Vice-Admiral Robert FitzRoy The ‘Crease’ Revisited Finding Namur Sir William Beatty TheNootka Crisis Henrietta Brinkley’s Death Postcards From Trafalgar Way MV Christena Cover Picture: By Geoff Hunt Seepage3 6 14 18 23 24 30 34 36 SPECIAL POINTS OF INTEREST: View From The Bridge Editorial Crossword Puzzle AB&OS Conservation Obituaries Book Reviews 2 3 5 13 17 21 28 INSIDE THIS ISSUE THE MAGAZINE OF THE 1805 CLUB Issue 54 Autumn 2020 THE KEDGE ANCHOR
KEDGE ANCHOR Issue54 2 THE VIEW FROM THE BRIDGE By Bill White, Chairman, The 1805 Club Members will appreciate that there is not much to report. Most, if not all, events both here and in the United States and elsewhere have been cancelled, so it is a matter of ‘holding the fort’ until relief (or a vaccine) arrives. But there are one or two matters to mention... Firstly, due to some fraudulent activity by some other organisations registered as charities, the Charity Commission has tightened up on its procedures and it has become more bureaucratic and, as a result, dealing with the Commission has become more complex. We have therefore appointed Nicholas Ridge as Treasurer, a member who is a Chartered Accountant, to handle matters involving the Commission. He will work with Lindy Mackie, who will continue as Club Accountant and bookkeeper. I was in Portsmouth on September 16th with our President, Admiral Sir Jonathon Band, visiting St Anne's Church, in HM Dockyard. St Anne’s is a Naval Church dating from the mid 1700's and is under the aegis of the Chaplain of the Fleet. The Revd Adam Gay, the Chaplain of the church, received us and we were accompanied by Stephen Tregidgo, Christopher Hobby and Sheila White. Our concern was to consider the material, text and appropriate location within the church for a plaque to commemorate Admiral Sir William Cornwallis, who had held the Portsmouth Command. More signi�icantly, he commanded the British Fleet in maintaining the blockade of Brest during the Napoleonic Wars for about two to three years. During this period the �leet was continually at sea. Captain A T Mahan USN, the wellknown US naval historian, declared this to be one of the greatest feats in naval history. We hope that a suitable memorial plaque can be mounted prominently within the church in 2021. On a different subject, the Secretary recently received a report concerning the origins of the song ‘Rule, Britannia’, containing misconceptions about the reference to slavery in the declaration in the famous song that: "Britons never never shall be slaves". To clear up the confusion, it will be helpful to look at how the song and its music came to be written and how it was subsequently modi�ied into the form used today. In 1730s, the 65-page text of Alfred, a Masque (or masquerade) by James Thomson (1700-1748) and David Mallet (?1705-1765), was set to music by Thomas Arne (1710-1778). It was described as a “patriotic masque”. The �irst production of the masque was performed for Prince Frederick at the Prince of Wales’ residence at Cliveden in 1740 and opened on Drury Lane the following year. Rule, Britanniaconstitutes the sixstanza �inale to the masque on pages 64 and 65. The text can be read (but not copied) at “openlibrary.org,books/OL7198057M”. The musical score was republished by Stainer and Bell in 1981. The metre of the version of the song in current use differs slightly from the 1740 version and the music has been amended accordingly. The subject of the masque is the resistance to the Viking invasions of Britain and the �inal defeat of the Vikings in the late 9th Century by Alfred the Great (849?-899), King of Wessex and later of the Anglo Saxons. The Vikings were slavers and this lends relevance to the declaration quoted in the �irst paragraph above. During the 1730s Alfred was often represented, in Patriot party opposition writings, as a law-giver hero who exempli�ied Saxon liberty and Christian benevolence (in contrast to the then current prime minster Robert Walpole (1676-1745)). However in the 1740s, the UK was also suffering from the depredations of Moroccan and Algerian slavers operating in the Atlantic. Many slaves were being taken from the crews of British ships and the slavers were also raiding coastal communities in Britain and Ireland. So at that time the song also had contemporary relevance. At an appropriate time, a new production of Alfredmight be contemplated under the aegis of theClub.
KEDGE ANCHOR AUTUMN 2020 Cover Picture – Detail from: “Morning reconnaissance -looking into Brest, June 1800” By Geoff Hunt PPRSMA (The full picture shows HM frigates TritonandLaNymphewith the cutter Joseph) With thanks to: Geoff Hunt and Mall Galleries/ Federation of British Artists www.mallgalleries.com THE KEDGE ANCHORis the magazine of The 1805 Club. It is published twice a year in Spring and Autumn and is distributed free to members. For more information see page 39, or contact the Editor: Peter Turner 10 North Hill, Woodbridge, Suffolk, IP12 1HH 01394 388809 or 07903 251008 Email: ka.editor@1805club.org 3 EDITORIAL I will always acknowledge, this magazine would never be possible without the unsel�ish contribution of such excellent copy from members. The editor’s job is primarily one of worrying about what contributions will be received and then worrying about how they are all going to be squeezed in. When the editor has the luxury of too much stuff to use, he has the concomitant concern about whom he must disappoint with a refusal. And today’s refusee could just be tomorrow’s star contributor, who must not be discouraged. We have recently started to issue a bi-monthly digital newsletter, calledThe 1805 Dispatches (TD). Unlike theKA, which is exclusive to Club members, TD is freely available to anyone visiting our website, and it is prepared with a lighter touch. In this way we hope it may help us to attract new members, especially new younger members – the next generation, who will be required to carry the good work of the club forward. In this edition you will �ind articles about many subjects, which I hope you consider interesting and relevant. After mentioning HMSBeaglein the previous edition, without mentioning FitzRoy, her captain, we are correcting the balance in this edition, with an exceptionally long article, which was deemed timely and too good to miss, but we generally prefer to have contributions that are only up to about half its size, as we do not wish to poach potential material from future editions of theTrafalgar Chronicle. The sharp-eyed reader will notice a change of font from Times New Roman to Cambria, which is softer (no sharp corners) and so, it is felt by me, to be easier to read. Do comment. As usual, blame me for all the mistakes. Please note the next edition is due in Spring 2021. The deadline for copy will be 21 March 2021. Please submit your ideas to the editor as soon as you can,and actual contributions at an earlier date if possible. Never forget that there is a whole treasure trove of interesting stuff on our facebook page https://www.facebook.com/The1805Club/ M������� H������ �� A�������� March2021 If you missed The 1805 Club’s highly successful visit to Spain in 2018, here’s an opportunity to catch up. Peter Hore will be leading a tour from 17-21 March 2021, to explore the long and fascinating maritime history of Andalusia. Break out of lockdown blues to join the Jon Baines tour Rivers of Gold and the New World The 2021 tour will be limited to 20 people. Based in Seville, we will be staying at the 4* Hotel Inglaterra in the heart of the old quarter. Explore beautiful Seville, Huelva and Cadiz on a tour examining the legacy bestowed by Andalusia’s singular maritime history, from the Phoenicians, to Columbus’s worldchanging journey in 1492, and into the modern day. Peter Hore was a student in Cadiz many years ago and knows the area well, and all the guides are �luent Spanish and English speakers. The cost of this tour is £1108, but for members of The 1805 Club, Jon Baines is offering £50 off and a donation of £50 to The 1805 Club. There is an extension to Doñana National Park and Jerez after the tour. More details here: https://www.jonbainestours.com/maritime Contact: info@jonbainestours.co.uk or call 020 7223 9485. To take advantage of the Club member offer, please quote ‘1805’ at time of booking. Sean M Heuvel’s and John Rodgaard’s book From Across the Sea: North Americans in Nelson’s Navy is now available. (ISBN : 9781913118921) On11 November 2020 the University of Toronto will hold a virtual book talk to which you are invited. Details are available at: https://harthouse.ca/events/ virtual-dinner-series-rodgaard-heuvel
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