RONNY MOORTGAT | The Battle of Camperdown
Watercolour
30 x 55 cms / 11 ¾ x 21 ¾ inches
The Battle of Camperdown (1797) marked Admiral Adam Duncan’s decisive victory over the Dutch fleet of the Batavian Republic, allied with Revolutionary France. Sixteen British ships-of-the-line defeated fifteen Dutch, preventing a planned invasion of Ireland by 30,000 troops. Hailed as one of Britain’s greatest naval triumphs before Nelson’s victories, Camperdown boosted national morale and secured Duncan a viscountcy and the largest pension granted by government.
Camperdown represented a decisive victory for the Admiral Adam Duncan and the Royal Navy over the forces of the Batavian Republic, the Revolutionary State established in the Netherlands as a ‘Sister-Republic’ to France.
The Dutch fleet posed a significant threat to the British in the North Sea, particularly due to their alliance with the French. The battle represented the largest scale naval engagement of the Revolutionary Wars to that point, with sixteen British ships-of-the-line facing fifteen Dutch, alongside numerous smaller vessels. It has been argued that Camperdown could be considered the last time that a naval battle needed to be won by the Royal Navy, as the Dutch were intending on sailing with thirty thousand troops in order to invade Ireland. It is also likely the reason that Napoleon was unable to invade the mainland when he was the commander of the Army of the Channel in 1800-1802.
Although now much eclipsed by Nelson’s triumphs at Aboukir Bay and Trafalgar in the following decade, Camperdown was widely celebrated by the British public, and considered at that time a contender for the nation’s most significant naval victory. The battle prompted a significant boost to national morale, particularly given the fact that the fleet had suffered significant mutinies the year before. For his successful command Adam Duncan was made Viscount of Camperdown, and interestingly was awarded the largest pension ever offered by the British Government.
