The Flying Dutchman

~ Graham O'Neill

Further to Ghost Ship debate https://oneills.press/2025/06/07/ghost-ships/ the Flying Dutchman regularly turns up and strikes fear into the maritime wanderer.

The Cursed Captain: The myth, dating back to the 17th-century, a golden age of Dutch maritime power, usually centres around a stubborn captain (often named Hendrik van der Decken or Vanderdecken).

The Fatal Oath: Trapped in a fierce storm while trying to round the treacherous Cape of Good Hope, the captain swore a blasphemous oath to press on past the storm even if it took until Judgment Day.

The Eternal Curse: The devil took him at his word, dooming the ship, captain, and crew to wander the seas for all time..

However..

The Fata Morgana: Many historical “sightings” are scientifically attributed to superior mirages or Fata Morgana optical illusions that project distant ships into the sky.

Bad Omen: Sailors who claimed to spot the phantom ship glowing with an eerie, supernatural light believed it foretold disaster, shipwreck, or death.

Enough of this speculation though, to the song! Our niece discovered this shanty (originally by The Jolly Rogers) and I thought ‘yeah, that rocks’, so herewith 🙂

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Published by Graham O'Neill

Graham generally sees the funny side of life, which is just as well as he spent 35 years working for the telephone company. He started scuba diving with the British Subaqua Club at the age of 16, rode horses through his 20's, became an obsessive windsurfer in his 30's and had a go at free-diving in his 40's. While all of this was going on he rode a bike to keep fit and get to the pub. In later life, in an effort to stave off dementia he has taken up singing and dancing. You may see short stories about these pursuits, but don't expect to read about any degree of prowess as the experiences he can still remember generally relate to (in order) getting bent, crashing a horse (yes, crashing, not just falling off), Windsurfing stupidly in a storm 10, wreck diving without an aqualung, time-trialling with a hangover, singing out of tune and falling on his arse (dancing).

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