January 19 - On this day in 1527, the carrack named St Anthony or Santo António (and also reported as Saint Andrew) of Portugal) foundered in Gunwalloe Bay, Cornwall while en–route from Lisbon to Antwerp. She had a mixed cargo including copper and silver ingots, and was said to be worth an estimated £100 million in todays values. One half of the crew was lost. The wreck was located in 1981 and a selection of her cargo can be seen in the Charlestown Shipwreck, Rescue and Heritage Centre, Charlestown. The site is designated under the Protection of Wrecks Act 1973. And on this day in 1676, the Barbary corsair, Canary, left Algiers with two ships laden with goods and presents (tax money and the like) for the sultan at Istanbul. He anchored in view of the port to have all passengers and crew embark during the night and departed in the early morning, flying flags from the mastheads, firing all guns and muskets. Also on this day in 1704, the English government declared a day of fasting in the days weeks that followed the Great Storm of 1703, saying it loudly calls for the deepest and most solemn humiliation of our people. The storm, unprecedented in ferocity and duration, was generally reckoned by witnesses to represent the anger of God—in recognition of the crying sins of this nation. It remained a frequent topic of moralizing in sermons well into the nineteenth century.
Posted on: Mon, 19 Jan 2015 17:28:36 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015