Cutty Sark
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

''Cutty Sark'' is a British
clipper A clipper was a type of mid-19th-century merchant sailing vessel, designed for speed. The term was also retrospectively applied to the Baltimore clipper, which originated in the late 18th century. Clippers were generally narrow for their len ...
ship. Built on the River Leven, Dumbarton, Scotland in 1869 for the Jock Willis Shipping Line, she was one of the last tea clippers to be built and one of the fastest, at the end of a long period of design development for this type of vessel, which ended as steamships took over their routes. She was named after the short shirt of the fictional witch in
Robert Burns Robert Burns (25 January 1759 – 21 July 1796), also known familiarly as Rabbie Burns, was a Scottish poet and lyricist. He is widely regarded as the List of national poets, national poet of Scotland and is celebrated worldwide. He is the be ...
' poem ''Tam o' Shanter'', first published in 1791. After the big improvement in the
fuel efficiency Fuel efficiency (or fuel economy) is a form of thermal efficiency, meaning the ratio of effort to result of a process that converts chemical energy, chemical potential energy contained in a carrier (fuel) into kinetic energy or Mechanical work, w ...
of steamships in 1866, the opening of the
Suez Canal The Suez Canal (; , ') is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, Indo-Mediterranean, connecting the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea through the Isthmus of Suez and dividing Africa and Asia (and by extension, the Sinai Peninsula from the rest ...
in 1869 gave them a shorter route to China, so ''Cutty Sark'' spent only a few years on the tea trade before turning to the trade in
wool Wool is the textile fiber obtained from sheep and other mammals, especially goats, rabbits, and camelids. The term may also refer to inorganic materials, such as mineral wool and glass wool, that have some properties similar to animal w ...
from
Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
, where she held the record time to Britain for ten years. Continuing improvements in steam technology early in the 1880s meant that steamships also came to dominate the longer sailing route to Australia, and the ship was sold to the Portuguese company Ferreira and Co. in 1895 and renamed ''Ferreira''. She continued as a cargo ship until purchased in 1922 by retired sea captain Wilfred Dowman, who used her as a training ship operating from
Falmouth, Cornwall Falmouth ( ; ) is a town, civil parish and port on the River Fal on the south coast of Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. Falmouth was founded in 1613 by the Killigrew family on a site near the existing Pendennis Castle. It developed as a po ...
. After his death, ''Cutty Sark'' was transferred to the Thames Nautical Training College, Greenhithe, in 1938 where she became an auxiliary cadet training ship alongside HMS ''Worcester''. By 1954, she had ceased to be useful as a cadet ship and was transferred to permanent dry dock at
Greenwich Greenwich ( , , ) is an List of areas of London, area in south-east London, England, within the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Greater London, east-south-east of Charing Cross. Greenwich is notable for its maritime hi ...
, London, for public display. ''Cutty Sark'' is listed by
National Historic Ships National Historic Ships UK is a government-funded independent organisation that advises UK governments and others on matters relating to historic ships.
as part of the National Historic Fleet (the nautical equivalent of a Grade 1 Listed Building). She is one of only three remaining intact
composite construction Composite construction is a generic term to describe any building construction involving multiple dissimilar materials. Composite construction is often used in building aircraft, watercraft, and building construction. There are several reasons to ...
(wooden hull on an iron frame) ships from the nineteenth century, the others being the clipper , now in
Port Adelaide Port Adelaide is a port-side region of Adelaide, approximately northwest of the Adelaide city centre, Adelaide CBD. It is also the namesake of the City of Port Adelaide Enfield council, a suburb, a federal and state electoral division and is t ...
, South Australia, and the warship in Chatham. The beached skeleton of ''
Ambassador An ambassador is an official envoy, especially a high-ranking diplomat who represents a state and is usually accredited to another sovereign state or to an international organization as the resident representative of their own government or so ...
'', of 1869 lying near
Punta Arenas Punta Arenas (, historically known as Sandy Point in English) is the capital List of cities in Chile, city of Chile's southernmost Regions of Chile, region, Magallanes Region, Magallanes and Antarctica Chilena. Although officially renamed as ...
, Chile is the only other significant remnant of this construction method. The ship has been damaged by fire twice in recent years, first on 21 May 2007 while undergoing conservation. She was restored and was reopened to the public on 25 April 2012. Funders for the Cutty Sark conservation project include: the
Heritage Lottery Fund The National Lottery Heritage Fund, formerly the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF), distributes a share of National Lottery funding, supporting a wide range of heritage projects across the United Kingdom. History The fund's predecessor bodies were ...
, the House of Commons
Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee The Culture, Media and Sport Select Committee, formerly the Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Select Committee, is one of the Select committee (United Kingdom), select committees of the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons, es ...
, Sammy Ofer Foundation, Greenwich Council,
Greater London Authority The Greater London Authority (GLA), colloquially known by the Metonymy, metonym City Hall, is the Devolution in the United Kingdom, devolved Regions of England, regional governance body of Greater London, England. It consists of two political ...
, The Stavros Niarchos Foundation, Berry Brothers & Rudd, Michael Edwards and Alisher Usmanov. On 19 October 2014 she was damaged in a smaller fire. ''Cutty Sark'' whisky derives its name from the ship. An image of the clipper appears on the label, and the maker formerly sponsored the Cutty Sark Tall Ships Race. The ship also inspired the name of the Saunders Roe Cutty Sark flying boat.


Construction

''Cutty Sark'' was ordered by ship-owner John Willis, who operated a shipping company founded by his father. The company had several ships in the tea trade from China to Britain. Speed was an advantage to vessels carrying a high-value, seasonal product, such as tea. Faster ships could obtain higher rates of freight (the price paid to transport the cargo), and tea merchants would use the names of fast-sailing ships that had carried their products in their advertising. ''Cutty Sark'' was ordered during a boom in building tea clippers in the period 1865–1869—something that was attributed to a substantial reduction in the import duties for tea. In 1868 the brand-new
Aberdeen Aberdeen ( ; ; ) is a port city in North East Scotland, and is the List of towns and cities in Scotland by population, third most populous Cities of Scotland, Scottish city. Historically, Aberdeen was within the historic county of Aberdeensh ...
-built clipper, ''
Thermopylae Thermopylae (; ; Ancient: , Katharevousa: ; ; "hot gates") is a narrow pass and modern town in Lamia (city), Lamia, Phthiotis, Greece. It derives its name from its Mineral spring, hot sulphur springs."Thermopylae" in: S. Hornblower & A. Spaw ...
'', set a record time of 61 days port to port on her maiden voyage from London to
Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...
and it was this design that Willis set out to better. It is uncertain how the hull shape for ''Cutty Sark'' was chosen. Willis chose Hercules Linton to design and build the ship but Willis already possessed another ship, '' The Tweed'', which he considered to have exceptional performance. ''The Tweed'' (originally ''Punjaub'') was a
frigate A frigate () is a type of warship. In different eras, the roles and capabilities of ships classified as frigates have varied. The name frigate in the 17th to early 18th centuries was given to any full-rigged ship built for speed and maneuvera ...
designed by Oliver Lang based on the lines of an old French frigate, built in
Bombay Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial centre, financial capital and the list of cities i ...
for the
East India Company The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company that was founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to Indian Ocean trade, trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (South A ...
as a combination sail/paddle steamer. She and a sister ship were purchased by Willis, who promptly sold the second ship plus engines from ''The Tweed'' for more than he paid for both. ''The Tweed'' was then lengthened and operated as a fast sailing vessel, but was considered too big for the tea runs. Willis also commissioned two all-iron clippers with designs based upon ''The Tweed'', ''Hallowe'en'' and ''Blackadder''. Linton was taken to view ''The Tweed'' in
dry dock A dry dock (sometimes drydock or dry-dock) is a narrow basin or vessel that can be flooded to allow a load to be floated in, then drained to allow that load to come to rest on a dry platform. Dry docks are used for the construction, maintenance, ...
. Willis considered that ''The Tweed''s bow shape was responsible for her notable performance, and this form seems to have been adopted for ''Cutty Sark''. Linton, however, felt that the
stern The stern is the back or aft-most part of a ship or boat, technically defined as the area built up over the sternpost, extending upwards from the counter rail to the taffrail. The stern lies opposite the bow, the foremost part of a ship. O ...
was too
barrel A barrel or cask is a hollow cylindrical container with a bulging center, longer than it is wide. They are traditionally made of wooden stave (wood), staves and bound by wooden or metal hoops. The word vat is often used for large containers ...
shaped and so gave ''Cutty Sark'' a squarer stern with less
tumblehome Tumblehome or tumble home is the narrowing of a Hull (watercraft), hull above the waterline, giving less beam (nautical), beam at the level of the main deck. The opposite of tumblehome is flare (ship), flare. A small amount of tumblehome is nor ...
. The broader stern increased the buoyancy of the ship's stern, making it lift more in heavy seas so it was less likely that waves would break over the stern, and over the helmsman at the wheel. ''Cutty Sark'' was given masts that followed the design of ''The Tweed'', with similar good rake and the foremast on both placed further aft than usual. A contract for ''Cutty Sark''s construction was signed on 1 February 1869 with the firm of Scott & Linton, which had only been formed in May 1868. Their shipyard was at
Dumbarton Dumbarton (; , or ; or , meaning 'fort of the Britons (historical), Britons') is a town in West Dunbartonshire, Scotland, on the north bank of the River Clyde where the River Leven, Dunbartonshire, River Leven flows into the Clyde estuary. ...
on the River Leven on a site previously occupied by shipbuilders William Denny & Brothers. The contract required the ship to be completed within six months at a contracted price of £17 per ton and maximum size of 950 tons. This was a highly competitive price for an experimental, state-of-the-art vessel, and for a customer requiring the highest standards. Payment would be made in seven instalments as the ship progressed, but with a penalty of £5 for every day the ship was late. The ship was to be built to Lloyd's A1 standard and her construction was supervised on behalf of Willis by Captain George Moodie, who would command her when completed. Construction delays occurred when the Lloyd's inspectors required additional strengthening in the ship. Work on the ship was suspended when Scott and Linton ran out of money to continue. Rather than simply liquidate the company, an arrangement was made for Denny's to take over the contract and complete the ship, which was finally launched on 22 November 1869 by Captain Moodie's wife. The ship was moved to Denny's yard to have her masts fitted, and then on 20 December towed downriver to
Greenock Greenock (; ; , ) is a town in Inverclyde, Scotland, located in the west central Lowlands of Scotland. The town is the administrative centre of Inverclyde Council. It is a former burgh within the historic county of Renfrewshire, and forms ...
to have her running rigging installed. In the event, completing the ship meant the company's creditors were owed even more money than when work had first been halted. ''Cutty Sark'' has a registered length of , with a depth of hold of and a net tonnage of 921. The hull is one of the sharpest of all the tea clippers: she has a coefficient of under deck tonnage of 0.55, compared to ''Thermopylae'' at 0.58. ''Cutty Sark''s prismatic coefficient, another measure of hull sharpness, is 0.628; this allows comparison with US-built clippers studied by Howard I. Chapelle. After water-line length, the prismatic coefficient is the next most important determinant of potential hull speed. Unladen, or with a cargo of low density, ballast was required for stability. For example, when she was loaded with wool, 200 tons of ballast was carried. The largest wool cargo she ever carried was 900 tons' weight (the total of ballast and cargo of 1,100 tons is consistent with the estimated deadweight cargo capacity of 1,135 tons at 20-foot draught). The largest tea cargo carried was 615 tons' weight. Conversely, a dense cargo allowed full use of the deadweight capacity: if loaded with coal, she would usually carry 1,100 tons. Broadly, the parts of the ship visible above the waterline were constructed from East India
teak Teak (''Tectona grandis'') is a tropical hardwood tree species in the family Lamiaceae. It is a large, deciduous tree that occurs in mixed hardwood forests. ''Tectona grandis'' has small, fragrant white flowers arranged in dense clusters (panic ...
, while American rock elm was used for the ship's bottom. The
stem Stem or STEM most commonly refers to: * Plant stem, a structural axis of a vascular plant * Stem group * Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics Stem or STEM can also refer to: Language and writing * Word stem, part of a word respon ...
, , and sternpost, , were of teak while the rudder was of English oak. The keel was replaced in the 1920s with one constructed from pitch pine. The deck was made of thick teak while the 'tween deck was yellow pine. The
keel The keel is the bottom-most longitudinal structural element of a watercraft, important for stability. On some sailboats, it may have a fluid dynamics, hydrodynamic and counterbalancing purpose as well. The keel laying, laying of the keel is often ...
, , had on either side a garboard strake, , and then planking decreasing to at one-fifth the depth of the hold. Teak planking began at approximately the level of the bilge stringer. The hull was covered by Muntz metal sheeting up to the depth mark, and all the external timbers were secured by Muntz metal bolts to the internal iron frame. The wrought-iron frame was an innovation first experimented with in shipbuilding in the 1840s, and was the standard building method for tea clippers by the middle of the 1860s. It consisted of frames (vertical), beams (horizontal) and cross bracing (diagonal members). The diagonally-braced iron frame made for a strong, rigid ship; diagonal members prevent racking (
shearing Sheep shearing is the process by which the woollen fleece of a sheep is cut off. The person who removes the sheep's wool is called a '' shearer''. Typically each adult sheep is shorn once each year (depending upon dialect, a sheep may be sai ...
, where frame rectangles become parallelograms). Less working and leaking of the hull meant less crew time spent pumping, allowing more time to be spent on changes of sail. The wrought-iron-framed hull also took up less cargo space than an all-wood hull would have done. The Muntz metal sheeting reduced
fouling Fouling is the accumulation of unwanted material on solid surfaces. The fouling materials can consist of either living organisms (biofouling, organic) or a non-living substance (inorganic). Fouling is usually distinguished from other surfac ...
of ''Cutty Sark''s hull; with a cleaner hull, she could sail faster.


Performance

The maximum logged speed for ''Cutty Sark'' was . Her greatest recorded distance in noon to noon sights was averaging , although she recorded in six days, which given the weather over the whole period implied she had achieved over some days. By comparison, ''Thermopylae''s best recorded 24-hour distance was . On another occasion she recorded in 11 days. ''Cutty Sark'' was considered to have the edge in a heavier wind, and ''Thermopylae'' in a lighter wind.


Name

The ship was named after Cutty-sark, the nickname of the witch Nannie Dee in
Robert Burns Robert Burns (25 January 1759 – 21 July 1796), also known familiarly as Rabbie Burns, was a Scottish poet and lyricist. He is widely regarded as the List of national poets, national poet of Scotland and is celebrated worldwide. He is the be ...
's 1791 poem '' Tam o' Shanter''. The ship's
figurehead In politics, a figurehead is a practice of who ''de jure'' (in name or by law) appears to hold an important and often supremely powerful title or office, yet '' de facto'' (in reality) exercises little to no actual power. This usually means that ...
, the original of which has been attributed to carver Fredrick Hellyer of Blackwall, is a stark white carving of a bare-breasted Nannie Dee with long black hair holding a grey horse's tail in her hand. In the poem she wore a
linen Linen () is a textile made from the fibers of the flax plant. Linen is very strong and absorbent, and it dries faster than cotton. Because of these properties, linen is comfortable to wear in hot weather and is valued for use in garments. Lin ...
( Scots: a short
chemise A chemise or shift is a classic smock type of women's undergarment or dress. Historically, a chemise was a simple garment worn next to the skin to protect clothing from sweat and body oils, the precursor to the modern shirts commonly worn in W ...
or
undergarment Underwear, underclothing, or undergarments are items of clothing worn beneath outer clothes, usually in direct contact with the skin, although they may comprise more than a single layer. They serve to keep outer clothing from being soiled ...
), that she had been given as a child, which explains why it was ''cutty'', or in other words far too short. The
erotic Eroticism () is a quality that causes sexual feelings, as well as a philosophical contemplation concerning the aesthetics of sexual desire, sensuality, and romantic love. That quality may be found in any form of artwork, including painting, sculp ...
sight of her dancing in such a short undergarment caused Tam to cry out " Weel done, Cutty-sark", which subsequently became a well-known
catchphrase A catchphrase (alternatively spelled catch phrase) is a phrase or expression recognized by its repeated utterance. Such phrases often originate in popular culture and in the arts, and typically spread through word of mouth and a variety of mass ...
. Originally, carvings by Hellyer of the other scantily clad witches followed behind the figurehead along the bow, but these were removed by Willis in deference to 'good taste'. Tam o' Shanter riding ''Meg'' was to be seen along the ship's quarter. The motto "''Where theres a will is a way''" was inscribed along the taffrail, with variable spaces enabling also the reading ''Where there(')s a Willis away''. ''The Tweed'', which acted as a model for much of the ship which followed her, had a figurehead depicting Tam o' Shanter.


History


First tea seasons

''Cutty Sark'' was destined for the
tea Tea is an aromatic beverage prepared by pouring hot or boiling water over cured or fresh leaves of '' Camellia sinensis'', an evergreen shrub native to East Asia which probably originated in the borderlands of south-western China and nor ...
trade, a seasonal trade of a high-value cargo from China to London. Though the "premium" or bonus paid to the ship that arrived with the first tea of the year was abandoned after the Great Tea Race of 1866, faster ships could usually obtain a higher price for transporting their cargoes than others. Her first roundtrip voyage under captain George Moodie began 16 February 1870 from London with a cargo of wine, spirits and beer bound for
Shanghai Shanghai, Shanghainese: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: is a direct-administered municipality and the most populous urban area in China. The city is located on the Chinese shoreline on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the ...
. The return journey, carrying of tea from Shanghai, began 25 June, arriving 13 October in London via the
Cape of Good Hope The Cape of Good Hope ( ) is a rocky headland on the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic coast of the Cape Peninsula in South Africa. A List of common misconceptions#Geography, common misconception is that the Cape of Good Hope is the southern tip of Afri ...
. ''Cutty Sark'' sailed in eight "tea seasons", from London to China and back.


Competition from steamers

''Cutty Sark''s launch coincided with the opening of the
Suez Canal The Suez Canal (; , ') is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, Indo-Mediterranean, connecting the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea through the Isthmus of Suez and dividing Africa and Asia (and by extension, the Sinai Peninsula from the rest ...
to shipping in 1869. Her first trip encountered significant competition with steamships. The route from the Far East to London (and many other European ports) through the Suez Canal was shorter by about , compared to sailing round the Cape of Good Hope. The route round Africa is in excess of . Typically a clipper might log significantly more than that by planning her route for favourable winds. Whilst it was possible for a sailing vessel to take a tug through the canal, this was difficult and expensive. Furthermore, sailing conditions in the northern
Red Sea The Red Sea is a sea inlet of the Indian Ocean, lying between Africa and Asia. Its connection to the ocean is in the south, through the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait and the Gulf of Aden. To its north lie the Sinai Peninsula, the Gulf of Aqaba, and th ...
were unsuited to the design of a tea clipper, so they still had to sail around Africa. The ability of a steamer to make, for example, continuously, versus the fastest clipper voyage averaging under over a longer distance, gave steamships not only a more predictable voyage time, but a substantially quicker one. Less obviously, steamship design had taken a large step forward in 1866 with ''Agamemnon'', using higher boiler pressure and a compound engine, so obtaining a large improvement in fuel efficiency. Ships of this type could compete with clippers before the Suez Canal opened. When the tea clippers arrived in China in 1870, they found a big increase in the number of steamers, which were in high demand. The rate of freight to London that was given to steamers was nearly twice that paid to the sailing ships. Additionally, the insurance premium for a cargo of tea in a steamer was substantially less than for a sailing vessel. So successful were the steamers using the Suez Canal that, in 1871, 45 were built in Clyde shipyards alone for Far Eastern trade. The numbers of tea clippers sailing to China each year steadily reduced, with many ships being sold and moving to general cargo work. Costs were kept to a minimum and rigs were often reduced to
barque A barque, barc, or bark is a type of sailing ship, sailing vessel with three or more mast (sailing), masts of which the fore mast, mainmast, and any additional masts are Square rig, rigged square, and only the aftmost mast (mizzen in three-maste ...
so that a smaller crew was needed.


''Thermopylae''

''Cutty Sark''s well-known race against ''
Thermopylae Thermopylae (; ; Ancient: , Katharevousa: ; ; "hot gates") is a narrow pass and modern town in Lamia (city), Lamia, Phthiotis, Greece. It derives its name from its Mineral spring, hot sulphur springs."Thermopylae" in: S. Hornblower & A. Spaw ...
'' took place in 1872, the two ships leaving
Shanghai Shanghai, Shanghainese: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: is a direct-administered municipality and the most populous urban area in China. The city is located on the Chinese shoreline on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the ...
together on 18 June. Both ships were of similar size: length, beam and depths were within of each other. The ''Thermopylae'' had a slightly larger capacity: 991 compared to 963 (GRT) or 948 compared to 921 (net). Two weeks later ''Cutty Sark'' had built up a lead of some , but then lost her rudder in a heavy gale after passing through the
Sunda Strait The Sunda Strait () is the strait between the Indonesian islands of Java island, Java and Sumatra. It connects the Java Sea with the Indian Ocean. Etymology The strait takes its name from the Sunda Kingdom, which ruled the western portion of Ja ...
. John Willis's brother was on board the ship and ordered Moodie to put into
Cape Town Cape Town is the legislature, legislative capital city, capital of South Africa. It is the country's oldest city and the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. Cape Town is the country's List of municipalities in South Africa, second-largest ...
for repairs. Moodie refused, and instead the ship's carpenter Henry Henderson constructed a new rudder from spare timbers and iron. This took six days, working in gales and heavy seas which meant the men were tossed about as they worked and the brazier used to heat the metal for working was spilled out, burning the captain's son. The ship finally arrived in London on 18 October a week after ''Thermopylae'', a total passage of 122 days. The captain and crew were commended for their performance and Henderson received a £50 bonus for his work. This was the closest ''Cutty Sark'' came to being first ship home but it was Moodie's last trip as her captain before he transferred to steamships. He was replaced by Captain F. W. Moore.


Later tea seasons

Moore remained captain only for one round trip to China, taking 117 days for the return trip. This was 14 days longer than ''Thermopylae'' and 27 days longer than achieved by the iron ship '' Hallowe'en'' a few months later. Captain W. E. Tiptaft assumed command in 1873 achieving 118 days on his first return trip, but after the ship had to travel up the
Yangtze River The Yangtze or Yangzi ( or ) is the longest river in Eurasia and the third-longest in the world. It rises at Jari Hill in the Tanggula Mountains of the Tibetan Plateau and flows including Dam Qu River the longest source of the Yangtze, i ...
in search of a cargo. Steamships were now taking most of the tea. The following year the return journey took 122 days. In November 1877 the ship was anchored off Deal in the
English Channel The English Channel, also known as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates Southern England from northern France. It links to the southern part of the North Sea by the Strait of Dover at its northeastern end. It is the busi ...
along with sixty other vessels, waiting out a great storm. The anchor failed to hold and ''Cutty Sark'' was blown through the ships, damaging two others before grounding on a mud bank. Fortunately she was pulled clear by the tug ''Macgregor'' before too much damage was caused and she was towed to the
Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after th ...
for repairs. In December 1877 the ship sailed from London to Sydney, where she took on coal for Shanghai, arriving there in April. However, the ship was unable to find any cargo of tea for a return trip to London—the days of the tea race were over. The master, Captain Tiptaft, died in October while still in Shanghai and was replaced by the first mate, James Wallace. The ship now had to take different cargoes around the world, including coal, jute, castor oil and tea to Australia. In 1880 yards were shortened and the stun'sails removed. Also in 1880 an incident occurred on board during which the First Mate Sidney Smith killed seaman John Francis. Smith was allowed to leave the ship at Anjer by Captain Wallace, causing the crew to cease work in protest. Wallace continued the voyage with six apprentices and four tradesmen but became becalmed in the
Java Sea The Java Sea (, ) is an extensive shallow sea on the Sunda Shelf, between the Indonesian islands of Borneo to the north, Java to the south, Sumatra to the west, and Sulawesi to the east. Karimata Strait to its northwest links it to the South Ch ...
for three days. In desperation as matters moved from bad to worse, he committed suicide by jumping overboard and disappeared. He was replaced as Master by William Bruce, who proved to be a drunken incompetent who claimed pay for non-existent crewmen and managed to set sail with inadequate provisions, resulting in the crew starving. An inquiry in New York in April 1882 resulted in the captain and mate being suspended and replaced by Captain Moore, previously of ''Blackadder''.


Wool trade

In December 1883, ''Cutty Sark'' departed
Newcastle Newcastle usually refers to: *Newcastle upon Tyne, a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England, United Kingdom *Newcastle-under-Lyme, a town in Staffordshire, England, United Kingdom *Newcastle, New South Wales, a metropolitan area ...
, New South Wales with 4,289 bales of wool and 12 casks of tallow, arriving in London in just 83 days. This was 25 days faster than her nearest rival that year and heralded the start of a new career taking Australian wool to Britain in time for the January wool sales. From 1885 to 1893, ''Cutty Sark'' was run between England and New South Wales under the agency of the Sydney-based Dangar, Gedye & Co. In 1885 Richard Woodget was appointed captain on a salary of £186 per year (£23,729.80 in 2019 when adjusted for inflation) and continued to improve on the fastest trip record, achieving 77 days on his first outward trip and 73 days returning to Britain from Australia. He achieved this by taking a more southerly route than previously, to catch the strongest winds in the
Roaring Forties The Roaring Forties are strong westerlies, westerly winds that occur in the Southern Hemisphere, generally between the latitudes of 40th parallel south, 40° and 50th parallel south, 50° south. The strong eastward air currents are caused by ...
despite having to face icebergs, gales and storms whipped up by the winds he sought. ''Cutty Sark'' was the fastest ship on the wool trade for ten years. In July 1889 the log of the modern passenger steamship recorded that when steaming at 15 to 16 knots she was overtaken in the night by a sailing ship doing 17 knots, which proved to be ''Cutty Sark''.


As ''Ferreira''

Eventually steamships began to dominate the wool trade too and it ceased to be profitable for a sailing ship. In 1895 Jock Willis sold ''Cutty Sark'' to the Portuguese firm Joaquim Antunes Ferreira for £1,250. She was renamed ''Ferreira'' after the firm. Her crews referred to her as ''Pequena Camisola'' (''little shirt'', a straight translation of the Scots ''cutty sark''). The ship traded various cargoes between Portugal, Rio de Janeiro, New Orleans, Mozambique, Angola, and Britain. In May 1916 she was dismasted off the
Cape of Good Hope The Cape of Good Hope ( ) is a rocky headland on the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic coast of the Cape Peninsula in South Africa. A List of common misconceptions#Geography, common misconception is that the Cape of Good Hope is the southern tip of Afri ...
because of the rolling of the ship in bad weather and had to be towed into
Table Bay Table Bay (Afrikaans: ''Tafelbaai'') is a natural bay on the Atlantic Ocean overlooked by Cape Town and is at the northern end of the Cape Peninsula, which stretches south to the Cape of Good Hope. It was named because it is dominated by the fl ...
off
Cape Town Cape Town is the legislature, legislative capital city, capital of South Africa. It is the country's oldest city and the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. Cape Town is the country's List of municipalities in South Africa, second-largest ...
. Because of World War I, it was impossible to obtain suitable materials to replace the masts so she was re-rigged over 18 months to a
barquentine A barquentine or schooner barque (alternatively "barkentine" or "schooner bark") is a sailing vessel with three or more masts; with a square rigged foremast and fore-and-aft rigged main, mizzen and any other masts. Modern barquentine sailing ...
sail arrangement. In 1922 ''Ferreira'' was the last clipper operating anywhere in the world. Caught in a storm in the
English Channel The English Channel, also known as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates Southern England from northern France. It links to the southern part of the North Sea by the Strait of Dover at its northeastern end. It is the busi ...
she put into Falmouth harbour where she was spotted by retired merchant navy captain Wilfred Dowman of Flushing, Cornwall, who was then operating the training ship ''Lady of Avenel''. The ship returned to Lisbon, where she was sold to new owners and renamed ''Maria do Amparo'' (Mary of the Refuge, a name associated with the devotion of Our Lady of the Refuge; in Portuguese, "''Nossa Senhora do Amparo''").


As cadet training ship

Dowman persevered in his determination to buy the ship, which he did for £3,750 and she was returned to Falmouth harbour. The purchase was made with the support of Dowman's wife, artist Catharine Dowman (), heiress daughter of Sydney Courtauld, crepe and silk manufacturer. The rigging was restored to an approximation of the original arrangement and the ship was used as a cadet training ship. In 1924 she was used as committee boat for the regatta week in Fowey during that years regatta week as recalled to me by Mr. Arthur (Toby) West. As a historic survivor, the ship was opened to the public and visitors would be rowed out to inspect her. Dowman died in 1936 and the ship was given by Catharine Dowman, his widow, along with £5,000 for maintenance, to the Incorporated Thames Nautical Training College, HMS ''Worcester'' at Greenhithe. She was towed to Greenhithe by tug. The ship was crewed by cadets, 15-year-old Robert Wyld steering the ship during the voyage. At Greenhithe, ''Cutty Sark'' acted as an auxiliary vessel to for sail training drill, but by 1950 she had become surplus to requirements. From February to October 1951 she was temporarily moved first for a refit and then to take part in the Festival of Britain at
Deptford Deptford is an area on the south bank of the River Thames in southeast London, in the Royal Borough of Greenwich and London Borough of Lewisham. It is named after a Ford (crossing), ford of the River Ravensbourne. From the mid 16th century ...
. On 30 January 1952, the 800-ton tanker collided with ''Cutty Sark''s bow in the Thames. The two ships were locked together after the collision which forced ''Cutty Sark''s jibboom into ''Worcester''s
forecastle The forecastle ( ; contracted as fo'c'sle or fo'c's'le) is the upper deck (ship), deck of a sailing ship forward of the foremast, or, historically, the forward part of a ship with the sailors' living quarters. Related to the latter meaning is t ...
rails, snapping the boom before scraping along ''Worcester''s starboard side. ''Cutty Sark''s figurehead lost an arm in the process. Worcester was a condemned hulk, sunk at her moorings at the time, photographs showing her lying on her starboard side with her starboard side near the shore. ''Cutty Sark'' was anchored and towed to the Shadwell Basin where repairs were carried out by Green & Silley Weir Ltd. The damaged arm was recovered at Grays Thurrock and the figurehead was repaired.


Museum ship

In 1953 ''Cutty Sark'' was given to the Cutty Sark Preservation Society and in 1954 she was moved to a custom-built dry dock at Greenwich.BBC Radio 4 News, 6 pm, 22 May 2007. She was stripped of upper masts, yards, deck-houses and ballast to lighten her before being towed from the East India Import Dock to the special dry dock at Greenwich. The skipper on this occasion was 83-year-old Captain C.E. Irving, who had sailed the world three times in her before he was 17. The river pilot was Ernest Coe. Thereafter the entrance tunnel to the dry dock was filled in, the river wall rebuilt and the work of re-rigging began. The foundation stone of the dry dock was laid by The Duke of Edinburgh, patron of the Cutty Sark Preservation Society, in June 1953. The restoration, re-rigging and preparation for public exhibition was estimated to cost £250,000. ''Cutty Sark'' was preserved as a
museum ship A museum ship, also called a memorial ship, is a ship that has been preserved and converted into a museum open to the public for educational or memorial purposes. Some are also used for training and recruitment purposes, mostly for the small numb ...
, and has since become a popular
tourist Tourism is travel for pleasure, and the commercial activity of providing and supporting such travel. UN Tourism defines tourism more generally, in terms which go "beyond the common perception of tourism as being limited to holiday activity on ...
attraction, and part of the National Historic Fleet. She is located near the centre of
Greenwich Greenwich ( , , ) is an List of areas of London, area in south-east London, England, within the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Greater London, east-south-east of Charing Cross. Greenwich is notable for its maritime hi ...
, in south-east London, close to the
National Maritime Museum The National Maritime Museum (NMM) is a maritime museum in Greenwich, London. It is part of Royal Museums Greenwich, a network of museums in the Maritime Greenwich World Heritage Site. Like other publicly funded national museums in the Unit ...
, the former Greenwich Hospital, and
Greenwich Park Greenwich Park is a former hunting park in Greenwich and one of the largest single green spaces in south-east London. One of the eight Royal Parks of London, and the first to be enclosed (in 1433), it covers , and is part of the Greenwich World H ...
. She is also a prominent landmark on the route of the
London Marathon The London Marathon (also known as the TCS London Marathon for sponsorship reasons) is an annual marathon held in London, England. Founded by athletes Chris Brasher and John Disley in 1981, it is typically held in April, although it moved to Oct ...
and marks the finish of The Big Half. She usually flies
signal flag Flag signals can mean any of various methods of using flags or pennants to send signals. Flags may have individual significance as signals, or two or more flags may be manipulated so that their relative positions convey symbols. Flag signals allo ...
s from her
ensign Ensign most often refers to: * Ensign (flag), a flag flown on a vessel to indicate nationality * Ensign (rank), a navy (and former army) officer rank Ensign or The Ensign may also refer to: Places * Ensign, Alberta, Alberta, Canada * Ensign, Ka ...
halyard In sailing, a halyard or halliard is a line (rope) that is used to hoist a ladder, sail, flag or yard. The term "halyard" derives from the Middle English ''halier'' ("rope to haul with"), with the last syllable altered by association with the E ...
reading "JKWS", which is the code representing ''Cutty Sark'' in the
International Code of Signals The International Code of Signals (INTERCO) is an international system of signals and codes for use by vessels to communicate important messages regarding safety of navigation and related matters. Signals can be sent by flaghoist, signal lamp ...
, introduced in 1857. The ship is in the care of the Cutty Sark Trust, whose president, the then
Duke of Edinburgh Duke of Edinburgh, named after the capital city of Scotland, Edinburgh, is a substantive title that has been created four times since 1726 for members of the British royal family. It does not include any territorial landholdings and does not pr ...
, was instrumental in ensuring her preservation, when he set up the Cutty Sark Society in 1951. The Trust replaced the Society in 2000. She is a Grade I listed monument and was on the Buildings at Risk Register following the 2007 fire. The gallery beneath the ship holds the world's largest collection of ships' figureheads, donated to the Society by Sydney Cumbers in 1953. Cutty Sark station on the
Docklands Light Railway The Docklands Light Railway (DLR) is an automated medium-capacity rail system, light metro system primarily serving the redeveloped London Docklands, Docklands area of London and providing a direct connection between London's two major financi ...
is one minute's walk away, with connections to central London and the
London Underground The London Underground (also known simply as the Underground or as the Tube) is a rapid transit system serving Greater London and some parts of the adjacent home counties of Buckinghamshire, Essex and Hertfordshire in England. The Undergro ...
. Greenwich Pier is next to the ship, and is served by scheduled river boats from
pier A pier is a raised structure that rises above a body of water and usually juts out from its shore, typically supported by piling, piles or column, pillars, and provides above-water access to offshore areas. Frequent pier uses include fishing, b ...
s in central London. A tourist information office stands to the east of the ship.


Conservation and fire

By the early 2000s, there were serious concerns about corrosion of the iron internal structure, and the hull was also becoming distorted because more weight was being carried on the
keel The keel is the bottom-most longitudinal structural element of a watercraft, important for stability. On some sailboats, it may have a fluid dynamics, hydrodynamic and counterbalancing purpose as well. The keel laying, laying of the keel is often ...
than if the ship was afloat, when it would be evenly supported over the whole area below the waterline. An extensive conservation project was planned to overcome this, including repair and anti-
corrosion Corrosion is a natural process that converts a refined metal into a more chemically stable oxide. It is the gradual deterioration of materials (usually a metal) by chemical or electrochemical reaction with their environment. Corrosion engine ...
painting of the framework, the addition of steel ribs to add strength, and a new method of supporting the ship. On the morning of 21 May 2007, ''Cutty Sark'', which had been closed and partly dismantled for conservation work, caught fire, and burned for several hours before the
London Fire Brigade The London Fire Brigade (LFB) is the Fire department, fire and rescue service for London, the capital of the United Kingdom. It was formed by the Metropolitan Fire Brigade Act 1865 (28 & 29 Vict. c. 90), under the leadership of superintendent ...
could bring the fire under control. Initial reports indicated that the damage was extensive, with most of the wooden structure in the centre having been lost. In an interview the next day, Richard Doughty, the chief executive of the Cutty Sark Trust, revealed that at least half of the "fabric" (timbers, etc.) of the ship had not been on site as it had been removed during the preservation work. Doughty stated that the trust was most worried about the state of iron framework to which the fabric was attached. He did not know how much more the ship would cost to restore, but estimated it at an additional £5–10 million, bringing the total cost of the ship's restoration to £30–35 million. In initial investigations, the possibility was covered that the fire might have been started deliberately. The fire was later found to have most likely been caused by an industrial vacuum cleaner which had been left running over the weekend, compounded by the absence of the overnight fire watchers. In a second incident on the morning of 19 October 2014, another fire broke out on the deck of the ''Cutty Sark''. A small part of deck three and the hull timbers were damaged in the blaze. The London Fire Brigade managed to contain the blaze within an hour and she was reopened to the public shortly after.


Damage

Aerial video footage showed extensive damage, but seemed to indicate that the ship had not been destroyed in her entirety by the 2007 fire. A fire officer present at the scene said in a BBC interview that when they arrived, there had been "a well-developed fire throughout the ship". The bow section looked to be relatively unscathed and the
stern The stern is the back or aft-most part of a ship or boat, technically defined as the area built up over the sternpost, extending upwards from the counter rail to the taffrail. The stern lies opposite the bow, the foremost part of a ship. O ...
also appeared to have survived without major damage; the fire seemed to have been concentrated in the centre of the ship. The chairman of Cutty Sark Enterprises said after inspecting the site: "The decks are unsalvageable but around 50% of the planking had already been removed; however, the damage is not as bad as originally expected." As part of the restoration work planned before the fire, it was proposed that the ship be raised , to allow the construction of a state-of-the-art museum space beneath. This would allow visitors to view her from below. There was criticism of the policies of the Cutty Sark Trust and its stance that the most important thing was to preserve as much as possible of the original fabric. Proponents of making her fit to go to sea advocated that the fire repairs be done in such a manner to enable her to do so. However, the state of the timbers, especially the keel, and the fact that a hole had been cut through the hull in the 1950s for an access door, made this difficult. The Cutty Sark Trust said that less than five percent of the original fabric was lost in the fire, as the decks which were destroyed were additions not present at the original building. The restoration work was criticised by The Victorian Society saying that the needs of the corporate hospitality market were put ahead of the preservation of the historic fabric of the ship. ''
Building Design Building design, also called architectural design, refers to the broadly based architectural, engineering and technical applications to the design of buildings. All building projects require the services of a building designer, typically a licen ...
'' magazine awarded the project its Carbuncle Cup for the worst new building completed in 2012 saying "The scheme's myriad failings stem from one calamitous choice: the decision to hoick the 144-year-old clipper close to three metres into the air on canted steel props."


Fundraising

The design for the renovation project by Grimshaw architects with, during design development stage, newly established Youmeheshe architects and
Buro Happold Buro Happold Limited (previously ''BuroHappold Engineering'') is a British professional services firm that provides engineering consultancy, design, planning, project management, and consulting services for buildings, infrastructure, and the env ...
engineers involved raising the ship out of her dry berth using a
Kevlar Kevlar (para-aramid) is a strong, heat-resistant synthetic fiber, related to other aramids such as Nomex and Technora. Developed by Stephanie Kwolek at DuPont in 1965, the high-strength material was first used commercially in the early 1970s as ...
web, allowing visitors to pass under the hull to view it. Unfortunately it was discovered that the proposed web would not follow the reverse curves of the ship's hull which would effectively mask the hull's shape from view. An alternate design for the support of the ship had to be developed; this involved installing a deep steel belt around the hull tied by diagonal steel members passing through the hold to a new steel-reinforced keel. Horizontal tubular steel struts passing through the hold brace the diagonals apart while many of the corroded original hull frames have been doubled. A new steelwork lower deck of contemporary design incorporating an amphitheatre feature was installed in the main hold while a glass-encased lift installed within the ship terminates in a new steel-and-glass housing structure on the weather deck. A second new steel-and-glass box has been installed above the forehold to enclose a new staircase. Access to the ship is through a new opening cut through the hull below the waterline in the ship's starboard quarter. The new access hole has required the addition of new steel framing. Visitors arriving on board the ship now do so via this entrance, which leads to the lower hold. Maldwin Drummond, Chairman of the Cutty Sark Trust, has explained in ''Classic Boat'' magazine's September 2010 issue the need to retain the spirit of the ship and he quotes the ideal that "The visitor should see the ship as though for some unexplained reason the crew had gone ashore". Doubts over the wisdom of Grimshaw's proposals have been raised by many ship conservationists including the Cutty Sark Trust's own engineer Peter Mason. The project was costed at £25 million when it commenced in 2006 with £11.75 million of this total being provided by a grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund. Oscar-winning film producer
Jerry Bruckheimer Jerome Leonard Bruckheimer (born September 21, 1943) is an American film and television producer. He has been active in the genres of action, drama, comedy, fantasy, horror and science fiction. After working in advertising out of college, Bruck ...
aided in the repair and restoration of ''Cutty Sark''. A collection of photos taken by Bruckheimer went on display in London in November 2007 to help raise money for the Cutty Sark Conservation Project. The exhibition featured more than thirty pictures taken on set during the filming of '' Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End''. In January 2008, the
Heritage Lottery Fund The National Lottery Heritage Fund, formerly the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF), distributes a share of National Lottery funding, supporting a wide range of heritage projects across the United Kingdom. History The fund's predecessor bodies were ...
awarded the Cutty Sark Trust another £10 million towards the restoration of the ship, meaning that the Trust had now achieved £30 million of the £35 million needed for the completion of the project. In June 2008, Israeli shipping magnate Sammy Ofer donated the outstanding £3.3 million needed to fully restore the ship although by January 2009 the ''London Evening Standard'' reported that the cost had risen further to £40 million creating a new shortfall. In February 2010, ''The Daily Telegraph'' reported the project cost had risen to £46 million with public money now being made available by London Borough of Greenwich to fill the funding gap.


Investigation conclusion

On 30 September 2008, the
London Fire Brigade The London Fire Brigade (LFB) is the Fire department, fire and rescue service for London, the capital of the United Kingdom. It was formed by the Metropolitan Fire Brigade Act 1865 (28 & 29 Vict. c. 90), under the leadership of superintendent ...
announced the conclusion of the investigation into the fire at a press conference at
New Scotland Yard Scotland Yard (officially New Scotland Yard) is the headquarters of the Metropolitan Police, the territorial police force responsible for policing Greater London's London boroughs, 32 boroughs. Its name derives from the location of the original ...
. The painstaking investigation was conducted by the Fire Brigade, along with London's Metropolitan Police Service, Forensic Science Services, and electrical examination experts Dr. Burgoyne's & Partners. They said that the most likely cause was the failure of an industrial vacuum cleaner that may have been left switched on over the weekend before the fire started. The report revealed no evidence that the ship was subjected to arson attack and concluded that the fire started accidentally. Physical evidence and CCTV footage of the fire showed that it probably started towards the stern of the ship on the lower deck. All electrical equipment on board was examined and it was determined that an industrial vacuum cleaner in this area was normally running continuously to suck up dust and particles from work going on to break up concrete within the ship. No one working on the ship had responsibility to ensure all equipment was turned off at the end of each day, and no one recalled switching off the equipment on the Friday in question. The vacuum cleaner has three motors inside and after the fire one was found to be burned out in a manner which suggested it had failed while operating. This was not conclusive evidence, however, because the motor might previously have failed in service without causing a fire, and gone unnoticed because the other two motors had continued to function. Tests on similar cleaners showed they had no thermal cutout devices and while they could run safely indefinitely if filters inside were clear, if the airflow through the cleaner was blocked then it would eventually overheat and could catch fire. This might occur if the cleaner were full of dust and debris. The cleaner had failed previously and two motors had been replaced. On the basis of witness evidence, the joint investigation team considered it unlikely that the fire was caused by the hot work (welding) that was being carried out as part of the renovation or by carelessly discarded smokers' materials. No one had visited this part of the ship since work stopped on Friday evening, and it was considered unlikely that a fire could have smouldered all weekend before finally breaking out Monday morning. However, it was discovered that although all hot work was supposed to be recorded and someone was supposed to check afterwards to ensure of no fires, there was no record that such checks had ever been made, and on at least one occasion hot work had been conducted with no records made. The ship was patrolled by two security guards, both of whom were supposed to patrol independently at least once an hour, or once every two hours later in the night, one being primarily responsible for the visitor pavilion and one for the dock. The guards were required to keep a log of their patrols, but after the fire the relevant page was found to be missing from the book. It was later found, already filled in reporting uneventful patrols of the site up to 7 a.m. when the guards would have gone off duty. The alarm was raised when one of the guards called the fire brigade; before this the two reported that they had smelled burning plastic and had been investigating to try to determine its source. A carpenter had visited the site on Sunday to collect some tools, but after 20 minutes attempting to contact a security guard to let him in, had climbed the fence, collected his tools and climbed out again. The carpenter reported that he had heard machinery operating towards the stern of the ship, but it was not clear whether this might have been the site diesel generator which ran at all times. The ship was fitted with a temporary fire alarm system but it was unclear whether this had operated. A separate alarm within the pavilion did sound when smoke and heat reached that area, but the guards reported no ringing alarm before the fire was seen. Investigation afterwards discovered a faulty relay in the alarm panel which failed to switch power to the siren circuits when an alarm was triggered. However, the panel also contained a failed fuse in one siren circuit which suggested that the siren had activated but the fire shorted it out, and this might have also caused the relay to fail. The failed relay would have shut off power to the second siren circuit. Statements from workers suggested that weekly tests of the alarm system had not been carried out.


Mast specifications

The original mast specifications as laid down by the ship's designer still exist and are listed below as "tea rig". This arrangement was used during the ship's time on the tea trade route, where it was necessary to maximise the area of sail to get the greatest possible propulsion when the ship might be becalmed in the doldrums. For the route to Australia it was not necessary to carry such a large area of sail and the masts and yards were reduced. The tradewinds required great strength in masts, but the wind could best be captured by relatively small, high sails. A smaller rig also represented a saving in maintenance and operation costs. Each of the three masts (fore, main and mizzen) is in three overlapping sections.


See also

* "Cutty Sark" * ''Falls of Clyde'' * ''
Gipsy Moth IV ''Gipsy Moth IV'' is a ketch that Francis Chichester, Sir Francis Chichester commissioned specifically to sail single-handed around the globe, racing against the times set by the clipper ships of the 19th century. Gipsy Moth IV was the first ...
'' *
List of clipper ships The period of clipper ships lasted from the early 1840s to the early 1890s, and over time features such as the Hull (watercraft), hull evolved from wooden to composite ship, composite. At the 'crest of the clipper wave' year of 1852, there were ...
* List of large sailing vessels *
List of ships built by William Denny and Brothers This is a list of ships built by William Denny and Brothers, Dumbarton, Scotland. Ships Footnotes {{reflist See also

*Scottish Built Ships database Ships built in Scotland, Denny Lists of ships by shipyard, William Denny and Brothers ...
* '' Star of India'' * '' The Cowboy Captain of the Cutty Sark'' * William Pile


Notes


References


Bibliography

* * *


External links


Official site
*


HNSA Web Page: ''Cutty Sark''

Belarusian memorial coins with ''Cutty Sark'' on reverse side

Views of the restoration, including frame
{{Authority control 1869 ships 2000s fires in the United Kingdom 2007 disasters in the United Kingdom 2007 fires in Europe 2007 in London Tea clippers Ships built on the River Clyde Fires in London Grade I listed buildings in the Royal Borough of Greenwich Grade I listed ships Structures formerly on the Heritage at Risk register Ships and vessels of the National Historic Fleet Museum ships in the United Kingdom Robert Burns Individual sailing vessels Ships of Scotland Tall ships of the United Kingdom Museums in the Royal Borough of Greenwich Full-rigged ships Merchant ships of the United Kingdom Maritime incidents in November 1877 World War I merchant ships of the United Kingdom World War I merchant ships of Portugal Maritime incidents in 1952 Tall ships of Portugal Ship fires Sailing ships of the United Kingdom Maritime incidents in 2007 Burned buildings and structures in the United Kingdom Building and structure fires during construction or renovation