High Court of Admiralty Prize Papers

[anteros_lmc]

The Keeper's Gallery at The National Archives in Kew is currently featuring what sounds like a rather fascinating exhibition on the High Court of Admiralty Prize Papers; a large collection of ships documents, private papers and correspondence recovered from vessels seized during the 17th to 19th centuries. The exhibition focuses on papers belonging to a Dutch ship, the Henriette which was captured in 1803 by the frigate Lapwing, Captain Alexander Skene, while returning from China with a cargo of tea. Amongst the items recovered from the Henriette were a pouch of seeds collected by a Dutch plant collector and wine producer Jan Teerlink, samples of silk, and several songs and poems including sheet music for a French love song, Romances d’Estelle by François Devienne, composer and professor for flute at the Paris Conservatory.

Jan Bekker Teirlinck

Alexander Skene

François Devienne

I don't know anything about Teerlink, Devienne or Skene, but this sounds like a fascinating exhibition and the haul recovered from the Henriette sounds like something worthy of the Aubreyad!

Seeds collected by Teirlinck

Romances d’Estelle by Devienne

Comments

[vespican.livejournal.com]

The idea of taking prizes seems to have faded from Naval practice. I know that in a twenty year career the idea never arose. It's all duty, patriotism, and country these days. Nothing wrong with that, but there was something slightly piratical, somehow adventurous about the possibility of profit while fighting for one's country.
Dave

[anteros-lmc.livejournal.com]

Funnily enough, nodbear and I were writing a chapter about one of the Indefatigable's midshipmen this week and it looks like he was serving aboard the Alcmene when she captured the Spanish treasure ship Santa Brigada. The prize money totalled over £600,000, with the midshipmen receiving almost £800 each!

[rum-inspector.livejournal.com]

Very interesting!!!Thank you

(also I'm a bit behind on nanowrimo, this might just inspire a chapter in there somewhere)

[anteros-lmc.livejournal.com]

You're very welcome :) Very happy to provide a little inspiration!