| British occupation of Danish India | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of The English Wars | |||||||||
 Map of British and Danish India, showcasing the occupation (British territorial extent is from 1808) | |||||||||
| |||||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||||
 United Kingdom |
 Denmark-Norway | ||||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||||
Richard Wellesley James Watson George Elliot William Montagu Thomas Caulfield |
Peter Anker  Ole Bie Peter Hermanson Jacob Kræfting William Brown | ||||||||
| Units involved | |||||||||
|
14th Foot Regiment EIC's artillery see § fleets |
Dansborg garrison Serampore garrison see § fleets | ||||||||
| Strength | |||||||||
|
200 men (1801) 2 ships (1801) 5 ships (1808) |
422 men[a] (1801) 3 ships(1801) 10 ships (1808) | ||||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||||
| Negligible | Negligible | ||||||||
| |||||||||
The British occupation of Danish India (Danish: Den engelske besættelse af Dansk Ostindien) refers to the two occupations of Tranquebar, Serampore, and the rest of Danish India conducted by the British East India Company from 1801 to 1802 and 1808 to 1815, respectively. The occupations were a result of the English Wars between Denmark–Norway and Great Britain and led to huge financial troubles for the Danish Asiatic Company, which eventually led to the selling of Danish India to Britain in 1845.
Background
editSince the Great Northern War, Denmark–Norway had tried to preserve its stance as a neutral nation. However, at the end of the 1790s, Denmark–Norway went from a ‘defensive’ to an ‘offensive’ policy of neutrality.[1] Starting in 1798, more and more Danish convoys from the East Indies sailed through the English Channel, causing sharp diplomatic exchanges with Great Britain.[2] This policy resulted in the Freya Affair, a brief naval battle between the two aforementioned nations.[3]
Subsequently, Denmark–Norway appealed to its Russian ally, and together with Sweden and Prussia, they would establish the Second League of Armed Neutrality.[2] The League's stances on neutral shipping led the league in general, and Denmark–Norway in particular, towards war with Great Britain.[2]
The British seized all Danish and Norwegian ships in their ports, occupied the Danish colonies in the West Indies, and sent a fleet to Copenhagen in March 1801 to convince Frederick VI of Denmark to leave the league.[2] To protect their sovereignty, Denmark–Norway armed themselves for a fight, resulting in the First Battle of Copenhagen.[4]
In the Danish colony of Tranquebar, they received intelligence of the rising tensions between Denmark–Norway, and Great Britain, and they quickly began preparing for a British invasion.[5] Merchants and ship owners began selling their ships to avoid subsequent losses.[5] The governor of Tranquebar, Peter Anker, deemed it hopeless to defend the colony and instead began preparing an Instrument of Surrender.[5]
Invasions
editIn May 1801, the British general-governor, Richard Wellesley, got ordered from Great Britain to occupy the Danish colonies.[5]
Capture of Tranquebar (1801)
editCapture of Serampore (1801)
editPeace
editSiege of Serampore (1808)
editSurrender Tranquebar (1801)
editOther places
editOccupation
editFleets
editIn 1801, the British occupation fleet consisted of the following:
HMS Albatross (16 cannons)- HMS Braave (44 cannons)
In Serampore, the British captured two Danish vessels, which would later be commanded by a certain Captain Morris. These were:
HDMS Norge- HDMS Charlotte
In 1808, the British fleet was larger and consisted of the following:
- HMS Russell (74 cannons)
- HMS Monmouth (64 cannons)
- HMS Modeste (36 cannons)
- HMS Terpsichore (32 cannons)
- HMS Dasher
Denmark had 10 seized prizes by Britain in 1808 which were:
- HDMS Sophia
- HDMS Nancy
- HDMS Charlotte
- HDMS Waldemarr
- HDMS Elizabeth
- HDMS Freya
- HDMS Holstein
- HDMS Maria
- HDMS Mary
- HDMS Nymphe
Peace and aftermath
editReferences
edit- ^ Glenthøj 2014, p. 23.
- ^ a b c d Glenthøj 2014, p. 24.
- ^ "Freya-affæren | lex.dk". Den Store Danske (in Danish). 2021-09-08. Retrieved 2024-07-03.
- ^ Glenthøj 2014, p. 25.
- ^ a b c d Lisberg 2020.
Works cited
edit- Glenthøj, Rasmussen (2014). Experiences of War and Nationality in Denmark and Norway, 1807-1815. Springer. ISBN 978-1-137-31389-8.
- Lisberg, Bering (2020). Danmarks søfart og søhandel (in Danish). Vol. 1. SAGA Egmont. ISBN 978-87-26-30660-6.