£21 million Heritage Lottery Fund win for Mary Rose
The world's oldest surviving warship, the 16th-century Mary Rose, has been awarded a Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) grant of £21 million*. This huge injection of Lottery money will help the Mary Rose Trust complete its long-term vision of bringing the Mary Rose and its thousands of rare treasures under one museum roof for the first time.
In a highly competitive round of funding for major projects over £5 million – nearly five times over-subscribed – the Mary Rose Trust's plans won the day.
Dame Liz Forgan, Chair of the HLF, commented:
The Mary Rose is an amazing time-capsule and one of our most precious heritage icons. Many of us remember the moment when the ship was found and subsequently raised from the Solent's sea bed. Since then, more than seven million have come to marvel at it and learn more about its fascinating history. This major Heritage Lottery Fund investment will help convert years of painstaking archaeological endeavour into an amazing living history experience.
This was an unusually competitive round which reflects current high levels of demand across our business, as we enter a period in which we anticipate having considerably less money to give out. Unfortunately we had to take some tough decisions meaning disappointment for other worthy applicants.
The final journey
The purpose-built museum at Portsmouth Historic Dockyard will bring together the ship and its wonderful array of Tudor artefacts which are currently housed in separate buildings. The final part of the conservation of the ancient hull – a drying-out process which will see the ship lose a third of its weight in water – will also be undertaken. This will be the conclusion of a 26-year journey to preserve the remains of the warship, which began dramatically in 1982 when it was raised from the Solent.
Over 19,000 artefacts were recovered with the ship ranging from clothes, bows and arrows, plum stones and pig bones (which have subsequently helped DNA studies). Currently less than 6% of these objects are on display due to a lack of space at the Mary Rose Museum. However, once completed, the museum will enable many more items (70%) from the Trust's collection to be viewed, giving a unique snapshot of life at sea in the 16th century.
John Lippiett, CEO of the Mary Rose Trust, said:
The Trust is thrilled to receive news of this wonderful Heritage Lottery Fund support, which paves the way to complete the long conservation process and display the majority of amazing artefacts in a magnificent museum. The learning facilities will be world class and able to meet the huge demand placed upon them by school children and students. A further bonus will be our ability to take the Mary Rose collection out into the community with our outreach programmes.
David Starkey, Historian and Broadcaster, added:
The Mary Rose is one of the most important objects in English History. It's up there with the Domesday Book, the Magna Carta and Hampton Court. Indeed I would go further. The Mary Rose is the English Pompeii or Herculaneum; all Tudor life is there.
Lifeline for Cutty Sark
A £10 million grant increase** application from the Cutty Sark Trust to cover additional costs following the fire and subsequent suspension of conservation work to Cutty Sark last May was also approved as an exceptional addition to the budget for this meeting. This time-critical decision means that this exciting but technically complex project can re-start again as planned in February.
Other decisions taken by HLF's board
HLF's board of trustees also looked at the following applications but were unable to support them:
- Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery 20 Year Plan Phase 2, Birmingham History Galleries – grant request: £9.3 million
- Lowther Castle and Gardens, Penrith – grant request: £15 million
- National Art Collections Centre, Tate in partnership with the National Portrait Gallery, London – grant request: £9.9 million
- Project Dalton, Museum of Science and Industry, Manchester – grant request: £15.57 million
- Thinktank: Science for all Seasons, Birmingham – grant request: £8.75 million
- 'Welcome to Kensington - a Palace for Everyone', Historic Royal Palaces , London – grant request: £9 million
- Ends -
Notes to Editors
- *A 'Stage One Pass' means that money has been earmarked by HLF for the project in question. Competition at this stage is tough, and while a Stage One Pass does not guarantee funding, it is an indication of positive support, and money for the scheme is set aside. The applicant can then progress to Stage Two and submit a further, fully developed application to secure the full grant. On occasion, at Stage One, funding will also be awarded towards the development of the scheme.
- **HLF awarded a grant of £11.75 million for the restoration of Cutty Sark in September 2006. This money was to help secure the 137-year-old ship's future through an urgent and highly innovative conservation project which would have seen the vessel being lifted three metres above her current position allowing visitors to walk right under the uniquely-shaped hull.
- The Mary Rose was built for Henry VIII between 1509 and 1511 and was one of the first ships able to feature gun ports for firing a broadside. After a long and successful career, she sank accidentally during an engagement with the French fleet and in front of Henry VIII in 1545. Her rediscovery in 1965 and raising onto dry land in 1982 were iconic and well-documented episodes in the UK's history.
- Available pictures include: a 16th-century image of the Mary Rose; the raising of the ship in 1982; and architectural drawings of the new museum by Wilkinson Eyre.
- HLF has invested £94 million into the UK's historic ships, large and small. These include: HMS Cavalier in Chatham; HMS Warrior in Portsmouth; the Medway Queen (one of the Dunkirk 'Little Ships') in Kent; the Swan, a small fishing boat in Fife Scotland; HMS Gannet in Chatham; and HMS Trincomalee in Hartlepool. The SS Great Britain in Bristol won the 2006 Gulbenkian Prize for excellence and innovation in museums and galleries. Its restoration work was made possible thanks to an £8.6 million HLF grant.
- HLF enables communities to celebrate, look after and learn more about our diverse heritage. From our great museums and historic buildings to local parks and beauty spots or recording and celebrating traditions, customs and history, HLF grants open up our nation's heritage for everyone to enjoy. They have supported more than 26,000 projects, allocating over £4 billion across the UK. Website: www.hlf.org.uk.
Further information
- For the Heritage Lottery Fund, please contact Katie Owen or Alex Gaskell, HLF Press Office, on tel: 020 7591 6036/6032 mobile: 07973 613820.
- For the Mary Rose Trust, please call Jacquie Shaw, PR Manager, on tel: 023 9289 4557 or mobile: 07775 837912.
- For the Cutty Sark Trust, please call Kathryn Hughes, tel: 0203 2491072 or mobile: 07801 823839
Links
- View record for Mary Rose in the National Register of Historic Vessels
- See previous press release: Where were you the day the Mary Rose was raised? (October 2007)