Strange Fortune - part 3

A story in four parts by Tony Gerard.

"So we is like dat for many days. We see only Pedro. Is as if dey have forgotten us.

After some long time it come to a blow- many, many hours. We is all sick. At last we hear de sound dat all sailor's dread - de crash and grind of de ship upon a reef! De carpenter and his mates come into de hold- water is coming in quick- we plead widt dem to free us but dey pay us no mind. Sailors begin to take tings from de hold - we plead widt dem also- but dey pay us no mind. Finally we see Pedro- he come to us widt de key to our shackles!

De water is already almost to our knees. I happen to be de first on de chain  and Pedro must feel under de water widt de key- but at last he free me. Russo is next, but as Pedro is feeling to free him Gasparia appear. In Spanish he say" What are you about fool? Saving rats when de ship is lost!" and he strike him on de side of his head-  and de key go flying- strike the side of de hull and fall into de water! He shove Pedro to help de sailors. I can see dis because dey have lanterns dey bring to work by.

I feel beneath the water to find de key. Of the tree still chained Tomas pull frantic like an animal on de chain where is bolted to de beam, Louis is very calm and say "Hail Mary's" , and Russo he keep calling to me. I say to Russo I am feeling for de key and he say "NO you must speak widt me!". He say it so strong I stop and go to him. He was Creole same as me- we sign on together and he is my tiemate. He say "Vilot-  his wife- he say Vilot is young, she love me very much. If you live you must tell her to take another husband- he must be a good man- she should not spend her life to grieve for me- promise me you tell her dat if you live. I say I do not wish dis- I must find de key- He grab me strong- our hand are not chained- and he say YOU PROMISE ME!  I say "Yes. I swear it" Den he release me and I continue to search for de key.

De water is to cover Thomas first, as it is almost to cover him he strike his head hard against de beam- I swear I can hear his skull bone break, and he fall into de water. Louis is still calm. He finish his Hail Mary- look to me and nod- den he go under de water. Russo is last. He look at me and say- you promised- he keep his eyes on mine until he go under.

De Spaniards have all gone some time ago now. I make my way up out of de hold, de ship is on her side almost. As I come onto de deck is still some daylight- I see de ships boats, dey had tree, pulling away. Some of the crew is in de water holded onto de side of one of dem because dere is too many. I see Pedro in one. I hope he lived. I still remember to pray for him if he is still alive or in purgatory.

I stay widt de ship most of de night. She work till she begin to come apart. I take a hatch cover and rope myself to it- not tied to it , 'cause I can swim and I don't wish to be flipped over an drown - but widt enough rope to pull myself to it should I be trowed off. I take all my courage and I jump into de sea on the hatch cover. Is very rough and many times I loose my grip, but each time I pull myself back widt de rope.  Finally I hear de sound of breakers. De waves is great-  I am trowed all to once, hard up on de beach. I begin to give a tanks to Mary- when I am yanked back into de sea! Is de hatch cover I am tied to being dragged back. Tree times I make de beach and tree times I am dragged back. De third time I get myself to loose- but now I am too tired and I begin to drown- when again I am trowed on the beach.  I crawl up beyond the waves, give tanks to Mary and go to sleep.

I wake up because is water splashing into my face. I open my eyes- Gasparia is pissing on me!

"At least one rat did not drown" he say to de fellows widt him and kick me hard.

Is him and ten other Spaniards.  Dey have also made de beach, but dey have lost der boat. All de powder dey have is wet- no food also. So dey treat me for a slave. We live five days dere on de beach. We gather coconuts, crabs and shells to eat. Dey keep a fire going for de smoke to be seen. One Spaniard die from de sting of a posion snail. Another is bad cut up from coral when dey loose dere boat- and his wounds become red and stink.

One morning Gasparia kick me awake- he do dat every morning- an say- "de fire need more wood". I take tree steps toward de woods when I see a fellow lookin at me from among de trees. He is almost naked- have a spear and a shield. He is marked all over like a savage from Louisiana. As I look at him more of dem stand from hiding. Gasparia begin to curse me for not moving- den he see dem also.  He slowly draw his sword. Dere are many of dem- maybe twenty. Gasparia slowly walk toward dem- a pace beyond me. He say to his men in Spaniard " we will show des monkeys how real men die". I tink is my time to be killed and I have nothing to loose- so I kick Gasparia from behind - hard in de balls.  As he fall all dose savage run forward. One run to Gaspiria- he is on de ground - pin his neck widt his shield. Quick as a cat he take a strange axe and cut off his head.  I am wait for him to strike me also, but he only smile and speak to me dat I cannot understand. The Spaniards is all dead quick.

Strange Fortune - part 2

A story in four parts by Tony Gerard.

"De Captain of de Indiaman, he was young, de son of one of de owners or some such ting. His first command. We was on our return, and he do well enough, because he have two good fellows as mates. It come a bad blow, we is all feared, but we come thru it all right, but we is lost from de convoy we travel widt."

"So we go on alone for tree days, when de lookout call he see a sail. We are hopeful is one of the convoy, but soon see she is going de wrong way, but soon she tack to follow us, and now we are feared of her. She follow all de day and gain on us. Dat night we douse all de lights and change course, but when de moon rise we see she is still widt us."

  

"All night she gain. We is all on deck, cause we is too feared to sleep. As she is almost in pistol shot is a sudden light from her- as if a fellow flash a pan to dry it-  and we see her deck is all covered with fierce looking fellows- she is a Spanish pirate!

As soon as is false dawn dey fire a shot across our bow. We have guns to fight dem- but our Captain he strike right away- not even pretend to resist for his honor!

Dey send a boat across. Is filled widt savage looking fellows. Dere mate, he look less like a brute, but you can see evil in his eyes. De captain and mates is dere to meet him, most of de crew on deck also, except for does dat have hided demselves around on de ship.

Right away de pirate mate, I learn later his name is Gasparia, try and speak widt dem- dey cannot speak Spaniard and he have no Dutch, but finally dey both speak English. De pirate ask who is de first mate. When de mate say who he is two of de pirates grab him, and de Gasparia cut off de small finger of his lef hand. Gasparia say is to show dey is serious fellows and he tell de captain to bring his manifest, money and de money he have from his own trade. De second mate and de captain rush to do so. When dey bring de manifest and de money Gasparia look at it and say- "is dis truely all?", den he cut off de mate's ring finger at de middle joint. De mate he plead widt the Captain and de Captain give Gasparia his watch. He say "Is truely all I have". Gaspar say he is just testing. He den go over de manifest and have his crew take what he wish along with all our powder and some of de shot. It take several hours for us to load de goods onto the pirate ship. While is happening dey find one fellow who is hid. Dey trow him over- but he can swim- so den dey shoot at him in de water and make a sport of it until de is dead.

After all dey wish is loaded onto der ship- is still cargo left to de indiaman- de pirate mate say "my Captain wishes to tank you for to give us no great trouble, so you may now go".  We is almost faint widt joy- as he go to leave Gasparia turn, as if he just tink of it an ask "have you French among your crew?"

"I have five" de Captain say. He could have said he have none- how would de Spaniard have known? And Gaspara say "bring dem to me". Dey have de five of us to line before him. He ask "how many of you from Normandy?"  Jean Claude say "Is only I" . Gaspar say "Very well", den he take a pistol and shoot him in the belly. De pirates den trow him over. He say "bring de others", so we is much feared as dey take us widt dem.

Dey take us and chain us by our foots in de hold of dere ship- is named "Teberone"- and for de first two days we have no food and only a small keg of water dey left widt us when dey chain us in de hold. After dat de cook's mate- he is a kind fellow- de only such among dem- named Pedro, he bring us some biscuit and food scraps. He keep doing dat, but he make sign to us dat we are not to let de other Spaniards know he feed us.  Sometimes we catch a rat also. 

Strange Fortune - part 1

Strange Fortune- the Life and Times of Jean Baptiste Girard

A story in four parts by Tony Gerard.

"Here she comes yonder, Billy!" From the amount of appreciation in the topman's voice this could have referred to a barmaid coming with the first round after a long commission. As it was it  referred to a long line of grey clouds. The rain came swiftly, driving the wind before it. Third Lieutenant Tumbusch, officer of the watch, smiled broadly at the sailing master MacLachlan, who smiled just as broadly back. It was MacLachlan who caught himself first and assumed a countenance more suitable to a gentleman of his standing. Tumbusch quickly followed suit. The Acasta, becalmed for three days, leapt to life like a bird uncaged. 

 Deep below in the cockpit no one was prepared for the sudden movement. The Surgeon, Dr. Roberts, braced himself by grabbing an overhead beam as medical instruments slid off the makeshift table. Baptiste, the Surgeon's mate, did the same.

The injured young sailor swung forward in the hammock, then back, smacking solidly into the mate. 

"Bloody hell' he gasped through gritted teeth.

"It appears we are underway again" said Roberts. 

"Oui, is good." agreed Baptiste as he sidestepped a second swing of the hammock. The young sailor  continued with gritted teeth. He was lucky to be alive. Two hours before he had taken a fall from the tops, struck a yard on his way down breaking both legs, missed an open gunport by inches and landed in the Atlantic.

A shipmate, one of the few who could swim, dove after him immediately.

The right leg break was a particularly bad one. When he was carried below the bone shone clean and white a hand's breath out of the thigh. The surgeon had felt carefully, but painfully, for additional breaks. A fracture would mean amputation. Unlike many of the Royal Navy surgeons Roberts was never one to casually deprive a man of a limb.

They had pushed the bone back into place and set the leg. Roberts was still worried. The tissue had swollen quickly and he could have missed an additional break. The sailor had begged pitifully not to amputate and the doctor was thinking perhaps his pity had outweighed his medical judgment.

"Little point in second guessing one's own judgment" he said half aloud to himself as he picked up the spilled instruments. The ship had now settled into a comfortable, gentle rock. From far above a slight breath of fresh air even made its way into the dank cockpit. 

The sailor groaned loudly and Baptiste looked inquiringly at Roberts. He wanted to give the man more laudanum.

The doctor was stingy with the laudanum. The sailor had been dosed before setting his legs. It wasn't that Roberts was indifferent to the man's suffering; if they ran low or, God forbid, ran out there was no way to be resupplied. Today it was only a bad break, tomorrow it could be forty horribly wounded after a bloody engagement. Or nothing for months. With no way to predict it was best to err on the side of caution.

Baptiste continued to look at the surgeon. They had worked together long enough now that words were often unnecessary. Roberts eventually nodded his consent.

As he filled the dosing quill the mate turned his back to Roberts. He gave the man a bit extra. Events in his life had rarely rewarded long tern planning.

The sailor knew the laudanum for what it was and drained the quill eagerly. Baptiste started to remove the man's neck rag to wipe the sweat from his face, but found it already soaked through. The sailor's face was still a mask of pain and exhaustion.

The mate removed his own neck cloth and wiped the man's brow. As he leaned forward a gold pendant on a thong around his neck swung free, almost in the sailor's face.

The pendant was a curious shape, an open circle, thicker at the bottom than top. Where it almost joined at the bottom either end turned inward to form short horns projecting toward the center.

"Wot's at- some sort o' Paptist thing?" The mate looked confused, the sailor pointed weakly with his chin.

"Oh, non. He is not Papist. He is a ling-ling-o"

"Wot's a lin-lin-go?"

"Is a symbol favored by de head hunters of de Spanish Philippines"

"So why you wearin it?"

"Is long to tell". The mate looked to the surgeon. There was little else that required immediate attention. Roberts nodded his consent. The mate sat down on the end of one of the chests that made the table.

"I was once mate to de surgeon of a Dutch East Indiaman"

"Thought it were the Philippines"

"It comes to dere". 

Roberts smiled knowingly. The mate's stories rarely traveled in a straight line, but they were a good distraction from the tedium of the blockade. He seated himself in an empty hammock.

Boarding Party Tactics in the Age of Fighting Sail

An article submitted by Acasta member S. Diatz

In the 'Age of Fighting Sail', and specially the period of 1793-1815, it often took the actual boarding of an enemy naval vessel, to secure surrender, especially in a single-ship-to-ship action, upon the high seas. After the cannon broadsides pummeled opposing ships, often causing severe damage to the sails and rigging, and reducing a ships steering ability, then pulling along-side and resorting to 'cold steel' was, often-times, the last resort. 

In the British Royal Navy, boarding a French or Spanish (and later American) enemy vessel, was a favored way to finish off task of 'securing a prize'. If say a RN frigate was attempting to take an enemy ship, of like size, it would be worked along-side of the opposing vessel, close enough that the cannons would be neutralized. Often then, musketry would be employed by British marines (in the fighting tops and also on-deck) to eliminate enemy officers, to cause confusion in command. The tossing of 'iron bombs' (larger fused grenades) onto decks and into open hatches, would cause serious damage, as well. This was a prelude to skilled sailors employing the tossing of iron grappling hooks and lines, over the gunnels, to pull each vessel together..though the enemy sailors would often use axes, to cut the rope lines, to avoid this method of securing. When the ships were touching, and the moment was right..a cry of 'boarders away' would be yelled, and a boarding party of armed sailors and British marines, often led by a junior lieutenant or warrant officer, would scramble over to the enemy vessel, to help secure a surrender. 

All assortment of weapons would be used, kept handy on-deck in wooden tubs..loaded Sea-service pistols, cutlasses, boarding axes and short boarding pikes, even muskets with bayonets would be carried. At that point, it was a harsh melee of hand-to-hand deck fighting, and the tactics were to disable an opponent from further opposition. Any severe arm or leg injury would usually do that, and a broken limb was just as good as a cut-or-thrust. Heavy cutlass hilts were often used to gouge eyes or mouths, and the blades used to break shoulder bones. Pistols were often loaded with bird-shot to take down a number of enemy, in close-quarters. The goal was to cut down resistance, and compel a surrender by the enemy ship's captain or surviving senior officer, where the fighting would thus end, with the striking of the 'ship's colours. 

Once the ship succumbed (via surrender), then it would be determined whether the enemy vessel was worthy of salvage (still sea-worthy), and if so, a 'prize party' would secure it for sailing back to a British harbor, for liquidation (or refitting and re-commissioning). If the enemy ship was deemed to be 'lost' (would not survive a journey, and thus was 'sinking'), then special gangs of skilled sailors would be employed to gather any useful cargo, arms, food stores, valuables, and more importantly, ships logs, charts, dispatches, etc, that might be used for intelligence, back to RN vessel, and the arduous task of gathering the prisoners (and wounded) on-board, as well. As in most land battles, of that time the fighting was alway heaviest, at the end...just before surrender.

'Naval Boarding' - Wikipedia

'Napoleonic Naval Tactics' (1/5) Battle Formation and Cutting Out'

'The Encyclopedia of the War of 1812' A Political, Social and Military History' on-line

A Christmas Eve Signal in 1812

Click to espy a larger version

Look there, the Poictiers is signaling us... what could this be about? 

I was looking forward to going below to partake of the Christmas pies that the Captain's steward has been working on all morning, and now this! 

Fetch me my Popham's, I'm the surgeon, decyphering signal flags isn't quite yet second nature to me.

Special thanks to Capt. Bertani's signal flag generator for the above graphic.

Mission Statement

The purpose of the HMS ACASTA and the ROYAL TARS of OLD ENGLAND is to accurately portray a crew of His Majesty's Royal Navy circa 1800-1810 for the educational benefit of the public and for the mutual research and enjoyment of the individual members.

Our organization will educate via a series of first person activities designed to demonstrate the real lives of sailors as they go about their business and live their lives. Landing Parties, Surveying Crews, Recruitment Drives, Press Gangs, Shore Leave... these are but a few of the activities that our crew will undertake whilst encamped at an event. During duty hours, we follow proper Navy protocols and sailors are expected to live a sailor's life.

You can learn more about our group on the ABOUT US page.

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The eclectic band of historical reenactors and interpreters that makes up the 'CREW' of HMS Acasta spans a wide spectrum of real life occupations.

We are made up of students, educators, academics (a surprising number of us are teachers) even a Ph.D., present and former Coast Guard and U.S. Naval men, artists & artisans, tailors, musicians, professionals & executives. We even have a freelance copywriter, farrier & presidential presenter thrown into the mix for good measure! (hint: look for the fellow that looks like Jackson from the twenty dollar bill!)

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