The All Saints Flood of 1570

 Drawing: Hans Moser, Scheldt Flood, 1570(wiki)
As we look at the images of the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy in the Northeast USA his week, here's a reminder of a devastating 16thC flood in Holland which took place this week in 1570.  This was the All Saints' Flood (Allerheiligenvloed) which may have killed 20,000 in Holland and neighbouring countries, leaving many more thousands homeless.
In fact there are a series of All Saints' (Aller Heiligen) floods along the North Sea coasts of Holland, Belgium, and Germany,  all taking place on or around 1st November, All Saints Day. Others took place in 1170, 1532, 1675 and most recently in 2006.

 The 1570 flood took place at a critical point in the history of the Netherlands. Tax reforms had led to increasing dissatisfaction with the rule of the Spanish king Philip II and his governor, and the flood only compounded the general feelings of unrest.

By 1581 the Dutch Republic had been formed and the foundations were being laid for the Dutch golden age of exploration and influence. Although Elizabeth I of the England sent troops under Robert Dudey to assist the Dutch against the Spanish, England and Holland would end up in conflict as Dutch naval power grew in the 17thC.


references:
www.bibliotheek.nl
www.wikipedia.com

Empire of the Seas with Dan Snow

"Empire of the Seas: How the Navy Forged the Modern World" is the title of Dan Snow's four-part documentary series currently setting sail on Friday evenings on BBC2, and jolly bracing it is too.

Dan is the son of Peter Snow, through-the-night BBC anchorman for many parliamentary elections, and I half expected Dan to roll out his dad's famous Swingometer to illustrate the shifts in the balance of sea power between Spain, France and Blighty.

As a former Boat Race man himself, Dan loses no opportunity to climb rigging, stand Winslet-like at the prow and man the wheel of various expensive-looking craft that the BBC has managed to borrow.

He also helps the modern Royal Navy to show off several of its more modern vessels, including a simulated raid by a large state-of-the-art fisheries protection vessel on a tiny defenceless fishing boat which the RN boat could easily squash by accident. Maybe there were no Somali pirates around to teach a lesson to...

The series charts the progress of the Royal Navy from the defeat of the Armada to the First World War, and therein lies one of the criticisms that have been aimed at the BBC. Why ignore the contribution of Henry VIII (and earlier regimes) in establishing the early Navy? Daly History Blog argues a similar point.

Cardinal Wolsey suspects that with such high production values (lots of helicopter flypasts as Dan sways on the topmast) the budget would only stretch to four episodes, so the early days had to be cut. See this previous post on Henry VIII's dockyards if you are interested in this period.

Another criticism is the sometimes slapdash treatment of the background politics (as opposed to the naval stuff proper). James Russell points out that the Armada was not simply a revenge mission for Drake's attack on Cadiz (as claimed in episode 1), but in fact it's key objective was to reverse the Protestant reformation and restore the Catholic church.

But Empire of the Seas is very good on how the expansion of the Navy was masterminded by men such as Sam Pepys . I agree with Molly Joyful's blog that the series isn't too gung-ho and highlights some of the less savoury episodes on the seas. These include the sad story of Admiral John Byng, also the subject of a previous post in this blog.

There is also a lavishly illustrated book to go with the series, written by expert naval historian Brian Lavery. Amazon UK are currently offering it at half price which at £10 is incredible value. That leaves a tenner spare for a bottle of rum to go with it.

Henry-Upon-Thames

This weekend in London is a grand event which should draw a substantial crowd of nobility and groundlings alike.

A reenactment of Henry VIII's royal progess up the River Thames from The Tower to Hampton Court is taking place, complete with attending flotilla, music, and entertainment by the King's Fools.

This is part of the celebrations for the 500th annniversary of Henry's accession. He will be accompanied by Queen Katherine Parr and sundry members of Court.

The King is being conveyed in a Shallop, in its day the "Limousine of the Lower Thames", although lacking in privacy glass and minibar.

"King Henry’s loyal subjects are invited to line the banks of the river". Better turn up then.

image courtesy easier.com

Recent YouTube uploads

Some recent YouTube uploads with Early Modern focus:

Anna Keay, assistant curator at the Tower of London, discusses the arrival of Elizabeth I at the Tower in 1554, suspected of treason against Mary.

Also uploaded (in 4 parts) is is David Starkey on Oliver Cromwell and the Civil War, from his history of the British monarchy

Ghosts of the English Civil War relates spooky encounters on the site of the Battle of Marston Moor in 1644.

Dylan Winter tells the story of "possibly our greatest naval humiliation": the Dutch raid on the Medway in 1667.

Turmoil and Tranquility

The National Maritime Museum at Greenwich is putting its collection of Dutch and Flemish sea scenes on display. Turmoil and Tranquility runs until January 2009, and showcases one of the best collections of 17th maritime painting in Europe.
See reviews here, here and here.

The Battle of the Kentish Knock, 28th September, 1652

An important 17thC naval battle from the First Anglo-Dutch War for today's post. The Kentish Knock is one of the sand bars off the entrance to the Thames Estuary, close to one of the usual anchorages of the English fleet at the Downs.

The background to the battle was the English Civil War, which had finally ended a year earlier when Cromwell's Parliamentary army defeated Charles II's supporters at Worcester in 1651.

The war had weakened England's control over commerce and trade, and escalating skirmishes between Dutch and English forces made war inevitable as the Dutch tried to challenge English control over valuable trade routes to the Indies, etc.

The Dutch were hampered by drunk crews and rebellious Zealanders who sailed home halfway through the battle, and the result was a victory for the Commonwealth of England, although the Dutch managed to withdraw with much of their fleet intact, chased by the English.

For more on the battle, see Wikipedia and this site.

note on dates: most sources have the date of the battle as 28th September, which is the date according to the Julian calendar used in England up to 1752; the Wikipedia entry uses the modern Gregorian calendar date of 8th October.

See also previous post on the later Battle of Sole Bay.

Continuing the nautical theme, Cardinal Wolsey's vodpod sidebar features sea shanties this week...the Japanese choir's rendition of "Whisky Johnny" is a hoot.