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The Harle was a 20 gun, 400 ton, 30(ish) crew, British frigate that was first mentioned in 1721 and last seen in 1737. Although used for trade its described as a frigate across numerous documents from newspaper clippings to a legal document from Rotterdam.
The Harle's original master Richard Harle was a London merchant who ran trade between Britain, the Netherlands, and Italy but by 1733 Ralph Harle had become its master and his interests were focused on the new world. In the summer of 1736 Ralph Harle safely transported 388 Germans from Rotterdam to Philadelphia. He then transported provisions from Philadelphia to Jamaica and went on to the Bay of Honduras for logwood. In the Spring of 1737 a few merchant ships including the Harle were in the bay when a Spanish flotilla attacked. The Harle endured punishing fire and escape looked unlikely. The crew expended all of their shot then grounded the ship and abandoned it to hike to a nearby British settlement. The last thing anyone saw of the Harle was the Spaniards successfully piloting the ship out of the bay.
This is where i've hit a wall in my research. I'm attempting to learn everything about the ship, primarily due to interest in the experiences of those 388 Germans it transported for six weeks.
Are there paintings and diagrams/cross sections of similar ships? I've heard merchant ships would downplay tonnage to avoid port fees so the true size could be anywhere from 400-600 tons.
The Harle family registered their other ships in London, could such a record still exist for the Harle? Would it specify dimensions? When it was launched?
How cramped would such a ship be for those 388 Germans?
What happened to the Harle after the Spanish commandeered it? Did it become a Spanish warship? A privateer? Or is it unlikely we'd ever learn its ultimate fate?
The Harle's original master Richard Harle was a London merchant who ran trade between Britain, the Netherlands, and Italy but by 1733 Ralph Harle had become its master and his interests were focused on the new world. In the summer of 1736 Ralph Harle safely transported 388 Germans from Rotterdam to Philadelphia. He then transported provisions from Philadelphia to Jamaica and went on to the Bay of Honduras for logwood. In the Spring of 1737 a few merchant ships including the Harle were in the bay when a Spanish flotilla attacked. The Harle endured punishing fire and escape looked unlikely. The crew expended all of their shot then grounded the ship and abandoned it to hike to a nearby British settlement. The last thing anyone saw of the Harle was the Spaniards successfully piloting the ship out of the bay.
This is where i've hit a wall in my research. I'm attempting to learn everything about the ship, primarily due to interest in the experiences of those 388 Germans it transported for six weeks.
Are there paintings and diagrams/cross sections of similar ships? I've heard merchant ships would downplay tonnage to avoid port fees so the true size could be anywhere from 400-600 tons.
The Harle family registered their other ships in London, could such a record still exist for the Harle? Would it specify dimensions? When it was launched?
How cramped would such a ship be for those 388 Germans?
What happened to the Harle after the Spanish commandeered it? Did it become a Spanish warship? A privateer? Or is it unlikely we'd ever learn its ultimate fate?
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