Dispatches For Admiral Thornton

The full index of our ship stamp archive
Post Reply
Anatol
Posts: 1038
Joined: Sun Apr 12, 2009 2:13 pm

Dispatches For Admiral Thornton

Post by Anatol » Tue Jan 23, 2018 9:40 pm

Ships and Vessels of Captain Aubrey’s Navy. As related in Patrick O’Brian’s novel “Ionian Mission”, the Royal Navy devoted a colossal effort during the Napoleonic wars to the close blockade of the French coast, maintaining fleets of battleships on a permanent basis in the Atlantic and the Mediterranean. It was the first time in history that blockade on such a scale had been attempted. While the battleships endlessly patrolled their stations, smaller vessels ran to and fro with supplies and information. In this Mediterranean scene we see the frigate HMS Surprise arriving with dispatches for Admiral Thornton, flying his flag in the massive 110-gun HMS Ocean. Both ships are hove-to, allowing boats to shuttle between them. The Mediterranean is sometimes far from being a peaceful sea, particularly in winter; and rain squalls are sweeping over the fleet. HMS OCEAN (1805) was a 98-gun second-rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, launched from Woolwich Dockyard on 24 October 1805. She was the only ship built to her draught, and designed by Sir John Henslow. She was converted to serve as a depot ship in 1841, and was eventually broken up in 1875. Her figurehead is preserved at Queenborough, Kent. HMS SURPRISE (1796) was the name the Royal Navy gave to the French Navy's corvetteUnité after her capture in 1796. Launched on 16 February 1794, the ship gained fame in 1799 for the recapture of HMS Hermione, and in 1802 was sold out of the service. SURPRISE in FICTION was the ship chosen by author Patrick O'Brian to restore Captain "Lucky" Jack Aubrey of the Aubrey–Maturin series to his place as a captain, and eventually see him raise his flag as an admiral of the Royal Navy. Surprise is an important element of the series, both because of her importance to the running plotline, and because of the emotional attachment she has earned among fans of the series. The design stamp is made after painting of Geoff Hunt:”Dispatches For Admiral Thornton” .
Mali 2017;220f.
Source: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMS_Ocean_(1805). en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMS_Surprise_(1796) https://www.scrimshawgallery.com/produc ... -thornton/
Attachments
img15922.jpg
Geoff-Hunt-Dispatches-for-Admiral-Thornton-1.jpg

Post Reply