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John William Trigg silver teapot

Date1839

Object number00056164

NameTeapot

MediumSilver

DimensionsOverall: 168 × 185 × 300 mm

ClassificationsTableware and furnishings

Credit LineAustralian National Maritime Museum Collection Gift from Peter De Low

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DescriptionCarried through six generations of the Trigg family, this ornate silver teapot is a window into the perils of early nineteenth century travel by sea. Gifted to John WIlliam Trigg Chief Officer of trade, convict, and passenger vessel the Sesostris, the teapot is inscribed with sentiment of thanks for his conduct in protecting passengers during a voyage to Sydney in 1839. On arrival, Trigg was tried for manslaughter for the shooting of a disorderly seaman. The teapot provides an interesting case study into the complexities of legal enforcement for acts carried out at sea during the nineteenth century.HistoryLaunched in Hull in 1818, the Sesostris initially served as a trading vessel between the UK and India, Rusia, and the Baltic. Between 1818 and 1822 Sesostris called into the prominent trading ports of Bengal and Archaengel. On the 13th of April 1823 the vessel sailed from Gravesend to Valparaiso, carrying troops for the Chilean military expedition against Peru. One such prominent passenger aboard was Lady Cochrane, wife to Lord Admiral Thomas Cochrane, RN officer and radical politician known for his support of rebel navies in Chile, Brazil, and Peru. On the 28 November 1825 the Sesostris sailed on its first trip to Australia, arriving in Sydney on the 1 March 1826 with 147 convicts aboard. During this journey, the ship passed by a significant reef off the coast of South Australia west of the headland of Cape Jaffa, which became known from the 1820s to the 1870s as the Sesostris Reef, today recognised as Margaret Brock Reef. Extending for 5 nautical miles (9.3 kilometres) in a north-south direction and appearing at a height of 2 metres above sea level at low tide, Margaret Brock Reef is fixed with an automated beacon in order to guide vessels around its dangerous parameters. From 1827 to 1835 the Sesostris returned to operating along regular commercial shipping routes, visiting New Zealand, India, and South Africa before returning to London. On the 4 May 1839 the Sesostris again sailed for Sydney under ship master J. Rowe. John William Trigg (b. 10 October 1807 Sandwich Kent) stood under Rowe as Chief Officer overlooking the ship's cargo and deck crew. At sea on the 12th of August 1839 Trigg shot and killed seaman Thomas Flynn, an action carried out in defence of the passengers aboard. The Sesostris arrived in Sydney on the 31st August, and Trigg was brought to trial for the murder of Flynn on the 1st of November. An trial record from the Supreme Court of NSW recalls the incident on the ship: "Flynn, from the evidence, appeared to have been a quiet inoffensive man when sober, but when drunk was a most desperate vagabond, and being a very powerful man was the terror of the whole ship. The crew was in a very mutinous, disorderly state, and there was a great deal of drunkenness; indeed, to such a pitch did they carry their audacity, that they stole a whole cask of beer from the quarter-deck where it was lashed, and drank it in the forecastle. About three weeks before the occurrence referred to took place, Flynn was handcuffed by the officers of the ship, when the irons were forcibly taken off by the crew, and thrown overboard, and one of the seamen threatened to chop off the chief officer's hands for endeavouring to interfere. The deceased had on more than one occasion threatened the life both of the captain and mate. On the night in question Flynn went aft and upon being asked what he wanted, said, the doctor; the doctor was called but did not come immediately; and the chief officer put his hand on Flynn's shoulder and directed him to go forward: he did not go, and Trigg again requested him to do so, when Flynn struck him and closed with him; it was a very dark night, raining and blowing fresh, and Trigg and Flynn slipped towards the bulwarks; Flynn then repeated the blow, and Mr. Nichol, a passenger who had just come on deck, walked over towards them with the intention of assisting Mr. Trigg, but just as he put his arm round Flynn Mr. Trigg fired a bullet through his head. The captain and some of the passengers who were in the cabin immediately came out, and Flynn was taken down below and died a few hours afterwards. Mr. Hustler addressed the jury at considerable length for the defence, contending that it was evident that Mr. Trigg did not in the darkness of the night and the confusion of the moment see Mr. Nichol come to his assistance, but that having retreated across the deck until he could get no further he was afraid Flynn would murder him, and was justified in firing at him; in consequence of the state of the crew the officers had been directed by the captain to carry pistols. A great number of witnesses were called for the defence, who proved that Flynn was one of the most powerful men that ever was seen, and a perfect demon; that on the night in question he had, with the most horrible language, threatened to have Mr. Trigg's life; that he had intended to break into the main hold that night but was prevented by the hatches having been battened down. The account of the affray given by these witnesses varied very much, some stating that there were twenty blows, other that there were only three or four, but three witnesses for the defence swore positively that before the shot was fired, they heard a gurgling kind of noise as if Mr. Trigg was being strangled. All the witnesses concurred in calling the prisoner a humane kind man." John William Trigg was convicted of manslaughter, given 50 pound fine and imprisoned until his debt was paid, the Chief Justice of the court stating: "The Court is unwilling by its sentence to blast all your future prospects in life, but it is their bounden duty, for the sake of example, to award such a judgment as shall have a salutary effect in awakening those in authority to a just sense of their responsibility, and that they are not freely to practise [sic] upon the lives of their fellow creatures." (Sourced:http://www.law.mq.edu.au/research/colonial_case_law/nsw/cases/case_index/1839/r_v_trigg/) The Sesostris continued to operate along the London to Sydney trade route, and was eventually broken up in 1843.SignificanceThe John William Trigg silver teapot is significant as a unique reflection of crime and punishment at sea during the early nineteenth century. The teapot was presented as a gesture of thanks by the passengers of the vessel Sesostris to Chief Officer John William Trigg in 1839. During a voyage on the Sesostris from London to Sydney Trigg shot, and killed, a seaman with the ships crew. The seaman was intoxicated on the night of the incident, refused to follow an order by Trigg and physically struck Trigg in anger leading both men to fight on the deck in rough weather. Trigg subsequently pulled out his pistol and shot the seaman out of self defence and in the best interests of the passengers aboard, the rest of the crew also in a drunken and mutinous state at the time.

At Trigg's trial, witnesses praised the defendents actions and the Chief Justice lamented the deceased as "one of the most worthless vagabonds in existence". Trigg's conviction was settled at a charge of manslaughter and he was given a 50 pound fine and imprisoned until this was paid. NSW Supreme Court records in 1839 note that there were very few instances of cases like Trigg's at the time. The teapot is thus an embodiment of a rare criminal case that occured along the trade and passenger route from Europe to the colony of New South Wales during the early nineteenth century. It is also significant in illustrating the potential dangers of travel by sea for passengers during this period.

As stated by the Chief Justice for Trigg's trial "The worst feature in the present case, was, the unusual course taken to arm yourself previously, without any adequate cause proved in evidence". The teapot further brings into question the role of arms holding amongst senior officers on passenger vessels during this period, and the place of corporal punishment amongst ship companies. It stands as a rare item associated to the Sesostris, a vessel that has a history of trade with India, military involvement in Chile, and convict transportation to New South Wales.