Aemilia (1632)

Type

Ship of the Line

Period

17th Century

Nation

Netherlands

Overview: Aemilia was a Dutch two-decked ship of the line built in 1632 by Jan Salomonszoon van den Tempel for the Admiralty of Rotterdam, and is best known as the celebrated flagship of Lieutenant-Admiral Maarten Harpertszoon Tromp. She was, at the time of her construction, the largest Dutch warship yet built, and together with her later sister ship Brederode (1644) formed the Dutch Republic's pair of purpose-built two-decked fleet flagships of the era. Specifications: The ship measured 144 Amsterdam feet on the gundeck, equivalent to about 133 ft 8 in (40.74 m), with a beam of roughly 32 ft 6 in (9.91 m) and a depth in hold of about 13 ft (4.0 m), on a burthen of 300 lasts. She was originally armed with 46 guns, and this was increased in 1637 to 57 guns comprising 36-, 24-, 18-, 12-, and 6-pounders spread across the gundeck, upper gundeck, and quarterdeck/forecastle/poop deck, with a complement of about 160 sailors and 30 soldiers. Service History: Aemilia served successively as flagship to several Dutch admirals; in 1635, the ship served as the flagship of Vice-Admiraal Witte Corneliszoon de With, and in 1636, now carrying 54 guns, the Aemilia, under Kapitein Gerrit Meyndertszoon den Uyl, was the flagship of Lieutenant-Admiraal Philip van Dorp. She then became Tromp's own flagship, taking part in the blockading of Dunkirk, including leading the 12-ship Dutch squadron in the action off Dunkirk on 18 February 1639, and fighting well under Tromp's personal command at the Battle of the Downs on 21 October 1639. In February 1643 she transported Queen Henrietta Maria from England to the Netherlands, sustaining serious storm damage in the process, and later that year Tromp's son Cornelis joined his father on his flagship the Aemilia on 1 September 1643. Notable Facts: After her Dutch naval career, Aemilia was sold to France and employed as a privateer in the Mediterranean before being defeated in battle and captured by two unnamed Spanish warships, and was last mentioned being taken to Naples in 1651 where the remains of her hull were scrapped. The featured image is a period Dutch print/drawing of Aemilia as Tromp's flagship, held by the Rijksmuseum (object RP-P-OB-81.138) and released into the public domain (CC0); other period depictions include Reinier Nooms' painting of the fleet before the Battle of the Downs, held by the Royal Museums Greenwich, and Dutch Navy prints in the Rijksmuseum's collection, useful references for a modeler seeking accurate period detail on rigging, stern decoration, and hull lines.