Mary Rose Trust
Encyclopedia
The Mary Rose Trust is a limited charitable trust based in Portsmouth
in the United Kingdom
. Its primary aims are to preserve, display and spread knowledge about the 16th century warship Mary Rose
which sank in the Solent on 19 July 1545 and was salvaged by the Trust in October 1982.
The Mary Rose Trust runs the Mary Rose Museum
in Portsmouth Historic Dockyard.
in 1967-68, revealing a hidden feature, the first loose timber was located in 1970 and the buried wreck of the Mary Rose finally located on 5 May 1971. Throughout the 1970s volunteer divers and archaeologists surveyed the ship and conducted some limited excavations.
In the 1960s and 70s the Mary Rose Committee collaborated with museum representatives, diving clubs and archaeologists to campaign for legal protection of shipwrecks as vital to the national historical heritage. The Merchant Shipping Act of 1894 stipulated that any wreck that was unclaimed and was salvaged had to be sold to pay for the expenses of the salvers. This meant that any shipwreck old enough to fall under the sway of the Act was threatened by commercial exploitation. Instead of being carefully excavated and recorded by maritime archaeologists
, historically invaluable wrecks risked being destroyed by unscrupulous salvers and treasure hunters. The joint organisation Committee for Nautical Archaeology, of which the Mary Rose Committee was a member, successfully lobbied to grant the wreck legal protection under the Protection of Wrecks Act of 1973, with the Mary Rose being among the first to receive legal protection. However, the risk of having salvaged artefacts confiscated was still a very real risk under UK salvage law, and a confrontation had to be averted by continuous negotiations with the Receiver of Wreck
, a division of the Maritime and Coastguard Agency
. The Mary Rose, along with a few other historic wrecks, was a vital example during the lobbying for the new shipping act as well as the gradual change in implementation of UK salvage law.
The Committee handled the small-scale diving operations and underwater surveys of the Mary Rose wrecksite until 1979, when it was decided that the remnants of the ship should be fully excavated and salvaged. This required considerable financial means and a considerably larger organisation, leading to the foundation of the Mary Rose Trust. Prince Charles acted as its president and Margaret Rule
archaeological director in charge of excavating and preparing the wreck of the Mary Rose for salvage. The project had already received considerable media attention as well as large donations with which the salvage vessel Sleipner was purchased.
On 11 October 1982 the Mary Rose was successfully salvaged and towed to Portsmouth Historic Dockyard, where it was placed in passive storage until active conservation began in 1994. In the meantime, the Trust built a museum to display exhibits explaining the history of the ship and its 16th century Tudor era
context.
The Mary Rose Trust is a partner organization of the Swedish Vasa Museum
in Stockholm
, Sweden
, with which it has regular exchanges and collaborative ventures. The Vasa Museum has on display the Swedish 17th century warship Vasa which was salvaged from the bottom of Stockholms ström
in 1961.
Portsmouth
Portsmouth is the second largest city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire on the south coast of England. Portsmouth is notable for being the United Kingdom's only island city; it is located mainly on Portsea Island...
in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
. Its primary aims are to preserve, display and spread knowledge about the 16th century warship Mary Rose
Mary Rose
The Mary Rose was a carrack-type warship of the English Tudor navy of King Henry VIII. After serving for 33 years in several wars against France, Scotland, and Brittany and after being substantially rebuilt in 1536, she saw her last action on 1545. While leading the attack on the galleys of a...
which sank in the Solent on 19 July 1545 and was salvaged by the Trust in October 1982.
The Mary Rose Trust runs the Mary Rose Museum
Mary Rose Museum
The Mary Rose Museum is a historical museum designed by architects Wilkinson Eyre and Pringle Brandon. The museum is located at Historical Dockyards in Portsmouth in the United Kingdom run by the Mary Rose Trust. The museum is dedicated to the 16th century Tudor navy warship Mary Rose as well as...
in Portsmouth Historic Dockyard.
History
The Mary Rose Trust traces its origins back to the Mary Rose Committee, founded in 1968 with the intent to "to find, excavate, raise and preserve for all time such remains of the ship Mary Rose as may be of historical or archaeological interest". The wrecksite was scouted and surveyed with side scan sonarSonar
Sonar is a technique that uses sound propagation to navigate, communicate with or detect other vessels...
in 1967-68, revealing a hidden feature, the first loose timber was located in 1970 and the buried wreck of the Mary Rose finally located on 5 May 1971. Throughout the 1970s volunteer divers and archaeologists surveyed the ship and conducted some limited excavations.
In the 1960s and 70s the Mary Rose Committee collaborated with museum representatives, diving clubs and archaeologists to campaign for legal protection of shipwrecks as vital to the national historical heritage. The Merchant Shipping Act of 1894 stipulated that any wreck that was unclaimed and was salvaged had to be sold to pay for the expenses of the salvers. This meant that any shipwreck old enough to fall under the sway of the Act was threatened by commercial exploitation. Instead of being carefully excavated and recorded by maritime archaeologists
Maritime archaeology
Maritime archaeology is a discipline within archaeology as a whole that specifically studies human interaction with the sea, lakes and rivers through the study of associated physical remains, be they vessels, shore side facilities, port-related structures, cargoes, human remains and submerged...
, historically invaluable wrecks risked being destroyed by unscrupulous salvers and treasure hunters. The joint organisation Committee for Nautical Archaeology, of which the Mary Rose Committee was a member, successfully lobbied to grant the wreck legal protection under the Protection of Wrecks Act of 1973, with the Mary Rose being among the first to receive legal protection. However, the risk of having salvaged artefacts confiscated was still a very real risk under UK salvage law, and a confrontation had to be averted by continuous negotiations with the Receiver of Wreck
Receiver of Wreck
The Receiver of Wreck is an official who administers law dealing with wreck and salvage in some countries having a British administrative heritage.-Countries having a Receiver of Wreck:...
, a division of the Maritime and Coastguard Agency
Maritime and Coastguard Agency
The Maritime and Coastguard Agency is a UK executive agency working to prevent the loss of lives at sea and is responsible for implementing British and International maritime law and safety policy.This involves coordinating search and rescue at sea through Her Majesty's Coastguard , ensuring that...
. The Mary Rose, along with a few other historic wrecks, was a vital example during the lobbying for the new shipping act as well as the gradual change in implementation of UK salvage law.
The Committee handled the small-scale diving operations and underwater surveys of the Mary Rose wrecksite until 1979, when it was decided that the remnants of the ship should be fully excavated and salvaged. This required considerable financial means and a considerably larger organisation, leading to the foundation of the Mary Rose Trust. Prince Charles acted as its president and Margaret Rule
Margaret Rule
Margaret Rule, CBE led the project that excavated and raised the Tudor warship Mary Rose in 1982. Educated at Cambridge University in land archaeology, she was the curator of the Fishbourne Roman Palace, when she began her work in maritime archaeology when she was consulted on the initial search...
archaeological director in charge of excavating and preparing the wreck of the Mary Rose for salvage. The project had already received considerable media attention as well as large donations with which the salvage vessel Sleipner was purchased.
On 11 October 1982 the Mary Rose was successfully salvaged and towed to Portsmouth Historic Dockyard, where it was placed in passive storage until active conservation began in 1994. In the meantime, the Trust built a museum to display exhibits explaining the history of the ship and its 16th century Tudor era
Tudor period
The Tudor period usually refers to the period between 1485 and 1603, specifically in relation to the history of England. This coincides with the rule of the Tudor dynasty in England whose first monarch was Henry VII...
context.
Operations
In 2008, the Mary Rose Trust had assets of close to £10 million and income of over £5,700,000, the majority of which came from various donations. It had 56 employees and a further 50 volunteers. Currently, the Trust is engaged in building a new museum in which the conserved hull of the Mary Rose will be displayed along with a selection of the thousands of artefacts found inside and around her.The Mary Rose Trust is a partner organization of the Swedish Vasa Museum
Vasa Museum
The Vasa Museum is a maritime museum in Stockholm, Sweden. Located on the island of Djurgården, the museum displays the only almost fully intact 17th century ship that has ever been salvaged, the 64-gun warship Vasa that sank on her maiden voyage in 1628. The Vasa Museum opened in 1990 and,...
in Stockholm
Stockholm
Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...
, Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
, with which it has regular exchanges and collaborative ventures. The Vasa Museum has on display the Swedish 17th century warship Vasa which was salvaged from the bottom of Stockholms ström
Stockholms ström
Stockholms ström, also known as Strömmen, in Stockholm is the innermost part of Saltsjön, a bay of the Baltic Sea. It continues into Lake Mälaren through Norrström.-See also:*Geography of Stockholm*Rivers of Sweden...
in 1961.
External links
- Mary Rose 500 - campaign site for the new Mary Rose Museum