340-Year-Old Gloucester Warship Discovery Described As Most Important Maritime Find Since Mary Rose

The discovery of a shipwrecked warship that sank while carrying a future king has been hailed the most important maritime find since the Mary Rose.

The Gloucester ran aground off the coast of Great Yarmouth, Norfolk, in 1682, nearly killing the Duke of York, who became King James II of England.

The find, which was discovered by divers in 2007, has only just been revealed due to security reasons.

Maritime expert Prof Claire Jowitt said it was of “international importance”.

The Gloucester’s exact whereabouts were a mystery until it was discovered 15 years ago half-buried in the seabed 28 miles (45km) out to sea, having sunk while navigating treacherous sandbanks.

The disaster, in which hundreds of passengers and crew died, threatened to change the course of history.

However, the then Duke of York fled the sinking ship with moments to spare and went on to become the Catholic heir to the Protestant throne in an era marked by religious and political unrest.

Diarist and naval administrator Samuel Pepys witnessed the Gloucester’s sinking
Prof Jowitt, an authority on maritime cultural history and based at Norwich’s University of East Anglia (UEA), said: “Because of the circumstances of its sinking, this can be claimed as the single most significant historic maritime discovery since the raising of the Mary Rose in 1982.

“The discovery promises to fundamentally change understanding of 17th Century social, maritime and political history.

“It is an outstanding example of underwater cultural heritage of national and international importance… the full story of the Gloucester’s last voyage and the impact of its aftermath needs re-telling.”