9 October 1799: HMS Lutine sinks with a fortune in bullion

On this day in 1799 the frigate HMS Lutine sank off the Dutch coast. It was en route to Hamburg with a fortune in gold and silver bullion.

The Lutine bell © Bruno Vincent/Getty Images
The Lutine bell is now housed in Lloyd's of London
(Image credit: © Bruno Vincent/Getty Images)

Hamburg, a long-standing member of the Hanseatic trading league, was on the point of collapse in 1799. The merchants in the City of London held a whip-round and dispatched HMS Lutine with a fortune in gold and silver bullion to the rescue. The ship, however, never arrived.

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Chris Carter
Wealth Editor, MoneyWeek

Chris Carter spent three glorious years reading English literature on the beautiful Welsh coast at Aberystwyth University. Graduating in 2005, he left for the University of York to specialise in Renaissance literature for his MA, before returning to his native Twickenham, in southwest London. He joined a Richmond-based recruitment company, where he worked with several clients, including the Queen’s bank, Coutts, as well as the super luxury, Dorchester-owned Coworth Park country house hotel, near Ascot in Berkshire.

Then, in 2011, Chris joined MoneyWeek. Initially working as part of the website production team, Chris soon rose to the lofty heights of wealth editor, overseeing MoneyWeek’s Spending It lifestyle section. Chris travels the globe in pursuit of his work, soaking up the local culture and sampling the very finest in cuisine, hotels and resorts for the magazine’s discerning readership. He also enjoys writing his fortnightly page on collectables, delving into the fascinating world of auctions and art, classic cars, coins, watches, wine and whisky investing.

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