Cindy Vallar's Blog - Posts Tagged "war-of-the-austrian-succession"
Review of Alan M. Smith's Balchen's Victory
HMS Victory. The name brings to mind one particular ship, the one on which Admiral Lord Horatio Nelson succumbed during the Battle of Trafalgar. But she wasn’t the first to be so named, and this is the story of her predecessor and her admiral, both of which were lost on a stormy night in October 1744. A great lamentation resulted from the deaths of Admiral Sir John Balchen, Victory’s captain, and the 1,100 men who went down with the ship. Yet, as time passed, they have faded from memory, even though their losses triggered fundamental changes in the ways navy ships were designed and built, as well as in how the royal dockyards were administered. This book explores the man, the ship, and their legacies in hopes of bringing both back to the fore of conscious memory, rather than relegating them to a blip in the historical record.
John Balchen was born in 1669 in Godalming, Surrey, England. Once he joined the Royal Navy, duty became a hallmark of his career. He didn’t always agree with the status quo and raised serious questions about the way ships were designed and maintained. He cared about the men who served under him. He survived two courts-martial and several wars during his fifty-eight years of service – a time that encompassed the reigns of seven different monarchs. He retired in 1744 at the age of seventy-five.
Victory was the finest warship of the Royal Navy in her day. Her origins dated back to 1673 when orders for a 100-gun First Rate ship of the line were received. She was rebuilt several times, the last time in 1733, and was commissioned four years later. In spite of being a new and modern warship, she was considered a “crank” ship, one that was top heavy and prone to rolling. Still, she was needed and she would serve as the flagship of the White Squadron at a time during a most dire situation for the country.
French Admiral Rochambault and his squadron had corralled a convoy of English ships laden with food and stores near Lisbon, Portugal during the War of the Austrian Succession. Their supplies were destined for the Mediterranean Fleet and 17,000 men, who were in desperate need, but the convoy was unable to escape the enemy’s blockade. Admiral Balchen was summoned back from retirement to command a fleet of warships to relieve the convoy and see it safely to Gibraltar.
The mission was a success, but the homeward bound squadron encountered a storm. All the ships but one limped into port. Last seen on 4 October 1744, Victory went down with all hands. She was believed to have foundered on Les Casquets reef because of where wreckage came ashore. When Odyssey Marine Exploration found the wreck site 264 years later, it turned out she sank somewhere else entirely.
The book is comprised of chapters that cover the shipwreck, the aftereffects, the stories of the ship and the admiral, their legacy, and the discovery of the wreck site and what transpired as a result. Two timelines are included that highlight events in both Admiral Balchen’s and Victory’s careers. Color and black-and-white pictures provide visual representations of information presented in this volume. In addition to the maps, end notes, bibliography, and index, five appendices are included. The first provides experts’ answers to a question the author posed: “Why, in your opinion, do you think the man and the ship are no longer of any importance or relevance to naval, or even national, history today?” Three document the grief as it was shown in literary examples. The last discusses Balchen and his hometown.
Many questions still remain about Victory’s loss, and Smith explores and analyzes the various theories. Her discovery also led to conflict as to whether or not the wreck site should be excavated. These, too, are discussed, as is the resulting outcome of that conflict.
Smith does not simply relate the stories of an admiral and a ship. He places both in context with what was happening within the Royal Navy and in the world at large. His goal is to provide readers with an understanding of who Admiral Balchen was and why he should be remembered for more than just a shipwreck. In this, Smith achieves what he set out to do in a manner that is straightforward and enlightening.
(Review originally posted at Pirates & Privateers: http://www.cindyvallar.com/adultpirat...)
John Balchen was born in 1669 in Godalming, Surrey, England. Once he joined the Royal Navy, duty became a hallmark of his career. He didn’t always agree with the status quo and raised serious questions about the way ships were designed and maintained. He cared about the men who served under him. He survived two courts-martial and several wars during his fifty-eight years of service – a time that encompassed the reigns of seven different monarchs. He retired in 1744 at the age of seventy-five.
Victory was the finest warship of the Royal Navy in her day. Her origins dated back to 1673 when orders for a 100-gun First Rate ship of the line were received. She was rebuilt several times, the last time in 1733, and was commissioned four years later. In spite of being a new and modern warship, she was considered a “crank” ship, one that was top heavy and prone to rolling. Still, she was needed and she would serve as the flagship of the White Squadron at a time during a most dire situation for the country.
French Admiral Rochambault and his squadron had corralled a convoy of English ships laden with food and stores near Lisbon, Portugal during the War of the Austrian Succession. Their supplies were destined for the Mediterranean Fleet and 17,000 men, who were in desperate need, but the convoy was unable to escape the enemy’s blockade. Admiral Balchen was summoned back from retirement to command a fleet of warships to relieve the convoy and see it safely to Gibraltar.
The mission was a success, but the homeward bound squadron encountered a storm. All the ships but one limped into port. Last seen on 4 October 1744, Victory went down with all hands. She was believed to have foundered on Les Casquets reef because of where wreckage came ashore. When Odyssey Marine Exploration found the wreck site 264 years later, it turned out she sank somewhere else entirely.
The book is comprised of chapters that cover the shipwreck, the aftereffects, the stories of the ship and the admiral, their legacy, and the discovery of the wreck site and what transpired as a result. Two timelines are included that highlight events in both Admiral Balchen’s and Victory’s careers. Color and black-and-white pictures provide visual representations of information presented in this volume. In addition to the maps, end notes, bibliography, and index, five appendices are included. The first provides experts’ answers to a question the author posed: “Why, in your opinion, do you think the man and the ship are no longer of any importance or relevance to naval, or even national, history today?” Three document the grief as it was shown in literary examples. The last discusses Balchen and his hometown.
Many questions still remain about Victory’s loss, and Smith explores and analyzes the various theories. Her discovery also led to conflict as to whether or not the wreck site should be excavated. These, too, are discussed, as is the resulting outcome of that conflict.
Smith does not simply relate the stories of an admiral and a ship. He places both in context with what was happening within the Royal Navy and in the world at large. His goal is to provide readers with an understanding of who Admiral Balchen was and why he should be remembered for more than just a shipwreck. In this, Smith achieves what he set out to do in a manner that is straightforward and enlightening.
(Review originally posted at Pirates & Privateers: http://www.cindyvallar.com/adultpirat...)
