Maritime record TQ 87 NE 1179 - The third of three English ships depicted by the Dutch as sunk at 'the mouth of the River', i.e. Sheerness, during the Dutch Raid on the Medway

The third of three English ships sunk at Sheerness during the Dutch bombardment of the town:

Primary Sources:

June 11? John Glover to [Williamson ?]. Three hoys of the town, that were going to London, bring word that 40 sail of Dutch ships are battering at Sheerness. (1)

June 11. Rochester. Geo. Williamson to Williamson. Yesterday, at 7pm, the Dutch, after some small dispute, took possession of Sheerness, which is supposed to be burned, as much smoke comes this way. The Lord General was at Chatham by 5 o'clock to-day, and has put things in the best posture he could; they lie with their main fleet opposite Queensbury, which it is said they have taken; many of the people have left the Isle of Sheppey; five of their fleet are within a league of the fire-ships at Chatham; it is expected they will attempt something to-morrow noon, when the tide will give them an advantage. (2)

Pictorial Sources:

A Dutch print with a key depicts at No.9 "3 Engelse Schepen gesoncken in de mont van de Revier" ("Three English ships sunk at the mouth of the River"), i.e. Sheerness. (3)

Secondary Sources:

'At Sheerness the CROWN AND BRILL had likewise been destroyed by the Dutch.' (4)

Interpretation of wrecks:

The Dutch viewpoint in (3) looks from Rochester towards Sheerness, depicting in a very general way three ships sunk just off Sheerness.

This is presumed to be owing to the bombardment of the town by the Dutch, that is, through gun action. The reference in (4) to the CROWN AND BRILL having been destroyed is not traced to a parent source. It is therefore difficult to ascertain whether this name is in fact a typographical error for the CROWN and the BRILL, which would accord more closely with the Dutch print, or whether there was in fact a single ship with this very unusual name. So as not to artificially inflate the numbers of wrecks off Sheerness, this first wreck has been identified as the CROWN AND BRILL.

These ships are presumed to be mercantile in origin, since they do not appear in English sources, which were otherwise more concerned with the naval ships sunk to protect the Medway or destroyed by the Dutch during the raid.

Date of Loss Qualifier: Actual date of loss

<1> Calendar of State Papers Domestic, Charles II, 1667, Vol.204, No.46 (Bibliographic reference). SKE6354.

<2> Calendar of State Papers Domestic, Charles II, 1667, Vol.204, No.47 (Bibliographic reference). SKE6354.

<3> print by Bastian Stoependael and Romeyn de Hooghe, 1685-7, 1685-7, Tocht naar Chatham, 16671 (Graphic material). SKE58684.

<4> Rogers P G, 1970, The Dutch in the Medway, 152 (Bibliographic reference). SKE56188.