our plaques had gone missing! It turned out that during refurbishment work at The Salutation Inn in Hammersmith, workmen had inadvertently disposed of it. Happily, our friends at Fuller’s have been extremely supportive of having the plaque replaced and generously paid for a new plaque to be engraved and erected at the pub. On Monday 6th November, the anniversary of Lapenotiere’s arrival at the Admiralty in 1805, an unveiling ceremony was held to welcome the new plaque to its home at The Salutation. Present were VP Bill White, former Chairman of The 1805 Club and founding organiser of The Trafalgar Way, and local Councillor Andrew Dinsmore. Luckily, the date also coincided with the arrival in town of ‘shanty folk rock’ band The Salts http:// www.thesalts.co.uk/ on the fourth day of their tour along The Trafalgar Way, so they entertained our small group at the unveiling with a rousing song from their set. The band have been raising funds for The 1805 Club and Jubilee Sailing Trust http://jst.org.uk/ as they go, as well as awareness of the history of The Trafalgar Way. To donate, please see our page at https://bit.ly/thesaltsTTW THE SALTS ON THE TRAFALGAR WAY By Kathy Brown
4 of 7 December 2023 The 1805 Dispatches #23.06 ADMIRAL LORD NELSON SCHOOL, PORTSMOUTH: THE 1805 CLUB SPECIAL AWARD FOR OVERCOMING ADVERSITY By Stephen Howarth, MA with Distinction, FRHistS, FRGS, Cert Ed (Oxon) Honorary Secretary The 1805 Club Founded in 1995, Admiral Lord Nelson School (ALNS, ‘the School’) is a secondary comprehensive day school of approximately 1,000 pupils located in Dundas Lane, Portmouth. Its former head teacher, Dianne Smith, was a member of our Council during the chairmanship of Peter Warwick. Like us, Dianne was keen on the educational aspects offered by the Immortal Memory, which we provided in various ways as part of our educational remit. We gave the school a bust of Nelson and a collection of Nelson-related books, as well as a bookcase intended for their dedicated display, and there was at least one ‘Wooden World’ workshop there, presented by former Chairman Peter Warwick and Jerome Monahan. Dianne and Peter agreed that the Club should sponsor an annual award to a student ‘for personal endeavour in overcoming adversity’. This took the form of a silver Cup, 6-8 inches high, with an engravable plaque. The Cup was presented to a student chosen by the school. The student could keep the Cup for one year. Dianne eventually moved on from her post at the school, Peter died, and the Club’s connection there became limited to the presentation as part of the school’s annual awards ceremony. At these events, the Club was represented initially by Gillian Knight, Dianne’s successor as education officer, and latterly by Josephine Birtwhistle, who lives locally. On 19 September this year we received an email from a member of ALNS staff, asking if the Club might be willing to continue sponsoring the Award. Being one of the few active members of Council who remembered the relationship, I took this up. It transpired that the engravable part of the original Cup was full. This prompted me to propose to my fellow Trustees that we should (1) continue to sponsor the Award and (2) change its physical form to an annual Trophy personalised to the individual student, who would then keep it forever, instead of just one year. The proposed design was a vertical plane of crystal standing on a base and engraved with four key elements: the Club’s crest, the name of the Award, the name of the student, and the logo of the school. These proposals were accepted by my fellow Trustees and the school. The manufacturer of the Trophy will be the same company that provides us with the engraved crystal wine glasses presented to our Guests of Honour at Trafalgar Night. The Trophy will be in a satin-lined presentation box for safety. On the evening of the Awards presentations, sponsors and parents arrive at the school at 1800 and report to the reception office. Parking is available. After a drinks reception the ceremony begins at 1830 and concludes at 2000. Many Awards are presented: last year there were 22 special awards and no fewer than 90 subject certificates. Presentation is in the manner of a University degree -- i.e., students approach the stage/presentation area in a pre-ordered queue, names are announced, then one at a time they cross the stage/presentation area, receive their certificate or Award, and depart. Maintaining this Award helps to contribute to the Club’s educational remit at modest expense. The Award’s new and enhanced style as a personal Trophy gives the recipient a proud and lasting record of achievement, which they will probably keep for years. ZWAANENDAEL MUSEUM By Peter Pennington A group of us U.S. Members visited the Zwaanendael Museum in Lewes, Delaware, on 8 October to see the relatively few artefacts recovered from HMS DeBraak which sank in a squall in 1798. Some greedy b*****s thought there was gold on board and this was before the National Ship Wreck Law came into force. The net result was the loss of a lot of valuable items and information. That said, we looked at some of the recovered items and then went to see the remains of the brig which, as is familiar to many of us in Alexandria, is being soaked in water in a disused shed awaiting funding to be sent to Texas. The most remarkable sight to my eyes was the amount of copper sheathing on the keel that has survived.
5 of 7 December 2023 The 1805 Dispatches #23.06 Remember that there is a whole treasure trove here https://www.facebook.com/ The1805Club/ 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. 35 = Average; 55 = Good; 75 = Amazing! Answers on last page With the occasional help of departing Club Vice Chairman, Geraint, Club members’ photos of Georgian era related matters are happily shown, as the following illustrates from his recent trip to Norway: During the Napoleonic Wars, in 1809 the town of Hammerfest in Norway was attacked by two Royal Navy warships. The town was then occupied for a week and everything considered valuable was looted or destroyed. In response, the next year the Norwegians built a battery of guns to defend Hammerfest. These three photographs show a commemorative notice to mark those events, plus a view of part of the remains of the fortifications. Destruction of the town, classified nowadays as the northernmost town in Norway, was repeated in 1944 when the Germans burned it down when retreating towards the end of World War II. ——— On a more peaceful Georgian era topic, not far from the fort is a UNESCO registered monument marking one of the key sites of accurately surveying the size and shape of the Earth along a long arc of a meridian. It was one of over 250 survey triangulations carried out from 1816 to 1855 by the Baltic German astronomer Friedrich Georg Wilhelm Struve across ten countries. Reference https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1187/ NORTHERN NAPOLEONICS By Geraint Day, BSc (Hons) (Lond) PgCert Health Econ (Aberd) CGI 730 FE Teachers Cert ICD Co-operative Directors Cert FRAS FGS FBIS Fellow of the Royal Statistical Society MInstP Geraint was not the only traveller recently. Your Editor was schlepping around The Netherlands, visiting museums and galleries, which inevitably included the Scheepvaartmuseum (National Maritime Museum) in Amsterdam. Naturally, in common with all maritime museums, this one had many items that were of limited appeal to someone whose primary field of interest is the Napoleonic Period. This museum naturally had its focus on maritime trade. Once the arsenal of the Dutch Navy, the building was very well preserved and all the rooms visited were immaculately presented, as is often found with the Netherlanders. See page 6 for a few pictures. SCHEEPVAARTMUSEUM, AMSTERDAM By Peter Turner
6 of 7 December 2023 The 1805 Dispatches #23.06 EVENTS DIARY This is a schedule of some forthcoming 1805 Club events, so please put the dates in your own diaries. The Events Committee are discussing additions to this calendar on a monthly basis. EVENT DATE EVENT TITLE EVENT DESCRIPTION CLUB LEAD 24 Nov 23 Trafalgar Way Talk Talk on TW by Kathy Brown at Blandford Forum Museum Kathy Brown 10 Feb 24 Battle of Cape St Vincent Luncheon Alexandria, VA Pete Stark 24 Feb 24 Midshipman Dale Commemoration Ceremony St. George’s, Bermuda John Rodgaard 25 May 24 Club AGM and members Day AGM and Members Day at the Army and Navy Club (RAG) London Stephen Howarth 28 May 24 Anglesey Abbey, Cambridgeshire Private view of three Solid Silver Patriotic Vases Stephen Howarth 1 Jun 24 Battle of the Glorious First of June Celebration of the 230th Anniversary of the Battle at Langar Nottinghamshire Stephen Howarth Jul 24 Visit to Haslar RN Hospital and Bucklers Hard Club visit to these fascinating historical sites Stephen Howarth 2024 Return of St. John’s Figtree Parish Register, Nevis Ceremony jointly held by The Nevis Historical and Cultural Society and The 1805 Club Richard Lupanacci Stephen Howarth John Rodgaard Pete Stark 2024 Presentation of Nelson’s captains uniform Ceremony jointly held by The Nevis Historical and Cultural Society and The 1805 Club Benedict Ryan John Rodgaard Pete Stark “SHIVER ME TIMBERS” – ERRATUM In the continued effort to prove to the reader that life is imperfect, even in the Editorial Office, the latest demonstration was when we published the unsuitable image of a Dimension of Shivers Table. The shivers in the table refer to the sheeves of blocks, and not the shivers referred to by John Wills in the article. We apologise The image below is the central atrium of the Scheepvaarthuis in Amsterdam, which is also well worth a visit. It is now an hotel, the Grand Hotel Amrâth, Amsterdam, which is not open for viewing, although the staff welcome casual visitors who want to look around.
7 of 7 December 2023 The 1805 Dispatches #23.06 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 same 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. 1201272, registered in England and Wales. Individuals desiring further information may contact: Stephen Howarth, Hon. Club Secretary, The 1805 Club 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 London, UK Email: membership.secretary@1805club.org Or: Harold E (Pete) Stark, Hon US Secretary, The 1805 Club Annapolis, MD, USA Email: the.americas.membership.secretary@1805club.org Telephone: 410-269-9760 (mobile) Or: Mark Billings, Hon Canadian Secretary, The 1805 Club Montreal, Quebec, Canada Email: canadian.membership.secretary@1805club.org Telephone: 1-514-296-1641 Peter Turner, Editor of The Kedge Anchor Aldeburgh, Suffolk, UK Email: ka.editor@1805club.org Telephone: +(44) 7903 251008 The Newsletter for Anyone Interested in The 1805 Club 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 in The Kedge 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 official position of The 1805 Club on any subject unless specifically 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 middle of the month preceding the issue in which it is to be inserted. Any articles that are not time-specific can be submitted at any time, with a note advising the Editor of that fact. All copy is welcome, but not all copy may be used! Scorbutic, citrous, strobic, bistro, bruits, bustic, citrus, coitus, courts, crouts, cubist, cubits, orbits, rictus, robust, rustic, stucco, subito, succot, suitor, bruit, brust, burst, busti, coits, court, crits, crost, crust, cubit, curst, cutis, ictus, orbit, riots, roist, rosti, roust, routs, scout, stoic, stour, toric, torsi, torus, trois, tsubo, turbo, bist, bito, bort, bout, brit, brut, bust, buts, cist, cito, cost, crit, cuit, curt, cuts, obit, orts, otic, oust, outs, riot, rost, roti, rots, rout, rust, scot, scut, sort, stir, stob, stub, suit, tiro, torc, tori, tour, trio, trou. SHIP’S WORD WHEEL ANSWERS The term square meal is a naval term from the days of sailing ships. The main meal of the day would be eaten off a squareshaped wooden plate, which also served as the tray. A decent meal on board became known as a square meal. The illustration is of a square Christmas meal, this being the December edition of TD. NAVAL TERMS THAT HAVE ‘COME ASHORE’ PRYSTEN HOUSE, PLYMOUTH Club member Andrew Welch has suggested a future commemoration event for The 1805 Club, and the idea has generally received a favourable reaction from the Trustees. Meanwhile, for those of you within reach of Plymouth, here is some information about the venue. (Text and image edited from Plymouth Herald website) Located at the side of St Andrew's Church, on the Treasury roundabout in the Guildhall car park, is initially what looks like a gate to a bin store. This Catherine Street side entrance in fact takes you into a fascinating historical location in Plymouth. Prysten House. There is a tree bearing the plaque 'Hands across the Sea' which was planted in 1970 in commemoration of Mayflower delegates visiting from Massechusets. Further down the path, around one of the locked doors of Prysten House is an inscription which reads 'The Door of Unity'. The large stone step and accompanying plaques and memorials is said to have been installed in the memory of Americans William Allen and Richard Delphey who died in action in 1813 and whose remains lay to the left of the door. Allen was the Commander of the United States Brig Argus which ended up in battle with HMS Pelican, he went on to have a street, a fort and a destroyer named in his memory, the latter of which served at Pearl Harbour. PRYSTEN HOUSE, PLYMOUTH For those who could not be part of the fun, This Trafalgar Night Dinner was one special one. Pre-dinner reception was held in the bar, A fine time for chat with friends, near and far. The firework-show was enjoyed from the terrace, Chilly to watch, but a memory to cherish. The dinner was grand, with more talk across table, The ships and chocs passed and the port, formidayble. Then MP Penny Mordaunt rendered us a fine speech, As broad as we’d hoped for, and not at all niche. Ending back to the bar for some last-minute drinks, Then, thankfully, bed after all the high-jinks. Thank you to Stephen, to have failed would be tragic, To better this year you’ll have need of strong magic. FINAL WORD ON THE TND
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