The Mary Rose is based in Portsmouth Historic Dockyard. Built between 1509 and 1511, she was one of the first ships able to fire a broadside, and was a firm favourite of King Henry VIII.
After a long and successful career, she sank accidentally during an engagement with the French fleet in 1545. Her rediscovery and raising were seminal events in the history of nautical archaeology.
To mark the 500th anniversary year of King Henry VIII’s accession to the throne and of his commissioning of the Mary Rose, the Mary Rose Trust, the charity preserving the ship, is launching the Mary Rose 500 public appeal.
The appeal is seeking 500 individuals, schools, businesses and organisations to come on board and symbolically become the ‘new crew’ of the Tudor warship. Click on the logo or link to find out more, or view the appeal video on You Tube!
Please note: The hull of the Mary Rose will not be on display until mid 2012 while a new museum is built to house her. The present museum, displaying the amazing artefacts recovered from the wreck, will still be open during this period.
Visitors to the Historic dockyard should be aware that the Mary Rose is currently undertaking extensive works to prepare for the new museum opening in 2012. This may mean that some objects have to be temporarily removed from display. The Mary Rose Trust offers sincere apologies for this inconvenience, and urges visitors to contact them in advance if there are particular items they are hoping to see.
A New Museum for the Mary Rose
Introductory video with Alan Titchmarsh (94Mb mov file)
This section of the web site contains news, information and images covering the exciting project to build a new museum that will give the Mary Rose and her artefacts a fitting purpose-built home.
The Mary Rose Museum, located right by the entrance to the Historic Dockyard, will remain open and has new artefacts on display as well as a film showing the continuing conservation of the hull.
Meanwhile at the other end of the dockyard, work has started on the new museum, which will be built around the ship. This means for the next two and half years the Mary Rose ship will be closed to the public.
Latest News
- Time Capsule Competition - Win £500 for your school or youth organisation! - read more
- BBC2 - Antiques Master. Could you be the next ANTIQUES MASTER? Antiques Master is back, and the search is on to find the next amateur antiques expert worthy of the title - read more (pdf)
- Emmy Award-Winning Costumes from ‘The Tudors’ to go on display for Mary Rose 500 Appeal. The Tudors – Courtly Couture Collection
Saturday 29th January – until Thursday 31st March 2011 at the Mary Rose Museum, Portsmouth Historic Dockyard - read more
- MARY ROSE COINS- Your Noblest Shippe 1511. It is a great pleasure to celebrate the 500th anniversary of such a great national icon as the Mary Rose on a UK commemorative £2 coin this year - read more
