SAHRA Maritime and Underwater Cultural Heritage
March 25:
“This day in our shipwreck and aeronautical wreck history”
1647: The Haerlem (Haarlem), this Dutch East Indiaman wrecked on Milnerton Beach in Table Bay in the Western Cape. It was on a homeward bound journey with two other VOC vessels, the Olifant and the Schiedam, when sight of them was lost before entering Table Bay. After seeing an unfamiliar ship in its normal anchoring spot, the captain sent men by boat to investigate, but before they could return, a sudden south-easterly gale resulted in the Haerlem running aground on Milnerton beach. The Olifant’s Captain broke his arms and legs after falling violently in a boat whilst coming to inspect and assist the stranded Haerlem. One boat of the Haerlem also capsized in trying to reach the shore with one person drowning.
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| Fair sheet of Table Bay, dating to 1663, with the approximate position of the Haarlem wreck marked |
Although its wrecking might seem like a normal wrecking for the South African coastline, because of all the cargo that was bound for Europe, not all of it could be transported back with the remaining fleet, so 62 of the crew stayed behind and setup camp to safeguard the cargo until another vessel could come and fetch them with the cargo. A fortified camp was built, and the ship’s junior merchant’s journal provided a day-to-day account of what occurred over the year and half that they made the Cape their home. The crew and cargo were picked up in August 1648, and with the descriptions of the journal indicating good resources and friendly people at the Cape, the notion was laid forward to construct a permanent refreshment station. The notion was passed and in 1651 Jan Van Riebeeck travelled to the Cape to establish it as a Dutch colony. This settlement eventually grew to be the modern-day city of Cape Town. Since 1995 several surveys have been undertaken in attempts to locate the wreck and the survivor camp, however it has not yet been located and may well have been eroded by time or covered by shifting sand dunes. Although, there has recently been a project by the African Institute for Marine & Underwater Research, Exploration & Education (AIMURE) that has made strides in trying to locate the wreck site under a SAHRA permit.
1839: Primmo Janetto, this wooden sailing brig/brigantine was detained by HMS Columbine and broken up, in either False Bay or Table Bay. It was caught transporting enslaved people and was therefore detained.
1846: A strong south-easterly gale claimed three ships around Port Elizabeth in Algoa Bay in the Eastern Cape.
• Susan, a British wooden sailing barque. One man drowned during the wrecking.
• Blackaller/Blankaller, a wooden sailing snow wrecked.
• Jim Crow, a British wooden sailing schooner, which wrecked whilst its cargo was being unloaded.
1849: Frances Bain, this wooden sailing barque wrecked in a south-easterly gale near Port Elizabeth in Algoa Bay in the Eastern Cape.
1867: Wasp, this sailing schooner capsized in a south-easterly gale in rough waters at the breakwater in Table Bay in the Western Cape. Some reports suggest that all seven on board were lost.
1874: Waif, this sailing brigantine wrecked in Plettenberg Bay in the Western Cape after her cargo caught fire.
1980: Jan van Riebeeck, this steam-powered naval destroyer was scuttled south of Cape Point off the Cape Peninsula in the Western Cape. It was scuttled as part of the first live missile firing exercise in South African waters using a South African Navy warship.
The scuttling of the SAS Jan Van Riebeeck (1980)
The first Durban built strike craft, SAS Jim Fouche, attempted to scuttle the SAS Jan van Riebeeck with a Skerpioen missile but the destroyer only sunk later after sustained gun fire.
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