Queen Charlotte

Posted by Jon Miller on Monday 1st of June 2026 06:44

Officers who were on shore at Leghorn when the Queen Charlotte was lost: -
Vice-Admiral Lord Keith; Lieutenant John Stewart; Mr Brown, Secretary; Mr James Meek, secretary’s clerk; George Sutherland, servant to Lord Keith; Mathew Mildredge, boy, servant to Lieutenant Stewart; the Rev Samuel Cole, Chaplain; Mr John Greenway, Master’s Mate; Mr John Lloyd and Mr Charles Rutherford, Midshipmen; and Mr William Wakelin, secretary’s clerk. [Hull Packet, 15 April 1800]

Officers saved from the Queen Charlotte:-
Lieutenant A Duff; Lieutenant A Campbell; Lieutenant the Hon G H L Dundas; Lieutenat Fergusson of the Marines; Lieutenant Peebles of the Marines; Mr John Braid, Carpenter; Mr A Dickson, Gunner; Mr F Erskine Lock, Mr T Howard, Mr C Wood, Midshipmen; Mr John Larby, Secretary’s Office. [[Hull Packet, 15 April 1800]

Posted by Jon Miller on Monday 1st of June 2026 02:40

The Queen Charlotte had just completedr her equipments, and was to proceed to sea in the course of a few days for Genoa, having on board a vast quantity of shells, grenades, and mortar cartridges, for the siege of that place. She was launched in 1790 in immediate succession off the slip of the Royal George, and was allowed, both as a prime sailer, and for her other superior qualities, to be the finest ship of war that ever displayed English colours. At her main, she bore the triumphant flag of Earl Howe on the memorable 1st of June, 1794. [Hull Packet, 8 April 1800]

On Friday intelligence of a heart-rending nature was received at the Admiralty. Despatches from the Mediterranean state the loss of his Majesty’s ship the Queen Charlotte, of 100 guns, commanded by Lord Keith, which blew up; and, lamentable to state, almost all who were on board at the time , perished! About 140 of the crew were on shore at the time of the accident.
The ship was standing off and on in the offing of Leghorn, and Lord Keith was on shore, at that place on the public service. At six o’clock in the morning of the 16th ult the ship was discovered to be on fire, which it seems by the account of Mr Braid, the carpenter, was occasioned, by a spark from a lighted match reaching some loose hay under the half-deck. Notwithstanding the utmost exertions of the officers and men on board, they could not prevent the fire from spreading, and the total loss of the ship was the unfortunate consequence. Captain Todd, who commanded the Queen Charlotte, perished in her.
We are enabled to add to the above, the following account of the circumstances attending the loss of this ship, which is dated off Leghorn, on the 17th March, 1800.
Mr John Braid, carpenter of the Queen Charlotte, reports, that about twenty minutes after six o’clock yesterday morning, as he was dressing himself, he heard throughout the ship a general cry of ‘fire.’ On which he immediately run up the fore-ladder to get upon deck, and found the whole half-deck, the front bulk-head of the Admiral’s cabin, the main-mast’s coat, and boat’s covering on the booms, all in flames; which from every report and probability, he apprehends was occasioned by some hay, which was lying under the half-deck , having been set on fire by a match in a tub, which was usually kept there for signal guns. The main-sail this time was set, and almost entirely caught fire; the people not being able to come to the clue garnets on account of the flames. He immediately went to the forecastle, and found Lieutenant Dundas and the boatswain encouraging the people to get water to extinguish the fire. He applied to Mr Dundas, seeing no other officer on the fore part of the ship, and being unable to see any on the quarter-deck, from the flames and smoke between them, to give him assistance to drown the lower decks, and secure the hatches, to prevent the fire falling down. Lieut Dundas, accordingly went down himself, with as many people he could prevail upon to follow him; and the lower deck ports were opened, the scuppers plugged, and the main and fore hatches secured, the cocks turned, and water drawn in at the ports, and the pumps kept going by the people who came down, as long as they could stand at them. He thinks that by these exertions the lower deck was kept free from fire, and the magazines preserved for a long time from danger; nor did Lieutenant Dundas, or he, quit this station, but remained there with all the people who could be prevailed upon to stay, till several of the middle-deck guns came through that deck. About nine o’clock Lieutenant Dundas and he, finding it impossible to remain any longer below, went out at the foremost lower deck port, and got upon the forecastle; on which he apprehends there were then about one hundred and fifty of the people drawing water, and throwing it as far aft as possible upon the fire. He continued about an hour on the forecastle, and finding all efforts to extinguish the flames, unavailing, he jumped from the jib-boom, and swam to an American boat approaching the ship, by which he was picked up and put into a tartan, then, in the charge of Lieutenant Stewart, who had come off to the assistance of the ship. [Hull Packet, 8 April 1800]

Posted by Alllan van de Graafff on Saturday 21st of May 2016 17:18

I have a copy of a journaal from 1729 of it,
the Starrenburgh, captain; Cornelis van de Graaff.
I looking for a drawing of the Starrenburgh.

Posted by Robert Boon on Friday 20th of May 2016 20:41

The Naval Chronicle Vol III (January to July 1800) in an article 'Loss of the Queen Charlotte'[pages 299 - 302] gives a list of the officers and ship's company that survived the loss of the ship

Available as an e-book on Google books