John Deane of Nottingham: Historic Adventures by Land and SeaKingston, William Henry Giles
General
John Deane of Nottingham: Historic Adventures by Land and Sea
Kingston, William Henry Giles
Dean, John, 1679-1761
In London the accidents which happened were numerous, and a large amount
of property was destroyed. The gale blew down a multitude of chimneys,
and even whole buildings; lifted the tops of houses, tore up a number of
trees in Saint James's Park, in the Inns of Court, Moorfields, and at
other places, by the roots, and broke off others in the middle. Several
people were killed in their beds, among them Dr Kidder, Bishop of Bath
and Wells, with his wife. A great number of vessels, barges, and boats
were sunk in the river Thames, and the arches of London Bridge were
stopped with the wrecks of them.
On the 12th of December the Queen published a proclamation for a general
fast, which, on Wednesday, 19th January following, was kept with great
strictness. The Order in Council also appeared in the _Gazette_ for an
advance of wages to the families of those officers and seamen who had
perished in the storm, in the same manner as if they had been killed in
battle. The House of Commons also addressed Her Majesty upon this
melancholy occasion, desiring her to give directions for repairing this
loss, and to build such capital ships as she should think fit, and
promising to make good the expense at their next meeting. Thus, great
as was the loss, the British Navy was restored to that state of
efficiency which it is most important that it should ever maintain.
John Deane had a great disappointment in not being able, after all, to
leave his ship. As soon as the damages she received in the storm were
repaired, she was ordered to rejoin the fleet under Sir George Rooke.
That admiral had been directed to convey the Arch-Duke Charles of
Austria to Lisbon. Before the fleet had reached Finisterre another
violent storm arose, which dispersed the ships and drove them back into
the Channel. The tempestuous weather prevented the admiral from sailing
before the 5th of February, and on the 15th of the same month he arrived
at Lisbon.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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