Thread by @MaryRoseMuseum

Ah, the story of the Mary Rose, where do we begin?

No, really, where do we begin?

#OnceUponAtimeMW

Does the story begin in 1509, when a young ambitious prince becomes king, and decides that one of his first acts will be to increase the number of ships in his late father's 'Army by Sea'?
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Does it begin in 1511, when one of those ships, The Mary Rose, sets sail from Portsmouth to get fitted out with guns in London?

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Or in 1512, when Admiral Edward Howard takes the Mary Rose as his flagship, and sets off to defend England from whatever dangers await in the English Channel?

Does the story start in 1545, when the Mary Rose, after a long career of battling, refits, escort duties and patrolling the channel, sinks during a standoff with a French invasion fleet during the Battle of the Solent?

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Does the story start later that year, when divers try and recover the Mary Rose?

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maryrose.org/recovery-1545

Or maybe in 1836, when fishermen catch their nets on a structure on the seabed, and investigating divers find the remains of a Tudor warship, sparking a wave of Mary Rose mania?

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maryrose.org/salvage-1836

Does the story start in the 1920s-30s, when a young Alexander McKee hears stories of a ship, lost beneath the waters of the Solent, and dreams that it might still be down there?

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Or in 1965, when McKee, having joined @BSACdivers, convinces some of his colleagues to join him on a 'fool's errand', searching for a wreck that most people 'knew' was destroyed over a century ago?

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Does the story begin in 1970, when during a dive, this Tudor iron gun was discovered, giving the team a better idea of where to search?

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Or is it in 1971, when the first three timbers were found on the seabed, showing that the Mary Rose survived?

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Does the story begin when the Mary Rose was raised in 1982, seen by 60 million people worldwide (and causing an epidemic of skiving off school and work)?
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Or when the ship first went on display to the public in 1983?
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How about in 1984, when the Mary Rose Museum first opened its doors?

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Or in 2013, when the current museum opened, reuniting the ship with her objects?

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Or how about 2016, when the walls were replaced with glass, allowing for amazing views of the Mary Rose for the first time in decades, if not centuries?

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Of course, the real start of the story is when you first discover the Mary Rose.

When was your first time?

#BluePeter #SchoolTrip #Diving #OnceUponATimeMW @MuseumWeek