Evert Andersen (1 February 1772 – 29 July 1809) was a

Norwegian Norwegian, Norwayan, or Norsk may refer to: *Something of, from, or related to Norway, a country in northwestern Europe * Norwegians, both a nation and an ethnic group native to Norway * Demographics of Norway *The Norwegian language, including ...

sea captain who fought in the Gunboat War against

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It is ...

and Sweden 1807–09.

Early life

Andersen was a farmer's son from

Lista Lista is a former municipality located in the old Vest-Agder county in Norway. The municipality existed from 1838 until its dissolution in 1965. The administrative centre was the village of Vanse where Vanse Church is located. Lista munici ...

who left his father's farm to his younger brother and went to sea. He enlisted as a gunner with the

fluyt A fluyt (archaic Dutch: ''fluijt'' "flute"; ) is a Dutch type of sailing vessel originally designed by the shipwrights of Hoorn as a dedicated cargo vessel. Originating in the Dutch Republic in the 16th century, the vessel was designed to faci ...

''Eensgezindheid'' of the

Dutch East India Company The United East India Company ( nl, Verenigde Oostindische Compagnie, the VOC) was a chartered company established on the 20th March 1602 by the States General of the Netherlands amalgamating existing companies into the first joint-stock c ...

and made a three-year voyage from

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the Capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population ...

to Batavia between 1784 and 1787. Back in Norway he settled in Kristiansand, probably in 1805, marrying Helene Hansdatter Netland in 1807 and fathering three daughters.

War

Following the

Battle of Copenhagen (1807) The Second Battle of Copenhagen (or the Bombardment of Copenhagen) (16 August – 7 September 1807) was a British bombardment of the Danish capital, Copenhagen, in order to capture or destroy the Dano-Norwegian fleet during the Napoleonic War ...

and the surrender of the Danish/Norwegian fleet to the British, only one operational

ship of the line A ship of the line was a type of naval warship constructed during the Age of Sail from the 17th century to the mid-19th century. The ship of the line was designed for the naval tactic known as the line of battle, which depended on the two colu ...

was left uncaptured, the '' HDMS Prinds Christian Frederik'', in

Kristiansand Kristiansand is a seaside resort city and Municipalities of Norway, municipality in Agder county, Norway. The city is the fifth-largest and the municipality the sixth-largest in Norway, with a population of around 112,000 as of January 2020, f ...

. When news of the battle reached Kristiansand, along with accounts of British ships raiding up the coast, there was great fear in the town and a defence commission was hastily assembled. Evert Andersen joined the reserves in Kristiansand as a non-commissioned officer on September 2, 1807 with the rank of

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often ...

, on the defensive batteries. On 18 September '' HMS Spencer'' appeared with two other British ships to try and seize the ''Prinds Christian Frederik''. The ''Spencer'' mounted attacks for several weeks but was eventually driven off by the coastal batteries. Enlisted from month to month, he was discharged on December 4, but re-appointed March 7, 1808, as commander of a cannon dinghy. He took part in the

Battle of Furuholm The Battle of Furuholm was a naval battle that took place at Furuholm outside Strömstad on 28 April 1808 as part of the Dano-Swedish War of 1808–1809. Background At the outbreak of the war between Denmark-Norway and Sweden on 14 March 1808, ...

and was transferred to

Arendal Arendal () is a municipality in Agder county in southeastern Norway. Arendal belongs to the region of Sørlandet. The administrative centre of the municipality is the city of Arendal (which is also the seat of Agder county). Some of the not ...

, before being given command of the schooner ''Activ''. At the beginning of August, 1808, he was also given command of the

cutter Cutter may refer to: Tools * Bolt cutter * Box cutter, aka Stanley knife, a form of utility knife * Cigar cutter * Cookie cutter * Glass cutter * Meat cutter * Milling cutter * Paper cutter * Side cutter * Cutter, a type of hydraulic rescue to ...

''Tiap''. In action off

Skagen Skagen () is Denmark's northernmost town, on the east coast of the Skagen Odde peninsula in the far north of Jutland, part of Frederikshavn Municipality in Nordjylland, north of Frederikshavn and northeast of Aalborg. The Port of Skagen ...

on August 8, ''Activ'' and ''Tiap'' attacked a Swedish cutter which was supported by the British frigate ''

Daphne Daphne (; ; el, Δάφνη, , ), a minor figure in Greek mythology, is a naiad, a variety of female nymph associated with fountains, wells, springs, streams, brooks and other bodies of freshwater. There are several versions of the myth in wh ...

''. The ''Actif'' had twelve gunports but only had eight long 3-pounders mounted. Chased by the ''Daphne'' for six hours, she threw two of her guns overboard before she

striking her colours Striking the colors—meaning lowering the flag (the " colors") that signifies a ship's or garrison's allegiance—is a universally recognized indication of surrender, particularly for ships at sea. For a ship, surrender is dated from the time t ...

. After surrendering Evert Andersen was imprisoned for a month in Gothenburg before returning to

Frederikshavn Frederikshavn () is a Danish town in Frederikshavn municipality, Region Nordjylland, on the northeast coast of the Jutland peninsula in northern Denmark. Its name translates to "Frederik's harbor". It was originally named Fladstrand. The town ...

. He was immediately given command of the cutter ''Lykkelig''.

Death

In 1809, Evert Andersen commanded the patrol boat ''Gripen'', the cannon dinghy ''Thygeson No. 3'', and the

sloop A sloop is a sailboat with a single mast typically having only one headsail in front of the mast and one mainsail aft of (behind) the mast. Such an arrangement is called a fore-and-aft rig, and can be rigged as a Bermuda rig with triangular ...

s ''Lister'' and ''Lyngdahl'' in Kristiansand's coastal defense squadron. With the two sloops he attacked a British schooner on July 28, 1809. Andersen was manning the cannon himself when it exploded and tore his left leg off. He was taken to

Mandal A tehsil (, also known as tahsil, taluka, or taluk) is a local unit of administrative division in some countries of South Asia. It is a subdistrict of the area within a district including the designated populated place that serves as its administr ...

but died the following day. He was buried with military honors in Kristiansand on August 7, 1809.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Andersen, Evert 1772 births 1809 deaths People from Farsund Royal Dano-Norwegian Navy personnel Napoleonic Wars prisoners of war held by the United Kingdom Norwegian prisoners of war in the Napoleonic Wars Norwegian military personnel killed in the Napoleonic Wars