William Chamlett the younger

William Chamlett the younger

William Chamlett the younger
Person	William Chamlett the younger
Title
First name	William
Middle name(s)
Last name	Chamlett
Suffix	the younger
Spouse of
Widow of
Occupation	Mariner
Secondary shorebased occupation
Mariner occupation	Master's mate
Associated with ship(s)	Peter and Anne (Master: William Chamlett the elder)
Training	Not apprentice
Is apprentice of
Was apprentice of
Had apprentice(s)
Citizen	Unknown
Literacy	Signature
Has opening text	William Chamlet the yonger
Has signoff text	William Chamlett
Signoff image	(Invalid transcription image)
Language skills	English language
Has interpreter
Birth street
Birth parish
Birth town
Birth county
Birth province
Birth country
Res street
Res parish	Saint Botolph Billingsgate
Res town	London
Res county
Res province
Res country	England
Birth year	1633
Marriage year
Death year
Probate date
First deposition age	22
Primary sources
Act book start page(s)
Personal answer start page(s)
Allegation start page(s)
Interrogatories page(s)
Deposition start page(s)	HCA 13/70 f.51r Annotate
Chancery start page(s)
Letter start page(s)
Miscellaneous start page(s)
Act book date(s)
Personal answer date(s)
Allegation date(s)
Interrogatories date(s)
Deposition date(s)	Jan 13 1655
How complete is this biography?
Has infobox completed	Yes
Has synthesis completed	No
Has HCA evidence completed	No
Has source comment completed	No
Ship classification
Type of ship	Merchant ship
Silver Ship litigation in 1650s
Role in Silver Ship litigation	None

Biographical synthesis

William Chamlett (alt. Chamlet; Chamblett) the younger (b.ca.1633; d.?). Mariner and master's mate of the Peter and Anne. His father, the epopnymous William Chamlett, was a mariner and master of the Peter and Anne.

The younger William Chamlett was resident in 1655 in the parish of Saint Botolph Billingsgate. At the time of his son's and his own deposition in 1655, the fifty-five year old father was resident in Redriff, Surrey.

William Chamlett the younger was the nephew of Richard Chamlet (alt. Chamblett) (b.?; d.ca.1640-2). The will of Richard Chamblett makes clear that the older William Chamblett was Richard's brother, and that Richard's wife was Rebecca Chamblett (b.?; d.ca.1645). The will also mentions an Edward Chamblett, but does not specify the relationship between Richard and Edward.

"Master Richard Chamlet" appears in the 1638 list of inhabitants of Saint Botolph Billingsgate with a rent of £60 and £1 for adjacent properties.

A further mariner, 'Samuel Chamblett', was resident in Saint Botolph Billingsgate in 1650, when he deposed in the High Court of Admiralty. In his deposition he stated that he was thirty-two years of age, that he had been a seafaring man for the last eighteen years and the master of a ship for the last ten years. This Samuel Chamblett may have been the master of Richard Chamblett's ship the Richard and Dorothy, the ship which Richard Chamblett mentions in his will, written in late 1639. Elaine Murphy (2012) identifies the ship the Mary and Dorothy of London as having been engaged in a fight with the Francis of Wexford in the 1640s, and cites the May 30th 1644 examination in the High Court of Admiralty of Samuel Chamblett. The same Samuel may also be 'Captain Samuel Chamblet' of the Sampson, who is identified as the commander of a ship in the service of the English East India company in 1670. In 1685 'Captain Samuel Chamblet' appears listed as one of the 'Elder Brethren' appointed by the charter of James II to Trinity House.

Evidence from High Court of Admiralty

Twenty-two year old William Chamlett the younger was one of three deponents on January 13th 1655 in the High Court of Admiralty. He was one of the master's mates of the ship the Peter and Anne. He deposed alongside his father, William Chamlett, of Redriff in Surrey, who was the fifty-five year old master or commander of the same ship, and thirty year old Henry Turpin, of Wapping, who was the other master's mate of the Peter and Anne.

Chamlett the younger, his father and his fellow mate Henry Turpin attested to dreadful weather conditions on their return voyage from the Canaries to London. They describe their ship as of the burthen of four score tons and being laden with "hides, ginger, sugar, logwood and shumack which shee tooke in at the Iland of Palma." Departing the Canaries on December 11th 1654, they experienced a violent storm off Cape Finisterre fifteen days later. The storm lasted a full sixteen days until they brought the ship into the Downs. They attested to their diligence in saving the ship, and stated that any damage to the merchandise was unavoidable.

The letters of the London merchant John Paige make frequent mention in 1654 of the ship the Peter and Anne and her captain, William or Mr Chamlett (alt. Chamlet). Paige had hired the ship to go from London to Teneriffe to collect wine. In a letter sent by Paige to William Clerke, dated April 1st 1654, Paige writes:

"I have this day freighted a pretty new frigate [the Peter and Anne, Capt. William Chamlett] of 80 ts, 10 guns, to go from hence to Tenerife and so home at £5 per t, and with much entreaty. In which vessel I shall charge you with 40 ts for your account; the rest Antonio Fernandez Carvajal takes. Which vessel, I conceive, will be ready within 15 days, but it will be a very difficult thing to get her out in these vexatious times."

The elder William Chamlett deposed a second time in the High Court of Admiralty three and a half years later on July 31st 1658. He was examined on an allegation in the case of "Blake against Page". His residence was unchanged, being Redriff in Surrey, and again he is described as master of the Peter and Anne. Mystifyingly, he has lost five years in age, and is now reported to be fifty years of age.

Comment on sources

PROB 11/188/50 Will of Richard Chamblett 18 January 1642
- Written June 7th 1639
- Mentions Henry Greene and Marie Chamblett
- Mentions one sixteenth part of the Marie and Dorothie
- Money remaining from the shipping to be divided between William Chamblett and Edward Chamblett children, each to have an equal part in the Mary and Dorothie
- Mentions house at Dover and states that Rebecca, the testator's wife, should receive the benefit and rent during her lifetime and afterwards he gives it to his brother William Chamblett and Edward Chamblett. Neither man is to trouble or molest his wife - should they do so his will is void

Elaine Murphy (2012) identifies the ship the Mary and Dorothy of London and records a fight between her and the Francis of Wexford, which lasted two hours, with more than thirty shots fired into the Mary and Dorothy. Interestingly Murphy cites two High Court of Admiralty examinations as evidence, the second being that of 'Samuel Chamblett', 30 May 1644 (HCA 13/59, ff.256r-257v)

E 215/1036 London Certificate by Richard Chamblett, Wharfinger, of rates taken at Fresh Wharf and Cox Key for goods landed and shipped (unclear whether this relates to Richard Chamlett (d.ca.1640-42))

PROB 11/194/528 Will of Rebecca Chamlett, Widow of Saint Botolph Billingsgate, City of London 30 December 1645
- Written also as Rebecca Chamblett
- Late husband
- "the said William Chamlett"
- Edward Chamlett
- Widow ? of Dover
- William Gilbert of Dover
- Mr Hall "nowe Parson of Saint Buttolph Billingsgate"
- Richard Rudder, "my late husband's godsonne"
- Richard Eaton and Martha his wife
- ?my cousin Henry Greene to be made free of the Leathersellers
- Mr Thomas ?XX of Cliffords Inn to oversee the will

C 142/778/113and140 Chamblett, Rebecca: London. Date: 21 Charles I. ( Chancery: Inquisitions Post Mortem, Series II, and other Inquisitions, Henry VII to Charles I)