Peter Nicolay Skibsted
Encyclopedia
Peter Nicolay Skibsted was a Danish naval officer with a successful career marred only by the loss in 1810 of a squadron of three gunboats under his command to the British.
(1800 meters in modern measurement) in 63 minutes.
In 1802 he received a promotion to junior lieutenant, which led to his service on Fredericksteen in the Danish West Indies in 1803 and 1804. From 1806 to late February 1808 Skibsted taught at the Naval Cadet Academy. He spent part of his time on Prins Christian Frederik, a ship-of-the-line that was then serving also as a cadet training ship.
Skibsted interrupted his teaching in August and September 1807 with service as commander of the gunboat Holbæk at the defence of Copenhagen
.After the British had defeated the Danes the British took Fredericksteen into service. British records show the gunboat Holbæk as having been surrendered and destroyed. However, Danish records have Holbek running aground in Norway with the Norwegians later recovering her and adding her to their gunboat squadrons.
In 1808 Skibsted commanded the gunboat Nykøbing at Ulfshale, south of Copenhagen. On 9 December 1808 he was promoted to senior lieutenant.
in the Great Belt
. It was here that a local blacksmith, Knud Eskildsen, laid charges of assault against him. Reportedly, Skibsted struck the blacksmith, who had been extremely rude to him in the presence and hearing of many of Skibsted's crew. Although his senior officer reported that Peter Skibsted never lost his temper, and that the blacksmith was known to be a very impertinent fellow, the court found Skibsted guilty of unlawful and violent assault. In judgement, the court fined Skibsted one month’s pay – to be donated to the hospital for injured sailors – plus court costs.
. On that day his four gunboats were escorting a small fleet of merchant ships from Udbyhøj at the mouth of Randers fjord southward to the island of Samsø
when a British gunboat sought to raid the convoy. Skibsted initially concealed his gunboats behind the merchant ships. Then when the British ship (which turned out to be ) was close enough, the Danes were able to capture her after 90 minutes of hard rowing in the relatively windless air.
The press of Denmark, Germany and Great Britain reported Skibsted's capture of Grinder, and it was to this achievement that Skibsted owed his appointment on 28 May 1810 as senior officer of a squadron of three newly-completed armed luggers: Husaren, Løberen and Flink. Senior Lieutenant N. H. Tuxen, who in the previous year had captured the brig , became captain of Løberen. Acting Lieutenant Thaysen commanded Flink. Each lugger carried one long gun and four brass howitzers, and had a crew of 28 men.
Skibsted decided to follow the safer route south and west from Copenhagen via Bøgestrøm, Svendborgsund, the Little Belt
and Aarhus
Bay to get the squadron safely to the hunting grounds of the Kattegat off eastern Jutland. Unfortunately, he encountered , and , which chased him into the harbour of Grenå
.
Skibsted planned to load provisions and thereafter travel at night northwards, hugging the land. To protect his ships while they were at Grenå, he received the assistance of a company of troops who were in barracks there. The troops, together with some field guns, were stationed on shore nearby. However, before Skibsted could implement his plan to leave, a little after midnight 10 enemy boats, some equipped with carronades, and manned by some 200 sailors and marines attacked the Danish luggers.
The attackers heavily outnumbered the Danes, who also were not as experienced at close combat. As soon as the enemy came into sight Skibsted brought his luggers as close to the shore as he could. Unfortunately, the luggers could not get near enough to land to be well-supported by the soldiers. The British opened fire on the luggers with grape shot from the carronades and with small-arms fire, which the Danes could only return with their howitzers and small arms, as they were unable to bring the luggers’ guns to bear on the British boats.
The British came alongside the luggers and now the troops on shore had to check their fire for fear of hitting their own countrymen. The defenders on the three luggers were soon overwhelmed. Almost one third of the Danes were casualties in that six had been killed and Tuxen and Thaysen and 14 other men were wounded. The British losses were one dead and three wounded. Despite fire form the soldiers on the shore, the enemy refloated their prizes and took them out to where the ships-of-the-line were anchored two miles away.
The Danish record agrees in its essential details with a letter in London Gazette from Captain Pointz of Edgar. Prize money was paid in 1812.The London Gazette report of 25 February 1812 makes two mistakes in the spelling of the captured ships' names and quotes the date of the battle incorrectly as occurring in September 1810 when all other evidence is that it took place on the 7 July 1810, with the climax in the very early hours of 8 July 1810.
Skibsted arrived as a prisoner at Yarmouth on 7 August 1810, from where he was taken to Northampton. One year later, on 26 August 1811, he was released and returned to the Fredericksværn Naval Headquarters in Copenhagen. After a few days service at Arendal
he returned to Copenhagen to the court of inquiry into the loss of the three luggers. The court ordered that he receive a reprimand and pay court costs.
Six months later, on 2 April 1812, a royal decree released him from any threat of further action relating to the events at Grenå but still required him to repay the court costs.Topsøe's book records that full details are held in Danish Admiralty archives at reference I.S.Adm. 802/1812 Thereafter he served with the gunboat flotilla at Helsingør, where there may have been some degree of ill-feeling as Skibsted complained of being refused service at a restaurant in the town.
. His widow, whom he married in 1813, continued to receive a pension until his three sons had been commissioned as naval officers, or had otherwise left the naval cadet corps.
Birth
Born in Copenhagen on 12 January 1787, Peter Nicolay Skibsted was the son of the brewer and alderman, Andreas Skibsted.Early career
Skibsted entered the Danish Navy in 1798 as a volunteer cadet; he formally enrolled as a cadet in 1799 at the age of 12. He was a good swimmer and his senior officer reported in July 1801 that he had completed a swim of 2880 alenAlen
Alen or aln is a traditional Scandinavian unit of distance similar to the north German elle: roughly 60 centimeters. The Danish alen, also used in Norway, was equal to 62.77 centimeters . The Swedish aln was 59.38 centimeters....
(1800 meters in modern measurement) in 63 minutes.
In 1802 he received a promotion to junior lieutenant, which led to his service on Fredericksteen in the Danish West Indies in 1803 and 1804. From 1806 to late February 1808 Skibsted taught at the Naval Cadet Academy. He spent part of his time on Prins Christian Frederik, a ship-of-the-line that was then serving also as a cadet training ship.
Skibsted interrupted his teaching in August and September 1807 with service as commander of the gunboat Holbæk at the defence of Copenhagen
Battle of Copenhagen (1807)
The Second Battle of Copenhagen was a British preemptive attack on Copenhagen, targeting the civilian population in order to seize the Dano-Norwegian fleet and in turn originate the term to Copenhagenize.-Background:Despite the defeat and loss of many ships in the first Battle of Copenhagen in...
.After the British had defeated the Danes the British took Fredericksteen into service. British records show the gunboat Holbæk as having been surrendered and destroyed. However, Danish records have Holbek running aground in Norway with the Norwegians later recovering her and adding her to their gunboat squadrons.
In 1808 Skibsted commanded the gunboat Nykøbing at Ulfshale, south of Copenhagen. On 9 December 1808 he was promoted to senior lieutenant.
Assault
By 1809 Skibsted was commanding officer of a squadron of gunboats based at KorsørKorsør
Korsør is a Danish town and port. It is out on the Great Belt, on the Zealand side, just south of where the Great Belt Bridge lands. It was the site of the municipal council of Korsør municipality - today it is part of Slagelse municipality...
in the Great Belt
Great Belt
The Great Belt is a strait between the main Danish islands of Zealand and Funen . Effectively dividing Denmark in two, the Belt was served by the Great Belt ferries from the late 19th century until the islands were connected by the Great Belt Fixed Link in 1997–98.-Geography:The Great Belt is the...
. It was here that a local blacksmith, Knud Eskildsen, laid charges of assault against him. Reportedly, Skibsted struck the blacksmith, who had been extremely rude to him in the presence and hearing of many of Skibsted's crew. Although his senior officer reported that Peter Skibsted never lost his temper, and that the blacksmith was known to be a very impertinent fellow, the court found Skibsted guilty of unlawful and violent assault. In judgement, the court fined Skibsted one month’s pay – to be donated to the hospital for injured sailors – plus court costs.
1810 – success and failure
By 13 April 1810, Skibsted was stationed in the KattegatKattegat
The Kattegat , or Kattegatt is a sea area bounded by the Jutland peninsula and the Straits islands of Denmark on the west and south, and the provinces of Västergötland, Scania, Halland and Bohuslän in Sweden on the east. The Baltic Sea drains into the Kattegat through the Øresund and the Danish...
. On that day his four gunboats were escorting a small fleet of merchant ships from Udbyhøj at the mouth of Randers fjord southward to the island of Samsø
Samsø
Samsø is a Danish island in the Kattegat off the Jutland Peninsula. Samsø is located in Samsø municipality. The community has 4,300 inhabitants called Samsingers and is 114 km² in area. Due to its central location, the island was used during the Viking Age as a meeting place...
when a British gunboat sought to raid the convoy. Skibsted initially concealed his gunboats behind the merchant ships. Then when the British ship (which turned out to be ) was close enough, the Danes were able to capture her after 90 minutes of hard rowing in the relatively windless air.
The press of Denmark, Germany and Great Britain reported Skibsted's capture of Grinder, and it was to this achievement that Skibsted owed his appointment on 28 May 1810 as senior officer of a squadron of three newly-completed armed luggers: Husaren, Løberen and Flink. Senior Lieutenant N. H. Tuxen, who in the previous year had captured the brig , became captain of Løberen. Acting Lieutenant Thaysen commanded Flink. Each lugger carried one long gun and four brass howitzers, and had a crew of 28 men.
Skibsted decided to follow the safer route south and west from Copenhagen via Bøgestrøm, Svendborgsund, the Little Belt
Little Belt
The Little Belt is a strait between the Danish island of Funen and the Jutland Peninsula.The belt is about 50 km long and 800m to 28 km wide, the maximum depth is approximately 75 m, and contains numerous small Danish islands....
and Aarhus
Aarhus
Aarhus or Århus is the second-largest city in Denmark. The principal port of Denmark, Aarhus is on the east side of the peninsula of Jutland in the geographical center of Denmark...
Bay to get the squadron safely to the hunting grounds of the Kattegat off eastern Jutland. Unfortunately, he encountered , and , which chased him into the harbour of Grenå
Grenå
Grenaa or Grenå is a town in central Denmark with a population of 14,308 . The town centre is about 2 km west of the east coast of the Djursland peninsula in Jutland's Region Midtjylland...
.
Skibsted planned to load provisions and thereafter travel at night northwards, hugging the land. To protect his ships while they were at Grenå, he received the assistance of a company of troops who were in barracks there. The troops, together with some field guns, were stationed on shore nearby. However, before Skibsted could implement his plan to leave, a little after midnight 10 enemy boats, some equipped with carronades, and manned by some 200 sailors and marines attacked the Danish luggers.
The attackers heavily outnumbered the Danes, who also were not as experienced at close combat. As soon as the enemy came into sight Skibsted brought his luggers as close to the shore as he could. Unfortunately, the luggers could not get near enough to land to be well-supported by the soldiers. The British opened fire on the luggers with grape shot from the carronades and with small-arms fire, which the Danes could only return with their howitzers and small arms, as they were unable to bring the luggers’ guns to bear on the British boats.
The British came alongside the luggers and now the troops on shore had to check their fire for fear of hitting their own countrymen. The defenders on the three luggers were soon overwhelmed. Almost one third of the Danes were casualties in that six had been killed and Tuxen and Thaysen and 14 other men were wounded. The British losses were one dead and three wounded. Despite fire form the soldiers on the shore, the enemy refloated their prizes and took them out to where the ships-of-the-line were anchored two miles away.
The Danish record agrees in its essential details with a letter in London Gazette from Captain Pointz of Edgar. Prize money was paid in 1812.The London Gazette report of 25 February 1812 makes two mistakes in the spelling of the captured ships' names and quotes the date of the battle incorrectly as occurring in September 1810 when all other evidence is that it took place on the 7 July 1810, with the climax in the very early hours of 8 July 1810.
After the battle
Lieutenant Skibsted was taken on board Edgar along with the other prisoners, some to be exchanged and some to be held as prisoners of war. On 19 July a decision was made by the (Danish) Admiralty that Skibsted should face a court martial on his return from captivity.Skibsted arrived as a prisoner at Yarmouth on 7 August 1810, from where he was taken to Northampton. One year later, on 26 August 1811, he was released and returned to the Fredericksværn Naval Headquarters in Copenhagen. After a few days service at Arendal
Arendal
is a town and municipality in the county of Aust-Agder, Norway. Arendal belongs to the traditional region of Sørlandet.The town of Arendal is the administrative center the municipality and also of Aust-Agder county...
he returned to Copenhagen to the court of inquiry into the loss of the three luggers. The court ordered that he receive a reprimand and pay court costs.
Six months later, on 2 April 1812, a royal decree released him from any threat of further action relating to the events at Grenå but still required him to repay the court costs.Topsøe's book records that full details are held in Danish Admiralty archives at reference I.S.Adm. 802/1812 Thereafter he served with the gunboat flotilla at Helsingør, where there may have been some degree of ill-feeling as Skibsted complained of being refused service at a restaurant in the town.
Later career
- 1812 With the brig Bornholm
- 1813–1814 Again with the gunboat flotilla at Helsingør
- 1815 Recruitment officer at Helsingør, and promoted to lieutenant-captain in September of that year.
- 1818–1820 He was first lieutenantFirst LieutenantFirst lieutenant is a military rank and, in some forces, an appointment.The rank of lieutenant has different meanings in different military formations , but the majority of cases it is common for it to be sub-divided into a senior and junior rank...
of Diana and sailed with her to the Danish West Indies - 1822 In command of the guardship station at Trekroner, on the northern approaches to Copenhagen
- 1823 He commanded the brig Falster and was promoted to full captain
Fate
Peter Nicolay Skibsted died on 18 April 1832 in Copenhagen, and is buried in the churchyard of the Danish Naval Church ved HolmenChurch of Holmen
The Church of Holmen is a church in central Copenhagen in Denmark, on the street called Holmens Kanal. First built as an anchor forge in 1563, it was converted into a naval church by Christian IV. It is famous for having hosted the wedding between Margrethe II of Denmark, current queen of Denmark,...
. His widow, whom he married in 1813, continued to receive a pension until his three sons had been commissioned as naval officers, or had otherwise left the naval cadet corps.