Maritime record MDO47925 - Julienne 1506 Spanish Cargo Vessel

1506 incident in which a Spanish cargo vessel is variously said to have stranded or to have arrived safely following a storm at Melcombe Regis, whilst carrying Philip of Castile and his wife Dona Juana back to Spain from Flanders. Other sources suggest that they came ashore at Poole Bay, but, since they were welcomed by Sir Thomas Trenchard at nearby Wolfeton House (see 453357), Melcombe appears to be the more appropriate location. It is unclear what actually happened to the vessel but it seems that the fleet was certainly scattered and contemporary sources mention that three were lost, it is assumed on the coast of England, for which see 1544419, 1544421 and 1544422. Constructed of wood, she was a sailing vessel. Status: Casualty

Vessel from Flanders carrying Prince Philip of Castile and his wife Dona Juana, along with their retinue, was cast ashore in a violent storm. Henry VII accommodated them at Windsor for two weeks, before they could continue their journey to Spain. (1)(2)

Sources (1) and (2) state the date of loss as the year of 1506 only.

'On the 7th January 1506 Philip embarked from Zealand [sic: Zeeland], accompanied by a fleet of fifty sail. He was overtaken by a storm, and ran for shelter to Melcombe in Dorsetshire. Philip disembarked, and sent immediately a message to the King expressing his desire to see him. His messengers were very graciously received, and on the 21st of January he met Henry at Windsor, the Kings saluting each other with "glad and loving countenances." ' (3)

Discussion of the tempest and its aftermath, bringing together contemporary observations and the work of later scholars in various languages. A severe cold was felt throughout Europe in January 1506, followed by winds, but nevertheless Philp and Juana embarked on 10 January with 40 ships comprising an entourage including Floris d'Egmont, Count of Buren and Leerdam-Ijsselstein, and 2,000 Landsknechten under Graf Wolfgang zu Fuerstenberg. The fleet soon ran into severe storms and some came ashore in Devon and Cornwall, but the JULIENNE rode out the storm at sea before a decision was made to run for Portland.

Accounts of the storm, and the behaviour of the royal passengers, are many and various but it seems that the force of the storm was sufficient for a Te Deum to be sung on arrival. The JULIENNE came to Melcombe around 16-17 January 1506, with two other ships, and the passengers were welcomed by Sir Thomas Trenchard. (4)

Sources (1) and (2) state that the place of loss was near Poole, dated to the year 1506 only, and based on the Bournemouth Guardian piece quoted as its sole source, below; source (3) states that Melcombe was involved, but does not suggest that the vessel was lost, nor does source (4), although the severity of the storm is clear. Melcombe lies to the north of Weymouth and its harbour, and the direct naming of Melcombe might suggest that the vessel came ashore rather than into the harbour, particularly as the two places were regarded as separate entities at the time, but it is also possible that the place name 'Melcombe Regis' may indicate that they ran into the harbour at Weymouth and were welcomed from the Melcombe shore. The length of the ensuing royal stay in England, as well as a political opportunity, may indicate at least damage and repairs to their vessels, or the need to await suitable replacements.

One source states that Philip then heard the news some days later that three of his fleet had been lost; out of those two crews had escaped alive, suggesting that they had come ashore. (5)

Date of Loss Qualifier: Approximate date of loss

Additional sources cited in Shipwreck Index of the British Isles:
Bournemouth Guardian newspaper, article, 13.01.1912


The building date for this vessel is an estimate based on an average age at wrecking of twenty years. This average is derived from those vessels wrecked on the Dorset coast whose age at wrecking is known.

<1> Larn, Richard, 1992, United Kingdom shipwreck index, Extracted 23 November 1992 (Index). SWX5030.

<2> Larn, R, and Larn, B, 1995, Shipwreck index of the British Isles, volume 1 : Isles of Scilly, Cornwall, Devon, Dorset Section 6, Dorset (AJ) Vol 1 (Monograph). SWX4541.

<3> 1862, Calendar of State Papers Spain, Introduction, Part 2', 1485-1509 (Monograph). SDO20621.

<4> Fleming, Gillian Beatrice, 2010, La visita a Inglaterra de Juana I (enero-abril de 1506), 406-20 (Monograph). SDO20622.

<5> Gachard, L P (ed), 1876, Collection des Voyages des Souverains des Pays-Bas, 501-503 (Monograph). SDO20623.

<6> National Record of the Historic Environment, 1544402 (Digital archive). SDO14739.

Record last edited

Mar 28 2024 12:50PM