The Battle of Camperdown – 11 October 1797

In October 1797, the Royal Navy gained a crucial victory over a Dutch fleet in the North Sea. The Battle of Camperdown not only prevented that force from uniting with their allies in Brest Fleet, but it also removed some of the stain on the reputation of the seamen resulting from the mutinies a few months earlier.

Following the French invasion and subjugation of the Netherlands in the early weeks of 1795, Admiral Adam Duncan was appointed to the command of the North Sea station, with orders to keep watch on the Dutch fleet in the Texel and to prevent its departure for Brest to join the fleet based there. Over the next two years a Dutch squadron had occasionally put to sea, with Duncan being prevented from intercepting them either by the weather, or on one occasion by the failure of a subordinate (Rear-Admiral Thomas Pringle) to bring the enemy to action.

Admiral Adam Duncan

During May and June 1797, the mutinies in the home fleets had affected the North Sea station, leaving Duncan bereft of support, and for three days he had been obliged to maintain a blockade of the fifteen Dutch sail of the line with just two loyal vessels – his flagship Venerable 74 and the Adamant 50. To maintain the illusion of strength, each day the two ships had sought to change their appearance when they appeared off the Texel, and signalled to an imaginary fleet over the horizon. When two reinforcements arrived in the form of the Sans Pareil 84, Captain William Browell, and the Russell 74, Captain Henry Trollope, Duncan and his crews vowed that if the Dutch came out, they would fight until their vessels sank rather than let the enemy escape. Fortunately for the British commander-in-chief, the Dutch were not yet ready to sail, and his predicament was eased when he was joined in mid-June by a further six ships from the Channel Fleet under Rear-Admiral Sir Roger Curtis, then by a Russian squadron, and finally by the ships of his own fleet returning to duty from the mutiny.

Opening Moves

On 3 October the bulk of Duncan’s fleet put into Yarmouth to refit after nineteen weeks at sea, which had culminated with several days of heavy gales that had left a number of ships damaged. Newspaper reports claimed that the commander-in-chief did not expect the Dutch to put to sea any time soon, as he had received information that their ships were in a state of rebellion, with the seamen resenting the presence of their French overlords. It was therefore something of a surprise when six days later, the lugger Speculator appeared off Yarmouth firing her guns to signal she had urgent news – the Dutch fleet had put to sea at sea, under the command of Vice-Admiral Jan Willem De Winter.

Losing not a moment, by noon Duncan was at sea with eleven sail of the line, having left many officers ashore in his haste to sail. By the afternoon, the fleet had already cleared the Yarmouth Sands and was racing for the Dutch coast. (This force would later to be joined by three more sail of the line.) His fleet included seven vessels that had participated in the North Sea mutiny, and the even more radical insurrection at the Nore: the Montagu 74, Ardent 64, Belliqueux 64, Director 64, Lancaster 64, Monmouth 64, and Isis 50.

De Winter had sailed at 10 a.m. on 8 October after receiving intelligence from his scouting vessels that Duncan had left his station. His fleet consisted of four 74s, seven 68 or 64s and five 56 or lesser gunned ships of the line, together with five frigates and five brigs. A committed republican, the 36-year-old commander-in-chief had left the service of the Dutch navy as a lieutenant following the civil war that had ended in 1787 with the triumph of the Stadtholder, William of Orange Finding sanctuary in France, he had joined the republican army and had returned to the Netherlands with that force in 1795 as a brigadier general. Charged with rebuilding the Dutch navy for the newly created ‘Batavian Republic’, he had been promoted vice-admiral in 1796, even though he had never commanded a ship, let alone a fleet.

De Winter’s orders were rather vague, there seemingly being some intent to join the French fleet at Brest or at least make some demonstration of Dutch maritime power. However, putting to sea in the unfavourable autumn season was a surprising action for a fledgling fleet. De Winter was a realist about the fighting capacity of his force, and on hearing on the 10th from a fishing vessel that Duncan had put to sea, he decided to turn for home.

A race for the Texel now took place, one that with the wind behind him Duncan was able to win, for he arrived with his fleet off the Dutch coast some fifteen miles south-west of the mouth of the Texel near the village of Kamperduin, (anglicised as Camperdown) that same day, 10 October. At 8.30 the following morning, the 11th, De Winter also arrived, at which time the two fleets were some seven miles offshore with the Dutch to leeward. Between them lay Captain Trollope’s squadron of observation, consisting of the Russell 74, Adamant 50, Beaulieu 40 and Circe 28, which had maintained very close contact with the Dutch since the despatch of the Speculator.

At 9.15 Captain Peter Halkett sighted the Dutch ships from the maintop of the frigate Circe, which at the time was some five miles off the villages of Egmont and Camperdown. The wind was in the north-west blowing straight onto the shore. Under leaden skies, on tossing seas, and through squalls of rain, Duncan brought his fleet racing down upon the 16 Dutch ships of the line, which were waiting in a regular line of battle on the larboard tack, their frigates and brigs to leeward. Duncan did not waste time in attempting to form his own line of battle, for he was anxious to break the Dutch line and engage them on the leeward side before the enemy could find sanctuary amongst the shoal waters, where their shallower draughts would offer more safety. The plan necessitated splitting the British fleet into two loose groups of ships, one of seven (the starboard) to be led by Duncan’s flagship, the Venerable, which would aim for De Winter’s flagship Vrijheid 74, and the other of nine (the larboard) led by his second-in-command, Vice-Admiral Richard Onslow aboard the Monarch 74, which would steer for the last four ships in the enemy line.

With the mutinies behind them and the long-awaited battle with the Dutch imminent, no doubt many of Duncan’s captains would have remembered their admiral’s earlier comment: ‘Well Gentlemen, when Winter does approach I have only to advise you to keep up a good fire!’. On board the Monmouth 64, acting-Captain James Walker addressed his men, many of whom had been amongst the most resolute mutineers earlier in the year: ‘My lads you see your enemy. I shall lay you close aboard and give you the opportunity of washing the stain off your characters in the blood of your foes.’ Meanwhile, aboard the Belliqueux 64, Captain John Inglis, on seeing the multiple and confusing signals flying on the Venerable’s halyards, threw down his signal book in frustration, and swore that he would sail into the middle of the fight, whatever the admiral said.

Into Battle

In the face of the determined British approach, De Winter tried to close his line, but the speed of Duncan’s attack prevented him from doing so effectively. Shortly after 12.30 p.m. Onslow’s Monarch broke through the Dutch rear, raking the ships on either side of him – the Jupiter 74, flagship of Vice-Admiral Hermanus Reyntjes, and the Haarlem 68, The Monarch then blasted the frigate Monnikendam which had bravely attempted to block his path to leeward, and ranged up on the lee side of the Jupiter. Soon the ships in the Dutch rear were being doubled: the Director and Monmouth battering the Alkmaar 56; the Powerful 74 and Adamant attacking the Haarlem; and the Monarch and Veteran 64 menacing the Jupiter. Although outnumbered, the enemy fought back stubbornly, but their fire soon began to slacken.

Amongst the ships in Onslow’s larboard division Captain Trollope’s Russell demonstrated that officer’s proficiency in gunnery, battering the Delft 68 into surrender with the help of the Montagu. Rather than take possession of her prize, she moved on to assist the Monarch force a second Dutch ship (the Jupiter) to surrender, but once more she refrained from taking possession. While the Monarch captured the Jupiter, the Russell sailed on to engage the Wassenaar 68, which had previously struck to the Triumph 74 from Duncan’s division, but had re-hoisted her colours after being accidentally fired into by a Dutch brig. Trollope’s ship quickly forced the Wassenaar to strike her colours for a second time. By now the Russell was sailing perilously close to shallow water, with her rigging cut to pieces, and so rather than put a prize crew aboard, the captain ordered the Wassenaar to find a British ship to surrender to. Eventually the suspiciously unengaged Agincourt 64, Captain John Williamson, took possession of her.

The Battle of Camperdown

Whilst Onslow’s division had already been engaged with the Dutch rear to the south, in the north Duncan’s had intended to pass through De Winter’s line to the rear of the flagship Vrijheid. This manoeuvre had been thwarted by her neighbour, Rear-Admiral Samuel Storij’s flagship, Staten Generaal 74, which had moved up to close the gap between the two vessels. Thus, the Venerable changed course to pass through the Dutch line astern of the Staaten Generaal, raking her and forcing her out of the line. Duncan’s flagship then came around to provide assistance to the Ardent, which in attacking the Vrijheid from the windward side, had become engaged in an unequal struggle with the larger enemy flagship. The Dutch fire proved to be accurate and rapid as they poured their shot into the hulls of their adversaries in the British fashion, and both the Ardent and Venerable were hard hit. Within ten minutes the Ardent’s captain, Richard Rundle Burges, and many of the crew had fallen, and to make matters worse, both she and the Venerable were now surrounded, as the previously un-engaged Dutch centre consisting of the Brutus 74, Leijden 68, and Mars 44 ranged up to them. Support for the embattled British ships was not immediately forthcoming, as the remaining vessels of Duncan’s division had either attacked the Dutch van, or were still away to windward. Of those that had joined the action, the Triumph was tackling the Wassenaar 64, and the Bedford 74 was engaging both the Admiraal Tjerk Hiddes De Vries 68 and the Hercules 64. When a lucky shot from the Triumph ignited a powder cask aboard the Hercules, she caught fire and drifted down upon the mêlée in flames, obliging the Dutch ships around the Venerable and Ardent to take evasive action, so the fighting temporarily subsided.

By the time the action restarted in earnest at around 2 o’clock, the rain showers were relenting, allowing spectators on the coastal sand dunes a clearer view of affairs. Onslow’s division had successfully overwhelmed the Dutch rear and were now able to sail north to support Duncan. Similarly, the Belliqueux, and Lancaster, which in conjunction with the Isis had piled into the Dutch leading ships, were coming about in order to assist the Venerable and Triumph. Now it was the Dutch centre that became enveloped. Captain William Bligh (of Bounty fame) brought the Director up to within twenty yards of the Vrijheid’s larboard quarter and poured in shot after shot before taking up a similar position off her bows where the enemy could not reply. By three o’clock the Dutch flagship had been totally dismasted, and De Winter was the only officer still standing on her upper deck. Defiantly, he sought to repair a damaged punt in which he could transfer his flag to another ship, and when that failed, he tried to raise a signal for help with his own hands, but even as he did so the halyards were shot away. Shortly afterwards, as the dismasted Vrijheid was drifting towards the shore, a boat from the British frigate Circe commanded by Lieutenant Charles Richardson, came alongside with orders to remove De Winter and his flag. The admiral was taken to the Venerable – when he offered up his sword to Duncan the latter chivalrously refused it. ‘I would much rather take a brave man’s hand than his sword’, he declared. De Winter commented that it was surprising that two such large men (both were over six feet tall) should have survived when those around them on their quarterdecks were killed or wounded.

The action ceased at about 3 p.m. when the remaining Dutch ships under Rear-Admiral Storij retreated and Duncan looked to preserve his prizes and crippled ships from the nearby shoals. Nine of the Dutch fleet of sixteen ships of the line had been captured – the 74’s Vrijheid and Jupiter, the 64’s Admiraal Tjerk Hiddes De Vries, Gelijkheid, Haarlem, Hercules and Wassenaar, and the 50-gun ships Alkmaar and Delft, together with the frigates Monnikendam 44 and Embuscade 36. Aboard the Ardent there were pitiful scenes, as more than 100 men awaited the attention of the surgeon. They had already lost 41 shipmates, and the casualties aboard the 64-gun ship accounted for a disproportionate number of the total 228 men killed and 812 wounded on the British side. The Dutch numbers were even worse. De Winter’s flagship lost 58 men killed and 98 wounded, testimony to her stoic defence, whilst in the fleet as a whole, 540 men were killed and 620 wounded. Amongst the injured was Vice-Admiral Reyntjes.

Aftermath

The battle may have ended, but the participants’ struggles were far from over. On the 13th, two days after the engagement, a gale sank the Delft – fortunately the prize crew and many of the wounded had been evacuated by British ships, which had been alerted by a chalkboard proclaiming, ‘the ship is sinking’. The prize-master, Lieutenant Charles Bullen of the Monmouth 64, remained on board with the remaining wounded until the Delft went down and only escaped death by swimming away from the wreck. Sadly, 180 Dutchmen, together with five British seamen, drowned. The prize frigate Monnikendam, under the command of Lieutenant James Robert Phillips of the Beaulieu, drove ashore and was wrecked; all aboard were saved, but the prize crew became prisoners of war. The other enemy frigate, the Embuscade, also drove ashore and was reclaimed by the Dutch. Many of the damaged ships were towed home: the dismasted Alkmaar reached Yarmouth five days after the battle under the tow of the Monmouth, which had done so much to capture her; the Circe kept the Vrijheid in tow until relieved of this duty by the Montagu the day after the battle; and the Bedford towed the damaged Ardent into port.

Admiral de Winter

The frigate Endymion 40, Captain Sir Thomas Williams, had not been present at the battle and was returning from the delivery of a convoy to Elsinore when on 13 October she came upon the Brutus 74 in company with a number of smaller vessels at anchor off the Texel. Positioning the Endymion across the ship of the line’s bows, Williams raked the Brutus until his frigate was forced to haul off by the combined effects of enemy fire and the tide. Joined by the Beaulieu, on the next day the Endymion returned to the scene, only to suffer the disappointment of seeing the lightened Brutus being hauled over the sands into Goree. A day later the Endymion came across the prize Jupiter 74 on a lee shore and was able to take her in tow for an eventful passage to the Humber, where she arrived on the 26th, along with three other frigates, escorting the Admiraal Tjerk Hiddes De Vries.

At the end of the battle, the cutter Rose, Lieutenant Joseph Brodie, had been sent home with Duncan’s brief letter announcing the victory, which he delivered to the Admiralty at 4 o’clock on the morning of the 14th, supplementing the missive with his own observations of the proceedings. Lord Spencer immediately set off for Kew to inform the King of the victory, the guns at the Tower of London and in the Park were fired in celebration, the city was illuminated, and stocks rose by two percent. William Pitt, on being told at Walmer Castle of the victory by smugglers, reacted boyishly to the news (Duncan was a frequent visitor to the Pitt residence), and everywhere bonfires were lit and processions held in celebration of the defeat of the Dutch.

Admiral Duncan arrived at the Nore with his damaged fleet on 15 October and his flag captain, William Fairfax, set off to deliver the victory dispatch to the Admiralty, which he did early the next morning. Once the victorious Duncan arrived in London days later, he was mobbed by a crowd whilst taking coffee in Covent Garden and his coach was pulled around the streets. On 10 November he was feted when his carriage was towed up Ludgate Hill to deposit him at a dinner at the Guildhall. Disappointingly, an attempt by the King to visit the victorious fleet at Sheerness aboard the yacht Royal Charlotte under the command of Captain Trollope was prevented by contrary winds strong enough to throw His Majesty out of bed when the yacht was off Gravesend. However, at Duncan’s behest the King pardoned 180 imprisoned Nore mutineers, which was no doubt a more welcome signal of royal favour for the men involved.

Duncan was raised to the peerage as Baron Duncan of Lundie and Viscount Duncan of Camperdown, Vice-Admiral Onslow became a baronet, the worthy Captains William Fairfax and  Henry Trollope were knighted, gold medals were awarded to the admirals and captains, and most of the first lieutenants were promoted. An unexpected hero of the battle was an ordinary seaman named Jack Crawford, who at the height of the battle had climbed the Venerable’s mainmast to replace the Union flag that had been shot away, nailing a replacement to the mast. When news of this feat reached the London newspapers, he became the man of the hour, a symbol of the bravery of British tars, and he was showered with praise, presented to the King, and received a government pension.

However, for Captain Williamson of the Agincourt there was nothing but disgrace. Eighteen years before, Williamson had refrained from going to Captain James Cook’s aid when the great explorer was receiving his death blows from native Hawaiians. Now in this battle he had held his ship back, bizarrely claiming to have interpreted Duncan’s signals as meaning ‘do not attack. ‘A court martial aboard the Circe at Sheerness, held from 4 December to 1 January, found him guilty of disobedience of signals, although not of cowardice. He was placed at the bottom of the list of captains and barred from ever serving afloat again. He died in shame two years later. Similarly, the Dutch Rear-Admiral Johan Arnold Bloijs Van Treslong of the Brutus and Commander Souters of the Wassenaar (whose captain had died in the battle) were dismissed the service and imprisoned for their failures.

The wounded 64-year-old Vice-Admiral Reintjes was well enough to dine with Lord Spencer at the Admiralty and visit the Bank of England with De Winter and Duncan, but the splinter wound in his stomach worsened, and he died at Tavistock Street, Covent Garden on 7 November. De Winter was feted all around London and released on parole, along with several other officers. Having enjoyed a final breakfast with Duncan, on 14 November he boarded a British ship to return to the Batavian Republic – in time he would rise to the rank of marshal and became a follower of Napoleon, from whom he received the Legion of Honour.

The Battle of Camperdown was a glorious victory which put confidence back into the British war effort, not least because it had been achieved by unplanned bravado rather than formal tactics. On a more practical level, all the captured Dutch vessels were virtually useless after having been so badly damaged in the battle, and not one sail of the line ever saw active service in the British Navy.

British fleet and casualties in killed and wounded: 203+622:

Dutch fleet:

4×74 guns: Vrijheid: Staaten Generaal: Brutus: Jupiter:

5×68 guns: Gelijkheid: Admiral Tjerk Hiddes De Vries: Leijden: Cerberus: Haarlem:

2×64 guns: Hercules: Wassenaar:

3×56 guns: Beschermer: Batavier: Alkmaar:

1×54 guns: Delft:

1×44 guns: Mars:

Frigates: Monnikendam 44: Embuscade 36: Heldin 32: Minerva 24: Waakzaamheid 24: