Surrender of Saint Barthélemy (1801)
| Surrender of Saint Barthélemy | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of the French Revolutionary Wars | |||||||||
1801 map of Saint Barthélemy by Samuel Fahlberg | |||||||||
| |||||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||||
| United Kingdom | Sweden | ||||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||||
|
Thomas Trigge John Duckworth |
Hans Henrik Anckarheim (POW) Georg Henrik Johan af Trolle (POW) Johan Reinhold Ögnelod (POW) | ||||||||
| Strength | |||||||||
| 16 ships | 53 men | ||||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||||
| None |
Several captured Several ships seized | ||||||||
The surrender of Saint Barthélemy occurred from 19 to 21 March 1801, where the Swedish colony of Saint Barthélemy surrendered to a British fleet during the French Revolutionary Wars as a result of Sweden joining the Second League of Armed Neutrality. The British fleet arrived on 19 March, and after assembling a council of war, the Swedes decided to surrender, which occurred on 21 March.
Background
When Sweden joined the Second League of Armed Neutrality, and news of this reached London in 1801, Britain's Secretary of War Henry Dundas issued secret orders to British commanders in the Leeward Islands to occupy the Danish West Indies and Swedish colony of Saint Barthélemy along with seizing all Danish, Swedish and Russian goods found there.[1]
Surrender
On 19 March, a fleet of approximately 16 British ships under Rear-admiral John Duckworth arrived off the island. The island's governor, Hans Henrik Anckarheim, sounded the alarm. He assembled a force of 53 men, taken from Gustavia, the countryside, and the island's garrison. Two British officers, Captain King and Brigadier-General Fuller, came to the island in order to know whether or not Anckarheim would surrender the island. A Swedish council of war consisting of some officials and leading citizens of Gustavia agreed unanimously that the island should be surrendered, since it had no chance of resisting the British.[2] Since the carriages holding the cannons were rotting, the 18 soldiers taken from the garrison were sick, along with widespread discontent and a lack of loyalists on the island, Anckarheim decided to surrender in the hopes of sparing the colony from any bloodshed or devastation.[3]
Aftermath
On 21 March, the island formally surrendered to Lieutenant-general Thomas Trigge and Duckworth. All Swedes on the island were required to swear allegiance to George III but were allowed the right to not fight Sweden in any future wars.[4][5] Major Georg Henrik Johan af Trolle, Fänrik Johan Reinhold Ögnelod and Anckarheim became prisoners of war, and all of the ships in Gustavia's harbor were seized.[5] Anckarheim requested that the island's Swedes be allowed to travel to and from the colony, which was granted for one day until the British issued new regulations, allowing freedom of movement only to those who became Swedish subjects prior to 1794.[6] After the British occupied the island, Colonel Wilson became the new governor, with the administration being maintained with a council under Swedish law.[5] The island was returned to Sweden on 10 July 1802.[4]
See also
References
- ^ Wilson 2019, p. 15.
- ^ Högström 1888, p. 17.
- ^ Högström 1888, pp. 17–18.
- ^ a b "St Barth under Sverigetiden | S:t Barthélemysällskapet" (in Swedish). 2017-03-11. Retrieved 2025-01-23.
- ^ a b c Högström 1888, p. 18.
- ^ Pålsson 2016, p. 62.
Works cited
- Högström, Erik Olof Emanuel (1888). S. Barthelemy under svenskt välde [St. Barthelemy under Swedish rule] (in Swedish). Almqvist & Wiksells.
- Pålsson, Ale (2016). Our Side of the Water: Political Culture in the Swedish colony of St Barthélemy 1800–1825 (PDF). Stockholm Studies in History. Stockholm University. ISBN 9789176493557.
- Wilson, Victor (2019). "Contraband Trade under Swedish Colours: St. Barthélemy's Moment in the Sun, 1793–1815". Journal of Imperial and Global Interactions. Cambridge University Press.