navire l'Anacreon, Dunkerque Options

[ecamerlinck]

Bonjour à tous,

Je recherche tout renseignement concernant le décès d'un de mes ancêtres CAMERLINCK (CAMERLYNCK) originaire de Bredene - Belgique) matelot pilote sur l'ANACREON décédé en rade de Dunkerque en 1807 et sur le bric corsaire ANACREON (histoire, plan, livre de bord).
Je n'arrive pas à trouver son décès dans les registres à Dunkerque.
Cordialement
E. Camerlinck

[dblankman]

Cher M. Brunelet, Thank you so much for your detailed response to my earlier inquiry. I'm not sure I saw your reponse until now as I have not visited this site for a long time. Also, please excuse my answering in English as my French is far worse than your English. I agree that Etienne Jean Blanckeman probably had no family connection to my Dutch Blankman family. I will say, however, that in the earliest records of my family in North Holland the name was spelled Blanckman. About 1960 I was in the Library in the Marine Museum in Paris and I found a book entitled "Les Corsaires Francaise." Unfortunately, I did not have enough time to read much of the book, but I did copy a small part by hand, but over the years it has become almost illegible. I stopped copying after a few sentences with the idea in mind that I would return later and do a better job. Unfortunately, that opportunity never came. As near as I can make out, what I copied was as follows: "Blanckmann etait d'origine Americaine; quand, pour la premiere fois, il nous apparut comme chef d'un navire, il ne point a presumer qu'il en fut a ses premieres armes. Blanckmann etait en effet applele a commander un corsair deje rendu celebre par un de nos marins les plus distingques, Fresson,, et ce n'est pas etre dans le faux que d'avancer que l'homme qui succedait a celui-ci devait avoir deja fait ses pauves comme loup de mer. Fresson avait rendu l'Anacreon redoutable aux ennemis; Blanckmann le leur rendit plus redoutable encore. C'est en fremaire an VII, que Blanckmann commenca sa premiere croisiere en qualete de capitaine, et, des cette epouque il avait deja conquis un grand renom. L'Anacreon, malgre son nom si tendre, n'etait pas trop debonnaire vis a vis de l'enneme; comme les chants de tous nos corsaires, ses chants a lui etaient possible d'en venir aux mains, combien l'erotique et gracieux poete de la Grece eut ete surpris s'il eut jamais pu prevoir qu'un pour son nom deviendrait presque synonyme ___?__ impetoyables et ornerait la poupe sanglante d'un corsaire! Blanckmann....". Nothing more copied. Please excuse the lack of proper punctuation.
I note that this author felt that Blanckmann was of American origin. He was probably wrong, but where would he get that idea? The book went on to describe Blanckmann's capture by the Britsh and his escape, etc. We need to have somebody get this book and copy passeges concerning the Anacreon for us all to see. Also, if you Google "James Naper Tandy" you will find many hits for this Irish rebel who tried to assit the French in mounting a rebellion in Ireland in 1798. L'Anacreon was put at his disposal under the command of Capitaine Blanckmann. They sailed from Dunkirk to the Island of Aran, off the Donegal coast, but found that the people of Connaught had no plan for an insurection. L'Anacreon, to avoid capture by the british fleet, sailed around Scotland and put in at Bergen, Norway. Tandy was later captured in Hamburg and was imprisoned until 1801. He was sentenced to death. Napoleon Bonaparte vigorously intervened on his behalf, and is even said to have made Tandy's release a condition of signing the treaty of Amiens in 1802. This treaty lifted the Britsh blockade of Dutch and French ports, and my ancestor Captain Gerrit Gerritsz. Blankman of Amsterdam executed a power of attorny to his wife (Elisabet Nieuwenhuijsen) because he was to take avoyage to "Bilbois." Could Bilbois have been an old name for Bilbao, Spain, or some other port? I have never been able to find out. Elisabet used this power of attorney in 1816 to consent to the marriage of her daughter, when her husband was "heden buitens landt." (now out of the country.)
I would be interested in learning more about the exploits of L'Anacreon and, of course, Capitain Blanckmann. Anyone may e-mail me at dblank [at]comcast.net.
Merci pour tout,
Don Blankman