Doddington (ship)

The "Doddington" was an East Indiaman of the British East India Company that was wrecked at Bird Island in Algoa Bay near present day Port Elizabeth on 17 July 1755.cite book|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=MXFDAAAAIAAJ&pg=RA1-PR33&vq=doddington&source=gbs_search_r&cad=1_1|title=Humane Policy, Or, Justice to the Aborigines of New Settlements|author=Saxe Bannister|date=1830|accessdate=2008-09-18|publisher=T. & G. Underwood|pages=xxxiii] cite book|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=c3oBAAAAQAAJ&pg=PA235|title=A Journal of the Proceedings of the Doddington East Indiaman, from her sailing from the Downs till she was unfortunately wrecked on the East Coast of Africa|author=Mr Webb|date=1758|accessdate=2008-09-18] The ship was carrying a hoard of gold belonging to Clive of India, that was controversially looted in modern times by treasure hunters, resulting in recent changes to international maritime treaties to better protect underwater cultural heritage.

Wrecking

The "Doddington" had sailed from Dover on 22 April 1755 under way to Fort St George in India under the command of Captain James Sampson in the company of the "Stretham" (carrying Clive of India), "Pelham", "Edgecote" and "Houghton". The ships were separated en route to Porto Praya, but re-united again at the port where they all stopped to take on provisions. On 27 May 1755, the three ships departed the Cape Verde islands together, but were once again separated after the master of the "Doddington" took a more southerly route than the other ships. After seven weeks, the ship rounded the Cape of Good Hope. After sailing Eastwards for a day, the ship was on a heading of East-North-East, when she struck a rock at 1am in the morning in Algoa Bay.

Of the original crew and passengers of 270, only 23 initially survived. The castaways subsisted for seven months on fish, birds and eggs on a nearby island, which they named Bird Island. One of their number, a carpenter, was able to help them make them a sloop, the "Happy Deliverance" on which they were finally able to get off the island on 16 February 1756. [cite book|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=VX0SAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA109|title=A History of Shipwrecks, and Disasters at Sea, from the Most Authentic Sources: From the Most Authentic Sources|publisher=Whittaker, Treacher & Co.|date=1833|author=Cyrus Redding|chapter=Chapter V] The sloop was seaworthy enough to take the survivors on an eventful journey up the east coast of Africa via St Lucia and Delagoa Bay, [cite book|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=Ae5V0LJyBZoC|date=1955|title=Shipwrecks on and Off the Coasts of Southern Africa: A Catalogue and Index|author=Reginald Frank Kennedy|accessdate=2008-09-18] where the survivors sold her before travelling on to India in another ship.

alvage

The ship was carrying a consignment of gold and silver, known as "Clive of India's Gold", which was controversially looted in recent times by Port Elizabeth treasure hunters. [cite book|author=Geoffrey and David Allen|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=8JD-AQAACAAJ|title=Clive's Lost Treasure|publisher=Robin Garton|date=1978|isbn=0906030072|accessdate=2008-09-18] [cite news|url=http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4158/is_20000828/ai_n14332093|title=Clive of India's gold comes up for sale after legal settlement|date=2000-08-28|last=Shaw|first=John|publisher=The Independent] A third of the 1,200 gold coins were eventually returned to South Africa after a four-year legal wrangle in London. The high profile court case highlighted various shortcomings in both South African and international maritime law.cite book|title=Art and Cultural Heritage: The Case of the Doddington Coins|publisher=Cambridge University Press|chapter=Chapter 42|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=yvXTcGC5CwQC&pg=PA313&ei=XlHSSNPlPImGtAPi1uDbAw&sig=ACfU3U2XeBsqTAvms7wGrOOYbWpkp-Dpvg|date=2006|isbn=0521857643|author=Barbara T. Hoffman|pages=p313|accessdate=2008-09-18] The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation monitored the case closely, as it set an important precedent for the UNESCO Convention on the Protection of the Underwater Cultural Heritage that it subsequently published. [cite web|url=http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4158/is_20010218/ai_n14372172|title=Stolen gold back in South Africa|date=2001-02-18|author=Karen Macgregor|publisher=The Independent|accessdate=2008-09-18]

References

Further reading

*cite book|http://books.google.com/books?id=llsSAAAAYAAJ|title=Legal Aspects of Marine Archaeological Research|author=L. H. Van Meurs|publisher=Institute of Marine Law, University of Cape Town Institute of Marine Law|date=1985|accessdate=2008-09-22|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=llsSAAAAYAAJ
*cite book|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=dKIYAAAAYAAJ|title=Encyclopaedia of Underwater and Maritime Archaeology|author=James P. Delgado|date=1997|accessdate=2008-09-22|isbn=0714121290|publisher=British Museum Press

External links

* [http://mspong.org/percy/shipwreck.htm#TheDoddingtonEastIndiaman Anecdotes of Shipwreck]