Ship Inn

In 1797, Admiral Duncan sailed from Great Yarmouth and destroyed the Dutch fleet at Battle of Camperdown. The Royal Navy brought the prisoners back to Great Yarmouth from the battle. It was at the Ship Inn that many captured Dutch naval officers were kept. The prisoners were not well guarded, as seven of them escaped. They were all surgeons. It is not known whether they escaped by sea or were re-captured. The remaining Dutch officers were moved to Eye in Suffolk for greater security. After the Battle of Camperdown, the Ship Inn's sign was repainted as a man-of-war, with the name of Venerable on her stern, which was Admiral Duncan’s flagship. At this inn the sale of prize goods took place, often by Dutch auction.

Originally the Ship Inn was a house built in the mid I7th century.  It became a public house in 1773 and remained so for 215 years until 2008. By the middle of the 19th century, the Ship Inn had been divided into two with a butcher’s shop in one part. The south part of the Ship Inn became a boot and shoe shop until 1925. Following damage in the Second World War the southern end was rebuilt in 1952 by Lacon’s, the brewers. In 2008, it was sold, complete with its Dutch flag, to the National Health Service.

For many years a Dutch flag flew outside the Ship Inn, as a reminder of its connection with the Dutch prisoners of war. It has now gone, so it is fitting that it is replaced by a plaque to remind the public of the importance of Great Yarmouth to the Royal Navy.

Ship Inn