The Raw Material

Two centuries ago, Norfolk-born Horatio Nelson earned his place in history with his victory and defeat of the combined French and Spanish fleet at The Cape of Trafalgar. HMS Victory, his flagship, must surely be the most famous and romantic ship of all time. You cannot think of Victory without thinking of Nelson and you cannot think of Nelson without thinking of Victory.

Now legendary as the World’s oldest commissioned warship, she resides in dry dock at the Royal Dockyard in Portsmouth. After her glorious achievement at Trafalgar, HMS Victory was used in the capacity of a store ship and then as a guard ship before the decision was reached in1905 to preserve her for the country. However due to the outbreak of World War I, she was forced to wait until 1922 to be taken into dry dock where, in order to restore her to her Trafalgar configuration and to preserve her structure, it become necessary to remove material and lighten her load.

Most of the materials have been reused for her ongoing restoration - however over thirty tons of timber and ten tons of copper were not suitable for repair and this precious material was stored in Portsmouth dockyard - until its recent release by the M.O.D a few years ago.

Each piece of work in the HMS Victory Oak Collection carries a certificate of authenticity.