HMS Swift (1763)
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HMS Swift was built in 1762 at the shipyard of John Greave in Limehouse, on the banks of the River Thames, and launched in 1763. It was a sloop-of-war 28 metres (92 ft) in length and was armed with 14 6 pounders (2.7 kg) guns and 12 pedreros of 1⁄2 pound. It sank along the coast of Puerto Deseado, Patagonia in 1770.
The discovery of HMS Swift in Puerto Deseado in 1982 represented the beginning of underwater archaeology in Argentina.
Ship[edit]
HMS Swift was a sloop-of-war 28 metres (92 ft) in length and was armed with 14 6 pounders (2.7 kg) guns and 12 pedreros of 1⁄2 pound.[1]
Wreck[edit]
Based at Port Egmont in the Falkland Islands, Swift undertook an exploratory trip along the Patagonian coasts before the winter of 1770. A storm forced them to stop near the site of present-day Puerto Deseado to rest and dry their clothes. Entering the Río Deseado, they ran aground on a submerged rock and, although after getting rid of much of the cargo, they managed to free the ship, minutes later they came across a second uncharted rock. At 18:00 on 13 March 1770, Swift sank along the coast of Puerto Deseado.[1] Three of the ninety-one crew members (the cook and two soldiers) died. The cook's body appeared days later and he was buried after an impromptu funeral.[2][3]
At the time of the wreck, the ship was under the command of Captain George Farmer.[4] The ship was commissioned to defend the base of Port Egmond, and at the time was embarked on an exploratory voyage of South America.[4]
Archaeological exploration[edit]
The discovery of HMS Swift in Puerto Deseado represented the beginning of underwater archaeology in Argentina.[5] The ship was found by young amateur divers on 2 February 1982; the remains of one of the lost soldiers was found and buried ashore.[6] The ships wreckage became part of the impulse that led to the first national laws regarding underwater archaeology in the country.[4] Investigations into the wreckage were primarily done by the National Institute of Anthropology and Latin American Thought (INAPL).[4]
References[edit]
- ^ a b Elkin, Dolores; Argüeso, Amaru; Grosso, Mónica; Murray, Cristian; Vainstub, Damián; Bastida, Ricardo; Dellino-Musgrave, Virginia (1 March 2007). "Archaeological research on HMS Swift: a British Sloop-of-War lost off Patagonia, Southern Argentina, in 1770". International Journal of Nautical Archaeology. 36 (1): 32–58. doi:10.1111/j.1095-9270.2006.00117.x.
- ^ "The Wreck of the HMS Swift". 20 February 2009.
- ^ Dolores Elkin; Cristian Murray; Ricardo Bastida; Mónica Grosso; Amaru Argüeso; Damián Vainstub; Chris Underwood; Nicolás Ciarlo. EL NAUFRAGIO DE LA HMS SWIFT -1770- Arqueología marítima en la Patagonia - Vazquez Mazzini Editores. ISBN 978-987-9132-32-6.
- ^ a b c d Elkin, Dolores (3 June 2016) [First published in print in 2008 by Left Coast Press]. "Maritime Archaeology in Argentina at the Instituto Nacional de Antropología". In Leshikar-Denton, Margaret E; Luna Erreguerena, Pilar (eds.). Underwater and Maritime Archaeology in Latin America and the Caribbean. One world archaeology series (1 ed.). New York: Routledge. doi:10.4324/9781315416090. ISBN 978-1-315-41608-3 – via Google Books.
- ^ Dellino-Musgrave, Virginia; Endere, María Luz (2001). "Browse journals by subject". Conservation and Management of Archaeological Sites. 4 (4): 219–231. doi:10.1179/135050301793138209.
- ^ Chaluleu, Mariano (5 October 2023). ""Fue como ver la tumba de Tutankamón". Cómo cuatro jóvenes de 18 años descubrieron una corbeta inglesa hundida a metros de la costa argentina". La Nación (in Spanish). Buenos Aires. Archived from the original on 6 October 2023. Retrieved 6 October 2023.