Old Map of the Mediterranean Sea by John Thomson, 1817

Old Map of the Mediterranean Sea by John Thomson, 1817

John Thomson, Edinburgh, 1817

This wonderfully detailed old map of the Mediterranean Sea was created by the Scottish cartographer John Thomson for his New General Atlas of 1817. It follows the Mediterranean from the Strait of Gibraltar to the coasts of Egypt and the eastern Mediterranean, recording its islands, ports and surrounding countries at the beginning of the nineteenth century.

Seven inset plans surround the main chart. These include the harbours of Marseilles and Genoa, Leghorn Road, the Gulf of Smyrna, the watering place at Algeciras, the British attack on Algiers in 1816 and a particularly interesting plan of Gibraltar during the Great Siege of 1782.

A Mediterranean Chart from Thomson’s New General Atlas

John Thomson was one of the leading Scottish map publishers of the early nineteenth century. Working in Edinburgh, he produced large and finely engraved maps intended for substantial library atlases rather than pocket-sized travel books.

His New General Atlas brought together maps of countries, continents and seas on an unusually generous scale. This allowed the engravers to include smaller settlements, mountain ranges, rivers, roads and coastal details that would have been lost on a more compact plate.

The original title of this map is simply Chart of the Mediterranean Sea. Although it was issued as an atlas map rather than a working sea chart, it includes a strong maritime element. Coastal settlements, islands, capes and harbours receive particular attention, while several of the inset plans contain depth soundings and navigational information.

From Gibraltar to the Eastern Mediterranean

The chart presents the Mediterranean as a connected geographical region. Spain and the North African coast frame its western entrance, with the narrow Strait of Gibraltar controlling passage between the Mediterranean and Atlantic.

Farther east are the Balearic Islands, Corsica, Sardinia, Sicily and the Italian peninsula. The Adriatic reaches northwards between Italy and the Balkan coast, while the Greek islands form an intricate passage towards Asia Minor and the Levant.

Major islands including Majorca, Minorca, Corsica, Sardinia, Sicily, Crete and Cyprus can be followed across the chart. Their positions demonstrate why islands served as valuable stopping points, trading centres and naval bases for vessels crossing the Mediterranean.

The surrounding countries are shown as part of the same maritime world. Southern Europe, North Africa and the eastern Mediterranean are not treated as separate regions but as shores connected by commerce, migration and naval power.

Seven Detailed Inset Plans

One of the chart’s most appealing features is its collection of seven inset maps and harbour plans:

• Bay and Roads of Marseilles
• The Harbour of Genoa
• Plan of the Rock and Bay of Gibraltar
• Leghorn Road
• Sketch of the Watering Place of Algeziras
• Attack on Algiers under Admiral Lord Exmouth, 27 August 1816
• Gulf of Smyrna

The original spelling “Algeziras” is used for present-day Algeciras. “Leghorn” is the traditional English name for Livorno, the Tuscan port on the western coast of Italy.

These insets give the map a second level of interest. The main chart establishes the broad geography of the Mediterranean, while the smaller plans concentrate on anchorages, defensive positions, harbour approaches and naval events.

Gibraltar and the Great Siege of 1782

The Gibraltar inset is entitled Plan of the Rock and Bay of Gibraltar, shewing the position of the combined fleet and attack of the battering ships in 1782.

It records the dramatic assault of 13 September 1782 during the Great Siege of Gibraltar. Spanish and French forces attempted to capture the British-held fortress using specially constructed floating batteries supported by a combined fleet.

The attack failed after the batteries came under sustained fire from the Gibraltar defences. By including the positions of the ships and batteries, Thomson’s plan turns this corner of the chart into a compact record of one of the most celebrated British defensive actions of the eighteenth century.

A second inset shows the nearby watering place at Algeciras, reinforcing the strategic importance of Gibraltar Bay to vessels passing through the strait.

The Bombardment of Algiers

Another inset depicts the attack on Algiers by the fleet commanded by Admiral Lord Exmouth on 27 August 1816. This event had taken place only a year before the chart was published.

The British and Dutch fleet bombarded the harbour defences as part of an expedition intended to secure the release of enslaved Christian captives and obtain undertakings against further enslavement.

Its inclusion gave Thomson’s chart an immediate contemporary relevance. Purchasers in 1817 were not simply looking at Mediterranean geography; they were also seeing the location and arrangement of a naval action that remained recent news.

Marseilles, Genoa, Leghorn and Smyrna

The remaining harbour plans represent some of the Mediterranean’s most important commercial ports.

Marseilles connected southern France with trading routes across the sea. Genoa had long been one of Italy’s foremost maritime cities, while Leghorn—now Livorno—was an important free port serving Tuscany and the wider Mediterranean trade.

The Gulf of Smyrna inset shows the approach to present-day İzmir on the coast of Turkey. Smyrna was a major centre for commerce between Europe, the Ottoman Empire and the eastern Mediterranean.

Together, these harbour plans reveal a sea shaped as much by trade and communication as by naval conflict.

Map Details

• Original title: Chart of the Mediterranean Sea
• Cartographer and publisher: John Thomson
• Engraver: Samuel John Neele
• Published: Edinburgh, 1817
• Atlas: Thomson’s New General Atlas
• Approximate original scale: 1:6,300,000
• Original format: Engraved atlas map with outline hand colouring
• Relief: Shown by hachures
• Maritime information: Coastal features and depth soundings within the inset plans
• Geographical coverage: The Mediterranean Sea and its surrounding European, North African and eastern coasts
• Inset maps: Marseilles, Genoa, Gibraltar, Leghorn, Algeciras, Algiers and Smyrna

With its broad geographical sweep and seven closely engraved insets, Thomson’s chart is far more than a general map of the Mediterranean. It brings together islands, ports, shipping routes and two notable naval actions in one handsome early nineteenth-century composition.