The British Ministry of Defense (MoD) is giving Admiral Lord Nelson’s flagship at the Battle of Trafalgar, HMS Victory to the National Museum of the Royal Navy (NMRN) in Portsmouth. The ship would stay a commissioned warship and thus will be able to retain bragging … Continue reading
Category Archives: History
Yesterday, we posted about the lawsuits still ongoing related to the wreck of the Nuestra Senora de las Mercedes and quoted Cecilia Rodriguez, writing for Forbes. Today Ms. Rodriguez has a wonderful article about the Galleon San Jose, often referred to as the “Holy … Continue reading
The silver and gold coins valued at $500 million that Odyssey Marine recovered from the wreck of the Nuestra Senora de las Mercedes have now been flown to Spain. American courts ruled that the coins had been removed illegally and that they … Continue reading
Last week we posted about “Rum Running,” a new documentary which was broadcast last weekend on CBCs “Land and Sea.” It is now online and definitely worth watching. It is a fascinating look at when many sailors in Nova Scotia stopped fishing and became international smugglers during Prohibition in the … Continue reading
The Penobscot Marine Museum in Searsport, Maine documents the rich and deep maritime history of the region and the town that was famous for its ship captains. The museum has a wonderful set of on-line, searchable, photography collections documenting the area’s ships, … Continue reading
Within the next day or so, two Spanish Air Force C-130 transport planes will land at Tampa’s MacDill Air Force Base to load 17 tons of gold and silver coins and other artifacts recovered from the wreck of the Spanish Navy’s Nuestra … Continue reading
In the United States, today is celebrated as Washington’s Birthday, also widely known as Presidents Day. On this the official day of celebration of his birthday, it seems worthwhile to look back on General George Washington’s navy of 1775 and … Continue reading
We have previously posted about the CBC’s “Land and Sea,” a program which for thirty years has been focussed on stories from people who live off the land and the sea on the Canadian Atlantic. In December, they featured a wonderful documentary on Nova … Continue reading
The Battle of Cape Santa Maria was one of the most controversial naval engagements of the Napoleonic Wars. The attack on a Spanish treasure fleet on October 5, 1804 by a British squadron, without a declaration of war, was considered to be an act of piracy … Continue reading
We recently posted about a press release by Sub Sea Research (SSR) claiming to have located the wreck of a British cargo ship sunk in June 1942 by the German submarine U87. Sub Sea Research claims that the ship was carrying 70 tons of platinum … Continue reading
The Portland, ME based, Sub Sea Research (SSR) recently sent out a press release announcing that they had located what they claim to be “the worlds richest shipwreck,” the British freighter, SS Port Nicholson, carrying a secret cargo of 71 tons of platinum, … Continue reading
While on peace time maneuvers off Libya on June 22, 1893, Vice Admiral George Tryon, the commander of the British Mediterranean Fleet, gave a series of orders that resulted in HMS Camperdown ramming his ship, HMS Victoria, which sank with the loss of 358 lives, including … Continue reading
The World War II destroyer, USS Laffey, has returned home to Patriots Point Naval and Maritime Museum, near Charleston, South Carolina after a two year $9 million dollar shipyard period to repair her hull plating. The USS Laffey was commissioned … Continue reading
The graves of four ship’s captains and merchants dating from the mid-18th century have been found in Suriname, a former Dutch sugar colony on the northern coast of South America. The graves of privateer Capt. Michael Burnham of Middletown, CT; Capt. William Barbut … Continue reading
Here is a wonderful 20 minute film made in 1947 about, as the tile suggests, shipbuilding in Essex, Massachusetts. It has the slightly corny Hollywood production values of its time but does a good job at showing the construction of a … Continue reading
Reuters reports that Italy is enthralled by the tale of the “two captains,” while on CNN another Italian captain, from another ship and another time, is remembered – In Andrea Doria wreck, a captain who shone. … Continue reading
The Confederate Navy submarine H.L. Hunley was unveiled yesterday for the first time since it was recovered from the ocean floor near Charleston more than a decade ago. The vessel, a 42 feet long iron cylinder, is credited as the first “successful” submarine … Continue reading
When I was in high school in Flordia, before I learned the error of my ways and become a sailor, I ran all over Boca Ciega Bay and the around the mouth of Tampa Bay in an outboard motor powered … Continue reading
A very interesting, if ambitious, new project. While we often focus on the Georgian Navy, the Royal Navy during the Restoration is fascinating it own right. The Lenox Project hopes to build a replica of the Lenox, a 17th century warship in the restored dockyard at … Continue reading
What better way to start the new year than to look at a project which uses modern technology to recreate virtually a ship from 1606? Dr. Filipe Castro, of the Nautical Archaeology Program, Texas A&M University, working with the university’s Visualization … Continue reading