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-Short Attention Span Theater-

RN may hand over HMS Victory to charity

2008-09-15

The Royal Navy may hand over HMS Victory, Nelson's flagship on which he met his death at the Battle of Trafalgar, to a charity or a government department.

Sorta like handing over the USS Constitution ...

They are among options being considered to take over the cost of £1.5 million a year to run the world's only 18th-century "ship of the line" -- one that took a direct part in sea battles. Some 500,000 people a year visit the vessel in dry dock at Portsmouth.

The range of options that the Ministry of Defence is putting out for consultation are leaving the Victory with the Navy, public ownership by another government department or public body, setting up a new charity for the ship or using an existing one.

Baroness Taylor of Bolton, a Defence minister, said that the ship needed "extensive works" to ensure its preservation for generations to come. Vice-Admiral Alan Massey, the Second Sea Lord, said that the Victory was "a vital part of our heritage" and that the MoD was committed to securing her future.

Posted by:Nimble Spemble

#12 Nelson would weep to see the British Navy brought so low.

Posted by: DarthVader 2008-09-15 17:49

#11 Why not just charge 3-5 euro per person to get on the the boat and see it? If it gets 500,000 visitors a year then surely a small charge to a person will then cover the cost.

Posted by: Charles 2008-09-15 17:46

#10 Was it Lord Nelson who said "The wogs begin at Calais"?

Posted by: mojo 2008-09-15 14:34

#9 I was at Waterloo several thousand years ago. From the content of the souvenir shops one could come away with the impression that the Frenchies won that one.

Posted by: Fred 2008-09-15 12:25

#8 I love Mojo's suggestion!

Posted by: Yosemite Sam 2008-09-15 11:52

#7 Increase the price for people to see it, ever so slightly.

Sell some merchandise that people might want to buy. Nelson caps and foam swords come to mind. I was just at HMS VIctory a couple of months ago and it's wonderful, but the Victory was not very well merchandized, perhaps they think the idea is garish but tourists want to have something to go away with. Memories and all. If you wanted King Henry IIX stuff it was there in spades but not so much the NElson stuff.

Posted by: rjschwarz 2008-09-15 11:17

#6 Buy it, and put it right next to Old Ironsides.

Posted by: mojo 2008-09-15 10:55

#5 So true, Shieldwolf. There's a reason it's called the Royal Navy unlike the British Army which isn't Royal. But the Royal Family is now purely hired, and well paid, celebrities for the masses. Perhaps a Cromwell...

Posted by: Nimble Spemble 2008-09-15 07:53

#4 MOD's having difficulty kitting out soldiers in theater. I doubt they are insensitive to the value of the ship. The real question is whether the rest of the UK is.

Posted by: lotp 2008-09-15 07:23

#3 You know, the British Royal family pays NO taxes and is worth several BILLION dollars - one would think that they should take over this public trust and make it a shining example of their allegiance the British people and their history.

Posted by: Shieldwolf 2008-09-15 02:04

#2 About time for the Lady of the Lake to give the sword Excalibur to some deserving, if bloody minded, SAS Captain, who has little hesitation about purging England of its pestilence.

Posted by: Anonymoose 2008-09-15 00:46

#1 No need to preserve anything that thye might be proud of since they've already surrendered to Sharia law.

Posted by: Mike N. 2008-09-15 00:22

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