Final Impact
The ship struck the rocks near Seacombe, 1.5 miles east of St Aldhelm’s Head on the isle of Purbeck, at a part of the shore where the cliff is a vast height and rises almost perpendicular from its base. At the location the cliff is excavated at the bottom and presents a cavern of 10 or 12 yards in depth.
The Final Impact
Prior to the impact the captain summoned the second mate Henry Meriton for his opinion on the approaching calamity he replied:
…there was little hope, as they were driving fast on the shore, and might expect every moment to strike; the ships boats were then mentioned, but it was agreed that the time they could not be of no use, yet in case an opportunity should present itself of making them serviceable, it was proposed that the officers should confidentially requested to reserve the long-boat for the ladies and themselves, and this precaution was immediately taken 36.
…At 2 am the ship struck with such violence as to dash the heads of those who were standing in the cuddy against the deck above them, and the fatal blow was accompanied by a shriek of horror, which burst at one instant from every quarter of the ship 36.
Had the crew not been deliberately neglectful of their duty, the whole tragedy may not have happened. They skulked in their hammocks during the storm instead of assisting the Officers and the soldiers on the ship with their exertions on the Bilge pumps. The ship’s burden was 758 tons the maximum was 766, it would not have taken long, in a violent storm, if the bilge water was not pumped out, to exceed the maximum. This condition would make Halsewell difficult to navigate because the ship would have been lower in the water or limited Freeboard – the distance from the waterline to the upper deck level.
Meriton’s later description of the location was as follows:
The ship struck the rocks near Seacombe, 1.5 miles east of St Aldhelm’s Head on the Isle of Purbeck, at a part of the shore where the cliff is of vast height and rises almost perpendicular from its base. At the location the cliff is excavated at the bottom and presents a cavern of 10 or 12 yards in depth and the breadth equal to the length of a large ship, the sides of the cavern so nearly upright as to be extremely difficult of access, the roof formed of the stupendous cliff and the bottom of it strewed with sharp and uneven rocks, which have been rent from above by some convulsion of nature. It was at the mouth of this cavern that the unfortunate wreck lay stretched almost from side to side of it and offering her broadside to the horrible chasm 36.
This destructive blow forced the crew from their hammocks and they poured onto the decks, but it was too late. The ship continued to smash against the rocks and soon bulged outwards, due to the pressure of the incoming water and fell with her broadside towards the shore 36.
Meriton, suggested to them that they come to the side of the ship laying the lowest on the rocks and singularly to take their opportunities of escaping to the shore. Some were successful but the majority drowned 36.
Meriton, could not provide any more advice because it was too dark to discover the extent of their danger and the extreme horror of their situation. He considered it would be wiser to remain on board until day light and endeavour to calm the woman passengers on board. When he arrived at the roundhouse, at the stern of the ship, he discovered that the usual occupants had invited three black woman and two soldiers’ wives including one of their husbands to join them. Meriton provided extra light to the occupants by cutting wax candles into sections and placed them around the cabin and lit lanterns to make the cabin more homely for the women present, he also provided fresh fruit for them to quench their thirst; this made them more composed 28.
Later when Meriton left the roundhouse he noticed that the ship’s sides were visibly giving way, the deck had lifted and other anomalies that indicated that the ship would soon burst apart. On further examination of the boughs, he found that the ship was in two halves with the bough section facing in another direction slightly further out from the shore. At this moment, Meriton decided to follow the example of the crew and soldiers and find a method to breach the gap between ship and shore 28.
Meriton found traces of unsuccessful bridging and with the help of a lantern, that had been kindly provided by a seaman, he found a ship’s Spar laid from shipside to a rock. He laid himself down onto the Spar and pushed forward, made progress and suddenly found that the Spar was not resting on the rock. At this point he slipped of the Spar, hit the water, was sucked out to sea, where he swam till a returning wave propelled him to the back of the cavern. Here he was able to grasp a projecting piece of rock and a seaman extended his arm to assist him in securing a better foothold onto the rock. He then clambered up on to another rock shelf and was out of the reach of the surf 28.
Back in the Halsewell roundhouse, Mr Rogers the Third Mate had remained with the captain and the ladies. The captain asked about the whereabouts of Meriton, Rogers replied that he had gone on the deck, to see what could be done. The ladies exclaimed “Oh poor Meriton, he is drowned, had he stayed with us he would have been safe”.
Currently the sea was breaking in at the fore part of the ship and reached as far as the main mast. The captain and third mate took a lantern and went into the stern galley to ascertain if there was an escape route, they were confronted with a wall of cliff stone and no access to the vantage point the crew and soldiers had won.
Loss of the Halsewell S. W. Fores 1786.
Mr Brimer the Fifth Mate and Mr Rogers climbed up to the Poop deck and seized a hen-coop when a large wave approached, they were swept to the rock below the survivors, they were badly bruised but happy to be on shore. They managed to climb the rock that provided access to a cavern, within the cavern there was a large number of crew, seaman, soldiers and some petty officers, though many had reached the rocks below had perished in attempting the ascent to the upper shelf. The survivors encountered cold, lack of clothing, wind, rain and a constant beating of the sea spray, for a doubtful chance of escape.
The sound of the Halsewell, being pummelled to pieces against the rocks, her creaking timbers splitting under the strain, must have been terrifying to hear.
The most terrible noise was from the females on board the ship when it collapsed under the torrent; in a few moments all was hushed, except for the wind and waves lashing the rocks below as the remains of the ship disappeared into the deep, frothing cold water 35.
Many of the men who had gained a station on the rock were suffering from fatigue, battered by the waves, numbed by the cold, tumbled into the rocks below, or into the surf. The remainders became apprehensive of their own approaching fate. When daylight appeared, three hours later, they discovered the horrors of their predicament 36.
The sanctuary provided by the cavern was not accessible to rescuers. They were completely engulfed, it was over hung by the cliff, there was no remaining wreckage to point out their location, no rescue boat would survive the current sea condition and no ropes could be conveyed into the cavern, to facilitate their escape.
The only possible means of escape was to creep along the side of the cavern to the front and turn the corner where there was a narrow four-inch ledge and attempt to climb the perpendicular 100-foot cliff face.