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The Netherlands and the English republic were at war between 1652 and 1654.

This broadsheet describes the remarkable invention of Mr de Lisson, built in Rotterdam for the Dutch navy. The text is in Dutch (on the left) and French (on the right). It describes a vessel which was fast and manoeuvrable, but had no cannons, relying instead on a long steel battering ram to hole enemy vessels below the waterline.

The propulsion mechanism was secret, but it seems to have consisted of a tightly-wound metal spring connected to a clockwork mechanism which moved the paddle wheel at the back of the vessel.

The vessel never saw action. Long before it was finally sold for firewood in 1658, the vessel had been labelled ‘het malle schip’ (the silly ship) by the Dutch public.

Citation:
Ware en correcte Afteekening naer tlevan gedan (Amsterdam, 1653).,
Marsh's Library Exhibits,
accessed December 6, 2025,
https://www.marshlibrary.ie/digi/items/show/468