''Sir Edward Hamilton'' was a merchant ship launched at Rotherhithe in 1800. The British East India Company (EIC) chartered her in 1800 to bring rice from Bengal. She then proceeded to sail as a West Indiaman and later across the Atlantic, finally to the Baltic. She grounded in December 1853 and was so damaged that apparently she never sailed again.

Career

Weather-induced crop failures in Britain in 1799 and 1800 forced the British Government to import rice from Bengal to counter popular unrest. The wheat harvests of 1799 and 1800 were about one-half and three-quarters of the average, respectively. The price of bread rose sharply, leading to bread riots; some of rioters invoked the French Revolution. Because the British East India Company (EIC) had a legal monopoly on all trade between Britain and India, the Government had to have the EIC engage the transport vessels. The EIC chartered 28 vessels, ''Sir Edward Hamilton'' among them. Captain Andrew Robertson acquired a letter of marque on 29 November 1800. He sailed from Portsmouth on 9 January 1801, bound for Bengal. ''Sir Edward Hamilton'' arrived at Calcutta on 26 May. Homeward bound, she was at

Diamond Harbour Diamond Harbour () is a town and a municipality of the South 24 Parganas district in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is situated on the eastern banks of the Hooghly River. It is the headquarters of the Diamond Harbour subdivision. Histor ...

on 1 September,

Kedgeree Kedgeree (or occasionally ) is a dish consisting of cooked, flaked fish (traditionally smoked haddock), boiled rice, parsley, hard-boiled eggs, curry powder, butter or cream, and occasionally sultanas. The dish can be eaten hot or cold. Other ...

on 15 September, and the Cape on 23 December. She reached

St Helena Saint Helena () is a British overseas territory located in the South Atlantic Ocean. It is a remote volcanic tropical island west of the coast of south-western Africa, and east of Rio de Janeiro in South America. It is one of three constitu ...

on 28 January 1802 and arrived back at Portsmouth on 30 March. In 1830 a new owner, T. Ward, of Hull, changed ''Sir Edward Hamilton''s homeport to Hull. She started sailing between Hull and Quebec. On 2 May 1833 ''Maybud'' sprang a leak and her crew abandoned her in the North Sea while on a voyage from

Sunderland, County Durham Sunderland () is a port city in Tyne and Wear, England. It is the City of Sunderland's administrative centre and in the Historic counties of England, historic county of County of Durham, Durham. The city is from Newcastle-upon-Tyne and is on t ...

to Aldeburgh. ''Sir Edward Hamilton'' rescued the crew.

Fate

On 31 May 1853 ''Sir Edward Hamilton'' and ''Canton'' were in company while sailing from Hull to Saint Petersburg when they grounded on Anholt. They were assisted off and were to proceed on their voyages. ''Sir Edward Hamilton'' was returning from Saint Petersburg when she was driven ashore on 2 December 1853 at

Flamborough Head Flamborough Head () is a promontory, long on the Yorkshire coast of England, between the Filey and Bridlington bays of the North Sea. It is a chalk headland, with sheer white cliffs. The cliff top has two standing lighthouse towers, the olde ...

. She was refloated on 4 December and taken in to Bridlington in a severely leaky condition. Part of her cargo and stores were removed and her masts cut down. Still, she filled with water at every tide.

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References

* * {{cite journal , last1=Neumann , first1=J. , last2=Kington , first2=J. , year=1992 , title=Great Historical Events That Were Significantly Affected by the Weather: Part 10, Crop Failure in Britain in 1799 and 1800 and the British Decision to Send a Naval Force to the Baltic Early in 1800 , journal= Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society , volume=73 , issue=2 , pages=187–199, doi=10.1175/1520-0477(1992)073<0187:GHETWS>2.0.CO;2 , bibcode=1992BAMS...73..187N , doi-access=free 1800 ships Ships built in Rotherhithe Ships of the British East India Company Age of Sail merchant ships of England Maritime incidents in May 1833 Maritime incidents in December 1853 Ships in art