General Baird (1801 ship)

General Baird was built in Rangoon in 1801 or 1802 as a "country ship", that is, a British ship that traded east of the Cape of Good Hope. Her master was W. Fleming, and her owner Fairlie, Gilmore and Company.[2]

History
United Kingdom
Name: General Baird
Namesake: Sir David Baird, 1st Baronet
Builder: Rangoon
Launched: 1801,[1] or 1802[2]
Fate: Destroyed by fire 29 October 1803
General characteristics
Tons burthen: 550,[2] or 650[3] (bm)

General Baird was a troopship in the same squadron as Anstruther, which had been lost a month earlier, and was carrying troops to Balambangan Island.[4] Lord Wellesley, Governor-General of India, had decided upon the resettlement of Balambangan and instructed R. J. Farquhar, the British Resident at Amboina, to manage the expedition.[5] Farquhar reestablished the settlement at Balambangan by the end of September 1803.

A fire on 29 October 1803 destroyed General Baird, Captain Fleming, master, in the harbour at Balambangan.[6][7]

Post script: The British burnt the fort and village and withdrew from Balambangan on 5 December 1806.

Citations and references

Citations

  1. Phipps (1840), p. 179.
  2. East-India register and directory (1803), p.97.
  3. Phipps (1840), pp. 127 & 179.
  4. Grocott (1997), p. 157.
  5. Hall (1981), p. 540.
  6. "India News". The Times (6151). London. 13 October 1804. col C, p. 2.
  7. "Ship News". The Morning Post (11240). 13 October 1804.

References

  • Grocott, Terence (1997). Shipwrecks of the Revolutionary & Napoleonic Eras. London: Chatham. ISBN 1861760302.
  • Hall, D. G. E. (1981). A History of South-East Asia. Macmillan Press.
  • Phipps, John (1840). A Collection of Papers Relative to Ship Building in India ...: Also a Register Comprehending All the Ships ... Built in India to the Present Time ... Scott.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.