Raid on Griessie facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Raid on Griessie |
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| Part of the Napoleonic Wars | |||||||
 Map of Java, with Griessie marked. |
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| Belligerents | |||||||
 United Kingdom |
 Holland |
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| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
 Edward Pellew |
Captain Cowell |
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| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| None |
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The Raid on Griessie was a British attack on the Dutch port of Griessie (now called Gresik). This happened on the island of Java in the Dutch East Indies in December 1807. It was part of the Napoleonic Wars, a big conflict between France and many European countries.
This raid was the last major fight in a series of battles. These battles were between the British navy in the Indian Ocean and the Dutch navy in Java. The British wanted to destroy the Dutch ships to protect their trade routes. These routes, especially to China, went through the Straits of Malacca. Dutch ships could attack British trading ships from their main port, Batavia.
In 1806, British ships called frigates explored the waters around Java. They captured two Dutch frigates. This encouraged British Rear-Admiral Sir Edward Pellew to lead a big attack on Batavia. That attack destroyed the last Dutch frigate and several smaller warships. However, before that raid, Dutch Rear-Admiral Hartsinck had sent his biggest warships, called "ships of the line," to safety. They went east to Griessie, near Sourabaya.
On December 5, 1807, Admiral Pellew's ships arrived at Griessie. He demanded that the Dutch ships in the harbor surrender. The Dutch commander, Captain Cowell, refused. He even arrested the British messengers. Pellew then moved his ships closer, firing at a Dutch gun battery on Madura Island. At this point, the governor in Surabaya stepped in. He released the British messengers and agreed to surrender the ships in Griessie harbor.
But by the time Pellew reached the harbor, Captain Cowell had sunk all the ships in the shallow water. Pellew could only set the wreckage on fire. British landing parties went ashore. They destroyed all military supplies in the town. They also blew up the battery on Madura Island. With the destruction of these ships, the last Dutch naval forces in the Pacific were gone. British forces returned to the region in 1810. They successfully invaded and captured Java in 1811. This temporarily removed the last Dutch colony east of Africa.
Contents
Why the Raid Happened
The Napoleonic Wars began in 1804. A strong French navy group from Batavia attacked a British trading convoy. This happened near the Straits of Malacca. The French attack failed, but it showed how dangerous French or Dutch warships could be to British trade.
To stop this threat, Rear-Admiral Sir Edward Pellew took action. He was the commander of the Royal Navy in the Indian Ocean. He sent frigates to check on Dutch naval activity in 1806. The Dutch had a small group of ships. These included three large 68-gun "ships of the line" and three frigates. Even though some of these ships were old, they still threatened British trade. Pellew's frigates attacked Dutch harbors and merchant ships often.
Early British Successes
On July 26, 1806, a Dutch convoy was sailing near Celebes. One of Pellew's frigates, HMS Greyhound, attacked and defeated it. They captured the Dutch frigate Pallas and two large merchant ships. Three months later, the frigate HMS Caroline entered Batavia harbor. It captured the Dutch frigate Maria Reigersbergen.
These victories encouraged Admiral Pellew to plan a bigger attack. On November 27, 1806, he launched a major Raid on Batavia. As his large group of ships sailed into the bay, the remaining Dutch ships were run aground. This was to prevent the British from capturing them. Boarding parties, led by Admiral Pellew's son, Captain Fleetwood Pellew, then set the wrecked ships on fire.
Dutch Ships Escape to Griessie
Some Dutch ships, including all the "ships of the line," escaped the Batavia raid. Rear-Admiral Hartsinck had sent them east along the Javan coast. They were under the command of Captain Cowell. Cowell's ships found shelter in a safe harbor at Griessie. This town was near Sourabaya, about 570 nautical miles (1,060 km) west of Batavia.
At Griessie, the Dutch ships became very old and worn out. One ship of the line, the Kortenaar, was broken down. Its parts were used for other things. Two others, the Pluto and Revolutie, had their cannons removed. These cannons were then placed in shore batteries to defend the harbor.
Admiral Pellew could not return to Java right away in 1807. His ships were busy with other missions across the Indian Ocean. However, later that summer, other British forces took over blocking French island bases. This freed Pellew to focus on the remaining Dutch ships.
During this time, Admiral Pellew sent two frigates to Java. These were Caroline and HMS Psyche. They quickly found out where the Dutch ships of the line were and what condition they were in. Then, they split up to attack Dutch merchant ships. Psyche had great success at Semarang on August 31. Captain Pellew destroyed two Dutch ships and captured three others. One of these was the Dutch 24-gun ship Scipio, which the British renamed Samarang.
Pellew's Attack on Griessie
When Admiral Pellew heard about the Dutch ships at Griessie, he quickly gathered his forces. His group included his main ship, HMS Culloden, and another large ship, HMS Powerful. It also had the frigates Caroline and HMS Fox. Smaller ships like HMS Victor, HMS Samarang, HMS Seaflower, and HMS Jaseur joined them.
A large trading ship, Worcester, also came along. It carried 500 soldiers from the 30th Regiment of Foot. These soldiers were ready for any landing operations needed.
The Approach to Griessie
Pellew's ships left Malacca on November 20. They sailed along the Java coast for 15 days. On December 5, they reached Panka Point. Pellew sent a boat with a white flag to Griessie. The message told the Dutch commander to surrender his ships.
Captain Cowell refused and arrested the British boat party. He then sent a Dutch officer to Pellew's ship, Culloden, to tell him what he had done. In response, Pellew decided to attack the port. He ordered Culloden and Powerful to be made lighter. This meant removing extra supplies so they could sail into the shallow waters.
On December 6, the British ships moved slowly towards Griessie through the Madura Strait. They came under fire from a Dutch battery of nine cannons. These cannons were at Sambelangan on Madura Island. Pellew's ships fired back and quickly silenced the battery. The British ships suffered no losses or major damage.
As the ships got closer to Griessie, a message arrived from the civilian governor in Sourabaya. He overturned Captain Cowell's orders. He released the captured British boat party and agreed to surrender the ships in the harbor without conditions.
The Destruction of Dutch Ships
On December 7, Pellew formally agreed to the surrender of the Dutch ships. These included Revolutie, Pluto, Kortenaar, and the Dutch trading ship Rustloff. They were anchored in Griessie.
However, when British boats entered the harbor, they found that Cowell had ordered all four ships to be sunk. Their wrecks stuck out of the shallow water. Since the British could not remove the ships, Pellew ordered them to be burned. British landing parties went into the town. They burned military supplies and destroyed the cannons that had been taken from the ships. Another landing party took control of the battery at Sambelangan and destroyed it.
British operations were finished by December 11. Pellew then ordered his ships to leave and return to India.
After the Raid
This raid was the final part of Admiral Pellew's Java campaign. It was completed with very few injuries on either side. It completely removed the Dutch navy from the East Indies for the rest of the war.
With the Dutch gone, the British focused on the French islands in the Indian Ocean. These islands were blocked and captured during the Mauritius campaign of 1809–1811. After Mauritius was captured, British forces returned to the East Indies. They took over several Dutch-held islands, with Java falling last.
By that time, Pellew was serving in the Mediterranean. British control of the Indian Ocean was secure. The British kept control of the East Indies until they were returned to the Netherlands. This happened after Napoleon was captured and the Anglo-Dutch Treaty of 1814 was signed. The East Indies were officially handed over in 1816, after Napoleon's final defeat at the Battle of Waterloo in 1815.
