In July, we posted about a Baltic shipwreck on which divers found 30 bottles of champagne thought to pre-date the French Revolution. (see Baltic Bubbly – ‘World’s oldest champagne’) On subsequent dives, smaller bottles have been recovered which apparently contain … Continue reading
Category Archives: History
Happy Merchant Navy Day! In Great Britain, Canada, Australia and New Zealand today, September 3rd, is celebrated as Merchant Navy Day – an official day of remembrance of the sacrifices made by merchant mariners in war-time. In World War I and World War II, over 45, 000 … Continue reading
This can’t be good unless it is so bad that it is good. A new movie is coming out whose high concept pitch had to be, “It is Moby Dick but with dragons, instead of whales.” The trailer is below … Continue reading
Intriguing, if it turns out to be true. Czar’s gold treasure found on Baikal Lake bed The legendary gold treasure of Russia’s last Czar could have been found by Mir-2 mini submarine on the bed of the world’s deepest fresh … Continue reading
An intriguing article from the Independent. Elizabeth Wynne was Lord Nelson’s nurse following the loss of his arm. She left 40 volumes of diaries and was a witness to several key events of the 18th century. She married one of … Continue reading
On August 29th, 1776, George Washington faced certain defeat. Howe had been able to flank the Americans in Brooklyn, turning the Battle of Long Island into a rout. Washington was left with the remnants of his army on Brooklyn Heights, with the East River … Continue reading
Ninety years on, locations of Royal Navy warships sunk in Russian Revolution are found The wrecks of three British warships sunk more than 90 years ago – seeking to prevent the Bolshevik Revolution from spreading West – have been located … Continue reading
In 1819, the SS Savannah was first steamship in the world to cross the Atlantic Ocean. Despite this accomplishment, the Savannah was a commercial failure and was converted back to sail shortly after returning from Europe. It is somehow fitting that … Continue reading
The Folger Shakespeare Library in Washington, DC has been hosting an intriguing exhibit: Lost at Sea – The Ocean in the English Imagination, 1550-1750. Unfortunately the exhibit itself is almost over, running only through September 4th. Nevertheless, for those of us who cannot make it … Continue reading
The E Ship 1 arrived in Dublin last week with a cargo of wind turbines manufactured by Enercon. What was striking was the ship itself, with four tall pillars rising vertically from the ship, two forward and two aft. The … Continue reading
In 1905, the three masted schooner yacht Atlantic sailed 3006 miles in twelve days, four hours, one minute and nine seconds; winning the Kaiser’s Cup from New York to the Lizard and setting the record for the fastest transatlantic passage … Continue reading
After a service life of almost 40 years, the Soviet light cruiser Murmansk was decommissioned and sold for scrap. On Christmas Eve in 1994, the ship was under tow to India when the tug lost control of the ship in a storm. … Continue reading
The Russian Oscar-II class nuclear-powered cruise missile submarine Kursk sank ten years ago yesterday with a loss of all aboard. One hundred and sixteen crew members and two weapons experts died in what is believed to have been the explosion of a faulty torpedo. At 154m … Continue reading
In 2004, at least 170 people died when a tsunami hit the fishing village of Poompuhar, in India on the Bay of Bengal. According to legend, this was not the first time. As described in ancient Tamil texts and by Ptolemy and … Continue reading
Ten years ago today, the Confederate Navy submarine H.L. Hunley was raised from the bottom of Charleston harbor in South Carolina, where it sank in 1864. The Hunley was the first submarine to sink an enemy warship in combat. … Continue reading
We recently posted about the world’s oldest champagne found on the Baltic seabed. While not as old, yet equally historic, a case of Shackleton’s Whisky has recently gone on display at the the Canterbury Museum in Christchurch on New Zealand’s South … Continue reading
Happy birthday to the United States Coast Guard! Two hundred and twenty years ago today, Secretary of the Treasury Alexander Hamilton, created the Revenue-Marine, later renamed the Revenue Cutter Service. For nine years, until the re-establishment of the United … Continue reading
Zheng He’s fleet of ships has been the subject of mystery and myth for centuries. Now a joint Chinese-Kenyan expedition to excavate where one of his fleet is thought to have been sunk in the 15th century may finally shed … Continue reading
In early July we celebrated the 40th anniversary of the return of the SS Great Britain to Bristol. Yesterday was a more somber anniversary – the 40th anniversary of “Black Tot” Day. Ceremony to mark ending of rum tot at … Continue reading
Two weeks ago the remains of an 18th century ship were found in the excavation of the World Trade Center site in Lower Manhattan. On Thursday Warren Riess, an archaeologist specializing in marine history, speculated that the ship was most likely a brigantine; … Continue reading