Call Number:

Ms. Coll. 1591

Repository:

University of Pennsylvania: Kislak Center for Special Collections, Rare Books and Manuscripts

Extent:

1 volume(s)

Language:

English

Preferred Citation:

HMS Endymion and HMS Aurora logbook, 1873 January 1-1874 May 11, Ms. Coll. 1591, Kislak Center for Special Collections, Rare Books and Manuscripts, University of Pennsylvania

Date:

1873 january 1-1874 may 11 (inclusive)

Creator:

Sieveking, Frederik Seal, 1856-1902

Form:

Ships' logs, Watercolors (paintings), and Maps (documents)

Abstract:

Frederik Seal Sieveking (1856-1902) was an officer in the British Royal Navy. This logbook contains daily accounts voyages of the HMS Endymion and the HMS Aurora from 1873 through 1874 in the Caribbean and Mediterranean seas recorded and illustrated by Sieveking who was, at the time, a midshipman.

The creator of this volume, Frederik Seal Sieveking, was born in 1856 and died on July 20, 1902. At the time of his death, he lived at 33 Manchester Street, Manchester Square, Middlesex. He was a midshipman when he created this volume, but ultimately became a commander in the Royal Navy. He was also a skilled artist and several of his watercolors appear in this volume.

In 1873 and 1874, Sieveking served as a midshipman on the HMS Endymion and the HMS Aurora as they sailed the Caribbean and Mediterranean seas.

The HMS Endymion (1865) was a 240-foot wooden screw frigate ship serving the Royal Navy from its launch in 1865 until its sale in 1885. From 1872 through 1874, it was captained by Captain Edward Madden. During this time, it was used as a training ship for cadets and a detached squadron. Detached squadrons were unarmored ships used for world-wide training cruises and flag waving. They were not directly involved in hostilities, but "their movements were sometimes influenced by political or military considerations." (Davis) During Madden's time as captain, the HMS Endymion was commissioned at Portsmouth and paid off at Sheerness. On May 11, 1874, it appears that the HMS Endymion ran aground along with the HMS Narcissus in Palermo Bay as a part of a squadron including the aforementioned, HMS Doris, and HMS Immortalité, commanded by Rear-Admiral Randolph.

Captain Edward Madden was born in 1828 and died on December 11, 1876 while in command of HMS Hector. He became a Lieutenant in 1851, a commander in 1858, and a Captain in 1865. He was shot during the Royal Navy's China Expedition of 1857, leaving his lungs severely wounded. The bullet was never extracted.

The HMS Aurora was a 212-foot wooden screw frigate ship serving the Royal Navy from its launch in 1861 until 1881. From 1872 to 1874, it was captained by Captain Sholto Douglas and served as a detached squadron and a temporary flagship.

Captain Sholto Douglas became a Lieutenant in the Royal Navy in 1855, a Commander in 1858, and a Captain in 1865.

Sources:

Ancestry.com. England and Wales, National Probate Calendar (Index of Wills and Administrations), 1858-1995, Sabey-Tyzzer, page 87 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010.

"The Court-Martial on Admiral Randolph." The Huddersfield Chronicle and West Yorkshire Advertiser. 13 July 1874, page 3.

Davis, P. "Edward Madden R.N." The Victorian Royal Navy, https://www.pdavis.nl/ShowBiog.php?id=1368. Accessed 10 June 2024.

Davis, P. "HMS Aurora." The Victorian Royal Navy, https://www.pdavis.nl/ShowShip.php?id=74. Accessed 10 June 2024.

Davis, P. "HMS Endymion." The Victorian Royal Navy, www.pdavis.nl/ShowShip.php?id=82. Accessed 10 June 2024.

Davis, P. "The Royal Navy Flying or Detached Squadrons, 1869-1882." The Victorian Royal Navy, www.pdavis.nl/Flying.htm. Accessed 10 June 2024.

Davis, P. "Sholto Douglas R.N." The Victorian Royal Navy, https://www.pdavis.nl/ShowBiog.php?id=1363. Accessed 10 June 2024.

This logbook contains a daily account of two voyages of the HMS Endymion and one of the HMS Aurora in the Caribbean and Mediterranean seas from 1873 through 1874 recorded and illustrated by Midshipman Frederik Seal Sieveking.

The volume is bound in half leather with marbled paper boards. There are numerous hand-drawn maps illustrating the ships' "tracks" (p. 9, 23, 35, 57, 77, 103, 113, 132, 135, 163, 196, 235, 243) and watercolor paintings depicting the seascapes (p. 13, 19, 27, 48, 55, 63, 81, 85, 89, 99, 107, 117, 145, 149, 155, 171, 175, 181, 205, 217, 239) and sites along the voyages created by Sieveking. There is additionally a diagram of the HMS Endymion (p. 124-125) and two drawings laid in (p. 116-117, 208-209).

The log includes daily entries detailing the weather conditions and other "remarks." The remarks mostly include actions taken regarding the sailing and operation of the ships but also include the activities of the crews and other events. Activities of the crews mostly include drills and training, cleaning and laundry, and prayer. Other events include gun salutes and ceremony, a funeral, a crewmember falling overboard and being rescued, and disciplinary actions against crewmembers, including imprisonment. There are also notes on other ships encountered at sea.

The first voyage recorded (p. 3-40) is that of the HMS Endymion captained by Edward Madden that began in Portsmouth, England on January 1, 1873 and ended in Barbados on March 4, 1873. Stops recorded along this voyage include, in chronological order, Portsmouth, Spithead, Vigo Bay, Madeira, and Barbados.

The second voyage recorded (P. 43-53) is that of the HMS Aurora captained by Sholto Douglas that began in Carlisle Bay, Barbados on March 11, 1873 and ended in Grenada around March 23, 1873. Stops recorded along this voyage include Barbados, Tobago, Trinidad, and Grenada.

The third voyage recorded (P. 55-245) is that of the HMS Endymion captained by Edward Madden that began in Grenada on March 28, 1873 and ended in Palermo on May 11, 1874. Stops recorded along this voyage include Grenada; St. Vincent; Martinique; St. Lucia; Dominica; Antigua; Charlestown, St. Kitts; St. Thomas; San Domingo; Port Jacmel, Haiti; Jamaica; Nassau and New Providence, Bahamas; Bermuda; Halifax, Nova Scotia; Gibraltar; Malaga, Almeria, Escombrera Bay, Alicante, Valencia, Barcelona, Tarragona, and Cartagena, Spain; Corfu, [Navauise?], Athens, Smyrna, and Rhodes, Greece; Malta; and Palermo, Italy. The ship returned to several of these locations numerous times. The logbook ends on May 11, 1874, one day after the ship appears to have run aground on May 10, 1874 in Palermo Bay along with the HMS Narcissus. The only mention of this in the final entry of the logbook reads, "ship took the ground in stays." (p. 242)