Sinking of HMS Invincible, Hammond Knoll, 16th. March 1801
HMS Invincible was a 168 ft. 6 in. (51.36 m) long, 46 ft. 11 in (14.30 m) beam, 1,631 tons, 74-gun, Ramilles Class third-rate ship, 36 years old in the spring of 1801 and battle wearied. Built by Wells of Deptford, south-east London she was launched on 9th. March 1765.
Invincible had served in the American War of Independence. Her battle honours included Cape St. Vincent 1780, Chesapeake 1781, St. Kitts 1782 and the Glorious First of June in 1794, where she was badly damaged and lost fourteen men. In 1797 she took part in the invasion of Trinidad which captured that island from the Spanish. By 1801, Invincible was back in British waters.
By March of that year, and with the war against France in a protracted state, the fear was that the French would seize the powerful Danish navy and use it against Britain. Therefore, the British Baltic fleet, led by Admiral Sir Hyde Parker and with Admiral Nelson as his second-in-command, were directed to sail to Copenhagen and make sure the Danish fleet could not fall into French hands. Invincible was to be part of this fleet so she was ordered to sail from Chatham, Kent with its crew of around 600 men and meet up with Hyde Parker's fleet which was already preparing for the planned attack on the Danish fleet, to be known later as the Battle of Copenhagen. Invincible sailed on its journey under the flag of Rear-Admiral Thomas Totty.
During its way north, Invincible under the command of 34 year old Captain John Rennie, put into Great Yarmouth to collect final orders and stock up with ordnance, stores and ammunition. Invincible left Yarmouth Roads on 16th. March with a Ship's Master and Harbour Pilot aboard and set a course towards the notorious area of shifting sandbanks off Happisburgh on the north-east coast of Norfolk.
The Master and Pilot clearly thought that they could navigate Invincible through the shoals safely, but a rising wind and the strong tide forced the ship off course. At 2.30 pm she struck the sandbank of Hammond’s Knoll where the effect of wind and waves tore down the masts and began to break up the ship. The crew did all they could to save the ship, jettisoning provisions, etc. When the mizzen mast went, they cut it away, hoping that the ship would float off the sands at high water. Whilst all this was going on, Invincible repeatedly fired a distress signal with its guns. For a while, it looked as if the crew’s efforts of jettisoning every they could would work for Invincible moved slightly into deeper water. But, as she did so an even heavier swell and stronger wind caused the ship to lose its rudder. Unmanageable, she was driven back on to the sandbank. There she remained whilst the only thing left for the crew to usefully do was to man the pumps and try to keep as much of the ship as possible above water.
The wreck was only a few miles offshore and its distress signal was eventually answered by the collier Hunter, on her way into Yarmouth, but she, for one reason or another, ignored the Invincibles' plight. Only the Yarmouth fishing smack The Nancy, fishing for cod under its skipper, Daniel Grigson, came to Invincibles’ aid. He offered whatever assistance he could. However, by midnight, it was clear to all on the Royal Navy's ship that nothing could be done to save it and the order was for two of her boats to be lowered with Totty, the purser, four midshipmen and some seamen in one and seamen in the other. They made it safely to The Nancy and then made a second run only for one of the boats to capsize as it approached The Nancy for the second time. Those men who had been thrown into the water were, fortunately, picked up by a collier which had also answered the distress signal from Invincible.
Both The Nancy and the collier remained on rescue watch throughout that Monday night to pick up survivors, although neither were able to offer any assistance to Invincible herself. After dawn had broken, Invincible shifted off the sandbank and drifted into deeper water before she slowly sank. As she lowered herself below the waves, those on her forecastle made a last desperate attempt to survive by leaping into the sea, trying to get on board the last of the ship’s launches. Some made it but others were beaten back with oars by those on board who feared the launch would capsize if it were to become overloaded.
When Invincible finally disappeared into the depths, it took with her about 400 crew. Out of a full complement of 600 men and, bizarrely, 50 passengers, aboard despite the fact that the ship was scheduled to go to war, 190 persons were saved. Not included in this number of survivors was Captain Rennie who, duty bound, was the last man to leave his post, when he did so he was not only wet and extremely cold but suffering from exhaustion. He tried to swim to a launch but gave up. At that final moment before he drowned, he seemingly had accepted his fate when he lifted his hands and place them over his face before sinking calmly beneath the water.
Rear-Admiral Thomas Totty in his Report for the court martial which was to follow described the last moments of the HMS Invincible:
“At daylight on Tuesday morning, I observed that the Invincible had not a single boat, either alongside or astern of her, and the tide ran so strong that it was impossible to get the fishing smack to her, but the moment the tide slacked … she stretched under the Invincibles’ stern, endeavouring by all possible means to work up and get alongside of her, but before that could be accomplished the ship went down in thirteen fathoms of water, and out of 600 persons that belonged to the Invincible there have not been above 190 saved and now living, several who were picked up by the launch died very soon afterwards. I am extremely grieved to inform you that Captain Rennie was among the number of those drowned, by his death the service has lost a truly zealous and intelligent Officer … The horror of the scene at the moment the ship went down far exceeds all power of description.”
Amongst those who had reached The Nancy and were later landed at Great Yarmouth, were those who were still to die as a result of the experience. In total, more than 400 were lost, compared to the 256 who were to die at the Battle of Copenhagen. On his way home from his triumph, Nelson still made time to visit 'his men' from the Invincible lying injured in Great Yarmouth's Naval Hospital.
For days after the wreck, bodies were washed up all along the coast. Most were brought on carts to St. Mary's church at Happisburgh, where they were buried in a huge, unmarked communal mound grave on unconsecrated ground to the north of the church. Of all those lost only six received a proper burial in the Holy Trinity & All Saints churchyard at Winterton on the 20th. March 1801. Their names are unknown.
But the story of the Invincible did not end there because an attempt was made by a Mary Cator in 1913 to erect a memorial as a reminder to the lives lost. She raised money by subscription but when it was found that there was no official record that proved that bodies from the Invincible were buried in the mound, she returned the money raised. Then in 1924, Mary Cator’s persistence to ensure that an appropriate memorial existed at St. Mary’s church paid off. This was the year when the church bells were re-hung, and Mary gave a treble bell on which was inscribed ‘In memory of Nelson’s men wrecked off Haisboro in 1801‘.
The unconsecrated land where the dead were buried was later incorporated into Happisburgh churchyard. In 1988, the remains of many of the Invincibles’ crew were located by chance in their original mass grave during the digging of a new drainage channel. There was found a disordered mass of bones less than three feet below the surface. These remains were reburied with proper rites. Then, ten years later, in 1998, a memorial stone was erected to their memory by the Ship’s Company of the Royal Navy’s aircraft carrier HMS Invincible (R05), together with members of the Nelson Society, the Happisburgh parochial church council and a descendant of Captain John Rennie. This was a final recognition of all those who had died on HMS Invincible in 1801.
On 16 March 1801, HMS INVINCIBLE
was wrecked of Happisburgh when
on her way to join the fleet with
Admiral Nelson at Copenhagen.
The day following, the Ship sank with
the loss of some four hundred lives.
One hundred and nineteen members
of the Ship’s Company lie buried here.
“And the sea gave up the dead
that were in it…..”
Revelation 26:13
This memorial stone was given jointly
by the Parochial Church Council and
The Officers and Ship’s Company of
HMS Invincible, 1998
Footnote:
The compulsory court martial that followed Invincible’s sinking was held on the HMS Ruby at Sheerness, Kent. It absolved the Admiral and the Captain (posthumously) of culpability in the disaster, but posthumously blamed the Harbour Pilot and the Ship’s Master, both of whom had been engaged to steer the ship through the reefs and shoals of the dangerous region, stating "they should have known the location of Hammond Knoll, especially since it was daytime and in sight of land".
The only amusing side to this story concerns the many casks that were seen floating on the sea after the HMS Invincible went down. Some 150 were brought ashore by the customs officers and were found to contain brandy. Other casks escaped and were to be picked up by delighted villagers, many of whom drank themselves into oblivion, one even died from his excesses.
Sinking of HMS Invincible, Hammond Knoll, 16th. March 1801
HMS Invincible was a 168 ft. 6 in. (51.36 m) long, 46 ft. 11 in (14.30 m) beam, 1,631 tons, 74-gun, Ramilles Class third-rate ship, 36 years old in the spring of 1801 and battle wearied. Built by Wells of Deptford, south-east London she was launched on 9th. March 1765.
Invincible had served in the American War of Independence. Her battle honours included Cape St. Vincent 1780, Chesapeake 1781, St. Kitts 1782 and the Glorious First of June in 1794, where she was badly damaged and lost fourteen men. In 1797 she took part in the invasion of Trinidad which captured that island from the Spanish. By 1801, Invincible was back in British waters.
By March of that year, and with the war against France in a protracted state, the fear was that the French would seize the powerful Danish navy and use it against Britain. Therefore, the British Baltic fleet, led by Admiral Sir Hyde Parker and with Admiral Nelson as his second-in-command, were directed to sail to Copenhagen and make sure the Danish fleet could not fall into French hands. Invincible was to be part of this fleet so she was ordered to sail from Chatham, Kent with its crew of around 600 men and meet up with Hyde Parker's fleet which was already preparing for the planned attack on the Danish fleet, to be known later as the Battle of Copenhagen. Invincible sailed on its journey under the flag of Rear-Admiral Thomas Totty.
During its way north, Invincible under the command of 34 year old Captain John Rennie, put into Great Yarmouth to collect final orders and stock up with ordnance, stores and ammunition. Invincible left Yarmouth Roads on 16th. March with a Ship's Master and Harbour Pilot aboard and set a course towards the notorious area of shifting sandbanks off Happisburgh on the north-east coast of Norfolk.
The Master and Pilot clearly thought that they could navigate Invincible through the shoals safely, but a rising wind and the strong tide forced the ship off course. At 2.30 pm she struck the sandbank of Hammond’s Knoll where the effect of wind and waves tore down the masts and began to break up the ship. The crew did all they could to save the ship, jettisoning provisions, etc. When the mizzen mast went, they cut it away, hoping that the ship would float off the sands at high water. Whilst all this was going on, Invincible repeatedly fired a distress signal with its guns. For a while, it looked as if the crew’s efforts of jettisoning every they could would work for Invincible moved slightly into deeper water. But, as she did so an even heavier swell and stronger wind caused the ship to lose its rudder. Unmanageable, she was driven back on to the sandbank. There she remained whilst the only thing left for the crew to usefully do was to man the pumps and try to keep as much of the ship as possible above water.
The wreck was only a few miles offshore and its distress signal was eventually answered by the collier Hunter, on her way into Yarmouth, but she, for one reason or another, ignored the Invincibles' plight. Only the Yarmouth fishing smack The Nancy, fishing for cod under its skipper, Daniel Grigson, came to Invincibles’ aid. He offered whatever assistance he could. However, by midnight, it was clear to all on the Royal Navy's ship that nothing could be done to save it and the order was for two of her boats to be lowered with Totty, the purser, four midshipmen and some seamen in one and seamen in the other. They made it safely to The Nancy and then made a second run only for one of the boats to capsize as it approached The Nancy for the second time. Those men who had been thrown into the water were, fortunately, picked up by a collier which had also answered the distress signal from Invincible.
Both The Nancy and the collier remained on rescue watch throughout that Monday night to pick up survivors, although neither were able to offer any assistance to Invincible herself. After dawn had broken, Invincible shifted off the sandbank and drifted into deeper water before she slowly sank. As she lowered herself below the waves, those on her forecastle made a last desperate attempt to survive by leaping into the sea, trying to get on board the last of the ship’s launches. Some made it but others were beaten back with oars by those on board who feared the launch would capsize if it were to become overloaded.
When Invincible finally disappeared into the depths, it took with her about 400 crew. Out of a full complement of 600 men and, bizarrely, 50 passengers, aboard despite the fact that the ship was scheduled to go to war, 190 persons were saved. Not included in this number of survivors was Captain Rennie who, duty bound, was the last man to leave his post, when he did so he was not only wet and extremely cold but suffering from exhaustion. He tried to swim to a launch but gave up. At that final moment before he drowned, he seemingly had accepted his fate when he lifted his hands and place them over his face before sinking calmly beneath the water.
Rear-Admiral Thomas Totty in his Report for the court martial which was to follow described the last moments of the HMS Invincible:
“At daylight on Tuesday morning, I observed that the Invincible had not a single boat, either alongside or astern of her, and the tide ran so strong that it was impossible to get the fishing smack to her, but the moment the tide slacked … she stretched under the Invincibles’ stern, endeavouring by all possible means to work up and get alongside of her, but before that could be accomplished the ship went down in thirteen fathoms of water, and out of 600 persons that belonged to the Invincible there have not been above 190 saved and now living, several who were picked up by the launch died very soon afterwards. I am extremely grieved to inform you that Captain Rennie was among the number of those drowned, by his death the service has lost a truly zealous and intelligent Officer … The horror of the scene at the moment the ship went down far exceeds all power of description.”
Amongst those who had reached The Nancy and were later landed at Great Yarmouth, were those who were still to die as a result of the experience. In total, more than 400 were lost, compared to the 256 who were to die at the Battle of Copenhagen. On his way home from his triumph, Nelson still made time to visit 'his men' from the Invincible lying injured in Great Yarmouth's Naval Hospital.
For days after the wreck, bodies were washed up all along the coast. Most were brought on carts to St. Mary's church at Happisburgh, where they were buried in a huge, unmarked communal mound grave on unconsecrated ground to the north of the church. Of all those lost only six received a proper burial in the Holy Trinity & All Saints churchyard at Winterton on the 20th. March 1801. Their names are unknown.
But the story of the Invincible did not end there because an attempt was made by a Mary Cator in 1913 to erect a memorial as a reminder to the lives lost. She raised money by subscription but when it was found that there was no official record that proved that bodies from the Invincible were buried in the mound, she returned the money raised. Then in 1924, Mary Cator’s persistence to ensure that an appropriate memorial existed at St. Mary’s church paid off. This was the year when the church bells were re-hung, and Mary gave a treble bell on which was inscribed ‘In memory of Nelson’s men wrecked off Haisboro in 1801‘.
The unconsecrated land where the dead were buried was later incorporated into Happisburgh churchyard. In 1988, the remains of many of the Invincibles’ crew were located by chance in their original mass grave during the digging of a new drainage channel. There was found a disordered mass of bones less than three feet below the surface. These remains were reburied with proper rites. Then, ten years later, in 1998, a memorial stone was erected to their memory by the Ship’s Company of the Royal Navy’s aircraft carrier HMS Invincible (R05), together with members of the Nelson Society, the Happisburgh parochial church council and a descendant of Captain John Rennie. This was a final recognition of all those who had died on HMS Invincible in 1801.
On 16 March 1801, HMS INVINCIBLE
was wrecked of Happisburgh when
on her way to join the fleet with
Admiral Nelson at Copenhagen.
The day following, the Ship sank with
the loss of some four hundred lives.
One hundred and nineteen members
of the Ship’s Company lie buried here.
“And the sea gave up the dead
that were in it…..”
Revelation 26:13
This memorial stone was given jointly
by the Parochial Church Council and
The Officers and Ship’s Company of
HMS Invincible, 1998
Footnote:
The compulsory court martial that followed Invincible’s sinking was held on the HMS Ruby at Sheerness, Kent. It absolved the Admiral and the Captain (posthumously) of culpability in the disaster, but posthumously blamed the Harbour Pilot and the Ship’s Master, both of whom had been engaged to steer the ship through the reefs and shoals of the dangerous region, stating "they should have known the location of Hammond Knoll, especially since it was daytime and in sight of land".
The only amusing side to this story concerns the many casks that were seen floating on the sea after the HMS Invincible went down. Some 150 were brought ashore by the customs officers and were found to contain brandy. Other casks escaped and were to be picked up by delighted villagers, many of whom drank themselves into oblivion, one even died from his excesses.