History
Lost in Sri Lanka
The Geinwens was built in the Netherlands by the Dutch East India Company (VOC) in 1765. The ship made two successful return voyages from the Netherlands to Asia. After her third outward voyage, the ship stayed in Asia.
On 23 October 1775, the Geinwens was ready to leave the port of Galle in Ceylon (present-day Sri Lanka) and set sail for Cochin on the Malabar coast to pick up a cargo of pepper. Yet in the bay of Galle she ran on a bank. They managed to get off the bank again with the help of their anchors, but the keel was so badly damaged that the ship could not go out to sea anymore, so it was decided to demolish her. Yet a missive of the Council of Ceylon to the Heren XVII (the board of the VOC) of January 26th 1776 states that the ship was lost on the bank. It is possible that the ship got stuck there and was demolished in the same spot.
Description
Based on known specifications, the ship was most likely a Dutch East Indiaman (spiegelretourschip).
Yard: VOC yard Amsterdam
Tonnage: 1100 tons/ 550 last
A full size replica of the Amsterdam, a VOC spiegelretourschip from 1748.
| Skipper | Kerke, Michiel Hendrik |
|---|---|
| Length | 150' 0" Amsterdam feet (42.5 m) |
Status
The ship was apparently demolished so there are probably no wreck remains.
References
- Lijst van alle zoodanige Schepen in soorten als bij de Generale Oostindische Compagnie zijn gemaekt oft gekocht als gehuurt alsmede waer oft de zelfde zijn agter gebleven ofte verongelukt als genoomen en verbrand, vermist.
- Dagregister 20 juli 1775.
- Huygens ING.
Dutch Asiatic Shipping. - Nationaal Archief.
Opvarenden Geinwens. - Nationaal Archief.
Scan uit VOC archief door RCE.
