HMS Lutine

HMS Lutine's blue plaque is on the wall of the former Sailors' Home on Marine Parade, Gt. Yarmouth, Norfolk.

 

Lutine, a French Navy Magicienne class, 32 gun frigate was built in Toulon. She was launched on 11th September 1779 and commissioned during November 1779 sailing with the Mediterranean fleet.

On 27th. September 1993 during the siege of Toulon, the French surrendered the city, naval dockyards, arsenal, and the Mediterranean fleet to the British fleet commanded by Vice Admiral Lord Hood. The French vessels included seventeen ships of the line, five frigates, including Lutine and eleven corvettes. Lutine was sent to Portsmouth in December 1793 for a refit and commissioned as HMS Lutine. She was part of the North Sea fleet sailing from her home port of Great Yarmouth.

In 1799, the economy in Hamburg was on the brink of collapse and Lutine under the command of Captain Lancelot Skynner (1766 - 99) was was ordered to deliver a vast sum of gold and silver, collected by City of London merchants, to the German port, as funds to prevent a stock market crash. It’s rumoured that the ship also carried the Dutch crown jewels, en route from repair in London. The £1.2 million in bullion and coin (equivalent in value to £119 million in 2021) that was aboard was underwritten by Lloyd's of London.

In the early hours of 9th. October 1799 Lutine, in company with the sloop HMS Arrow under the command of Captain Nathaniel Portlock (1749 - 1817) left Yarmouth Roads taking a north-easterly course to the northern islands of The Netherlands with the intention of changing course from there in a more easterly direction towards Cuxhaven at the mouth of the River Elbe. In complete darkness and during a heavy north-westerly gale, Lutine was drawn by the tidal stream into the Waddenzee (Wadden Sea). At about 11 pm, the frigate sailed at considerable speed on a half-wind course onto a sandbank in the Vlie seaway off the island of Terschelling in the West Frisian Islands. There she became a total loss with all but one of her approximately 210 crew and 30 passengers perishing in the breaking seas. The sole survivor was able seaman John Rogers. After his rescue Rogers was placed aboard HMS Arrow. On the 18th. October, nine days after the wreck of the Lutine he joined HMS Isis. Although Rogers legs had been seriously wounded, he was kept on Isis for an exorbitant length of time. Then, when Isis returned to British waters, in January 1800, this man was sent to the hospital ship Spanker. However, after treatment he was still not allowed to go ashore and was placed on HMS Grana, moored near Sheerness, Kent. Thereafter he disappeared silently from the records and was never heard of again. Someone seemed to have kept him out of sight and far away from the media of the day. Was it possible that his story would have embarrass the Admiralty and proved negligence for which they would have been responsible. The facts were these: Lutine herself was in a perfect state of maintenance, following a complete overall twelve months previously when even the rigging was renewed. Also, the crew was highly experienced, both in handling of the ship and in the navigation in the coastal waters of the Dutch and German islands. In fact, the area of the North Sea just off the Dutch coast was a primary patrol area for Lutine. A storm such as the one which hit the ship, when sailing half-wind, was certainly not a problem for a large frigate, handling it would have been a routine procedure. The conclusion was that the cause of the accident was human failure. If that had been the case, Lloyd’s would have refused to pay out the insurance money. Then, there were the drowned passengers, among them were high standing civilians and nobility from England, France and Luxembourg. One would think that, had the Admiralty been to blame, the relatives of those drowned would have demanded some degree of satisfaction for their losses.

Captain Portlock reported the loss of the Lutine, writing to the Admiralty in London on 10th. October:

"Sir, It is with extreme pain that I have to state to you the melancholy fate of H.M.S. Lutine, which ship ran on to the outer bank of the Fly (an anglicisation of 'Vlie) Island passage on the night of the 9th. inst. in a heavy gale of wind from the NNW, and I am much afraid the crew with the exception of one man, who was saved on a part of the wreck, have perished. This man, when taken up, was almost exhausted. He is at present tolerably recovered, and relates that the Lutine left Yarmouth Roads on the morning of the 9th. inst. bound for the Texel, and that she had on board a considerable quantity of money.

The wind blowing strong from the NNW, and the lee tide coming on, rendered it impossible with Schowts (probably schuits, local fishing vessels) or other boats to go out to aid her until daylight in the morning, and at that time nothing was to be seen but parts of the wreck.

I shall use every endeavour to save what I can from the wreck, but from the situation she is lying in, I am afraid little will be recovered".

Three officers, including Captain Skynner, were apparently buried in the Vlieland churchyard, and around two hundred others were buried in a mass grave near the Brandaris lighthouse in Terschelling. No memorials mark these graves.

The site of the wreck is notorious for its strong currents and the danger of storms forcing ships onto the shore. The area is composed of sandbanks and shoals, which the currents continuously shift, with channels through them. The depth of water also constantly changes.

The gold was apparently stored in flimsy casks bound with weak iron hoops and the silver in casks with wooden hoops. Within a year of the wreck, these casks had largely disintegrated, and the sea had started to scatter the contents and cover the wreck. Lloyd's records were destroyed by fire in 1838, and the actual amount of the gold lost is now unknown. In 1858 Lloyd's estimated the total value at £1.2 million, made up of both silver and gold. Despite extended salvage operations, over 80% of the cargo remains to be recovered. Lloyd’s, under the leadership of skilled underwriter John Julius Angerstein, paid the claim in full, and just two weeks after the disaster.

The ship's bell, engraved "ST. JEAN – 1779" was recovered on 17th. July 1858. The bell was found entangled in the chains originally running from the ship's wheel to the rudder, and was originally left in this state before being separated and re-hung from the rostrum of the Underwriting Room at Lloyd's. It weighs 106 lb. (48 kg) and is 18 in. (46 cm) in diameter. It remains a mystery why the name on the bell does not correspond with that of the ship. The bell was traditionally struck apon news of an overdue ship, once for the loss of a ship (i.e. bad news), and twice for her return (i.e. good news). The bell was sounded to stop the transaction of business while all brokers and underwriters were made aware of the news simultaneously. The bell has developed a crack and the traditional practice of ringing news has ended The last time it was rung to tell of a lost ship was in 1979 and the last time it was rung to herald the return of an overdue ship was in 1989.

During World War II, the Nazi radio propagandist Lord Haw-Haw asserted that the bell was being rung continuously because of Allied shipping losses during the Battle of the Atlantic. In fact, the bell was rung once, with one ring, during the war, when the Bismarck was sunk.

It tolls when a member of the Royal Family dies and was heard after the deaths of Diana, Princess of Wales, His Royal Highness The Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh and Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother. It is now rung for ceremonial purposes to commemorate disasters such as the 9/11 disaster, the Asian tsunami, and the London Bombings, and is always rung at the start and end of the two minutes silence on Armistice Day.

The bell has hung in four successive Lloyd's Underwriting Rooms:

The Royal Exchange 1859 to 1928;

Lloyd's building in Leadenhall Street 1928 to 1958;

Lloyd's first Lime Street headquarters 1958 to 1986;

The present Lloyd's building in Lime Street since 1986.

There is also a chair and table at Lloyd's made from Lutine's rudder. The rudder was salvaged on 18th. September 1858. This furniture was previously in the Lloyd's writing room and was used by the Chairman of Lloyd's at the annual general meeting of members, but is now kept in the Old Library of the Lloyd's building.

 

French -

Name: Lutine

Ordered: 23rd. October 1778

Builder: Toulon shipyard

Laid down: March 1779

Launched: 11th. September 1779

Commissioned: November 1779

Captured: 27th. September 1793

 

British -

Name: HMS Lutine

Acquired: 27th. September 1793

Fate: Wrecked 9th. October 1799

 

General characteristics -

Class: Magicienne class

Vessel type: Frigate

Displacement: 600 tons (French)

Displacement fully loaded: 1,000 tons (French)

Length: 145 ft.(44.2 m)

Beam: 37 ft. (11.2 m)

Draught: 17 ft.(5.2 m) (French feet)

Sail plan: Full-rigged ship

Armament:

26 x 12 pounder long guns

6 x 6 pounder long guns

Done