From Amrum to Algiers and Back: The Reintegration of a Renegade in the Eighteenth Century

Abstract

In the year 1724, fifteen-year-old Hark Olufs sailed on the ship the Hoffnung (Hope), half of which was owned by his father and the other half by Ricklef Flor, the captain. The ship was sailing under the flag of Hamburg although the entire crew consisted of Danish subjects: three came from Amrum, as did Hark, one from the neighboring island of Föhr, three from the Elbe. The ship was sailing from Nantes to Hamburg to unload its cargo. Although these waters were considered to be safe, the Hoffnung was seized by a “Turkish” privateer near the Scilly Isles and towed to Algiers.