Bellisarius was built in South Carolina in 1762 or 1779, possibly under another name. Between 1789 and 1799 she made six complete voyages as a whaler in the British southern whale fishery. Afterwards she sailed as a merchantman. She was last listed in 1809.
| History | |
|---|---|
 Great Britain | |
| Name | Bellisarius |
| Launched | 1762, or 1779,[a] South Carolina |
| Fate | Last listed 1809 |
| General characteristics | |
| Tons burthen | 300, or 326[1] (bm) |
| Complement | 26[1] |
| Armament |
|
Career
editBellisarius first appeared in Lloyd's Register (LR) in 1789.[2] James Mather purchased her to use her as a whaler.
| Year | Master | Owner | Trade | Source & notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1789 | Anderson | James Mather | London–Southern fishery | LR; lengthened 1777 and good repair 1788 |
1st whaling voyage (1789–1790): Captain Thomas Anderson sailed from London on 29 June 1789. Bellisarius returned on 26 April 1790.[3] Bellisarius was mentioned in the Protection List in 1790.[4]
2nd whaling voyage (1790–1791): Captain Anderson sailed on 29 July 1790. Bellisarius returned on 27 September 1791.[3]
3rd whaling voyage (1791–1792): Captain Anderson sailed on 11 November 1791, bound for Peru. Bellisarius let the coast of Peru in November 1792.[4] She returned to England on 2 June 1793 with 148 tuns of sperm oil and 25 tuns of whale oil.[3]
After the outbreak of war with France, Captain Thomas Anderson acquired a letter of marque on 29 August 1793.[1][4]
4th whaling voyage (1793–1795): Captain Anderson sailed from England in 1793. In December 1793, she called in at Rio de Janeiro needing food.[4] Bellisarius returned from Peru on 29 November 1795 with 107 tuns of sperm oil, 98 tuns of whale oil, 75 cwt of whale bone, and 3800 seal skins.[3]
| Year | Master | Owner | Trade | Source & notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1796 | T.Anderson W.Dagg |
James Mather | London–Southern fishery | LR; lengthened 1777, good repair 1788, & new deck 1791 |
6th whaling voyage (1797–1799): Captain William Dagg sailed from England on 16 November 1797. Belissarius was reported to have been "all well" at Walwich (Walvis) Bay on 6 August 1798.[4] She returned to England on 8 February 1799 with 75 CWT of whale bone, and 3,700 seal skins.[3]
| Year | Master | Owner | Trade | Source & notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1799 | G.Tayler | Mathers | London–Southern fishery London–Dantzig |
LR; lengthened 1777, good repair 1788, & new deck 1791 |
| 1800 | G.Taylor | Morley | London–Baltic | Register of Shipping; repairs 1799 |
| 1801 | Chapman | Morley | London–Dantzig | Register of Shipping; repairs 1799 & good repair 1800 |
| 1802 | W.Scott | Morley | London–Oporto | Register of Shipping; repairs 1799 & good repair 1800 |
| 1805 | W.Scott | Morley | Belfast | LR; repairs 1799 & good repairs 1800 & 1801 |
| 1806 | D.Moore | G.Taylor | Shields–Copenhagen | Register of Shipping; good repairs 1800 & small repairs 1803 & 1804 |
| 1807 | W.Scott J.King |
G.Taylor | Be Liverpool–Baltic |
LR; repairs 1799 & good repairs 1800 & 1801 |
| 1809 | G.Taylor | G.Taylor | Liverpool–St Johns | Register of Shipping; small repairs 1803, 1804, & 1807 |
Fate
editBellisarius was last listed in Lloyd's Register and the Register of Shipping in 1809.
Notes
edit- ^ Lloyd's Register gave the year of launch as 1762. The Register of Shipping amended the year to 1779.
Citations
edit- ^ a b c d "Letter of Marque, p.52 – Retrieved 25 July 2017" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 20 October 2016. Retrieved 27 October 2018.
- ^ LR (1789), Seq.No.B491.
- ^ a b c d e British southern whale fishery database – Voyages: Bellisarius.
- ^ a b c d e Clayton (2014), p. 71.
References
edit- Clayton, J.M. (2014). Ships employed in the South Sea Whale Fishery from Britain: 1775-1815: An alphabetical list of ships. Jane M. Clayton. ISBN 978-1-908616-52-4.