TIMELY EELS

There is a story that, despite the ravages of the Great Plague of 1665, the Dutch aided London by continuing to trade with the city. Ships that anchored on the River Thames were required to pay harbour fees. In appreciation of the support, these were waivered for vessels from The Netherlands. The tale concludes that the practice has continued down to the present day. This is not the case.

In the late Middle Ages Dutch fishermen developed the schuyt, a one-masted sailing vessel that could be used to fish in shallow waters such as rivers and the Zuyder Zee, the expanse of inland sea that was contained within the northern Netherlands. The Dutchmen found a ready market for their catches in London. For many years these were landed at Queenhithe.

In the middle of the 17^thC, the Dutch started selling eels at Billingsgate. During William III s (d.1702) reign an Act of Parliament was passed that banned the landing of live fish from foreign vessels; the one exception to this was for eels. The Dutch eel fishers took to always ensuring that two schuyts were moored near to the market. They were fastened slightly upriver of the Customs House. On them, eels were kept alive so that they could be sold when prices for them were high. The custom of keeping a pair of craft on the Thames in this way was maintained for almost a quarter of a millennium. This seasoned trade practice is probably the root of the plague story. The permanent presence of the schuyts may have been taken by some to imply the possession of some unique trading privilege.

During the 20^thC it became Billingsgate's practice to source eels from greater distances across the globe. This made the market more competitive. In addition, many of the traditional Dutch fishing grounds disappeared as water engineering projects in The Netherlands converted them into dry land. The last delivery of eels from a schuyt took place in 1932. Six years later the last pair of vessels that were anchored on the Thames were sold and dismasted.¹

See Also: EEL PIE; NAUTICAL The Custom House; PUBS The Prospect of Whitby

¹. T G. Alfred The Dutch Eel Schuyts in The P.L.A. Monthly, December 1938, 39-45

David Backhouse 2024