Can you lean me some ammuniniton?
In November 1714 a young Norwegian Master and Commander of the Royal Dano-Norwegian Navy had to face a court martial of a special kind, accused of having betrayed secrets to the enemy.
Peter Jansen Wessel Tordenskiold was just 24 years old when he sailed the Baltic Sea with his ship the Løvendals Gallej, a frigate with 18 guns. He was hoping for Swedish privateers and therefore sailed under the Dutch flag for safety reasons when he actually encountered a ship. It was the De Olbing Galley, a frigate of English design with 28 guns. But she was built for the Swedes and should now be brought to Götheborg under Captain Bactmann and an English crew. Since England and the Netherlands were not at war, Bactmann simply sailed past. But Wessel raised the Danish flag and began to fire. The two fought each other half the day and only took a break at night before continuing the next morning. But after 14 hours of fighting and a quite destroyed ship Wessel realized that he had no more ammunition. But instead of retreating, Wessel sent a messenger to the British and asked if they could lend him some ammunition, then they could continue their little duel.
Bactmann, both shocked and amused, refused. Both parted peacefully after they had both raised their glasses and drunk to the other. However, benders limped into their harbours in a very pitiful state.
On guns and cups, shows the moment were Wessel and Bactmann raised their glasses after their fight, by Christian Ferdinand Andreas Mølsted 1925
Wessel was then court-martialed because he had told the enemy how much ammunition was on a frigate of his rank. Wessel denied and told his story to the king, who could not believe what he heard and acquitted him. Wessel was even cheeky enough to ask for a promotion, which he got. But he did not stay on earth for a long time because he was killed during a duel on 12 November 1720. He was only 30 years old.
