Nelson & His World

Tycho et al,

It is with some saddness that I have to report that the Memorial Plaque to Admiral Sir James de Saumarez, which was sited outside Gothenburg City Hall, has been stolen.

Saumarez was instrumental in the protection of Sweden from French, Danish and Russian aggression during the period 1808-12 and for his services was awarded the Order of the Sword and other honours by a grateful Swedish nation. The plaque was unveiled in a ceremony in 1975, at which contingents of the Royal Navy and the Swedish Navy were present, as were Lord Mountbatten (representing the Queen), King Karl Gustav of Sweden, Admiral Sir Henry Leach, representatives of the De Saumarez family and other dignitaries of both nations.

Having become interested in Saumarez and this perhaps little-known episode I asked my wife, who was visiting Gothenburg on another matter, to photograph the plaque for me. She phoned me from the Town hall to say that the plaque was missing, but that the site where it had been on the wall was clearly visible. Thinking that it had been removed inside, she enquired of the man on the entrance desk as to its whereabouts and he informed her that it had been stolen in the spring. The police had been notified but, of course, neither they nor the Town hall staff expect to see it again, since it was made of bronze and is obviously valuable as scrap metal. It is, of course, suspected that it has probably already been melted down.

I can't reproduce a picture of the plaque here, but I have a picture of it in a book about the period. Beneath a relief of Saumarez there are sentences in both Swedish and English, one of which reads 'We cannot deny that in a high degree we are indebted to you for our existing as a State.' Balzar von Platen, 22nd sept. 1809. (Von Platen was a Swedish Admiral and diplomat and was later responsible for the construction of the Göta Canal.) Presumably, if the thieves read the words, they would have meant very little.

Hopefully the plaque can be replaced at some stage. I have sent notification of the incident to the Nelson Society and it is to be published in the next edition of the Nelson Dispatch. I have also requested that perhaps the Society should inform the De Saumarez family, since I am not certain they know of it.

Kester

Kester:

thank you for letting us know of the sad news of the theft of the Saumarez memorial plaque. I think we shall see more thefts of this kind as metals become even more valuable commodities as demand increases.

Incidentally, the Shrublands estate, the home of the de Saumarez family, which was offered for sale last year for £23 million, was not, I gather, sold in its entirety. The property pages of yesterday's Sunday Times notes that parcels have been sold off piecemeal but much of the estate remains unsold.

The papers of Sir James Saumarez relating to his naval and diplomatic services in the Baltic were published by the Navy Records Society, though the volume is now out of print. However, copies are available on abebooks www.abebooks.co.uk from £16+. This should make interesting reading.

Copies of Sir James' complete papers are also available on abebooks - but these are in the hundreds of pounds.

Tycho,

Thanks for that.

I recently bought a modern reproduction in two volumes of the 'Memoirs and Correspondence of Admiral Lord de Saumarez' by Sir John Ross, written in 1838, using papers in the possession of the Saumarez family. The detailed text is just as it was written and it contains the original plates. I'm still reading Vol. 1 about his early career, his later life and the time he spent in the Baltic being contained in Vol 2.

I have become quite interested in his connections with Sweden and also have another book (in Swedish) regarding the four years when he was the C-in-C in the Baltic, 1808-12. He is rapidly becoming another hero of mine!

Kester

I have just recently received some very encouraging news re. the theft of the Saumarez plaque in Gothenburg.

As a result of my placing a notice about the theft in the latest Nelson Dispatch, just before Christmas I received an e-mail from Bill White, also a NS member, and Vice-Chairman of the 1805 Club. By coincidence he also knows, and is in contact with, the Saumarez Family, and undertook to break the sad news to them. They have apparently intimated to him that they might be willing to fund a replacement, perhaps actually in bronze, since there is apparently now a technique to make it nigh-on impossible to remove such things from a wall short of knocking the wall down! However that is to be decided.

In several subsequent e-mails to me he has put several questions re. the plaque and I am now in process of contacting the Gothenburg City Council, to put these to them. An initial phone call to their switchboard seems to have generated some interest, but it remains to be seen how they react to my letter. Any response probably won't be before the 12th January, when Sweden gets back to work.

In addition momentum seems to be gathering elsewhere, since Bill has contacted the Swedish Ambassador to the UK and also has been in some consultation with Britain's Naval Attaché to Sweden. It seems as though it may go even higher than that - but I am not at liberty at this stage to divulge any names!

So, it would seem from an innocent article in the Dispatch, merely mentioning the plaque's theft, a great deal of interest is forming regarding its replacement. I cannot but think that this will happen and if it does it will be a very appropriate and opportune moment - since it will be 200 years since James De Saumarez' original operations in the Baltic.

It may interest you to know that a new book about Saumarez has just been published (November 2008). Entitled 'Admiral Saumarez Versus Napoleon - The Baltic, 1807-12', by Tim Voelcker and written for his Phd, it is available from Boydell and Brewer at £45.00. Nelson Society members can get a 20% discount.

It is now over a year since a post was made on this thread, regarding the Saumarez Plaque replacement. This is because there has been very little to report, but there is now some more definite information to add.

Since the notice of the Plaque's theft which appeared in the Nelson Dispatch, Bill White of the 1805 Club has been very busy behind the scenes in getting things moving and has contacted many people both in the UK and in here Sweden. In the UK this has, of course, included the present Lord Saumarez and his family, the Foriegn office, the Royal Navy (including the British naval attaché to Sweden), Tim Voelcker (author of the recent biography of Admiral Saumarez) and others. On the Swedish side contact has been made, amongst others, with the Swedish Government, the authorities at the Stadshuset in Gothenburg, those concerned with the making of the new plaque and the Swedish naval attaché to the UK. King Karl Gustav has also been kept informed and was, I believe, recently presented with a copy of Tim Voelcker's book. (The King attended the unveiling ceremony for the original plaque in 1975, but it is perhaps doubtful he will attend that for its replacement, since his daughter – the Crown Princess Victoria – is getting married just a few days after the Gothenburg ceremony. I imagine someone may act as a stand-in for the KIng.)

As to the plaque itself, by a stroke of good fortune and after some investigation work, the plaster cast for the original monument was eventually found in the basement of the Stadshuset! (This was after it was thought that it would have to be remade from scratch). Another problem then arose when it was found that work needed to be done on the foundations of the Stadshuset itself. However the wheels were set in motion for the making of the new plaque and, whilst it is not yet finished, we are assured that it will be ready on the day! (Quite whether the Stadhuset repairs will be finished by then is not known!)

The unveiling ceremony is set for 15th June, which apparently coincides with a 'British Week' in Gothenburg. I understand an RN frigate is being sent and that a contingent from her crew, besides a guard from the Royal Swedish Navy, will attend and also take part in the parade which will form part of the ceremony. Many dignitaries from both countries have been invited to take part, naturally including Lord Saumarez, and Tim Voelcker. Bill White and myself have also been invited, but it seems likely that the general invitation for members of the 1805 Club and the Nelson Society to attend, will not now be extended. It would appear therefore that we may be representing both organisations at the ceremony! Besides the actual unveiling and parade, there is also to be a lecture on Admiral Saumarez by Tim Voelcker, presumably at another venue. However I have no other details at the moment as to whether anything else is being planned, although I will keep you informed. I can also make a report of the 'big day' when it arrives!

Thanks for that update, Kester. The website's name 'Nelson and his World' was deliberately chosen to offer as wide a view as possible of the period, and though it commonly called 'the Age of Nelson' we also want to bring into the light many other great naval figures like Collingwood, Ball, Saumarez etc. who were inevitably somewhat overshadowed by Nelson's charismatic and multi-faceted brilliance. These three, as well as being outstanding seamen, all achieved distinction as diplomats, a reminder that the difficulties of communication with far-flung parts of the world often placed enormous demands on naval officers, who had to deal with foreign authorities as de facto representatives of the Crown, and usually rose to the occasion.

We have a thread on 'Heroes' so please post information, links etc. on any other personality of the period, whether famous or not, who has engaged your interest and/or admiration.

viewtopic.php?f=1&t=70&hilit=heroes

My wife and l will be going down to Gothenburg tomorrow, to attend the ceremony for the replacement plaque to Admiral Saumarez which is due to take place at 10.30 am on Tuesday morning.

The event has been some time in the planning and has largely been spearheaded by Bill White of the 1805 Club. He and his wife will be present, as will the present Lord Saumarez and a group from Guernsey, the British Ambassador with his wife, the Mayor and Mayoress of Gothenburg, the British and Swedish naval attachés and other dignitaries. The ceremony will also be attended by contingents from the frigate HMS Kent, alongside for the 'Think Britain' Festival, and the Swedish defence forces. There are also to be a lunch in Saumarez' honour, tea with the Mayor and Mayoress at their residence, and another reception on board HMS Kent in the evening. On top of this, Tim Voelcker is to give a talk on Admiral Saumarez. It's going to be a full day!

The weather over here in Sweden has been has been rather changeable, but the forecast for Tuesday is supposed to be good!

Many thanks again for updating us on this project, Kester, and congratulations to all who have worked to replace the stolen memorial.

Have a lovely day! Has Lotta got a posh hat for the occasion? Or maybe it's only Brits who hoist hats for ceremonial occasions?

Anna,

Thanks, I'm sure we will.

As to the hat, I'm afraid she hasn't, posh or otherwise! They're mostly out of fashion here (at least I haven't seen one) and, according to her, Swedish women haven't been into hat wearing as a general thing since the 1950's - although you might find the occasional woman from that era wearing one. (Men haven't been sporting them much either!) However I suppose someone might wear one at the ceremony - especially if they are British (and a woman!)

Having said that, I suppose all that might change with the Royal Wedding coming up on the 19th! At least all those in uniform will be wearing one – and most of them are men!