Beginnings of Whaling in the UK.

Whaling in the Arctic was begun around the Spitzbergen Islands by the Dutch and it’s from the Dutch that that we get most of the whaling terms like harpooner, spectioneer, etc. But by the mid 18th Century Britain was beginning to challenge the Dutch domination of the whaling industry.

In 1749 the British Government introduced the Bounty Act (withdrawn in 1824), this offered 40 shillings per ton on all ships that were 200 tons or more and fitted out in this country. To qualify for the bounty, the whaling ship had to follow strict rules.

The ship had to leave port at a certain time and had to keep a logbook giving details of the voyage. The master had to note their position every time they saw land or caught a whale.

He also had to take soundings, A way of charting the unknown coasts and waters for Royal Navy charts. Another instruction brought in during the first decades of the 19th century was that the whaling ship had to carry a number of men who had never been to sea before, this again to qualify for the ‘Bounty’.

These raw recruits were referred to as ‘Greenmen’.  Another regulation was that the ship had to have a least one apprentice aged between 12 and 20 years of age for every 50 tons of ship weight.

The press gangs could force any seaman into the navy, unless he carried a certificate of Protection. The enemy could also attack whaling ships, so many were armed. Even with that, there were always more dangers from the sea and pack ice.