In 1682, King James II of England, then Duke of York, managed to escape the sinking of a ship called The Gloucester, which sank off the east coast of England after crashing into a sandy beach. . He became King of England and King James VII of Scotland three years later. “The discovery promises to radically change the understanding of 17th-century social, maritime and political history,” said Claire Jowitt, a professor of early modern cultural history at the University of East Anglia. “It is an excellent example of an underwater cultural heritage of national and international importance.” A glass seal with the emblem of the Legge family, ancestors of the first US president, George Washington, appears after the recovery from the wreck of The Gloucester. (Norfolk Historic Shipwrecks / Reuters) Its final location, about 45 miles off the coast of Great Yarmouth, was a mystery until it was discovered by diving brothers Julian and Lincoln Barnwell in 2007, after four years of research. “As I was descending to the seabed, the first thing I noticed was a large cannon lying on white sand – it was impressive and really beautiful,” said Lincoln Barnwell. In this undated photo provided by the University of East Anglia, brothers Julian and Lincoln Barnwell look at the objects they found in the wreck. HMS Gloucester ran aground while navigating off the coast of Great Yarmouth on the east coast of England. (University of East Anglia / The Associated Press) The wreck revealed several historical artifacts, including a bottle bearing a glass seal with the Legge family’s emblem – the ancestors of the first US president, George Washington. “Because the ship sank so fast, no one would have saved anything,” Jowitt said, describing it as “a fantastic time capsule.” Other items include navigation equipment, personal items, clothes and wine bottles, some with their contents intact. The university estimated that between 130 and 250 people may have died in the incident, which it said threatened to change the course of history. Six years after the sinking, Catholic James II was ousted by Protestant William of Orange in the “Glorious Revolution” of 1688, paving the way for a future constitutional monarchy in Britain. This undated photograph provided by the Royal Museums shows The Wreck of the Gloucester off Yarmouth on May 6, 1682, a work by Johan Danckerts. (Royal Museums / The Associated Press)


title: “Sinking British Royal Warship Revealed 340 Years After Deadly Shipwreck " ShowToc: true date: “2022-11-28” author: “Henry Weathers”


In 1682, King James II of England, then Duke of York, managed to escape the sinking of a ship called The Gloucester, which sank off the east coast of England after crashing into a sandy beach. . He became King of England and King James VII of Scotland three years later. “The discovery promises to radically change the understanding of 17th-century social, maritime and political history,” said Claire Jowitt, a professor of early modern cultural history at the University of East Anglia. “It is an excellent example of an underwater cultural heritage of national and international importance.” A glass seal with the emblem of the Legge family, ancestors of the first US president, George Washington, appears after the recovery from the wreck of The Gloucester. (Norfolk Historic Shipwrecks / Reuters) Its final location, about 45 miles off the coast of Great Yarmouth, was a mystery until it was discovered by diving brothers Julian and Lincoln Barnwell in 2007, after four years of research. “As I was descending to the seabed, the first thing I noticed was a large cannon lying on white sand – it was impressive and really beautiful,” said Lincoln Barnwell. In this undated photo provided by the University of East Anglia, brothers Julian and Lincoln Barnwell look at the objects they found in the wreck. HMS Gloucester ran aground while navigating off the coast of Great Yarmouth on the east coast of England. (University of East Anglia / The Associated Press) The wreck revealed several historical artifacts, including a bottle bearing a glass seal with the Legge family’s emblem – the ancestors of the first US president, George Washington. “Because the ship sank so fast, no one would have saved anything,” Jowitt said, describing it as “a fantastic time capsule.” Other items include navigation equipment, personal items, clothes and wine bottles, some with their contents intact. The university estimated that between 130 and 250 people may have died in the incident, which it said threatened to change the course of history. Six years after the sinking, Catholic James II was ousted by Protestant William of Orange in the “Glorious Revolution” of 1688, paving the way for a future constitutional monarchy in Britain. This undated photograph provided by the Royal Museums shows The Wreck of the Gloucester off Yarmouth on May 6, 1682, a work by Johan Danckerts. (Royal Museums / The Associated Press)