Amsterdam (VOC ship)

Type

Galleon

Period

18th Century

Nation

Netherlands

Overview: The Amsterdam was an 18th-century Dutch East Indiaman (retourschip) built for the VOC, launched in 1748, remembered chiefly for the exceptionally well-preserved wreck she left behind rather than for any voyage completed. A full-scale replica, built 1985-1990, now serves as a museum ship moored beside Het Scheepvaartmuseum in Amsterdam, making her one of the best-documented 18th-century Dutch merchant ships for modelers. Specifications: The ship is typically described as a large three-masted "transom return ship" (spiegelretourschip) of roughly 1,100 tons, with length figures ranging from about 157 to 184 feet depending on measurement point and a beam of about 38 feet. Armament is reported variously as 42 or 54 guns; one source gives her complement as 191 crew, 123 soldiers, and 3 passengers, reflecting the VOC's practice of combining cargo capacity with troop transport. Service History: On her maiden voyage from Texel toward Batavia she was repeatedly forced back by North Sea gales, and an epidemic appeared amongst the crew and a mutiny broke out. Having lost her rudder in further storms, she was deliberately run aground in the bay of Bulverhythe near Hastings on 26 January 1749, where she quickly sank into the mud before most of her cargo (aside from chests of silver) could be salvaged. Notable Facts: The shipwreck was discovered in 1969 in the bay of Bulverhythe, near Hastings on the English south coast, and is sometimes visible during low tides. Investigations on the wreck during the 1970's and 1980's are responsible for significant changes in the study of underwater shipwreck archaeology. Some of the finds are on show at the Shipwreck Museum in Hastings, East Sussex, UK, including one of the anchors, the other being on display as public art at St Katharine Docks in London, and the wreck is protected and diving on it or removing timbers or any artefacts is forbidden. A replica of the ship was built in Iroko wood by 300 volunteers using modern tools as well as tools of the period, between 1985 and 1990 at the Zouthaven (now Piet Heinkade), Amsterdam, and a 1/25 scale model is also on display at Madurodam in The Hague.