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Portsmouth Historic Dockyard is an area of HM Naval Base Portsmouth which is open to the public; it contains several historic buildings and ships. It is managed by the
National Museum of the Royal Navy The National Museum of the Royal Navy was created in early 2009 to act as a single non-departmental public body for the museums of the Royal Navy. With venues across the United Kingdom, the museums detail the history of the Royal Navy operating o ...
as an
umbrella organization An umbrella organization is an association of (often related, industry-specific) institutions who work together formally to coordinate activities and/or pool resources. In business, political, and other environments, it provides resources and ofte ...
representing five charities: the Portsmouth Naval Base Property Trust, the
National Museum of the Royal Navy, Portsmouth The National Museum of the Royal Navy, Portsmouth, formerly known as the Royal Naval Museum, is a museum of the history of the Royal Navy located in the Portsmouth Historic Dockyard section of HMNB Portsmouth, Portsmouth, Hampshire, England. The ...
, the
Mary Rose Trust 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 ...
, the ''Warrior'' Preservation Trust Ltd and the HMS ''Victory'' Preservation Company. Portsmouth Historic Dockyard Ltd was created to promote and manage the tourism element of the
Royal Navy Dockyard Royal Navy Dockyards (more usually termed Royal Dockyards) were state-owned harbour facilities where ships of the Royal Navy were built, based, repaired and refitted. Until the mid-19th century the Royal Dockyards were the largest industrial c ...
, with the relevant trusts maintaining and interpreting their own attractions. It also promotes other nearby navy-related tourist attractions.


History

The
National Museum of the Royal Navy The National Museum of the Royal Navy was created in early 2009 to act as a single non-departmental public body for the museums of the Royal Navy. With venues across the United Kingdom, the museums detail the history of the Royal Navy operating o ...
was first opened in Portsmouth in 1911. It changed its name to the National Museum of the Royal Navy, Portsmouth to reflect its expanded responsibilities over the
Royal Marines Museum The Royal Marines Museum is a museum on the history of the Royal Marines from their beginnings in 1664 through to the present day. A registered charity, it is also a designated service museum under the terms of the National Heritage Act 1 ...
, the
Royal Navy Submarine Museum The Royal Navy Submarine Museum at Gosport is a maritime museum tracing the international history of submarine development from the age of Alexander the Great to the present day, and particularly the history of the Royal Navy Submarine Service ...
, the
Fleet Air Arm Museum The Fleet Air Arm Museum is devoted to the history of British naval aviation. It has an extensive collection of military and civilian aircraft, aero engines, models of aircraft and Royal Navy ships (especially aircraft carriers), and paintin ...
and
Explosion! Museum of Naval Firepower Explosion! is the Museum of Naval Firepower situated in the former Royal Naval Armaments Depot at Priddy's Hard, in Gosport, Hampshire, England. It now forms part of the National Museum of the Royal Navy. The museum includes a wide variety of e ...
.


Attractions

The following ships and historic vessels are displayed at the dockyard: * , the flagship of Horatio Nelson at the Battle of Trafalgar. She has been open to the public for nearly 200 years, and has been in her current dry dock since 1922. * HMS ''Warrior'', the world's first armour-plated, iron-hulled warship when she was launched in 1860. She was opened to the public in 1987. * , a
First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
monitor Monitor or monitor may refer to: Places * Monitor, Alberta * Monitor, Indiana, town in the United States * Monitor, Kentucky * Monitor, Oregon, unincorporated community in the United States * Monitor, Washington * Monitor, Logan County, West ...
. She was opened to the public on 7 August 2015. * The remains of the ''
Mary Rose The ''Mary Rose'' (launched 1511) is a carrack-type warship of the English Tudor navy of King Henry VIII. She served for 33 years in several wars against France, Scotland, and Brittany. After being substantially rebuilt in 1536, she saw her ...
'', a warship of the
Tudor navy The Tudor navy was the navy of the Kingdom of England under the ruling Tudor dynasty (1485–1603). The period involved important and critical changes that led to the establishment of a permanent navy and laid the foundations for the future Ro ...
, which sank in 1545 and was salvaged in 1982. One-third of the hull survives and has been on display in a museum since May 2013. From 1983 to 2009, the ship was displayed in a temporary structure on the same site. The museum also displays thousands of artefacts recovered from the shipwreck. * HM ''Coastal Boat 4'', a
First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
torpedo boat A torpedo boat is a relatively small and fast naval ship designed to carry torpedoes into battle. The first designs were steam-powered craft dedicated to ramming enemy ships with explosive spar torpedoes. Later evolutions launched variants of ...
. HM Coastal Motor Boat 4 is the torpedo boat used when Lieutenant
Augustus Agar Commodore Augustus Willington Shelton Agar, (4 January 1890 – 30 December 1968) was a Royal Navy officer in both the First and the Second World Wars. He was a recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest award for gallantry in the face of th ...
earned a Victoria Cross for carrying out a raid on Soviet warships in
Kronstadt Kronstadt (russian: Кроншта́дт, Kronshtadt ), also spelled Kronshtadt, Cronstadt or Kronštádt (from german: link=no, Krone for " crown" and ''Stadt'' for "city") is a Russian port city in Kronshtadtsky District of the federal city ...
and sinking the cruiser ''Oleg''. The
National Museum of the Royal Navy The National Museum of the Royal Navy was created in early 2009 to act as a single non-departmental public body for the museums of the Royal Navy. With venues across the United Kingdom, the museums detail the history of the Royal Navy operating o ...
is host to many original Naval artefacts, including one of the original sails from the
Battle of Trafalgar The Battle of Trafalgar (21 October 1805) was a naval engagement between the British Royal Navy and the combined fleets of the French and Spanish Navies during the War of the Third Coalition (August–December 1805) of the Napoleonic Wars (180 ...
in 1805. The Trafalgar Experience is an interactive walk-through gallery detailing the Battle of Trafalgar, ending with a panorama painted by
William Lionel Wyllie William Lionel Wyllie (5 July 1851 – 6 April 1931) also known as W. L. Wyllie was a prolific English painter of maritime themes in both oils and watercolours. He has been described as "the most distinguished marine artist of his day." ...
. Portsmouth Naval Base Property Trust (the "Trust") is responsible for the maintenance and the upkeep of all historic buildings within the heritage footprint of the Historic Dockyard, and operates an ongoing programme of conservation. In addition, The Trust founded the Memorial Flotilla, the finest collection of small boats involved in late 19th and 20th century conflicts, as well as the International Boatbuilding Training College (IBTC), in Boathouse 4, where traditional boat building skills are taught. A large volunteer force is engaged on the restoration and operation of the Trust’s historic collection of boats. The Trust is also managing the regeneration of the 30 acre site at
Priddy's Hard Priddy's Hard is a former military installation in Gosport, England. The site originated as a 1750s fort, and then became an armaments depot for Royal Navy and British Army weapons, explosives and other stores. The site was decommissioned in 19 ...
, Gosport. The first development phase is due for completion in the summer of 2021, with the restoration of the ramparts and seven listed buildings, to include a new Coastal Forces Museum, micro-brewery, pub restaurant and holiday let. Thirty new homes will also be built this year with a further major development phase to follow in the near future.


References


External links

* {{Coord, 50.801, -1.110, type:landmark_region:GB, display=title Naval museums in England