Friday, October 01, 2004
the Amsterdam ship Star built in 1644
In De Vlootbouw in Nederland, there is a van de Velde drawing of the Amsterdam ship Star. The ship was a two-decker, as were most Dutch ships of this size. The Star's dimensions were: 120ft x 28ft x 12ft. In 1652, she was commanded by Jacob Paulussen Cort. Her crew was 95 men. The drawing shows that she had ten ports per side on the lower deck. The upper deck was only armed aft, at this time. There were four ports to a side , aft of the quarterdeck break. There was one port on either side on the poop, from the height of the port above the upper tier. The look of the stern indicates that there may have been a centerline port in the stern, aligned with the doors in the sides of the quarter galleries. There were also stern ports, one on either side of the rudder on the lower deck. The Star survived in service until 1677, when she was burnt. I would hazard a guess that it was in an action in the West Indies that turned disastrous for the Dutch. It probably was at Tobago in February 1677, when the French attacked the Dutch in port and burned them.