Jump to content

Frederik Kaas (1730 - 1759)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Frederik Kaas
Coat of arms of Kaas-af-Mur (af Mur refers to the wall or battlement on the shield)
Born1730 (baptised 20 June)
Copenhagen
Died10 September 1759
Pondicherry, India
AllegianceDenmark Denmark–Norway (1739-1759)
Service / branchDenmark Royal Dano-Norwegian Navy
Years of service1739 -1759
RankLieutenant
Battles / warsPondicherry

Frederik Kaas (1730 - 1759)[1] was a Danish naval officer who also saw service with other navies. He died in the Battle of Pondicherry in a French warship.

Personal life

[edit]

As the son of Admiral Ulrich Kaas (1677 - 1746) and Mette Sørensdatter Mathiesen, Frederik Kaas was christened at Holmens Kirke on 20 June 1730. He had four older brothers who would also become Danish naval officers. He never married.[2] His family was one of the ancient nobility of Denmark, the Mur-Kaas.

Career

[edit]

From the age of twelve Frederik Kaas was enrolled as a cadet in the Royal Danish navy (officially from 1747) and was commissioned as a Junior Lieutenant on 27 December 1749. In 1750 he joined the Construction Committee[1][Note 1]

1751 -1754 he served on the ship-of-the-line Nellebladet in a voyage to the East Indies, at the end of which he was promoted to Senior Lieutenant and appointed adjutant to the head of the Holmen navy base, Admiral Suhm.[1]

Early in 1776 promotion to captain gave him command of Hvide Ørn (1753) which was active in a joint Danish-Swedish squadron in the North Sea

In 1757 Frederik Kaas was permitted to seek service in the French navy.[Note 2] He reported that he had arrived too late at Brest to join the squadron of Bois de la Motte, but in August he was posted to a warship of 74 guns which was sailing to the East Indies.[1]

Fate

[edit]

Frederik Kaas was killed in a battle with a British warship off Pondicherry on 10 September 1759.[1]

Notes

[edit]
  1. ^ Frederik's older brother, Frederik Christian, also started training at the Construction Committee, but two years earlier. Neither went on to specialise in ship construction
  2. ^ Service with foreign navies was a common occurrence for Danish officers to further their experience in times of peace for their home country

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c d e Topsøe-Jensen Vol 1 p 702
  2. ^ Topsøe-Jensen Vol 1 p 699 - 718

Citation

[edit]
  • Kronoskaf - Battle of Pondicherry
  • (in Danish)T. A. Topsøe-Jensen og Emil Marquard (1935) “Officerer i den dansk-norske Søetat 1660-1814 og den danske Søetat 1814-1932“. Two volumes. Download here Archived 2020-02-13 at the Wayback Machine.