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Description

This image from the Illustrated London News shows the then largest ship in the world - Brunel's GREAT EASTERN - shortly before the Great Storm of 25-26 October 1859. Hurricane force winds and monstrous waves destroyed the section of the partially completed breakwater shown in the foreground, toppling the cranes into the sea.

The GREAT EASTERN was an iron sailing steam ship designed by Isambard Kingdom Brunel and built by J Scott Russell & Co at Millwall on the River Thames, London. After Brunel's success in pioneering steam travel to America with the GREAT WESTERN and GREAT BRITAIN, he turned his attention to longer voyages as far as Australia and realized the potential of a ship that could travel round the world without the need of refuelling. Such a ship would need more than one propulsion system. Since twin screws (propellers) were still very much experimental, he settled on a combination of a single screw or propeller and paddle wheels, with auxiliary sail power. The ship had the capacity to carry 4,000 passengers and her size was only surpassed 40 years later by the White Star Line's two new Royal Mail steamships, the OCEANIC and CELTIC.

The ROYAL CHARTER was on its way home from Melbourne for the last time, whilst the GREAT EASTERN was undertaking a voyage around the coast to generate publicity for its new planned schedule of sailings. There was a suggestion that Holyhead might become the vessel's home port for its future Transatlantic voyages, and hence the arrival of the ship was a great cause for celebration. Hundreds of people came daily to see the Brunel's extraordinary engineering achievement.

This view of the GREAT EASTERN from Soldiers Point, Holyhead, also shows the building work that was being undertaken on the Great Breakwater. Wagons of stone are being brought from the quarries on Holyhead Mountain to harbour along a special railroad. Soon after the artist made the drawings for this engraving, the scene changed to a tempest.

A newspaper reporter onboard the GREAT EASTERN wrote of seeing at least one large vessel sunk and another four swept into the shallows where they rolled in the surf and soon disintegrated. It is likely that these vessels are amongst those shown here. Also likely to be here is the schooner, EARL OF MURRAY, owned by Mr Rees of Llanelli, which is reported to have gone ashore, but got off again without much damage.

The Pembrokeshire Herald on 4 November 1859 contained a graphic description of the battle the GREAT EASTERN's crew fought to prevent the same fate befalling the great ship:

THE GREAT EASTERN IN THE GALE. HOLYHEAD, OCT. 27.
During Tuesday and Wednesday last the Great Eastern has been most sharply tested; and has bad to weather as heavy a gale as has swept into the harbour of Holyhead for years past. Most fortunately the tempest was of short duration, or none can say what the consequences would have been. While it lasted however, it equalled in violence any of the fiercest Channel storms that ever strewed our coasts with wrecks. On this part of the coast, indeed, we already know that the destruction of life and property has been great and widespread, for, though brief, the gale was one of terrific violence. A large part of the breakwater works at Holyhead have been destroyed, and vessels anchored far inside and sheltered, compared to where the big ship lay, have either gone down bodily, or been driven high and dry ashore. For one hour or so the Great Eastern herself was as near destruction as she is ever likely to be, and nothing but the unceasing vigilance and long experience of Captain Harrison and the officers under him could have saved the vessel from driving ashore with the others.
From 8 o'clock Captain Harrison never left the deck or bridge, but was either sounding the lead overboard to see if she dragged, giving directions about the steam, or watching the chain cables, as under the strain they rose up out of the water like bars of solid metal. Everything that could be done under the circumstances was done, and there was nothing for it but to hold on and wish for daylight. This latter Captain Harrison did most devoutly, for the wind almost equalled the force of a hurricane at times, jerking at the masts as if it would snap them off at the deck, and making the Great Eastern tremble perceptibly throughout her immense length and breadth, as if some giant hand was shaking her. From this time, till between two and three o'clock in the morning, the gale increased in violence till the din was appalling, and the rain and hail, driving with the force of small shot, made it painful to face it. The gusts revelled over the huge expanse of deck till none dared stand before them. Well was it for the great ship that nothing happened at this time, or her chance would have been poor indeed. The air was filled with spray, torn from the rugged waves-the darkness was impenetrable, while the hoarse roar of the wind drowned every other sound save the dull, threatening booming of the waves upon the rocks and breakwater, the sound of which came up on the gale like peals of distant thunder. Words of command would have been useless, and even if heard, neither men nor ship could have struggled long against the gale which was rushing past. Those who heard its deafening roar that night from sea are never likely to forget it. Between one and two o'clock Captain Harrison went forward and endeavoured to pierce the thick gloom, and see what was going on ahead. On his way along the deck his waterproof coat was blown to ribbons off him, and he himself at last carried before the gale and thrown down, and tumbled along with such violence as to receive some most severe contusions. Towards two or three o'clock in the morning the gale seemed at its worst. To the roar and screams through the shrouds other and more unpleasant sounds were soon added, as the wind blew up the saloon skylights, dropping them down with a bang and crash of glass that, to those below, it was startling in the extreme. Crash after crash the glass in these skylights went, one after the other; the rain and wind pouring down through the apertures into the saloons, and, above all, into the grand saloon, to decorate which so much that was really needed in the ship has been deferred. It wanted not such aids to let in wind and water, for the upper wooden deck was leaking at every seam, so that on all the sofas, carpets, and tables below was an array of every size and kind which could contain the ceaseless drippings from above. Yet, in spite of all this, the lower decks were sopped and plashy, and seemed under the mattings to be much like walking on an ill- drained marsh. At 4 o'clock, a wistful look-out was kept for the light on the breakwater, for it was evident that if the gale continued much longer the Great Eastern must endeavour to run out to sea, Two anchors were down, one of seven tons, with 83 fathoms of chain, on the starboard bow, and one of 31 tons, with 60 fathoms, to port. The cables of both seemed, tightened to the very utmost which they could bear, and though it was quite possible they would hold on in worse weather, yet, with what was then feared to be bad holding-ground and a rocky Iee shore, it would not do to calculate too finely. Therefore was the light on the breakwater kept anxiously in view as a point to be carefully rounded in case of the worst.
At 6 o'clock there were symptoms of the storm breaking, and, as usual, the last gusts were the worst, and the situation of the GREAT EASTERN was a matter of deep anxiety on the part of Captain Harrison and his officers. There was scarcely room to steam out, yet it was evident that, if the gale continued, it would be impossible for her to remain much longer where she was. Inside the breakwater the sea ran high, with waves of a deep yellow hue, while the ocean without resembled hills of muddy half-thawed snow, reflecting their whitish glare upon the clouds above, as if the very laws of nature had been reversed and light came from below. Both wind and tide were rising, and as the great billows came dashing in upon the massive frame-work of timber which marked the end of the break-water, it became a nice calculation which would yield first, the timbers of the gale. Wave after wave swept in upon the mass of stone and wood, and seemed to explode in a cloud of smokelike spray.Yet still the red light in the lighthouse shone out cheerily above the desolate and angry scene around. Sorely was it tried minute after minute, and well must the framework have been put together to hold aloof so long the destruction which all could see was now inevitable. At last, soon after 6 o'clock, a monstrous wave came in upon the horizon. Nearer and nearer it rolled, a white crest towering high above the green wall of water as it reared up its monstrous bulk, and seemed to gather might for one great rush upon its prey. In another second the foam towered a hundred feet over the head of the breakwater, and the red light was seen no more, while the wave, broken, but not disabled, came tearing on, hurling aloft, as if in triumph, a black mass of timbers, which seemed like rocks among the seething waters. This was introducing, so to speak, the thin end of the wedge, for the work of demolition once commenced went rapidly forward, and the massive timbers began to disappear by a hundred feet and more at a time, melting away into the angry sea like a mere fretwork of sugar-candy. The cranes and machinery at the end dropped off into the water one by one, as if the sea possessed the properties of an universal solvent; for when once the waters covered them obstacles were seen no more. Some lengths of framework, however, held out long and gallantly, resisting every effort to over- throw them, till the tide was at its height, and at last they too disappeared, some in splinters and chips like firewood as the beams were rent to pieces, some in great angular masses, as if an island of timber had come to sea. The whole harbour was covered with such rafts, till their black masses showed up like reefs of rock in all directions. Still the storm swept on as wild as ever, and where the breakwater makes that most injudicious inward curve and forms a concave surface for the sea to act on the waves broke high and fiercely, even here damaging the cranes upon the high scaffolding, and threatening a clean breach into the harbour. Towards 8 or 9 o'clock the wind went round more to the NE, sending in a beam swell, to which the Great Eastern began to roll very heavily. As the surge swept in, the position of the vessel hourly became worse, and at last, at 10 o'clock, Captain Harrison had no alternative but to try and raise the heaviest anchor, get the vessel's head more under the lee of the breakwater, and then let it go again. This was a difficult and most critical task, for every part of the harbour was now so completely covered with drifting beams that the screw could only be used with the utmost caution. The paddles, unless in case of a most dangerous emergency, could not be used at all, as the timbers would of course knock the floats to pieces. Gradually, therefore, the GREAT EASTERN was brought up to her starboard anchor though with the utmost difficulty. Before the screw could well get play it was fouled and had to stop. Directly this occurred the steam from the screw boilers was let into the paddle engines, which in turn went ahead, till the propeller was free and able to work again. At last, after some time, the anchor was under the bow, the slack chain hove in, and the huge mass of iron got up to the box ready for letting go again in a better berth. But the wind now allowed no choice of situations. The vessel had partly swung off into a beam sea, which was then sweeping over and past the breakwater with awful force, and the GREAT EASTERN began to roll quickly and heavily. In spite of the relief afforded by the screw, the cable of the remaining anchor kept tautening more and more, until at last, at about half-past 10, it sprang like a cord out of the water, and in another moment the GREAT EASTERN was adrift, rolling and tumbling like a drunken ship towards the shore. So quiet and orderly was everything when this most alarming incident took place, that very few knew what had really happened, though all could pretty well guess by the heavy lurches of the vessel that something had indeed gone wrong. Captain Harrison and Mr Kett were forward, and in an instant all was ready for letting go a second heavy anchor, while word was passed to go ahead with the screw, for the great ship, lurching from side to side was making rapidly for shore. The second anchor was let go and the screw moved ahead, but the vessel had now great way on her, and could not be easily stopped on what seemed her road to destruction. Just as the screw began to tell an immense mass of wreck wood fouled it and brought the machinery to a dead stand. Not a second could be lost in waiting till it cleared, so the steam was at once turned into the paddle engines, which were driven round at great speed, though the floats got hurt among the mass of wreck, and the great ironwork of the wheels was bent in many places. To avoid this and the serious damage it might occasion, the screw was set to work again the instant it was freed, but it was seldom able to revolve more than a few moments without becoming jammed again, when the paddles were again resorted to. But for the GREAT EASTERN's double engines very little could have been done. The anchor which was let go, at once, and as much scope was given to the cable as dare let out when the vessel had driven back so far and the lee shore loomed so close astern. Still, for a time, the position continued dangerous in the extreme, as, in spite of both wind and steam, the great ship lay open to the sea rolling dangerously for such a place, and making way as it nothing would hold her. At last she brought up, though she seemed to make desperate efforts to break from the grip of her new hold- fast-tugging and rolling to her chain as though she would pull up a mountain. Fortunately both chains and anchor held fast, as they did before in heavy weather at Portland, when two screw colliers, each with 800 tons of coals on board, two brigs, two dummies, and a large galliot, all hung to the GREAT EASTERN, riding at the same single chain and anchor. After one or two more ineffectual efforts to break away, her head at last swung round, and she rode lightly to the gale as before. In this last struggle some of the links of the chain cable were actually dragged out one-third longer, and one which passed under the sharp bows of the vessel was bent nearly double. The cable on the port bow was then hove in, when it was found the shank of the anchor, after bending considerably, bad been torn in half about a foot below the crown, shewing good anchor and holding-ground both. In the evening the wind went round to the north-west, and then, sheltered by the breakwater, the GREAT EASTERN rested quietly, though still with all steam ready.'

From this account, we can see how close the GREAT EASTERN came to being another casualty of the Royal Charter Gale.

Sources include:
Wynne-Jones, I, 2001, Shipwrecks of North Wales, 4ed, pg62
Welsh Newspapers Online
http://welshnewspapers.llgc.org.uk/en/home


From the view and the description above, can you work out where the GREAT EASTERN eventually moored to ride out the tail end of the storm? Use the historic Ordnance Survey mapping available on the People's Collection Wales www site to try and recreate Captain Harrrison's brave manoeuvre.

The above account graphically describes the damage caused to the breakwaters by a giant wave over 100ft high. How high is 100ft in metres? What are thought to be the cause of these rogue waves?

Are there other documentary sources available within Anglesey Archives which might help to identify the vessels lost during the storm?
http://www.anglesey.gov.uk/leisure/records-and-archives/"

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