Wreck of Dutch ship lost in 1857 found off coast of South Australia

Maritime archaeologists in Australia believe that they have found the Dutch ship Koning Willem de Tweede (King Willem II) that sank back in 1857. After a three-year search, the team hopes to learn more about the 19th-century ship and find objects onboard to study.

19th-century Dutch ship found by Australian researchers

Australian maritime archaeologists started the search for the lost ship Koning Willem de Tweede back in 2022. While there were several clues about the location of the 42-metre-long frigate, the low visibility caused by the shifting sands made it difficult to accurately determine where it was. 

"It takes almost nothing to get the sand moving and it just sits there in the water, like an underwater sandstorm," lead researcher James Hunter told NOS. However, the research team was successful this year after they started using metal detectors off the coast of South Australia. 

With the new equipment, the windlass of the ship was found sticking upright in the sand, while the rest of the ship is still mostly buried in the sand. The length and location of the ship are enough to convince the team that it is in fact the Koning Willem de Tweede that was lost in 1857. "It is exciting because although we know a lot about 17th-century ships like the wreck of the Batavia, much less is known about the ships from the 19th century."

Violent storm sank Dutch ship in 1857

The ship Koning Willem de Tweede first hit the water in The Hague in 1840. In the year that it sank, it was used to transport Chinese miners from Hong Kong to the goldfields in the Australian state of Victoria. 

Bringing 400 passengers ashore at Robe, after which they would have to walk 400 kilometres to the mines, the ship was badly damaged due to a severe storm. The captain’s attempt at saving the ship by purposely running it aground on a sandbank backfired, breaking the hull in two and ultimately sinking the ship. 16 of the 25 crew members died after the lifeboat capsized.

With the loose sand in the bay, the ship was soon buried, making it nearly impossible to locate for over 150 years, even though it sank close to land. Now that it has been found, the team hopes to uncover more of the ship named after the Dutch monarch and bring back any objects found for further study.