Battle of Lowestoft

The naval Battle of Lowestoft took place on 13 June 1665 during the Second Anglo-Dutch War. It remains the worst naval defeat in Dutch history.

Related Topics:
13 June - 1665 - Second Anglo-Dutch War

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A fleet of more than a hundred ships of the United Provinces commanded by Lieutenant-Admiral Jacob van Wassenaer Obdam attacked an English fleet of equal size commanded by James Stuart, Duke of York forty miles east of the port of Lowestoft in Suffolk, England. The Dutch were desperate to prevent a second English blockade of their ports, after the first was broken off by the English for lack of supplies. The leading Dutch politician, Johan de Witt, ordered Van Wassenaer to attack the English aggressively during a period of stable eastern winds which would have given the Dutch the weather gage. Van Wassenaer however, perhaps feeling that his fleet was still too inferior in training and fire power to really challenge the British in full battle, postponed the fight till the wind turned in order to seek a minor confrontation in a defensive leeward position from which he could disengage quickly and return without openly disobeying orders. His attitude would cost him one-sixth of his fleet and his life.

Related Topics:
United Provinces - Jacob van Wassenaer Obdam - English - James Stuart, Duke of York - Lowestoft - Suffolk - England - Johan de Witt - Weather gage - Leeward

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On 11 June Van Wassenaer sighted the British fleet of 109 ships, 4,542 cannon and 22,055 men; it consisted of three squadrons. James himself commanded the van, the squadron of the red flag; Prince Rupert commanded the centre, the squadron of the white flag and Edward Montagu, 1st Earl of Sandwich commanded the rearguard, the squadron of the blue flag. The Dutch fleet of 103 ships, 4,869 cannon en 21,613 men had no less than seven squadrons: the first (from the Admiralty of Amsterdam) commanded by Van Wassenaer himself in Eendracht; the second commanded by Lieutenant-Admiral Johan Evertsen on Hof van Zeeland; the third (from the Admiralty of the Maas) commanded by Lieutenant-Admiral Egbert Bartholomeusz Kortenaer on Groot Hollandia; the fourth (the Frisian fleet) commanded by Lieutenant-Admiral Auke Stellingwerf on Sevenwolden; the fifth (from the Admiralty of the Northern Quarter) commanded by Vice-Admiral Cornelis Tromp on Liefde; the sixth (the Zealandic fleet) commanded by Vice-Admiral Cornelis Evertsen de Oude on Vlissingen and the seventh commanded by Vice-Admiral Volckert Schram on Wapen van Nassau. The reason for the large number of squadrons was that the smaller admiralties insisted on having their own squadron; the Admiralties of Amsterdam and the Maas (i.e. Rotterdam) then split their fleets to make squadrons of equal size to those of the smaller fleets.

Related Topics:
Prince Rupert - Edward Montagu, 1st Earl of Sandwich - ''Eendracht'' - Johan Evertsen - Egbert Bartholomeusz Kortenaer - Auke Stellingwerf - Cornelis Tromp - Cornelis Evertsen de Oude - Volckert Schram - Rotterdam

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Both national fleets could only be so large by employing armed merchants: the British used 24 of these; the Dutch twelve, some of them enormous East India Company (VOC) warships, specially brought over from the Indies. The Dutch also had activated 18 laid up warships from the previous war.

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On 11 June there was a calm and no battle could take place. On 12 June the wind again started to blow - and from the east, giving Van Wassenaer the weather gage. However, he simply didn't attack, despite clear orders to do so under these conditions. Next morning the wind had turned to the west and now he approached the enemy fleet.

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