Alfred

Alfred was a merchant ship launched at Chittagong in 1818 and documented in Lloyd's Register from 1820. It operated during the period when British commercial shipping connected ports in Britain, India, and East Asia, including voyages conducted under licenses or charters associated with the British East India Company. The vessel's early recorded trade was the London–India route, with Wilkerson listed as master and Alexander as owner in the 1820 register. The ship's most specifically documented employment came in 1827–1828, when it was chartered by the British East India Company as an extra ship. Under the management of Fraser, Living & Co. and with Captain John Pearson in command, Alfred left the Downs on 16 April 1827, reached the Whampoa Anchorage near Canton on 10 August, departed on the homeward voyage on 10 October, called at Saint Helena on 28 December, and arrived at Blackwall on 20 February 1828. The East India Company chartered the vessel at a rate of £13 17s 6d per ton. After it was sold to Flint, Alfred was converted from a ship-rigged vessel to a barque. Its commercial career continued for several decades, although the available record does not provide a complete account of all voyages, cargoes, or ownership changes. On 6 May 1845, the vessel was condemned at Valparaiso after being judged unseaworthy. Rather than being immediately lost, it was purchased and refitted by Roepingh of Hamburg and renamed Deutschland. Alfred therefore ceased to exist as a vessel under its original name at that point. Deutschland remained identifiable in shipping records for a further period, but it was no longer listed after 1857. The surviving account documents a working merchant vessel rather than a consumer-facing brand: its significance lies in the history of Indian-built shipping, Anglo-Indian trade, East India Company chartering, and the evolution of nineteenth-century commercial vessels.

Alfred was launched at Chittagong in 1818 and entered the surviving Lloyd's Register record in 1820. The register identified Wilkerson as master, Alexander as owner, and the vessel's trade as London–India. These details place Alfred within the expanding commercial network linking British ports with the Indian subcontinent during the nineteenth century. The vessel also participated in the charter system used by the British East India Company. In 1827 the company employed Alfred as an extra ship for a voyage to China. The vessel was managed principally by Fraser, Living & Co., and Captain John Pearson commanded the voyage. Alfred sailed from the Downs on 16 April 1827 and reached the Whampoa Anchorage on 10 August. It left Whampoa on 10 October, reached Saint Helena on 28 December, and returned to Blackwall on 20 February 1828. The charter rate was £13 17s 6d per ton. This voyage is the clearest surviving example of Alfred's role in long-distance imperial-era trade. Following its sale to Flint, Alfred was converted into a barque. The available record does not establish a complete chronology of its subsequent ownership or voyages, but the ship remained in commercial service into the 1840s. On 6 May 1845, it was condemned at Valparaiso as unseaworthy. Roepingh of Hamburg then acquired and refitted the vessel, giving it the new name Deutschland. The refit and renaming marked the end of Alfred's documented identity as an independent ship. Deutschland continued to appear in records for several more years, but it was last listed in 1857. No later operational history or final physical fate is established in the supplied material. Alfred is consequently best understood as a historical merchant vessel whose documented career spans Indian shipbuilding, British registry, East India Company chartering, conversion to barque rig, and later German ownership under another name.

• 1857

  Last listing

  [1]Alfred (1818 ship)en.wikipedia.org

  The vessel, then known as Deutschland, was no longer listed after 1857.

• 1845

  Condemnation and renaming

  [1]Alfred (1818 ship)en.wikipedia.org

  Declared unseaworthy at Valparaiso, Alfred was purchased and refitted by Roepingh of Hamburg and renamed Deutschland.

• 1828

  Return from China

  [1]Alfred (1818 ship)en.wikipedia.org

  After calling at Whampoa and Saint Helena, Alfred arrived at Blackwall on 20 February 1828, completing its documented EIC charter voyage.

• 1827

  East India Company charter voyage begins

  [1]Alfred (1818 ship)en.wikipedia.org

  Alfred departed the Downs on 16 April 1827 as an extra ship chartered by the British East India Company for a voyage to China.

• 1820

  First recorded appearance in Lloyd's Register

  [1]Alfred (1818 ship)en.wikipedia.org

  The vessel appeared in Lloyd's Register with Wilkerson as master, Alexander as owner, and London–India as its stated trade.

• 1818

  Launch at Chittagong

  [1]Alfred (1818 ship)en.wikipedia.org

  Alfred was launched at Chittagong, then an important shipbuilding and commercial center in British India.

Historical merchant vessel used in Britain–India and India–China trade, including a documented British East India Company charter.

• Merchant ship · 1818

  Alfred

  A merchant vessel launched at Chittagong in 1818. It initially operated in London–India trade and later undertook a British East India Company charter voyage to China in 1827–1828. After a later sale, it was converted to a barque.

• Renamed merchant ship

  Deutschland

  The name adopted by Alfred after its condemnation at Valparaiso in 1845, purchase by Roepingh of Hamburg, and subsequent refitting. The vessel was last listed under this name in 1857.

• 1845

  Conversion and renaming as DeutschlandOther

  Background

  Alfred was condemned at Valparaiso as unseaworthy on 6 May 1845.

  Action taken

  Roepingh of Hamburg purchased and refitted the vessel, which was converted or maintained under a new identity as Deutschland.

  Aftermath

  The ship stopped operating under the Alfred name and remained listed as Deutschland until its last recorded listing in 1857.

  Source

• 1827

  Acceptance of a British East India Company charterStrategy

  Background

  The British East India Company chartered Alfred as an extra ship for a voyage from Britain to China and back.

  Action taken

  Alfred sailed from the Downs to Whampoa and returned via Saint Helena under the management of Fraser, Living & Co. and the command of Captain John Pearson.

  Aftermath

  The voyage became the most fully documented episode in Alfred's surviving commercial record.

  Charter rate. £13 17s 6d per ton (1827–1828 charter voyage)

  Source

1. 1Alfred (1818 ship)en.wikipedia.org