HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Jean-François Hodoul (11 April 1765 – 10 January 1835) was a sea captain, corsair, and later merchant and plantation owner in
Isle de France (Mauritius) Isle de France (, ) was a French colony in the Indian Ocean from 1715 to 1810, comprising the island now known as Mauritius and its dependent territories. It was governed by the French East India Company and formed part of the French colonial e ...
.


Origins

Hodoul was born on 11 April 1765
La Ciotat La Ciotat (; ; in Mistralian spelling ''La Ciéutat''; 'the City') is a Communes of France, commune in the Bouches-du-Rhône Departments of France, department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Regions of France, region in Southern France. It ...
, Provence. His father, Raymond, was a charcutiere; his mother was Geneviève Cauvin. He left for France's colonies in the
Indian Ocean The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, covering or approximately 20% of the water area of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface. It is bounded by Asia to the north, Africa to the west and Australia (continent), ...
at the age of 24, and arrived at Mauritius in 1789, on board ''Scipion''. Other sources state that he arrived there on 12 April 1790, the day after his 25th birthday. He rapidly became a sea captain. By 1791 he was master of ''Deux Sœurs''. Two years later, he was master of the brig ''Succès''. During this period he transported slaves from
Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...
to the
Indian Ocean The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, covering or approximately 20% of the water area of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface. It is bounded by Asia to the north, Africa to the west and Australia (continent), ...
colonies of
Île de France Ile or ILE may refer to: Ile * Ile, a Puerto Rican singer * Ile District (disambiguation), multiple places * Ilé-Ifẹ̀, an ancient Yoruba city in south-western Nigeria * Interlingue (ISO 639:ile), a planned language * Isoleucine, an amino aci ...
and ÃŽle Bourbon (
Réunion Réunion (; ; ; known as before 1848) is an island in the Indian Ocean that is an overseas departments and regions of France, overseas department and region of France. Part of the Mascarene Islands, it is located approximately east of the isl ...
).


Privateer

In 1793 the
French Revolutionary Wars The French Revolutionary Wars () were a series of sweeping military conflicts resulting from the French Revolution that lasted from 1792 until 1802. They pitted French First Republic, France against Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain, Habsb ...
broke out, and with them a battle in the Indian Ocean between Britain and France. In 1794 the British captured him and his brig ''Olivette'' when the British entered
Mahé, Seychelles Mahé is the largest island of Seychelles, with an area of , lying in the northeast of the Seychellois nation in the Somali Sea part of the Indian Ocean. The population of Mahé was 77,000, as of the 2010 census. It contains the capital city o ...
, capturing the colony. The now British colony retained ''Olivette'' for its government's purposes. In June 1794 he married the 16-year old Mairie Corantine Olivette Jorre de St Jorre, daughter of a wealthy local merchant, shortly after he had started his privateering adventures. In 1796 Hodoul went to sea again as an ''enseigne de vaisseau'' aboard the privateer ''Entreprise''. Then he sailed aboard ''Général Pichegru'', a recently captured British schooner previously named ''Hay'', that Captain François Legars of ''Enterprise'' had given Jacques François Perroud. Hodoul sailed with Perroud to India. On 17 February 1797 Hodoul arrived at
Port Louis Port Louis (, ; or , ) is the capital and most populous city of Mauritius, mainly located in the Port Louis District, with a small western part in the Black River District. Port Louis is the country's financial and political centre. It is admi ...
with the British vessel ''Castor'', of 150 tons ( bm), which Perroud and ''Général Pichegru'' had captured in January at
Visakhapatnam Visakhapatnam (; List of renamed places in India, formerly known as Vizagapatam, and also referred to as Vizag, Visakha, and Waltair) is the largest and most populous metropolitan city in the States and union territories of India, Indian stat ...
. She had a cargo of wheat and rice. In May Hodoul received his first privateer command, ''Apollon'', of ten guns and six ''obusier''s. He sailed on 7 March with 71 men from Port-Louis for the
Malabar Coast The Malabar Coast () is the southwestern region of the Indian subcontinent. It generally refers to the West Coast of India, western coastline of India stretching from Konkan to Kanyakumari. Geographically, it comprises one of the wettest regio ...
. There he captured the ship ''Eliza'', of three masts and 350 tons (bm), herself a former French vessel. Six days later he rescued seven slaves aboard a British vessel whose crew had abandoned it after a storm.Epinay (1890), pp.408-9. A few days later, on 17 May, near
Masulipatnam Machilipatnam (), also known as Masulipatnam and Bandar (), is a city in Krishna district of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. It is a municipal corporation and the administrative headquarters of Krishna district. It is also the mandal headqua ...
, he captured ''Aydresev'', a ship of about 500 tons, sailing under the Maharatta flag. She arrived at Port-Louis on 23 June. The captain of the prize crew, Harel, reported that on 3 May Hodoul had captured a British vessel bound for
Tranquebar Tharangambadi (), formerly Tranquebar (, ), is a town in the Mayiladuthurai district of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu on the Coromandel Coast. It lies north of Karaikal, near the mouth of a distributary named Uppanar of the Kaveri River. It wa ...
, then a Danish colony. On 20 May Hodoul was at Koringa, where he captured ''Macré'' (or ''Macoroy'', or ''Macroy''). Her crew escaped in a ''chaloupe'', with Hodoul in pursuit. They landed on a beach and fled inland, abandoning a chest full of pearls. ''Maraq'', a prize to ''Apollon'', arrived at Port-Louis on 14 July. The captain of the prize crew was Etienne Dupeyré. On 15 September Hodoul captured ''Bader Bux'' as she sailed from
Moka Moka () is a village in Mauritius located mainly in the Moka District. The western part of the village lies in the Plaines Wilhems District. Since 1967 it forms part of Constituency No. 8 Quartier Militaire and Moka. The village is administered b ...
towards Surat. She turned out to be his most valuable prize as she was carrying 3732 gold ecus, some
piastre The piastre or piaster () is any of a number of units of currency. The term originates from the Italian for "thin metal plate". The name was applied to Spanish and Hispanic American pieces of eight, or pesos, by Venetian traders in the Le ...
s, 296 gold
sequins A sequin ( ) is a small, typically shiny, generally disk-shaped ornament. Sequins are also referred to as paillettes, spangles, or ''diamanté'' (also spelled ''diamante''). Although the words sequins, paillettes, lentejuelas, and spangles can ...
, and a quantity of pearls. On 30 October, while sailing back to Mauritius, Hodoul captured ''Laurel'', Fuggo, master. Hodoul's crew was so reduced because of the need to deploy prize crews that he put ''Laurel''s crew in irons. On 9 November he captured two vessels of the British
East India Company The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company that was founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to Indian Ocean trade, trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (South A ...
's Bengal Pilot Service: ''Trayalle'' (), and . The schooner ''Harrington'' arrived at Port Louis on 21 December. The captain of the prize crew was Nicholas Montalent. Hodoul and ''Apollon'' returned to Port Louis on 7 January 1798. He had with him 57 prisoners and 50-60,000 piastres from the ''Rey'', which he had captured off Bengal and then abandoned. On 18 January ''Loret'' (probably ''Laurel''), of 400 tons, which ''Apollon'' had also captured off Bengal, too arrived at Port-Louis. The total value of the prizes from Hodoul's cruise on '' Apollon'' was 703,479,803 francs. Hodoul sold his half-share in ''Apollon'' to the corsair Le Vaillant. Le Vaillant left Mauritius on 22 August 1798 and captured a valuable Portuguese vessel. However, on 10 November (French records), or 24 October (British records), captured ''Apollon'' off Mombasa and carried her crew to the
Comoro Islands The Comoro Islands are a group of volcanic islands in the Mozambique Channel, an arm of the Indian Ocean lying between Madagascar and the African mainland. Three of the islands form the Union of the Comoros, a sovereign nation, while Mayotte bel ...
. In June 1799 Marie Corantine Olivette gave birth to a son, Raymond. On 28 November the privateer ''Général Malartic'', Jean-Marie Dutertre, master, captured the British vessel ''Surprise'' near Madras. He took ''Surprize''s crew to the Seychelles from where Hodoul, in ''Success'', took them to Mauritius; they arrived on 28 January 1800. Hodoul next purchased ''Uni'', a large vessel armed with eighteen 4-pounder and four 9-pounder guns. She had come from Nantes in 1798 and already had two cruises to her credit, both under the command of François-Thomas Le Même. Hodoul sailed on 15 May 1800 with a crew of 220 men. He reached the Seychelles on the 28th. Off Ste. Anne he captured the British privateer ''Henriette'' (or ''Harriot'', from Cape Town), of eight guns under the command of Captain White. On 11 July Hodoul captured ''Helen'', which was carrying 80,000 piastres. Then on 4 August he captured ''Friendship''. However, on 5 August captured ''Uni'' and Hodoul after a chase during which Hodoul had almost all of ''Uni''s guns thrown overboard in an attempt to lighten her to gain speed. Captain Edward O. Osborne, of ''Arrogant'', reported that ''Uni'' had left Mauritius with 250 men, and that she had 216 on board when captured, the rest being away on prizes. When the British first sighted ''Uni'' she had been in company with another ship, and a brig. Osborne set out after the ship, which turned out to be ''Friendship'', and which he recaptured early that night. The brig escaped; she was the ''Bee'', from Madras sailing to
Masulipatnam Machilipatnam (), also known as Masulipatnam and Bandar (), is a city in Krishna district of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. It is a municipal corporation and the administrative headquarters of Krishna district. It is also the mandal headqua ...
. Hodoul had captured both ''Friendship'' and ''Bee'' that morning. The British took their prizes to Madras, where they arrived on 17 August. From there the British transferred Hodoul to Fort William (
Calcutta Kolkata, also known as Calcutta (List of renamed places in India#West Bengal, its official name until 2001), is the capital and largest city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of West Bengal. It lies on the eastern ba ...
). Hodoul remained a prisoner until the
Treaty of Amiens The Treaty of Amiens (, ) temporarily ended hostilities between France, the Spanish Empire, and the United Kingdom at the end of the War of the Second Coalition. It marked the end of the French Revolutionary Wars; after a short peace it set t ...
(1802), ended hostilities. After his release Hodoul settled on
Mahe Island Mahe, Mahé, Mähe, or MAHE may refer to: Places China * Mahe Township (, lit. "Horse Creek Village") in Li County in Gansu Estonia * Mähe, a subdistrict of Tallinn, Estonia India * Mahe, India, a municipality in Mahe distric ...
of the
Seychelles Seychelles (, ; ), officially the Republic of Seychelles (; Seychellois Creole: ), is an island country and archipelagic state consisting of 155 islands (as per the Constitution) in the Indian Ocean. Its capital and largest city, Victoria, ...
. Here he became a wealthy businessman and plantation owner in the Seychelles, where he introduced cacao cultivation. He was particularly successful in the sugar and rum industries, and in cotton and coffee growing. He did not fully leave the sea as he built and owned several small ships that traded between the Seychelles and Mauritius. He also built the Petit Port and Le Grand Chantier at Mahé. Hodoul was a man of even-handedness, especially to his daughters and sons in law, and very kind to his slaves. In July 1837 Hodoul's widow received a compensation of at least £7,171 for the liberation of at least 216 slaves who formed part of his estate. At his wife's behest, Hodoul employed the exiled Jacobin architect Antoine Jean-Baptise Le Franc to build Château Mammelles, which is now the oldest building in the Seychelles. The British Authorities later used Hodoul's second large house, Ma Constance, to house the exiled
Sultan of Perak The Sultan of Perak (, Jawi script, Jawi: ) is the Constitutional monarchy, constitutional monarch and head of state of the Malaysia, Malaysian state of Perak. It is one of the oldest hereditary seats among the Malay states. The current Sultan o ...
.


Fate

Hodoul died at Mahé on 10 January 1835. His tomb bears the inscription "Il fut juste".


Legacy

Today in the harbor of
Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Queen Victoria (1819–1901), Queen of the United Kingdom and Empress of India * Victoria (state), a state of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, a provincial capital * Victoria, Seychelles, the capi ...
, there is a small islet named Hodoul Island in his honor. Legend has it that Hodoul's treasure is buried on
Silhouette Island Silhouette Island lies northwest of Mahé, Seychelles, Mahé in the Seychelles. It is the third largest Granitic Seychelles, granitic island in the Seychelles. It has an area of 20.1 km2 and has a population of 200, mostly workers on the ...
, northwest of Mahé.Silhouette Island (Seychelles)
/ref>


Notes


Citations


References

* *Epinay, Adrien d'. (1890) ''Renseignements pour servir à l'histoire de l'ÃŽle de France jusqu'à l'année 1810: inclusivement; précédés de notes sur la découverte de l'île, sur l'occupation hollandaise, etc.'' (Imprimerie Dupuy). * *Malleson, George Bruce (1878) ''Final French Struggles in India and on the Indian Seas: Including an Account of the Capture of the Isles of France and Bourbon, and Sketches of the Most Eminent Foreign Adventurers in India Up to the Period of that Capture : with an Appendix Containing an Account of the Expedition from India to Egypt in 1801''. (W.H. Allen). * *Thomson, P.A.B. (1997) "Jean François Hodoul, corsair of the Indian Ocean". ''The Mariner's Mirror'', Vol.83, No. 3, pp. 310–317.


Sources



{{DEFAULTSORT:Hodoul, Jean-Francois 1765 births 1835 deaths French privateers French planters French slave owners People from the Isle de France (Mauritius)