[page 15]

11.

11.

around two in the afternoon there was a dead calm that lasted all night through to morning.

nachmittag gegen 2 Uhr bekamen wir Kalm, welcher die gantze Nacht durch biß gegen Tag anhielte.

On the 3rd, we had a bit of wind once again, still from the southeast.

Den 3ten hatten wir wiedrum etwas Wind, von der nemlichen sud-östlichen Seite.

On the 6th, we had very nice winds from the east that were so good that we whipped along toward America joyously. In the afternoon around 4 o’clock we encountered a Swedish trade ship[38] heading toward the West Indies[39].

Den 6ten bekamen wir Wind von östlicher Seite und sehr angenehm daß wir mit Freuden nach America seegelten. Nachmittag gegen 4 Uhr begegnetten uns ein schwedisches Kauffmans-Schiff, welches seinen Weg nach West-Indien hatte.

On the 10th, the horizon again appeared a bit foggy and there was a strong wind.

Den 10ten zeigte sich der Horizont wiedrum etwas neblicht mit starckem Wind.

On the 18th, again good east winds.

Den 18ten noch guten Wind; von östlicher Seite.

On the 19th, around 5 o’clock in the evening, a sailor cried out from atop the center mast that he spotted a ship on the south side that seemed to him to be a war ship:[40] as soon as the commander had heard him he signaled to the frigate Carelle[41] to launch a pursuit to see which navy it belonged to. The frigate returned and announced that it was an English war ship.

Den 19ten abends gegen 5 Uhr ruffte ein Matroß vom mittlern Mast-Baum er thätte ein Schiff sehen gegen südlicher Seite, welches ihm als ein Krieg-Schiff scheinete : sobald der Comandant dieses vernahm gabe er gleich Zeichen, daß die Fregatte Levrette solte auf die Jagd gehen um zu sehen was es für ein Schiff seye. Das Fregat kame wieder zurück und brachte Ordre daß es ein englisch Krieg-Schiff wäre.

On the 20th, at sunrise, we saw 2 large ships off the same side of our ship; the frigate and the war ship L’Eveiller launched a pursuit straight away. Around 8 o’clock we saw 6 more ships. The commander immediately gave the sign to all the war ships and frigates to remain ready for battle, and to the transport ships to stay grouped in a triangle formation as well as they could[42].

Den 20ten Juny morgens bey Anbruch des Tags sahe man 2 grosse Schiffe auf der nemlichen Seite; das Fregatt nebst dem Krieg-Schiff L’eveiller gingen gleich wieder auf die Jagd. Gegen 8 Uhr sahe man noch 6 Schiffe. Der Comandant gabe gleich Zeichen daß sich alle Krieg-Schiffe und Fregaten sollten schlachtfertig halten, die Transport-Schiffe aber solten sich zusammen so viel als möglich wäre in einem Dreyangel halten.

https://gallica.bnf.fr/iiif/ark:/12148/btv1b10110846m/f8/pct:50,0,100,100/,700/0/native.jpg

Strasbourg, Médiathèque André Malraux, ms f 15, p. 15.

[agrandir]

 Notes

38. The Atlantic sea routes are common, especially the southern route. The encounter on the high seas is thus a remarkable but not exceptional event. That said, the origin of the ship in question is rather surprising, as Sweden is not a power with a lasting presence in the West Indies or America. Flohr does, however, mention a second encounter with a Swedish ship on the return journey, on May 25, 1783 (see page 300), which raises questions as to how the author used his notes.
39. The term Indes occidentales (West Indies) is a denomination that fell into disuse in France in the 18th century. West Indies is, however, used more in the English language than in French where the designation “Antilles” is preferred to refer to all the islands situated in the Caribbean.
40. War ships were the most imposing vessels in eighteenth-century flotillas. Very heavy, difficult to maneuver, they were called “floating fortresses”. These ships were classified according to the number of cannons they carried. In the eighteenth century, ships with 74 cannons were preferred to seventeenth-century ships with 64 cannons, the former being mass-produced. The French navy also possessed ships with 80, like the Duc de Bourgogne. The largest of these ships could have more than one hundred cannons, but were generally too difficult to maneuver. Their maintenance being very costly, these ships only went out to sea during wars, and most often stayed in port during times of peace, the day-to-day missions being left to the frigates.
41. A frigate is a medium-sized war ship, smaller than the large war vessel, and larger than the corvette. Being both fast and well-armed, frigates could take part in combat as well as conduct reconnaissance missions. These ships generally displayed between 32 and 44 cannons, and could take between 250 to 450 men aboard.
42. Cf. John Trumbell, Combat naval entre les Anglais et les Français, engraving, 1776 [reproduction en ligne - RMN].