Continental Navy Week - Commodore John Paul Jones, c.1779

"John Paul Jones, commodore au service des Etats-Unis de l'Amérique," engraved by Carl Gutenberg from a drawing by C.J. Notté, c.1779, Wikimedia Commons retouched detail from Library of Congress original.

I started this week with Jones in a dashing (non-regulation) dress uniform following the Battle of Flamborough Head. Notté chose to show Jones in the thick of the fight. His face is cool and determined while he calmly reaches for a pistol, all while the Bonhomme Richard disintegrates around him. Not even the rattle of his marines' musketry a feet away startles Jones.

Jones hair is loose and short, hanging in curls that barely reach his neck. His hat is untrimmed and wide, worn in the French style. A large silk cockade is affixed to the left side, just as the point of his hat is over the left eye. A white cravat is carefully tied around his neck.

Jones' jacket is single breasted with lapel flaps open at the top. His jacket has simple mariners' cuffs, and lacks any of the trappings of Jones' fancier uniforms. At his waist is a row of pistols tucked into the waistband of his slops/petticoat trousers.

Without the epaulets or gold lace he was so fond of, Jones would be ready to rumble in a set of slop clothes like these!

Thank you for joining me in my journey through the uniforms of the Continental Navy. There are more images out there. Charles Willson Peale painted portraits of captains Nicholas Biddle and Joshua Barney in their Continental Navy uniforms, for example. I encourage you to make this a study yourself, and dig up what you can on this fascinating and short lived organization.

Continental Navy Week - Captain Gustavus Conyngham, date unknown

Captain Gustavus Conyngham miniature, artist unknown, date unknown, US Naval Historical Center.

The Dunkirk Pirate returns! Conyngham was featured on this blog some time ago. That French depiction of Conyngham may have been colored by his checkered resume. After a wildly successful cruise against the British merchant fleet (and a few neutral vessels), Conyngham was chastised by Congress for his flagrant disregard for orders forbidding taking neutral vessels carrying British cargoes.

This portrait, taken from a miniature of Conyngham, is scant in details. He wears no hat, and appears to sport a bob wig and queue. Conyngham's short white shirt collar is folded over his white cravat. His coat is without collar, and has a white lapel lined with gold lace. Dark metallic buttons are sewn in as well.

Continental Navy Week - Captain Matthew Parke, date unknown

Continental Marine Captain Matthew Parke, artist unknown, date unknown, FourScore.

Continental Navy portraits are difficult to come across. Continental Marine portraits are almost nonexistant. That is what makes this miniature so valuable. The miniature portrait above is part of a matched set depicting Captain Matthew Parke and his wife.

As one of the very first marine officers, Parke served alongside Jones aboard the ship Ranger during its highly successful cruise in British home waters, as well as witnessing the Battle of Flamborough Head from aboard the frigate Alliance. He was later rebuked for insubordination, but is still remembered today by Marines for his courage and place among the founders of the Corps.

 The same day that the Continental Navy's uniform was detailed by the Marine Committee, the Continental Marines received their uniforms. Green coats with white facings were accompanied by a set of white small clothes and tall leather collar to protect the neck from edged weapons.

Parke wears a uniform in line with those regulations. his white collar is buttoned town onto his lapels with large silver buttons, which are spaced evenly. He wears a tall white cravat that peeks out of his single breasted white waistcoat, with its smaller silver buttons. On his visible right shoulder is a silver epaulet.

Continental Navy Week - Commodore Abraham Whipple, date unknown

Commodore Abraham Whipple, Edward Savage, date unknown, US Naval Academy Museum.

Whipple led naval attacks on the British before there was ever an American navy, much less even a ware. It was he that led the attack on the Gaspee in 1772, in which a Royal Navy officer was shot and the Gaspee burned to the waterline. Whipple's dedication to fighting the British at sea lasted throughout the Revolutionary War. Among his exploits was the phenomenal capture of eleven ships of a British convoy, valued at over one million dollars.

Befitting his success and rank, Whipple wears an impressive uniform.

A large untrimmed cocked hat turned over his right eye is black and bears a large black cockade. His jacket has a short standing collar with a small square of red at the front, over which sits a medium sized brass button. Along his untrimmed red lapels are large brass buttons as well, though he is missing one on the lower left. Scalloped mariners' cuffs, as we've seen on numerous uniforms this week, rest over red cuffs. Unlike those worn by other Continental Navy officers, his mariners' cuffs have only two large buttons, with one offset on the red cuff.There are matching buttons at the pockets hanging low on his coat, which is lined in pink silk.

His waistcoat is something to behold. Bright red and single breasted, it is piped in a fine, wide gold trim, doubly so around the flap pockets at his waist. All along the waistcoat and pockets are small brass or gold buttons. His blue breeches match the color of his coat, and have a long line of gold or brass buttons running up from the gold lace beneath his knee. White stockings, giving the sheen of silk, run to black shoes with silver rectangular buckles. Peeking beneath the hem of his waistcoat is a watch fob, joined by a ceremonial sword on his left hip and a glass in his hand to accessorize the stunning uniform.

Of all the officers featured on Continental Navy Week, Hopkins may take the prize for best dressed!

Continental Navy Week - Captain James Josiah, 1787

Captain James Josiah, Charles Wilson Peale, 1787, Antiques and Fine Art Magazine.

The Continental Navy was quickly overshadowed by the resounding success of privateers during the American Revolutionary War. James Josiah partook in that success with his sloop Washington, after a time as a lieutenant and later captain in the Continental Navy. During his service, Josiah was captured by the British and horribly mistreated aboard the frigate Cerberus, giving him a thirst for revenge that motivated both his naval and privateering careers.

This painting was done well after Josiah's service in the war. He is bound away for China in 1787, and poses in the cabin of his merchant brig St. Croix Packet. Still, he chose to be portrayed in his Continental Navy uniform, a sign of his pride in the service.

Josiah's coat has a short standing collar lined with gold, and fitted with a small button on a red field. This matches the hue of his gold piped waistcoat, as well as the facings of his coat. The wide buttons on his plain lapels are evenly spaced and without lace. At his neck is a white cravat which appears to match the delicate material that makes up his frilled shirt cuffs. A final touch befitting any captain are the scalloped mariner's cuffs that reach over the red cuffs of his coat sleeves.

Continental Navy Week - Commodore Esek Hopkins, 1781, 1776

"Commodore Hopkins, Commandeur en Chef der Amri. Flotte.," Thomas Hart, 1781, Anne S.K. Brown Military Collection.

Esek Hopkins is an interesting figure. A successful merchant captain before the war, Hopkins was also an adept privateer during the French and Indian War. Given his past experience, it is not surprising that Congress granted him command of the first American naval squadron. He led the successful invasion of Nassau, but was humiliated when the 20 gun Glasgow outmaneuvered his seven warships, disabling two Continental Navy vessels. The fight was so disorganized that the Continentals hit each other in the fray.

Hopkins was later censured by Congress for his failure to follow orders, which may not have been all that realistic anyway. The rest of his naval career was spent blockaded by a British squadron, and he was removed from command in 1778.

Thomas Hart printed two renditions of Commodore Hopkins, one was a colorized bust in an oval frame, the other this piece. Both are based off of a portrait done by Wilkinson. The 1781 version has a less crowded background and is closer to a full body image. You can see the earlier colorized version (which incorrectly identifies its subject as "admiral") here.

Hopkins wears a cocked hat turned over his left eye, lined with silk tape and bearing a large cockade. His shirt collar is folded just above the black cravat at his neck, which peeks out of the plain single breasted waistcoat with its domed buttons. His coat is without collar and fitted with evenly spaced plain domed buttons down his lapels.

The lapel on his right side is buttoned to the coat, but his left is unbuttoned. His waistcoat has flap pockets at the waist. Plain dark breeches of the same hue as his jacket finish off his uniform, if it may be so called.

Hopkins' pose and uniform match that of the 1776 piece by Wilkinson.

We can probably apply the color of the uniform from this piece to the print: a dark blue jacket with light red lapels and brass buttons that match those on his pale red waistcoat. His hat is lined in gold tape, and the bow appears to be silk.

Continental Navy Week - Captain John Paul Jones, 1780

"Capt. John Paul Jones, Commander of a Squadron of Ships in the Service of France and America," printed by Sayer and Bennett, 1780, Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History.

Easily the most famous of all Continental Navy officers in the American Revolutionary War, John Paul Jones is the subject of many books (both fictional and true) and one surprisingly boring movie. His exploits are the stuff of legend, but the most famous of his victories is that of his Bonhomme Richard over the British 44 gun Serapis. With his ship almost literally sinking beneath him, Jones pounded the Serapis into submission. The famous Battle of Flamborough Head (along with the possibly mythical line "I have no yet begun to fight") have resounded through the centuries. It is presumably this battle that is depicted in the background of Jones' portrait.

Interestingly, this print was made during the war with America, and printed by Sayer and Bennett: two very successful printers in London. One has to wonder what their audience thought of the dashing figure that had confounded their Royal Navy in home waters.

Aside from Jones' skills as a mariner and courage as a fighter, it can be also said that he was a clothes horse. This uniform does not conform to Continental Navy regulations. On September 5, 1776, the Marine Committee declared that officers should wear blue breeches, a blue coat with red facings, with a red waistcoat.

In February of the following year, Jones and other captains offered an alternative uniform of white small clothes and a blue coat with white facings. This recommendation was adopted by committee, but not by Congress.

Jones went on wearing his own uniform anyway, among several other styles.

In this portrait (supposedly taken from an original painted in Amsterdam), Jones wears a black cocked hat with a large cockade bound in gold and held by a gold button. His large epaulets are also gold, matching the lace around doubled gold buttons that run down his white lapels. The buttons are each engraved with an anchor. A large white cravat peeks from between his lapels, contrasting the small black bow around his queue. 

Jones' short lapels end just above the natural waist, but the buttons and lace continue below there. A long, blue scalloped cuff runs from just below the elbow to the frilled cuffs of his shirtsleeves, running over the white cuffs of his coat. Along the scalloped cuff are four buttons with lace. His small clothes appear to be white silk (judging by the shading), and are fit with smaller gold buttons which appear to be plain domed.

Continental Navy Week!

Starting on Monday, I'm going to do something a bit different here.

"The Battle of Flamborough Head," Nicholas Pocock, 1779, National Museum of the Royal Navy.

The explicit focus of this blog is to explore the common sailors of the decades before the French Revolution. I tend to avoid officers and masters unless what they are wearing says something about the dress of common sailors.

While I'm searching for more images of common sailors in primary source images, I'm going to deviate for a bit and explore the officers of the Continental Navy. The short lived maritime force left a long legacy, even if the actual impact on the outcome of the American Revolutionary War was not a strong one. Perhaps later I'll do a week on the privateers of the period...

Come Monday, visit us each day for a different officer of the Continental Navy: John Paul Jones, Gustavus Conyngham, marine Matthew Parke, and others!

Firing a Salute, 1770

"Firing a Salute," Dominic Serres, 1770, Yale Center for British Art.

The focus of this piece is the lateen rigged warship in the left of the frame, which fires the titular salute. Our focus is on that of the men gathered around the sloops huddled to the right.

If I were to guess, I would wager that the men in the boats are fishermen. They all wear short brimmed round hats or caps, and most are in shirtsleeves. It appears that a few wear jackets or coats, but the only lower garment in view is that worn by the fellow wading in the shallow water.

Along with his short brimmed hat and plain shirt, it appears that he wears a waistcoat tucked into his breeches. Either that or Serres has exaggerated the lines of his shirt's armscye. The man does not wears slops nor trousers, but a pair of plain, dark breeches.

An English Frigate and Other Shipping in the Solent off Calshot Castle, date unknown

An English Frigate and Other Shipping in the Solent off Calshot Castle, John Cleveley the younger, date unknown, Yale Center for British Art.

Built in the days of Henry VII, Calshot Castle has long been home to the armed forces of Britain. Aside from its obvious role in the defense of the waters leading to Southampton, Calshot Castle was manned as recently as the 20th century, during which time it was used as an RAF base. Even by the time this painting was done, Calshot Castle was about two centuries old, but was serviceable enough to remain garrisoned.

 Lying under the guns of Calshot Castle and the bow of a small frigate, this sloop's crew guide her under a stiff breeze. At the stern, a man in a cocked hat (who may be the master) leans against the rail in his blue coat. Beside him and apparently conversing with him is a tar in a blue jacket with a brown cap. The helmsman at the tiller wears a long brown jacket and a round hat with a wide brim and tall crown. Amidships are three sailors in brown and black caps with short jackets in brown, blue, and white. The tar at the bow appears to be wearing a pair of yellow slops, but the details are too scant to be certain.

A Packet Boat Under Sail in a Breeze off the South Foreland, 1780

"A Packet Boat Under Sail in a Breeze off the South Foreland," Thomas Luny, 1780, Yale Center for British Art.

South Foreland is unmistakable. Tall white cliffs looming over the Straits of Dover, topped by the famous South Foreland Lighthouse, dominate the waters. Standing since at least the 1730's, the South Foreland light is so distinctive, it worked its way into the lyrics of the catchy sea shanty "Spanish Ladies." There is still a lighthouse there, though not the same as we see in the painting above.

The (presumably) master of the packet stands along the larboard rail in his dark breeches, white stockings, and red coat. The sailor beside him wears a light blue jacket that ends at the waist, and long white trousers. At the starboard rail is a sailor with the same style of jacket, but a black cap and dark breeches. At the tiller, the helmsman wears a yellow jacket and black cocked hat, and appears to be wearing a wig.

In the jolly boat, four oarsmen struggle in the stiff breeze, presumably to haul up their anchor cable, though I confess I don't really know. Furthest forward is a chap in what might be a thrum cap and a single breasted pale brown jacket. Next hauls a sailor in a black cap or round hat, and a red jacket with waist pockets. At the back of their line is a tar with a round hat, red waistcoat, and blue jacket with waist pockets. Near the stern stands a fellow struggling to free an oar from beneath the canvas amidships. He wears a cocked hat with the point forward, a yellow jacket, and a light colored waistcoat.

The State Tinkers, 1780

The State Tinkers, James Gillray, 1780, Library of Congress.

At first I thought that the Library of Congress had gotten the date wrong, but a close look at the publication date at the bottom shows that the "4" was written on later, over the date.

Personalities representing the heads of Government are busily chipping away at "The National Kettle." King George foolishly proclaims the "Tinkers" as saviors, when in fact they make two holes for every one they claim to fix.

Brandishing a sledgehammer and dressed in the clothing of a common sailor is John Montagu, Fourth Earl of Sandwich, and First Lord of the Admiralty for the North Administration.

Sandwich wears a simple black cap and single breasted blue jacket. His jacket has open slash cuffs, cloth buttons along the front, and waist pockets. A paper poking from that pocket helpfully identifies him as Lord Sandwich. His pale yellow waistcoat is double breasted with cloth covered buttons and simple slit pockets at the waist. Tucked into the waistcoat is a white neckcloth.  Sandwich's slops are grey with what might be a fall front fly, but I can't be sure. His breeches are black, stockings white. Pointed toe shoes with rectangular buckles finish off the First Lord's slop clothes.

Hell in Triumph, or the Devil has got his own, 1779

"Hell in Triumph or The Devil has got his own," 1779, Library of Congress.

The First Battle of Ushant in 1778 is important for several reasons. It was the first major fleet action between the French and the British in the American Revolutionary War, It was also the first battle that the legendary Victory fought in. The battle, however, is not remembered for these reasons, but for the political squabbles that came out of them.

Tactically a draw, the British suffered far more casualties than the French, and the battle was abandoned when Admiral Sir Hugh Palliser failed to obey the signals of the commanding Admiral Augustus Keppel. Though legendary in his own right, Keppel was not entirely free from blame for the outcome of the Battle of Ushant either. Accusations flew back and forth between the two admirals, exacerbated by the Whig-Tory divide between them. Both men were tried by courts martial and acquitted, but the damage was done. Keppel's astounding naval career was over, but he became a political figurehead for the opposition in Parliament. After the fall of the North Administration in 1782, Keppel's political career was briefly revived with his appointment to First Lord of the Admiralty. This was not to last: he resigned after the Treaty of Paris the next year.

This political cartoon is part of the Whig victory lap in the wake of Keppel's acquittal. It portrays Sir Hugh being dragged by demons into the waiting maw of Satan, clutching an altered log book. Behind him stands Keppel's Whig ally Hood. The corpses of Byng and an unidentified admiral, who rise from their graves, condemn Palliser.

Beside an angel trumpeting Keppel as a hero, three sailors gather around a table with glasses of punch. Raising his glass in toast, a tarpaulin sings out: "Come Jack, push the Grog about. Brave Keppel forever & damn him who wou'd stay to knot & splice whilst ye French are in sight." To this Jack replies, "Aye damn him. I would have parted with a Leg rather than he had been with us." Seat at center is a third who joins in: "Aye Jack, but the Devil always betrays his Friends & he has Hood-winked him at least."

It is comforting to know that I'm part of a long tradition of terrible puns.

The standing sailor has a short brimmed plain round hat in one hand, and a tall glass in the other. His jacket is single breasted, and he wears a closely tied and short plain white neckcloth. Seated before him and delivering his pun is a tar with a cap (possibly knit, but there isn't enough detail to be certain). His jacket has button down mariner's cuffs, and appears to be single vented at the back. It is possible that the jacket is triple vented, but hidden by the chair. His trousers have narrow vertical stripes, and end well above the ankle.

Jack wears a cap as well, and a single breasted jacket with cuffs that match that of his mate. His neckcloth is also white and short. Jack wears slops that end at about the top of the calf, showing off his stockings and pointed toe shoes with rectangular buckles.

Dancing Sailor Figurine, c.1753

Dancing sailor figurine, Chelsea Manufactory, c.1753, Museum of Fine Art.

Within the eighteenth century British Empire, porcelain figurines like this were collectible items that (though kitschy by today's standards) were common and sought after. Several of these depict sailors, as we've seen before on several occasions.

This figure wears a black brimmed hat with white tape around the crown. His jacket is without any ornamentation (or even buttons) and ends at the waist. Beneath he wears a white shirt with some odd black symbols on it. I can't quite figure out what they are, but there is a thin black cravat under his collar. He wears orange breeches, white stockings, and black shoes that are tied with blue ribbon.

Foudroyant and Pégase entering Portsmouth Harbour, 1782

Foudroyant and Pégase entering Portsmouth Harbour, 1782, Dominic Serres, 1782, Google Art.

In late April, 1782, British and French squadrons engaged in the Battle of Ushant. This was, in fact, the third Battle of Ushant in the American Revolutionary War. As part of the action, the 80 gun HMS Foudroyant, Captain Jervis, pursued the French 74 gun Pégase, pounding her with punishing broadsides before boarding her and compelling the French ship to surrender. Jervis was wounded in the action and knighted for his leadership and heroism.

The scene Serres depicts here is not one of the violent action or the heroics of the crew. It is a calm scene depicting the seized French vessel being towed into port. Her topmasts are gone, and a close look at her sides shows her riddled with holes. Above the white flag of the French flies the King's Colors.

A small gathering of boats swarm around the men-of-war to welcome them to Portsmouth. It is difficult to differentiate between watermen and sailors among the various boats.

Certainly these oarsmen are naval. Their black barge caps bear a silver device that is likely the crest of the important looking officer sitting in the stern. The oarsmen wear their shirts without jacket or waistcoat, and black neckcloths. Standing tall in the stern is the coxswain, who appears to be wearing a black cocked hat with the point forward. His coat (or possibly jacket) is a sort of grey-brown, but the figure is too small to say much else.

The two tars on the boat here are probably watermen. The fellow at the oars wears a black cap that might be either a knit cap or a round hat with very short brim. He is in shirtsleeves and a pair of blue breeches. His mate (at the single short mast amidships) wears a black cap, blue short jacket that ends at the top of his thighs, and a pair of slops.

This boat appears to be a naval one. Standing aft of the oarsmen is an important looking man pointing and posturing in a blue coat, cocked hat, and white small clothes. Taking all of this into consideration, he's probably an officer of the Foudroyant. The boat carries an anchor that is clearly too large for it. It is possible they are carrying it for kedging, but the only two vessels large enough for that to make sense are moving along just fine on their own.

Regardless of their purpose, we can say the oarsmen are wearing round and cocked hats, and coats in a wide variety of colors (blue, brown, red, beige, and possibly green). The sailors aboard the Foudroyant and Pégase wear a similar variety of jacket colors, though blue is the majority by far.

Three soldiers of the Portsmouth garrison stand on the shore in the lower left foreground, beside two tars. These are fairly well dressed mariners, possibly midshipmen or petty officers of some stripe. They could also be common sailors in a fine set of shore clothing slop clothes.

They both wear round hats with short brims, blue jackets with mariner's cuffs that are left open, single breasted white waistcoats, and white trousers. The tar on the left certainly wears a black neckcloth, but as his mate is turned away from us we cannot be sure he wears the same.

Admiral Hosier's Ghost, 1740

Admiral Hosier's Ghost, Charles Mosley, 1740, John Carter Brown Library.

In 1726, Admiral Francis Hosier led a British squadron to Porto Bello, with the intention of blockading the port and taking the Spanish treasure ships. Sadly, government orders prevented him from actually attacking the town, and his ships stagnated off the coast, withering away into disease. Hosier died along with as many as 4,000 of his sailors and fellow officers. The blockade disintegrated with nothing gained by the British.

In 1740, the poet Richard Glover exonerated Hosier through the victory of Admiral Vernon. Vernon's 1739 capture of Porto Bello was a legendary feat that secured him a place in the pantheon of British national heroes, arguably only surpassed by Lord Nelson half a century later. Glover's poem was set to the tune of "Come and Listen to my Ditty" and illustrated above by Charles Mosley. It depicts the ghosts of Hosier and his men rising from the sea out of their hammocks and congratulating Vernon, while also cautioning him to remember Hosier's fate:

'Unrepining at thy glory,
'Thy successful arms we hail,
'But remember our sad story,
'When to Britain back you sail!
'All your country's foes subduing,
'When your patriot friends you see,
'Think on vengeance for my ruin,
'And for England sham'd in me.

The image is thick with sailors all about Vernon's 70 gun flagship HMS Burford. Don't forget that you can click on any image to enlarge it for greater detail!

A bundle of tars are busily celebrating on deck, with only some of them realizing that a herd of ghouls are rising at their stern. One lifts a bowl of punch to his lips, another wields a trumpet, but most eyes are transfixed on the ghosts. All of them wear single breasted jackets, and most are bare headed. The chap on the far left appears to be wearing a short of work cap. Their jackets are mixed in color from green, to yellow, to red.

Clinging to the ratlines is a visibly shocked tar. He wears what appear to be slops/petticoat trousers that are yellow in color, and certainly wears a single breasted red jacket that ends about his waist. Atop his head is a cap, probably a knit cap, though there isn't enough detail to be sure.

Admiral Vernon (leaning on the rail at center) is flanked by his officers and other gentlemen. At the far left is a sailor looking rather distressed by the scene. Jack wears a green single breasted jacket not unlike his mates on deck. Unlike them, he wears a cocked hat reversed.

Beneath Vernon's perch are a number of tars caught between revelry and horror. The sailors on deck down are also caught in the midst of their celebration, with punch bowls and pipes galore. Some appear to be wearing bob wigs, but one can certainly be said to be wearing a hat: the tarpaulin in the far right window with a red jacket. His is a cocked hat with its point turned forward.

You would think that the site of 4,000 ghosts rising out of the foaming deep would be more impressive to a common sailor, but this fellow only seems mildly bemused. He wears a workman's cap and a red jacket.

The Rival Candidates and their Old Supporters, 1784

The Rival Candidates and their Old Supporters, G.M., 1784, Royal Collection Trust.

In the wake of the British loss in the American Revolutionary War, King George III dismissed the ministry and new elections were called. The followers of Pitt the Younger came up against the Whigs of Charles Fox (pictured on the right here). Facing off with Fox is Admiral Lord Hood, who served throughout the final years of the Revolutionary War, participating in the Battle of the Capes and the Battle of the Saintes.

The bent of G.M. is clear in this caricature: Fox's supporters are blackened chimney sweeps and low class brutes with clubs. Hood's followers are gentlemen in cocked hats and a clean Jack Tar.

The happy sailor wears a narrow brimmed round hat with a bow on his right side, not unlike those portrayed in numerous Bowles prints. At his neck is a black neckcloth all bound up in a mess. His waistcoat is either tucked into his white trousers, or ends immediately at the waist. I'm leaning toward the latter, as his jacket is very short and ends right at the waistband as well. The waistcoat is set with three rows of buttons down the front. Or perhaps the flap of the jacket is hanging down so as to give the appearance of it, when really the waistcoat is double breasted and the jacket single. Either way, his five button mariner's cuffs are open, giving us just a peek at his shirt cuff, but not enough detail to really say anything about it.

In his left hand he clutches something, but I cannot say with any confidence what it is. A walking stick or rattan would seem most likely, but if so we should see the back half of the shaft between his arm and his jacket. It might be a roll of paper, but that would be an odd way to hold it. I don't believe it is a cudgel, as the artist is trying to differentiate the supporters of Hood and Fox.

Another notable accessory to our tarpaulin's slop clothes is the watch ribbon and fob hanging from his right. I don't rightly recall seeing any other sailor of the era wearing such a piece. This addition may be a further effort by G.M. to place Hood's supporters on a higher level.

Merit and demerit made conspicuous, or, The pillers of the publick prov'd, 1756

"Merit and demerit made conspicuous, or, The pillers of the publick prov'd," T. Kitchin, 1756, Walpole Library.

Even for eighteenth century political cartoons, this one is dense and crowded. It appears to show the depleted stores and finances of England, and expresses the frustration of the artist with the ministry. Jack Tar stands on the far left, gripping the ropes that have been slipped around the necks of numerous gentleman, who Jack berates for their ineptitude.

He wears a reversed cocked hat that is notably pinned in place. This is interesting not only because it is the first time I've seen such a method for keeping the flap up, but also because the hat has a button on it. What purpose does the pin serve, then?

Jack also wears a single breasted short jacket with large buttons that ends at about the top of the thigh, with open mariners' cuffs that do not appear to have any button closure. His trousers end above the ankle, and he wears round toed shoes with rectangular buckles.

Captain James Lowry

Some time ago, I featured a mysterious piece on my blog that I couldn't positively identify. I have finally tracked down the original piece. Originally published in 1773, and continually published well into the nineteenth century, the Newgate Calendar was a sensational collection of stories detailing the trials of famous criminals who spent their time in the infamous prison. The illustration here was drawn from an edition of that widely printed and popular collection, and depicts Captain James Lowry murdering common sailor Kenith Hossack.

In 1750, Captain James Lowry commanded the Molly merchantman on a voyage from London to Jamaica and back again. His crew quickly grew to despise their master as he berated and beat them. On the return voyage from Jamaica, a formerly sick tar Kenith Hossack tripped on the quarterdeck, drawing the ire of the fickle and violent captain. Lowry ordered him to be tied up, and beat him repeatedly over the course of at least half an hour, particularly about the head and neck. Several sailors later testified that they had never witnessed so brutal a beating, and it led to the death of Hossack.

The crew deposed their captain, placing him under a sort of cabin-arrest. Lowry managed to get a message ashore in Lisbon that he had been the victim of mutiny, and had the crew transported back to England on a man of war. It appears that the British consul in Lisbon and the officers of the warship were not terribly confident in Lowry's righteousness, as the crew was not kept under lock and key.

As soon as they returned to England, the crew, officers and all, sought legal recourse for the murder of their shipmate. Lowry evaded the officers of the law, but eventually was taken by a thief-taker. Brought to trial at the Old Bailey, and examined under Admiralty Law, he was found guilty of murder and hanged.

Thanks to the Old Bailey Online, you can view the complete and unfiltered trial transcript of the infamous tyrant! You can read the rarely recorded words of common sailors on a merchant voyage, and glean some little reported facts of their lives. I found it particularly interesting that (counter to popular culture depictions) eighteenth century sea captains were not as quick to apply corporal punishment as their naval counterparts.

Side note: direct links to OldBaileyOnline can be a bit dodgy. Use the reference number t17520218-1 to find Lowry's trial transcript.

John Hunt, a veteran sailor, testified in the 1752 trial: “I never saw a man flogged on board a merchantman in my life.” Another sailor, William Waum, echoed this experience: “I have used the seas as 12 years, and I never saw a man tied up on board a merchantman before in my life, and whipped.” Both men admitted seeing a good deal of flogging on naval vessels, but the expectation for merchantmen was apparently quite different.

I was also intrigued to read some of the terms that so easily escape our notice. "Shamming Abraham" is a term that appears to be common among sailors of the time, and describes faking illness to escape work or gain special treatment. It was used often enough to merit a place in Francis Grose's famous 1785 Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue.

The Court Cotillion or the Premiers New Parl*****t Jig, 1774

The Court Cotillion or the Premiers New Parl*****t Jig, Terry, 1774, American Antiquarian Society.

Britannia sobs at the sight! Lord North happily plays his fiddle while personifications of Scotland, America, and England scourge each other around a sort of capstan labeled "Politicks 75" and capped with a crown. America is personified by a Native in a skirt and headdress, Scotland by a highlander, and England (as always) by a sailor.

Jack Tar wears a cocked hat with the point forward and a loose back end. His shirt or jacket is gathered at his waist, baring his back to the Scotsman's flogging. His trousers are made of a fabric that displays a narrow vertical stripe, and they have slits at the hem of the leg. The striped trousers end between his calf and his angle, showing off the plain stockings that run to square toed shoes.