London (1764 ship)

London was a British merchant ship, built in 1764 in Sussex, England, as Polly, and later Irwin, Weir and London. She was wrecked near Ilfracombe on 9 October 1796 on a voyage from Saint Lucia bringing French prisoners of war as well as gold treasure. There is continuing international debate over the origin of bones found in a mass grave at the wreck site and, if determined, where they should be interred.

For other ships with the same name, see London (ship).

History
Great Britain
NamePolly
OwnerJohn Mather
Launched1764 at Shoreham
RenamedIrwin, Weir, and London (1784)
FateWrecked, 9 October 1796
General characteristics
Tons burthen300 (bm)
Armament
  • 1779: 16 × 4-pounder + 4 × 3-pounder guns
  • 1781: 6 × 4-pounder guns

Description

The ship was a wooden full-rigged British merchant vessel launched in 1764 at Shoreham, Sussex, as Polly. She was measured at 300 tons burthen (bm).[1]

Career

Polly was first listed in Lloyd's Register (LR) in 1764.[1]

Year Master Owner Trade Source & notes
1764 Simon Lee Smith London–Barbados LR
1768 Simon Lee Rd.Smith Barbados–London LR

Between 1768 and 1776 Polly was renamed Irwin[2] (or Irvine)[3]

Year Master Owner Trade Source & notes
1776 Js.Smith Muir & Co. London–Boston LR

In 1777 Irwin was renamed Weir.[4] In 1779 she was armed with 16 × 4-pounder + 4 × 3-pounder guns[3] but by 1781 reduced to 6 x 3pdr.[5]

Year Master Owner Trade Source & notes
1778 S.Williams Js.Mather London–Hallifax LR;repair 1777
1779 S.Williams
R.Moulton		 J.Mather Honduras–London
London transport		 LR; repair 1777
1783 J.Robertson Mather Barbados–London
London–Halifax		 LR; repair 1777
1784 J.Robertson J.Mather Cork transport LR; repair 1777

In 1784 Weir was renamed London and by then registered at London.[6]

Year Master Owner Trade Source & notes
1784 W.Reid Js.Mather London–Jamaica LR
1789 Robertson Mather London LR; thorough repair 1786
1795 Robertson Mather London–Honduras LR; thorough repair 1786 & good repair 1789[7]
Chartered to the Admiralty

Wreck and controversy

London, Robertson, master, was driven onto the rocks at Rapparee Cove, near Ilfracombe, Devon, on 9 October 1796 in stormy weather while returning from Saint Kitts, carrying a number of black French prisoners from Saint Lucia.[8][6] About 50 prisoners were reported drowned, but others reached shore.[6] Four of five chests of gold and silver coins were recovered.[9]

In the 1790s African slaves in the French West Indies colonies were freed, and many were enlisted into the army to serve alongside mixed-race and European troops in the war with Britain for control of the islands. On Saint Lucia the garrison at Fort Charlotte, Castries, surrendered in May 1796 and over 2000 mostly Black and mixed race French soldiers, and some women and children, were transported as prisoners of war, in over 100 ships, to Portsmouth, arriving in October.[10][11] London was part of that fleet, but bad weather pushed her off course.[11]

In 1997 a mass grave was discovered at Rapparee Cove, including bones still bearing manacles.[12] Some bones were analysed at Exeter University by archeologist Mark Horton but that was inconclusive and was not published.[13] Dr Horton said in 2007 that he did not believe that those bones came from black slaves, but more likely from soldiers from France, or even Devon locals; adding that it was possible to re-examine them in the light of developments in DNA analysis.[14] The debate has continued over whether there should be further analysis and, if the origins can be confirmed, what should happen to the remains.[9][13][14][15][16]

Citations
  1. Lloyd's Register of Shipping. London: Lloyd's Register of Shipping. 1764. Retrieved 11 December 2022.
  2. Lloyd's Register of Shipping. London: Lloyd's Register of Shipping. 1776. Retrieved 11 December 2022.
  3. Lloyd's Register of Shipping. London: Lloyd's Register of Shipping. 1779. Retrieved 11 December 2022.
  4. Lloyd's Register of Shipping. London: Lloyd's Register of Shipping. 1778. Retrieved 11 December 2022.
  5. Lloyd's Register of Shipping. London: Lloyd's Register of Shipping. 1781. Retrieved 11 December 2022.
  6. "Sherborne, October 17". Sherborne and Yeovil Mercury. No. 2489, Vol.XLVIII. Sherborne. 17 October 1796. p. 3. Retrieved 11 December 2022 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  7. LR (1795), Seq.No.L235.
  8. "The Marine List". Lloyd's List (2863). 14 October 1796.
  9. "The London Shipwreck of Rapparee Cove, Devon, 1976". historicalgeographies.com. Archived from the original on 1 April 2018. Retrieved 8 December 2022.
  10. "Black prisoners at Portchester Castle". English Heritage. Archived from the original on 24 July 2019.
  11. Jacobovici & Kingsley (2022).
  12. "Apology Demanded from Government for Slave Trade". Politics 97. BBC. 1997. Archived from the original on 11 December 2022. Retrieved 11 December 2022.
  13. O'Brien, Jane (7 February 2001). "Human remains are bone of contention". BBC News. Archived from the original on 5 March 2016. Retrieved 18 August 2008.
  14. Morris, Steven; Constable, Nick (6 November 2007). "Prisoners or slaves? New row over wreck's bones". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 14 May 2021. Retrieved 18 August 2008.
  15. Whitney, Anna (8 February 2001). "St Lucia stakes its claim to the bones of the 'heroic rebels' of Rapparee Cove". The Independent. Archived from the original on 23 October 2012. Retrieved 18 August 2008.
  16. Mc Dowell, Claudia Eleibox (8 July 2018). "Will the bones of Saint Lucian Freedom Fighters Come Home Again?". The Star. Castries, St Lucia. Archived from the original on 1 March 2022. Retrieved 11 December 2022.

References
  • Jacobovici, Simcha; Kingsley, Sean (2022). "Bones of Contention". Enslaved: The Sunken History of the Transatlantic Slave Trade. New York: Pegasus Books. ISBN 9781639362394. Retrieved 11 December 2022.
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