Is someone looking to make a "pre-emptive strike" publication about the First Anglo-Dutch War?

In November, we saw evidence that someone is researching Witte de With in the archives. Now, there is evidence that the research is also covering the First Anglo-Dutch War and Michiel Adriaansz De Ruyter. The possible explanation is that 2007 is an anniversary year for De Ruyter (1607/2007). I speculated that one scenario is that someone is doing a crash research project that covers the First Anglo-Dutch War, with aim of publishing before anyone else can complete their research. I can imagine that Dr. Ballhausen's book was done in a rather "crash" way. He certainly used many obscure published sources, but seems to have ignored the archives for some reason. In this case, if someone had some clues about where to look, and was able to devote his full time to the project, perhaps with help, he could make some rapid progress. I am used to seeing a more leisurely pace of research. That is apparently Frank Fox's modus operandi. In my case, the pace has been greatly influenced by the availability of sources. I have tended to move in spurts, as I discovered new sources. I can imagine, though, that the published sources, such as Dr. Elias's books De Vlootbouw in Nederland and Schetsen uit de geschiedenis van ons zeewezen, along with the Navy Records Society publication The First Dutch War, might be sufficient for them to learn rapidly enough to proceed quickly. The contemporary published sources, such as the Onstelde-Zee and the Hollandsche Mercurius would also be helpful.

The Sint Joris, hired in 1652

Ron van Maanen says that the ship Sint Joris, hired by the Admiralty of Zeeland, was owned by Paulus van Molter and Andries Rennij. Carl Stapel found a few details about the ship, which was commanded by Jacob Wophertszoon from 1652 until sometime in 1653. The ship carried 28 guns and had a crew of 85 sailors. The guns included 2-brass of unknown size, 2-iron 9pdr, 6-iron 8pdr, 8-iron 6pdr, 6-iron 4pdr, and 4-iron 3pdr guns. Sources:

1. Ron van Maanen, unpublished manuscript "ZEELAND", undated
2. Carl Stapel, unpublished manuscript "Lijst van Nederlandse schepen in maart 1653", 2006

The Zeeland ship Dordrecht, built in 1653

Ron van Maanen has some more details about the Zeeland ship Dordrecht built at Middelburg by Frans Jasperssen and Jan Joppen in 1653. Both of the builders were from Dordrecht. On 21 July 1654, the Dordrecht was measured at 300 lasts. These are the details:

The ship Dordrecht

Captains:
   1659 Jan Tijssen with De Ruyter's fleet in the Sound
06/1665 Adriaan van Haaze at the Battle of Lowestoft
08/1665 Adriaan van Haaze with De Ruyter's fleet
06/1666 Adriaan van Cruiningen at the Four Days' Battle
08/1666 Adriaan van Cruiningen at the St. James's Day Battle
   1671 Dirk Jobsz Kiela
08/1673 Willem Hendrickszoon at the Battle of the Texel

Length from stem to sternpost: 130ft
Beam:                           34ft
Hold:                           13-1/2ft
Height between decks:            7ft

Guns:
30/03/1665  4-24pdr, 2-18pdr, 14-12pdr, 12-8pdr,
             8-6pdr, 2-4pdr, 2-3pdr, and 2-2pdr
   06/1666  2-24pdr, 4-18pdr, 16-12pdr, 12-8pdr, and 16-6pdr
      1667  4-24pdr, 4-18pdr, 26-12pdr and 8pdr, 18-6pdr, 4pdr, and 3pdr

Crew:
06/1666  148 sailors and 52 soldiers

Sources:

1. James C. Bender, unpublished manuscript "Dutch Ships 1600-1700", 2006
2. H.A. van Foreest and R.E.J. Weber, De Vierdaagse Zeeslag 11-14 Juni 1666, 1984
3. Ron van Maanen, unpublished manuscript, the "Zeeland" document, undated

In 1665, the Dutch were piling on light guns to have a greater number of guns on ships: for example, the Rotterdam ship Vrede

I had already noticed this phenomenon: in 1665, the Dutch added many light guns to ships to have a greater number, rather than a greater broadside weight. The Rotterdam frigate Vrede was an illustration of this point. I had thought, when I saw that the ship carried 40 guns in the Battle of Lowestoft, that the ship must be 130ft long. In fact, the Vrede was a small frigate: 111ft x 27ft-3in x 12ft x 6ft-6in. On 16 March 1665, the Vrede carried 40 guns: 18-12pdr, 14-6pdr, 4-4pdr and 4-2pdr guns. On 13 June 1656, the Vrede had carried a much more modest armament: 4-12pdr, 6-8pdr, 14-6pdr, and 2-3pdr guns. Sources:

1. Ron van Maanen, unpublished manuscript "'Oorlogsschepen' van de admiraliteit van de Maze in de zeventiende en achttiende eeuw", undated (the "MazeNieuII" file)

The ship Haes in 't Veldt

Carl Stapel was able to find information about the ship Haes in 't Veldt, which had been with Michiel De Ruyter's fleet in the Battle of Plymouth and also fought in the Battle of the Kentish Knock. After the last battle, the ship was unable to sail, so it was discarded. The Haes in 't Veldt was hired by the city of Middelburg, not the Directors. These are the details of the ship:

The ship Haes in 't Veldt, kapitein Leendert den Haen

Length from stem to sternpost: 116ft
Beam:                           25ft
Hold:                            ?
Height between decks:            5-3/4ft

30 guns (all iron):
8-12pdr, 14-6pdr, 5-4pdr, and 3-3pdr

Crew: 85 sailors and 25 soldiers (at the Battle of the Kentish Knock)

Sources:

1. Carl Stapel, unpublished manuscript "Haes in het Veldt 1652", 2006

My updated Dutch warlosses list for the First Anglo-Dutch War is now available

I finally finished my update to the list of Dutch losses in the First Anglo-Dutch War at AngloDutchWarsBlog.com. This is at least much better than what was out there from a year ago. The list is both more accurate and more complete. I have fixed numerous problems that I realized were there. Much of the new information comes from Witte de With's journal that I acquired from the Riksarkivet in Stockholm and from what Carl Stapel has found at the Nationaal Archief in The Hague.

What would be good to find

What would be great to find would be the armaments of the Dutch ships in the Battle of the Sound in 1658. Extra credit would be given for finding the dimensions and gun lists for the ships Waag and Cogge, both hired by the Stad van Amsterdam. I really would like to see an authoritative list fo guns for the Brederode with 59 guns on board. Frank Fox says that when you see the odd number of guns, that means that there was a gun firing through a port in the upper stern on the centerline. In Frank's book, Great Ships, there is a diagram of a large English ship that shows guns firing directly aft. There are groups of three guns, with the middle gun on the centerline. Frank says that the English stern structure was thick, so that guns firing aft had to be long to clear the hull. He also had told me that the Dutch often used heavier guns in the chase, that would either fire on the broadside, or be switched to fire out of ports firing either aft, or around the curve in the hull, forward.

Carl Stapel on the Liefde and Schellinghout

I was aware that the Schellinghout (also known as the Vergulde Sonne) was lost at the Battle of the Gabbard (or Nieuwpoort). Carl Stapel says that the ship was lost on 13 June 1653, the second day of the battle. He also confirms what I had suspected: the Liefde (or Lieffde) was lost in a storm in January 1653. A letter from Lt-Admiraal Tromp had reported that the Liefde was missing after the storm, along with some other ships. He expected that the ship had gone into some port and had just not reported in, yet. Sources:

1. C. T. Atkinson, Ed., The First Dutch War, Vol.IV, 1910
2. Carl Stapel, personal communication "Hoorn dir Lieffde en Staeten van oorlog te water", 2006

Pieter Adriaansz van Blocker's ship Liefde

Pieter Adriaansz van Blocker commanded the ship Liefde, hired by the Hoorn Directors. In June through August, he was with Tromp's fleet and took part in the voyage to the Shetlands. He fought in the Battle of Dungeness on 10 December 1652 and may fought in the Three Days Battle from 28 February to 2 March 1653. An interesting feature of the ship is the lenght-to-beam ratio of 5.0. This is what we know about the ship:

The ship Liefde, kapitein Pieter Adriaansz van Blocker
 hired by the Hoorn Directors

Length from stem to sternpost: 135-1/2ft
Beam:                           27ft
Hold:                           13-1/2ft
Height between decks:            6-1/4ft

28 guns:
4-brass 18pdr, 8-12pdr, 6-8pdr, 6-8pdr, 6-6pdr, 2-4pdr, and 2-3pdr

Crew: 105 men

Sources:

1. Ron van Maanen, unpublished manuscript "Dutch Warships 1600-1800", undated, but circa 1992
2. Hendrik de Raedt, Lyste van de schepen van Oorloge onder het beleyt Admirael Marten Harpersz. Tromp, 1652
3. Carl Stapel, unpublished manuscript "Lijst van Nederlandse schepen in maart 1653", 2006

The Middelburg Directors' ship Gouden Leeuw

The Middelburg Directors' ship Gouden Leeuw, served from 1652 until early November 1653, when the ship was lost in a storm off the Texel, along with many other ships. Jacob Penssen commanded the ship throughout this period. Ron van Maanen found the detailed information about the Gouden Leeuw, as did Carl Stapel, more recently:

The ship Gouden Leeuw, kapitein Jacob Adriaansz Penssen

Length from stem to sternpost: 124ft
Beam:                           28ft
Hold:                            ?ft
Height between decks:            6-1/2ft

30 guns: 4-brass 24pdr, 2-brass 12pdr, 14-iron 8pdr, 6-iron 6pdr, and 2-iron 4pdr

Crew: 95 sailors and 25 soldiers

Sources:

1. Ron van Maanen, "De Dutch in Danish Waters", undated. Ron van Maanen, unpublished manuscript "Dutch Warships 1600-1800", undated, but circa 1992
2. Carl Stapel, unpublished manuscript "Lijst van Nederlandse schepen in maart 1653", 2006

The Friesland ship Postpaert (Postpaard)

The ship Postpaert (Postpaard) was hired at Amsterdam by the Admiralty of Friesland on 24 September 1652. Isaac Codde commanded the Postpaert through the Battle of Scheveningen. The ship is not mentioned from shortly after the battle. The Postpaert haed 7 dead and 16 wounded in that battle. Carl Stapel has all the good information about the ship, which is mentioned in The First Dutch War, without mention of guns or crew. Thse are the details:

The ship Postpaert, kapitein Isaac Codde (or Kodde)

Dimensions: 118ft x 28ft x 13ft  Height between decks: 7ft

Guns (17 April 1653): (all iron) 10-12pdr, 8-8pdr, 10-6pdr, and 2-2pdr

Crew: 3 April 1653: 120 men
      1 May 1653:   106 men

Sources:

1. Carl Stapel, unpublished manuscript "Postpaard 1653", 2006
2. Witte de With, journals from 1652 to 1658, Archive E8812 from the Riksarkivet, Stockholm

An annotated list from May 1653

One list from Witte de With's journal from May 1653 actually has the names of most of the ships, along with the gun and crew numbers. I have completed the list from other sources:

Adm    Ship                  Guns Crew  Commander
N      Stad Monnikendam      36   178   Schout-bij-Nacht Pieter Floriszoon
N      Hoorn                 30    95   kapitein Claes Aldertszoon
A-Dir  Sampson               30   112   luitenant-commandeur Jacob Albertsz Pool
A      Amsterdam             30   120   kapitein Pouwels Egbertsz Sonck
A-Dir  Moorinne              28   107   kapitein Cornelis Cornelisz Jol
A-Dir  Elias                 34   107   kapitein Frans Fransz Sluijter
A-Dir  Gideon                34    95   kapitein Dirck Jansz Somer
A-Dir  Nassouw van den Burgh 34   119   kapitein Hendrick Glas
N      Peereboom             24    86   kapitein Tijs Tijmensz Peereboom
A-Dir  Gulden Pelicaen       30   120   kapitein Bartimeus Soudaen
N      Profeet Samuel        30   ?     kapitein Reijnst Cornelisz Sevenhuijsen
Mo-Dir Zwarte Beer           32   104   kapitein Jan Olij
F      Stad en Ommelanden    28   110   kapitein Joost Bulter
A      Jonas                 26   110   kapitein Joris Collerij
A-Dir  Walvisch              30   104   kapitein Abraham Verleth

Sources:

1. Ron van Maanen, unpublished manuscript "Dutch Warships 1600-1800", undated, but circa 1992
2. Carl Stapel, unpublished manuscript "Lijst van schepen van 31 mei 1653", 2006
3. Witte de With, journals from 1652 to 1658, Archive E8812 from the Riksarkivet, Stockholm

The Amsterdam ship Doesburg

The Amsterdam ship Doesburg was built in 1655. The ship as 130ft x 32ft x 13ft in size. The Doesburg was chartered to Denmark from 1666 to 1667, and is not mentioned after 1667. The ship carried 48 guns: 4-18pdr, 18-12pdr, 20-8pdr, and 6-3pdr on 31 March 1665. Ysbrandt de Vries commanded the Doesburg for the Battle of Lowestoft. The Doesburg was ain Egbert Meeuwssen Kortenaer's Third Squadron. For the battle, the Doesburg carried 48 guns and had a crew of 200 men (which sounds like a nominal number). Sources:

1. Frank Fox, A Distant Storm: the Four Days' Battle of 1666, 1996
2. Ron van Maanen, unpublished manuscript "Dutch Warships 1600-1800", undated, but circa 1992

The ship the Beurs van Amsterdam

the Beurs van Amsterdam fought in the Battle of Lowestoft in 1665. The ship was an East Indiaman that served with the Admiralty of Amsterdam. The ship was later returned to the VOC.The ship carries a substantial armament for the dimensions. Ron van Maanen has the details:

The ship Beurs van Amsterdam  1654, kapitein Cornelis Muts

Length from stem to sternpost: 130ft
Beam:                           31-1/2ft
Hold:                           12-3/4ft
Height between decks:            7ft

52 guns: 4-18pdr, 20-12pdr, 18-6pdr, 10-3pdr

Crew: 213 men

Sources:

1. James C. Bender, unpublished manuscript "Dutch Ships 1600-1700", 2006
2. Ron van Maanen, unpublished manuscript "Dutch Warships 1600-1800", undated, but circa 1992

Some ships from the 8 July 1653 list on page 150 of Witte de With's journal

On the next page, the ships are generally not from Amsterdam, but on page 150 they all seem to be. This is the list that I have tried to annotate. The list only has captains, crew, soldiers, and guns,along with weeks of victuals and water:

Adm   Ship        Guns Sailors Soldiers Commander                     Victuals Water
A     Hollandia     30   110      32    kapitein Evert Anthonisz         17        7
A     Bommel        34   101       9    kapitein Pieter van Braeckel     21        7
A     Morgenstar    26    58      42    kapitein Albert Claesz de Graeff 17       11
A     Overijssel    30   114            kapitein Jan van Campen           7        7
A     Groningen     40   135      25    kapitein Gillis Thijsz Campen    17        7
A     Gulden Reael  30   114            kapitein Adriaen van Loenen      13       13
A     Windhond      18    77       8    kapitein Dirck Pietersz Heertjes  8        8
A     Brak          18    73      12    kapitein Jan Admirael             6        6
A     Pelicaen      24   110            kapitein Jan Overcamp            17        9
                    34   116      24    lt-commandeur deluige?           17        6
A-Dir Engel Gabriel 28   110            kapitein Adriaen van den Bos     17       17

The one unknown is the second to last ship. Sources:

1. James C. Bender, unpublished manuscript "Dutch Ships 1600-1700", 2006
2. Witte de With, journals from 1652 to 1658, Archive E8812 from the Riksarkivet, Stockholm

Noorderkwartier ships with Tromp's fleet on 15 July 1652

One document, of which I have a copy, lists the captains in Tromp's fleet on 15 July 1653. The ships are grouped by admiralty or directors. This is the list of Noorderkwartier ships and captains, which I have annotated:

Adm   Ship              Guns Crew Commander
N     Monnikendam       36   138  Schout-bij-Nacht Pieter Florisz
N     Prins Maurits     28    86  kapitein Cornelis Pietersz Taenman
N                       24    74  kapitein Arent Dircksz
N     Stad Medemblik    26    95  kapitein Pieter Schellinger
N     Enkhuizen         30   110  kapitein Gerrit Femssen
N     Wapen van Alkmaar 30    93  kapitein Gerrit Nobel
N     Roode Leeuw       29    75  kapitein Reijnst Cornelisz Sevenhuijsen
N     Peereboom         29    81  kapitein Thijs Tijmensz Peereboom
N     Huis van Nassau   28   109  kapitein Gerrit Munth
 

Sources:

1. Carl Stapel, unpublished manuscript "Lijst van alle kapiteins 1652 in het Noorderkwartier", 2006
2. a document from the Nationaal Archief dated 15 July 1652

A page dated 18 March 1652

The page dated 18 March 1652 has more Amsterdam Directors' ships:

The ship, the Princes Roijael, 8 April
(the ship commanded by Marten de Graeff, with
lieutenant Abraham de Koninck)
Dimensions: 127ft x 27ft x 12-1/2ft x 6-3/4ft

The ship, the Croon Imperiael, 24 March
(the ship commanded by Cornelis Jansz Poort)
Dimensions: 130ft x 30ft x 12-1/2ft x 7ft
Guns: 2-brass 24pdr, 10-brass 12pdr and 6 iron 12pdr,
       2-brass 6pdr and 10-iron 6pdr, and 4-3pdr

The ship groote Liefde, 5 April
(the ship commanded by Brian van Seelst)
Dimensions: 132ft x 29ft x 13-1/2ft x 6-1/2ft
Guns: 2-24pdr, 18-12pdr, 14-6pdr, and 4-3pdr

The ship, the groote Fortuijn, 6 April
(the ship commanded by Frederick de Coninck)
Dimensions: 141ft x 31ft x 14-1/2ft x 7ft
Guns: 4-brass 24pdr, 16-12pdr, 11-6pdr, and 4-3pdr

The ship, the Engel Michiel, 29 April
(the ship commanded by Frederick Bogaert)
Dimensions: 120ft x 27-3/4ft x 13ft x 6-3/4ft

Page dated 12 March 1652 with DIrectors' ships

There is a page dated 12 March 1652, with information from later dates. These are all Amsterdam Directors' ships:

The ship Sint Matheus, 16 April 
 (the ship commanded by Cornelis Naeuoogh)
  140ft x 34ft x 15ft x 7-1/3ft

The ship Davit en Goliad, 29 April 
 (the ship commanded by Claes Bastiaansz van Jaersvelt)
   130ft x 32ft x 12ft x 7ft

The ship Nassouw, 29 April
 (the ship commanded by Lambert Pietersz, whose
   lieutenant was Dirck Jansz Somer)
   130ft x 32ft x 12ft x 7ft

The ship Sint Salvador, 12 April
  (the ship commanded by Matthijs Cornelisz)
   130ft x 30ft x 13-1/2ft x 6-1/2ft

The ship, the Engel Gabriel, 16 April
 (the ship commanded by Bastiaan Bardoel, whose
  lieutenant was Cornelis Cornelisz Jol)
   124ft x 28-1/2ft x 13-1/2ft x 6-3/4ft

The ship, the Neptunis, 15 April
 (the ship commanded by Gerrit van Lummen)
   138ft x 32ft x 13ft x 7ft
     34 guns: 14-12pdr, 12-8pdr, 4-6pdr, and 4-3pdr
    

Ron van Maanen has details of the Friesland ship Sint Nicolaes

I was skeptical what this ship was the one that was lost in a collision in 1652, but that seems to be correct. Ron van Maanen has details of a 116ft ship named Sint Nicolaes that he identifies as the ship lost in the collision in August 1652, while returning from convoying a ship to the Somme. This is what Ron has on the ship:

The ship Sint Nicolaes, kapitein Andries van den Bouckhorst
hired by the Admiralty of Friesland

Length from stem to sternpost: 116ft
Beam inside the planking:       26ft
Hold:                           12-1/4ft (or 12ft)
Height between decks:            5-1/2ft (or 5-3/4ft)

23 guns
crew: 85 sailors

Sources:

1. James C. Bender, unpublished manuscript "Dutch Ships 1600-1700", 2006
2. Dr. S.R. Gardiner, Ed., The First Dutch War, Vol.II, 1900
3. Ron van Maanen, unpublished manuscript "Zeeland", undated

Andries Fortuijn's ship, the Eendracht

Andries Fortuijn commanded the Zeeland ship Eendracht until the ship was sunk at the Battle of Scheveningen, on 10 August 1653. Ron van Maanen has the ship's armament on 29 March 1653: 2-9pdr, 6-8pdr, 2-7pdr, 8-6pdr, 4-4pdr, and 2-3pdr, for a total of 24 guns. The Eendracht, commanded by Andries Fortuijn had been in Michiel De Ruyter's fleet at the Battle Plymouth, in August 1652. Sources:

1. Dr. S.R. Gardiner, Ed., The First Dutch War, Vol.II, 1900
2. Ron van Maanen, unpublished manuscript "Zeeland", undated