Estramina
Encyclopedia
The Estramina , originally called Extremeña, a two masted schooner
of 102 tons, was built at Guayaquil, in the Spanish Viceroyalty of Peru
, now in modern day Ecuador, and launched on 13 October 1803. A Spanish
Naval vessel, it was pierced for 12 guns but was armed with only four 4-pounders and carried a crew of 18. It was commanded by Lieutenant Mariano Isasbiribil, and engaged in hydrographical surveys.
On 1 October 1804 it was seized from port of Caldera in Copiapo Bay, Chile, by the armed merchant snow Harrington, Captain William Campbell
, and sailed across the Pacific into Australian waters. Campbell probably believed that war between Britain and Spain, if not commenced already, was very imminent. He instructed his prize crew to hide the Extremeña in Jervis Bay, 90 miles to the south of Sydney, whilst he sailed to Sydney in the Harrington to check on the state of relations between the two countries.
When Campbell arrived in Sydney there were no reports that Britain and Spain had been at war when he had seized the Extremeña. The Governor, Philip Gidley King, hearing the Spanish vessel was hiding in Jervis Bay, ordered it to be escorted to Sydney where it was detained pending instructions from the Secretary of State for War and the Colonies in London.
The Governor also reported the event to William Marsden, First Secretary to the Admiralty, stating that the Extremeña had been under the command of Don Antonio José del Campo which was not correct. The position of del Campo would, in the twentieth century, be called the Extremeña’s executive officer. His signature would have appeared on documents on board and been misinterpreted by Governor King and his advisors who had a limited knowledge of Spanish. Several authors have since copied this error.
Meanwhile, based on legal opinion it was decided to sell the Extremeña at public auction and hold the proceeds in trust until a final adjudication could be made. At the time the colonial government was in desperate need of vessels and decided to bid for the vessel itself. The auction took place on 12 June 1806 and the schooner went to the government for £2,100. It was renamed Estramina and gave excellent service for many years under government ownership. Her last commander was Joseph Ross.
The fate of the Estramina was reported by the Commandant at Newcastle, New South Wales, Australia: on Friday 19 January 1816, as the vessel was beating out of the harbour with a strong north-east wind and ebb tide, she was obliged to come to an anchor from which she unfortunately parted and drifted onto a sand bank where she broke up.
Schooner
A schooner is a type of sailing vessel characterized by the use of fore-and-aft sails on two or more masts with the forward mast being no taller than the rear masts....
of 102 tons, was built at Guayaquil, in the Spanish Viceroyalty of Peru
Peru
Peru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
, now in modern day Ecuador, and launched on 13 October 1803. A Spanish
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
Naval vessel, it was pierced for 12 guns but was armed with only four 4-pounders and carried a crew of 18. It was commanded by Lieutenant Mariano Isasbiribil, and engaged in hydrographical surveys.
On 1 October 1804 it was seized from port of Caldera in Copiapo Bay, Chile, by the armed merchant snow Harrington, Captain William Campbell
William Campbell
-Canada:* William Campbell , Scottish-born Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Upper Canada* Lord William Campbell , Scottish-born Royal Governor of Nova Scotia and South Carolina* William A. Campbell -Canada:* William Campbell (jurist) (1758–1834), Scottish-born Chief Justice of the Supreme...
, and sailed across the Pacific into Australian waters. Campbell probably believed that war between Britain and Spain, if not commenced already, was very imminent. He instructed his prize crew to hide the Extremeña in Jervis Bay, 90 miles to the south of Sydney, whilst he sailed to Sydney in the Harrington to check on the state of relations between the two countries.
When Campbell arrived in Sydney there were no reports that Britain and Spain had been at war when he had seized the Extremeña. The Governor, Philip Gidley King, hearing the Spanish vessel was hiding in Jervis Bay, ordered it to be escorted to Sydney where it was detained pending instructions from the Secretary of State for War and the Colonies in London.
The Governor also reported the event to William Marsden, First Secretary to the Admiralty, stating that the Extremeña had been under the command of Don Antonio José del Campo which was not correct. The position of del Campo would, in the twentieth century, be called the Extremeña’s executive officer. His signature would have appeared on documents on board and been misinterpreted by Governor King and his advisors who had a limited knowledge of Spanish. Several authors have since copied this error.
Meanwhile, based on legal opinion it was decided to sell the Extremeña at public auction and hold the proceeds in trust until a final adjudication could be made. At the time the colonial government was in desperate need of vessels and decided to bid for the vessel itself. The auction took place on 12 June 1806 and the schooner went to the government for £2,100. It was renamed Estramina and gave excellent service for many years under government ownership. Her last commander was Joseph Ross.
The fate of the Estramina was reported by the Commandant at Newcastle, New South Wales, Australia: on Friday 19 January 1816, as the vessel was beating out of the harbour with a strong north-east wind and ebb tide, she was obliged to come to an anchor from which she unfortunately parted and drifted onto a sand bank where she broke up.