Union

Union was an East Indiaman operated in the service of the British East India Company during the final decades of the company’s regulated maritime trading system. Launched in 1803, the ship made eight recorded voyages between Britain and ports in the Indian Ocean and Southeast Asia before being sold for breaking up in 1819. Its career illustrates the logistical pattern of long-distance company shipping in the early nineteenth century: departures from British ports, outward calls at Madeira and Saint Helena, commercial and provisioning stops at Indian ports, and return passages around the Cape of Good Hope. The ship’s first voyage began at The Downs on 30 March 1803 under Captain John Mackintosh. She sailed for Madras, reached that port in August, and returned to Britain via Saint Helena in April 1804. Her second voyage, begun in September 1804, took her to Saint Helena and Bengal. During the homeward passage she carried oil salvaged from the whaler Iris after that vessel had been condemned as unseaworthy, arriving back in England in April 1806. Union’s third voyage connected Madras, Bengal, and Britain between 1806 and 1808. During the outward passage she separated from the companion ship Skelton Castle after the latter’s captain chose to continue toward Madras rather than call at the Cape of Good Hope. Skelton Castle subsequently disappeared. Union proceeded to the Cape, Madras, Calcutta, and Saugor before returning to Britain in April 1808. Her fourth voyage followed a similar route, with Captain George Simpson commanding and calls at Madeira, Madras, Calcutta, the Cape, and Saint Helena. The fifth voyage, from 1811 to 1812, expanded Union’s itinerary to Bombay, Madras, and Bengal. The sixth voyage became the most hazardous episode in the ship’s recorded career. In March 1813 she sailed under Captain Robert Rankine for Saint Helena and Bengal. On the homeward journey in 1814, while traveling with other ships and under naval escort, the convoy encountered a severe three-day hurricane near the Cape of Good Hope. Union jettisoned her guns and cargo, including silk and indigo, to reduce her draft and preserve the vessel. Rankine, who had been ill, died in his flooded cabin during the storm. The ship reached the Cape under the temporary command of her first officer, William Lock, and eventually returned to The Downs in November 1814. Union completed two further voyages. The seventh, under Captain John Edward Johnson, included Bengal, Bencoolen, Batavia, and Indramayo between 1815 and 1816. Her eighth and final voyage, also commanded by Johnson, linked Bengal and Madras with calls at Coringa Roads, Colombo, the Cape, and Saint Helena. She reached The Downs in September 1818. In 1819, after roughly sixteen years of service and eight company voyages, Union was sold to be broken up. The surviving record is therefore not that of a modern consumer brand, but of a named commercial vessel whose documented movements reflect the routes, hazards, cargo practices, and imperial trading infrastructure of the East India Company era.

Union was launched in 1803 as a British East Indiaman assigned to the commercial service of the British East India Company. Her operating life consisted of eight long-distance voyages between Britain and destinations in India, the Indian Ocean, and Southeast Asia. The voyages generally began at The Downs, Portsmouth, or Plymouth and used Atlantic and Indian Ocean staging points such as Madeira, Saint Helena, and the Cape of Good Hope. On her first voyage, Captain John Mackintosh took Union from The Downs to Madras and back to England between March 1803 and April 1804. A letter of marque was issued during the voyage, in July 1803. Her second voyage began in September 1804 and included Saint Helena and Bengal. During the return journey, Union transported the oil cargo of Iris, a whaler that had been condemned at Saint Helena because of her unseaworthy condition. The third voyage, from 1806 to 1808, involved Madras, Diamond Harbour, Calcutta, Saugor, the Cape, and Saint Helena. Union had sailed in company with Skelton Castle but separated after the other vessel declined to stop at the Cape for water and provisions. Skelton Castle disappeared and was presumed lost, while Union completed the voyage. Her fourth voyage, under George Simpson, again connected Britain with Madras and Bengal and ended in April 1810. Captain Robert Rankine commanded the fifth and sixth voyages. The fifth, from 1811 to 1812, visited Bombay, Madras, Calcutta, Saugor, and Saint Helena. The sixth began in 1813 and ended in 1814. Its return leg was marked by a major hurricane near the Cape of Good Hope. Union was sailing with other merchant vessels and naval protection when the storm forced the crew to throw guns and valuable cargo overboard to lighten the ship. Rankine, who had been ill, died in his cabin, which had flooded. Union reached the Cape with William Lock, her first officer, apparently taking charge after the captain’s death, and later returned to Britain. John Edward Johnson commanded Union’s last two voyages. The seventh voyage, between 1815 and 1816, took her to Bengal, Bencoolen, Batavia, and Indramayo. The eighth, from 1817 to 1818, included Bengal, Coringa Roads, Madras, Colombo, the Cape, and Saint Helena. Union returned to The Downs in September 1818. She was sold in 1819 for breaking up, ending her documented service. Her history is significant as a record of East India Company maritime commerce, rather than as a contemporary apparel or consumer brand.

• 1819

  Sold for breaking up

  [1]Union (1803 EIC ship)en.wikipedia.org

  The vessel was sold and dismantled, ending her working life.

• 1818

  Final voyage completed

  [1]Union (1803 EIC ship)en.wikipedia.org

  Union returned to The Downs in September after her eighth and final recorded East India Company voyage.

• 1814

  Hurricane and loss of Captain Rankine

  [1]Union (1803 EIC ship)en.wikipedia.org

  A severe storm near the Cape forced Union to jettison guns and cargo. Captain Rankine died in his flooded cabin, and the ship continued under the apparent command of first officer William Lock.

• 1812

  Bombay, Madras, and Bengal itinerary completed

  [1]Union (1803 EIC ship)en.wikipedia.org

  Union completed her fifth company voyage under Captain Robert Rankine, visiting Bombay, Madras, Calcutta, Saugor, and Saint Helena.

• 1807

  Third voyage reaches Madras and Calcutta

  [1]Union (1803 EIC ship)en.wikipedia.org

  After separating from Skelton Castle, Union continued independently to the Cape, Madras, and Bengal before beginning her homeward passage.

• 1804

  Second voyage to Bengal

  [1]Union (1803 EIC ship)en.wikipedia.org

  Union departed Portsmouth for Saint Helena and Bengal, returning to Britain in April 1806 with oil cargo associated with the condemned whaler Iris.

• 1803

  Launch and first company voyage

  [1]Union (1803 EIC ship)en.wikipedia.org

  Union entered service as an East Indiaman and began her first British East India Company voyage from The Downs to Madras.

A British East Indiaman serving as a long-distance commercial and logistical vessel for the British East India Company.

• East Indiaman · 1803

  Union

  Union was a named British merchant vessel used by the British East India Company for repeated intercontinental voyages. Her work involved transporting company cargo and supporting commercial routes between Britain, India, the Indian Ocean, and Southeast Asia. The surviving voyage record identifies destinations and staging ports but does not provide a complete specification of her construction, dimensions, or individual cargo manifests.

• 1814

  Emergency jettison during the Cape hurricaneOther

  Background

  During the homeward passage of the sixth voyage, Union and other vessels encountered a three-day hurricane near the Cape of Good Hope.

  Action taken

  The crew threw the ship’s 22 guns and cargo including silk and indigo overboard to lighten Union and improve her chances of survival.

  Aftermath

  Union reached the Cape, where Captain Robert Rankine was buried, and later completed the voyage to Britain under the apparent command of first officer William Lock.

  Source

1. 1Union (1803 EIC ship)en.wikipedia.org