Original Item: One of a Kind. This is a beautifully carved wooden gargoyle head, which originally hung in the Captain's quarters of the Hollandish Batavian Navy Battleship WASSENAAR. It was then taken after the ship was captured on 11th October 1797 at the North Sea's BATTLE of CAMPERDOWN.

A Silver plaque states :-

Fearsome but most appealing, this measures 10 1/2" tall by almost 8 1/2" wide and 6" deep, and is fitted with a brass hanging bracket to rear.

In 1795 the DUTCH REPUBLIC that we now know as HOLLAND or THE NETHERLANDS was overrun by the Army of the new French Republic and was thereafter, whilst under French control as the BATAVIAN REPUBLIC.

In 1797 the Batavian Fleet under Admiral JAN DE WINTER was ambushed by a British Fleet commanded by Admiral ADAM DUNCAN on October 11th 1797, the Battle of Camperdown. It was a complete rout: at a certain point, Vrijheid was engaged by four British ships, and after heavy fighting the flagship surrendered, along with nine other Men-o-War, one of which was the Wassenaar. The British sustained NO losses whatsoever. This carving was removed from the Flag ship and has been treasured ever since.

After this, the Wassenaar became a British ship. As HMS Wassenaar, the ship first served as a troop ship. In February 1789 she was the flagship of Admiral Joseph Peyton in the Downs. In the years 1800-1802 she served in the Mediterranean. In her final years (1802-1815) she lay at Chatham as a powder hulk, until she was finally sold for breaking up in 1818.

Another great piece of Royal Navy history, ready to display!