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A press ganged sailor in the Caribbean, who served on HMS Experiment between 1740 and 1742 and almost certainly fought in the battle for Cartagena de Indias, during the War of Jenkins’ Ear, and died at sea. |
Giles Farndale
FAR00137
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Dates are in red.
Hyperlinks to other pages are in dark blue.
Headlines of John’s life are in brown.
References and citations are in turquoise.
Context and local history are in purple.
1713
Giles Farndale was baptised at Whitby on
18 October 1813, the son
of Thomas and Sarah (nee Perkins) Farndale (FAR00118), carpenter (PR).
1740
Giles Farndale
served in the Royal Navy. It seems very likely that he was press-ganged at
Whitby, probably in 1740 when he would have been 27 years old. The Muster
Book for HMS Experiment, a brig with a compliment of 130, shows Giles
Farndell as No 101 Able Seaman, impressed
on 29 Jun 1740.
Press
gang, mid eighteenth century
Since Giles was not recorded as
‘from…another ship’ he probably had not served on another ship beforehand.
The
‘Experiment’ was commissioned under Captain Hughes at Deptford between March
and June 1740. On 29 June 1740 the ‘Experiment’ was at
The Nore (see below), where Giles Farndell (or Farndale; he is listed under
both names in different Muster Books), came on complement. From there she sailed for Port Royal, Jamaica (see below) where she
arrived on 15 September 1740. From there until June 1741 the ship was either in
Port Royal, at sea, or in Cartagena (Adm 36/1081 & 1082).
Thirteen ships of the Royal Navy have borne the name HMS "Experiment".
HMS Experiment 1740 was a 24
gun, sixth rate ship, of the Royal Navy. She was launched in 1740 and
sold in 1763.
She later captured the French
HMS Experiment
taking the Telemaque, 8 July 1757
Giles Farndale is shown
in the Muster Book of HMS Experiment a brig with a compliment of 130 officers
and men as impressed (ie Press-Ganged), on 29 June 1740, almost certainly at
Whitby. He is present every day until 9th May 1741 when he is marked Discharged
Dead. No circumstances are recorded which probably means that he died of
sickness. The Captain was Captain Hughes. Giles Farndale joined her at ‘The
Nore’ from where she sailed to the West Indies and was at Port Royal on 15th
September 1740. From there she was either at sea, at Port Royal or at
Cartagena. I have his will and more details about his family if you would like
them?
The Nore is a sandbank at
the mouth of the Thames Estuary, England.
It marks the point where the River Thames meets
the North Sea,
roughly halfway between Havengore Creek in Essex and Warden Point on the Isle of Sheppey in
Kent. The Nore gives its name to the anchorage, or open roadstead,
used by the Royal Navy's North Sea Fleet, and to the RN Command based
there. It was the site of a notorious
mutiny in 1797. The Nore is a hazard to shipping, so in 1732 the
world's first lightship was moored over it in an experiment by Robert
Hamblin, who patented the idea. The Nore
has been the site of a Royal Navy anchorage since the age of sail,
being adjacent to both the city and port of London and
to the Medway,
England's principal naval base and dockyard on the North Sea.
In June 1740, HMS
Experiment was commissioned under Captain Hughes at Deptford, and then sailed
to The Nore, an anchorage in the Thames estuary. From there, the ship
sailed for Port Royal, Jamaica, where it arrived on 15 September 1740.
The ship was part of a squadron sent to the Caribbean
to support Admiral Vernon's operations against the Spanish during the War of
Jenkins' Ear.
Port Royal is a village located at the end of
the Palisadoes at the mouth of the Kingston
Harbour, in southeastern Jamaica. Founded in 1518 by the Spanish, it was once the largest city in the Caribbean, functioning as the centre of shipping and
commerce in the Caribbean Sea by the latter half of the 17th century. It
was destroyed by an earthquake on June 7, 1692, which had an accompanying tsunami. Severe hurricanes have regularly damaged it. Port
Royal was once home to privateers who were encouraged to attack Habsburg
Spain's
vessels at a time when smaller European powers dared not make war on Spain
directly. As a port city, it was notorious for its gaudy displays of wealth and
loose morals. It was a popular homeport for the English and Dutch-sponsored
privateers to spend their treasure during the 17th century. When those
governments abandoned the practice of issuing letters
of marque to
privateers against the Spanish treasure fleets and possessions in the later
16th century, many of the crews turned pirate. They continued to use the city as their main
base during the 17th century. Pirates from around the world congregated at Port
Royal, coming from waters as far away as Madagascar.
An 18th-century pirate flag (Calico
Jack Rackham).
Port
Royal provided a safe harbour initially
for privateers and subsequently for pirates plying
the shipping lanes to
and from Spain and Panama. Buccaneers found
Port Royal appealing for several reasons. Its proximity to trade routes allowed
them easy access to prey, but the most important advantage was the port's
proximity to several of the only safe passages or straits giving
access to the Spanish Main from
the Atlantic. The harbour was large
enough to accommodate their ships and provided a place to careen and
repair these vessels. It was also ideally situated for launching raids on
Spanish settlements. From Port Royal, Christopher Myngs sacked
Campeche and Henry Morgan attacked
Panama, Portobello,
and Maracaibo.
Additionally, buccaneers Roche Brasiliano, John
Davis and Edward Mansvelt used
Port Royal as a base of operations.
Since the
English lacked sufficient troops to prevent either the Spanish or French from
seizing it, the Jamaican governors
eventually turned to the pirates to defend the city. By the 1660s the city had, for some, become a pirate
utopia and had gained a
reputation as the "Sodom of
the New World", where most residents were pirates, cutthroats, or prostitutes.
When Charles
Leslie wrote his history of Jamaica, he included
a description of the pirates of Port Royal.
Following Henry
Morgan’s appointment
as lieutenant governor, Port Royal began to change. Pirates were no longer
needed to defend the city. The selling of slaves took on greater importance. Upstanding
citizens disliked the reputation the city had acquired. In 1687, Jamaica passed anti-piracy laws.
Consequently, instead of being a safe haven for pirates, Port Royal became
noted as their place of execution. Gallows Point welcomed many to their death,
including Charles
Vane and Calico
Jack, who
were hanged in 1720. About five months later, the famous woman pirate Mary
Read died
in the Jamaican prison in Port Royal. Two years later, 41 pirates met their
death in one month.
Under British rule the Royal
Navy made
use of a careening wharf at Port Royal and rented a building
on the foreshore to serve as a storehouse. From 1675, a resident Naval Officer
was appointed to oversee these facilities; however, development was cut
short by the 1692 earthquake. After the earthquake, an attempt was made to
establish a naval base at Port
Antonio instead,
but the climate there proved disagreeable. From
1735, Port Royal once more became the focus of the Admiralty's attention. New wharves and storehouses were built at
this time, as well as housing for the officers of the Yard. Over the next
thirty years, more facilities were added: cooperages, workshops, sawpits, and accommodation (including a canteen) for
the crews of ships being careened there. A Royal Naval Hospital was also established on land a little to
the west of the Naval Yard; and by the end of the 18th century a small Victualling
Yard had
been added to the east (prior to this ships had had to go to Kingston and other settlements to take on
supplies).
Admiral Vernon was a Royal Navy officer
and politician who lived from 1684 to 1757. He had a long and distinguished
career, rising to the rank of admiral after 46 years of service. He was known
for his bold and aggressive actions against the Spanish and the French during
the War of the Spanish Succession, the War of Jenkins' Ear, and the War of the
Austrian Succession.
He
was also famous for introducing grog, a mixture of rum and water, to his
sailors to prevent scurvy and drunkenness. He earned the nickname of
"Old Grog" because he wore coats made of grogram cloth. He was a member of
parliament for Penryn and Ipswich, and was outspoken on naval matters in
parliament, making him a controversial figure.
He was a friend and
patron of James Cook, the explorer and navigator, who served under him as a
master's mate on HMS Pembroke during the capture of Louisburg in 1758. He
was also the eponym of George Washington's estate Mount Vernon, which was named
after him by Washington's brother Lawrence who served under him in the
Caribbean.
Admiral Vernon was a
leading commander in the War of Jenkins' Ear, which was a conflict between
Britain and Spain over trade and colonial disputes in the Caribbean and North
America. He was appointed as the commander-in-chief of the Jamaica Station
in 1739, with orders to attack Spanish commerce and settlements.
He achieved his most
famous victory in November 1739, when he captured the port of Porto
Bello in Panama with only six ships, against a much larger Spanish force.
This exploit made him a national hero in Britain, and he was awarded the
Freedom of the City of London and a medal by Parliament.
1741
Giles was present at every muster until
9 May 1741 when he is marked ‘DD’ (Discharged Dead). But we see below that he
died in January 1742.
Admiral
Vernon suffered his most humiliating defeat in March 1741, when he led a large amphibious operation against the port
of Cartagena de Indias in Colombia. Despite
having a superior naval and land force, he was unable to overcome the strong
Spanish defences led by Blas de Lezo, and was forced
to withdraw after losing thousands of men to disease and combat.
He also attempted to
invade Cuba in 1741, but
failed to take Santiago de Cuba and Havana. He then returned to Jamaica, where
he remained until 1742. He was recalled to Britain in 1746,
and retired from active service.
The
Battle of Cartagena de Indias was a major naval and
land engagement that took place in March 1741, during the War of
Jenkins' Ear. It was part of Admiral Vernon's attempt to capture the Spanish
port city of Cartagena de Indias, which was a key
trading and military centre in the Caribbean.
Vernon had a large force of 29 ships of the line, 22
frigates, 71 sloops-of-war, 80 troop ships, and 50 merchant ships, carrying
about 12,000 soldiers and 15,000 sailors. He also had the support of
4,000 colonial troops from Virginia and Jamaica.
The Spanish defenders were led by Admiral Blas de Lezo, a
veteran officer who had lost an eye, an arm, and a leg in previous battles. He
had only 6 ships of the line and about 2,700 soldiers and 600 sailors, but he
also had the advantage of strong fortifications around the city and the bay. He
also had the help of 600 Indian archers and some local militia.
The battle lasted for more than two months, and involved several naval and land attacks by the British, as well
as counterattacks by the Spanish. The British managed to capture some of the
outer forts and batteries, but they failed to breach the main defences of the
city. They also suffered heavy losses from disease, especially yellow fever and malaria.
The British finally gave up on 20 May 1741, after a failed assault on the Castillo San Felipe de Barajas,
the largest fort in the city. They retreated with about 9,500–11,500 dead and
7,500 wounded. The Spanish lost about 800 dead and 1,200 wounded.
The battle was a decisive
victory for Spain, and a major setback for Britain. It prevented Britain from
gaining control of the Caribbean trade and colonies, and it boosted the morale
and prestige of Spain. It also showed that Spain could defend its interests
against a superior naval power.
Presumably Giles took part in the Battle
for Cartagena de Indias.
1742
Giles Farndale of Whitby, a mariner, died onboard the HMS
Experiment in January 1742 (Borthwick
Institute, York Prerogative & Exchequer Courts, Will, vol.87, f., Index
reference 1741031745070083.tif/1, Prerogative & Exchequer Courts Of York Probate Index, 1688-1858)
.
1741/2. January. Farndale, Giles of Whitby, but dying in board the
Experiment, Mariner. Acual 20 L.
Giles Farndale,
deceased of Port Whitby, mariner, died on board HMS ‘Experiment.’ Will: ‘Know all men that we Thomas
Farndale of Whitby in the County of York, carpenter, Robert Easton of Whitby
aforesaid Master Mariner and Edward Brand of Whitby aforesaid
Mariner………£31…….dated 25 Jan 1741/2. The condition of this obligation is that
the above bound Thomas Farndale, father, next of kin and administrator
of all goods, chattels and credits of Giles Farndale, late of the Parish of
Whitby, in the Diocese of York, Mariner deceased, who died at sea in His
Majesty’s service belonging to HMS Experiment.
Signed Thomas Farndalle
INVENTORY:
Apparel £2.10s 0d
Wages £13. 0s 0d
(Cleveland Act Books
1700-70)