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Re: How do you heave-to a 64-gun ship of the line?
From: Don Seltzer
Date: 2023 Oct 17, 15:25 -0400

The painting seems consistent with Bligh's account of the action. The main fault may be simply with the title. The scene appears to me to show the two ships just before the Director crossed the bows and raked the Vrijheid.

"...We began the action with him, lying on his larboard quarter within 20 yards, by degrees we advanced alongside, firing tremendously at him, [scene in painting?] & then across his bows almost touching, when we carried away his [list of masts] and left him nothing standing..."

The Director then hauled up alongside the starboard side to finish off the Vrijheld.

Don Seltzer

On Tue, Oct 17, 2023 at 9:52 AM NavList Community <NavList@fer3.com> wrote:

Eclipse and Quercus ilex procrastinations over, I’ve got to get started dusting off the William Bligh talk I’m committed to on 25^th Oct. One thing which has had me perplexed for a while is this painting, one of three by the English painter Samual Owen (1768-1857), which shows Bligh in HMS Director capturing the Dutch Flagship Vrijheid (Freedom) at the Battle of Camperdown. https://www.wikigallery.org/wiki/painting_282422/Samuel-Owen/H.M.S.-Director-raking-the-Dutch-flagship-Vrijheid,-during-the-Battle-of-Camperdown,-11th-October-1797 . The lie of pennants and ensigns show Director lying to windward of Vrijheid, but If Bligh had just run slowly across Vrijheid’s stern to rake her, he must have ended up to leeward of Vrijheid, which would also have given his broadsides more loft to attack Vrijheid’s running and standing rigging and bring her canvas down across her gunports. Showing Director to windward is probably artistic license, but I noticed one more thing I today. After rounding-up alongside Vrijheid, Director’s fore-topsail boom appears to be backed. I this more artistic license, or did Bligh leave it backed to keep Director in line with Vrijhei, so he could continue to pound her to greatest effect? DaveP

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