January 7th, 2021 - 3:30 pm
The Delaware Division of Historical and Cultural Affairs will offer The Wreck of the DeBraak, a virtual program livestreamed from the Zwaanendael Museum at 3:30 p.m., Thursday, Jan. 7. Participants will learn the history of the British warship DeBraak, which sank off the coast of Lewes in May 1798 only to be recovered by treasure hunters nearly 200 years later.
For more information, email [email protected] or call 302-645-1148.
During the late 18th and early 19th centuries, sloops of war such as DeBraak played an increasingly important role in Royal Navy campaigns. These relatively small vessels combined speed, agility, shallow draft and substantial firepower, all of which made them formidable naval vessels. As the only Royal Navy sloop of war from this time period that has been recovered anywhere in the world, DeBraak serves as an invaluable historical resource for a time when Great Britain was the world's preeminent naval power.
The surviving section of the DeBraak's hull and its associated artifact collection have been curated by the Division of Historical and Cultural Affairs since they were acquired by the State of Delaware in 1992. Approximately one-third of the hull survives including the keel, keelson and lower framing elements, including a large section of the starboard (right) side.