Divers Find Piece Of Henry VIII's Warship

IOL ^ | 8-19-2003

[blam]

Divers find piece of Henry VIII's warship

August 19 2003 at 03:45AM

London - Divers may have found the missing front section of the Tudor warship the Mary Rose, marine archaeologists said Monday.

Alex Hildred, the dive's project manager, said that if the find was confirmed it would be "the most important maritime archaeology find in England in the last 20 years."

Experts have been diving to the wreck off Portsmouth on the southern English coast for the past month, and have excavated a five-metre long piece of wood they believe is the front stem of the ship's keel.

The Mary Rose was built in 1511 as King Henry VIII's flagship, but sank inexplicably in 1545 during a skirmish with French ships in the Solent, the area of water between the Isle of Wight and Portsmouth.

'The gem of Tudor maritime history' Most of the 700 ton, 32-metre long galley was raised from the silt of the Solent in 1982, but divers recently began revisiting the remainder of the wreck due to Ministry of Defence plans to deepen the channels to Portsmouth naval base.

Now experts believe they have discovered the ship's bowcastle, the fortified front of the ship which housed archers and cannon and is the last part of the 458-year-old galley to be discovered.

Certifying the find may take some time as experts are not sure what the bowcastle looks like. The earliest picture of Henry VIII's flagship was painted in 1547, two years after the ship sank.

Mike Power, manager for the Portsmouth regeneration project, said a survey of the area is planned to determine the best way to protect the site. Raising the bowcastle may be too expensive.

It is estimated that the raising and preservation of the main section of the Mary Rose has already cost £20-million (about R230-million), the price having increased by the need to spray the ship with soluble wax polyethylene glycol to help preserve it.

Prince Charles, the Prince of Wales and president of the Mary Rose Trust, said he was thrilled by the latest find.

"The story of the Mary Rose has intrigued generations of people, and I am confident that this latest discovery will re-ignite people's interest in the gem of Tudor maritime history."

The Mary Rose was the precursor of Queen Elizabeth I's galleons, the ships of the line that were to circumnavigate the world and defeat the Spanish Armada.- Sapa-AP

[cmsgop]

Second Verse Same as the First.......

[blam]

Mary Rose

[blam]

"Second Verse Same as the First......."

Herman's Hermits.

[cmsgop]

hehe!

[ellery]

Trivia: it was named after Anne Boleyn's sister Mary, whom Henry was stupping before he married Anne...

[mystery-ak]

LOL...I started singing it while reading....everybody...Im Henry the V111 I am, Henry the V111 I am I am........

[ElkGroveDan]

Certifying the find may take some time as experts are not sure what the bowcastle looks like.

Has anyone thought to ask Arnold? Sheesh, it's a no-brainer, he knows everything.

[BossLady]

"but sank inexplicably in 1545 during a skirmish with French ships"

"skirmish" - I believe this was the last time the French tried to fight something resembling a war....:o

[ElkGroveDan]

Ow. So this is what it feels like to have coffee unexpectedly go through your nose. Ow.

Happened to me when I was 16 with Southern Comfort...that'll definately clear your sinuses .

[LieFreeGov]

"...Queen Elizabeth I's galleons, the ships...that were to circumnavigate the world...."


Sir Francis Drake circumcised the globe with a 100-foot clipper.

;->

[SwinneySwitch]

I'm Henry the eighth I am
Henry the eighth I am, I am
I got married to the widow next door
She's been married seven times before
And every one was an Henry (Henry)
She wouldn't have a Willy or a Sam (no Sam)
I'm her eighth old man, I'm Henry
Henry the eighth I am

[Khurkris]

...oh yeah....now try not to think of that song....

[JAWs]

And the ship had lots on windows, but only TWO DOORS!

[Rebelbase]

"skirmish" - I believe this was the last time the French tried to fight something resembling a war....:o"

No, Sometime in the late 1700's French troops landed on the Welsh coast and marched their invasion force toward a town. There was some kind of festival going on with women all wearing red dresses and stove pipe hats, which the Frogs took to be British Regulars and promptly surrendered to the ladies.

[mystery-ak]

God, we're old...LOL

[VMI70]

With 6 wives, Henry is the Emeritus Chairman of the Board and CEO of the Dumb Ass Club.

I, still married to #2, am only a lowly member of the DAC.

[BossLady]

LMAO! I wonder if that's where Moulin ROUGE came from??? :o

[GOP Jedi]

And the ship had lots on windows, but only TWO DOORS!

Well, the bloom's off that Rose...