HMS Caroline

Members of the Edinburgh team visited HMS Caroline, the last survivor of the iconic Battle of Jutland (1916), at her mooring at Alexandra Dock, Belfast in early February, following her return from dry docking at Harland & Wolff. Caroline, part of the collection of historic ships held by the National Museum of the Royal Navy, has been undergoing a full restoration and advanced conservation to return the ship to as close a representation of her 1916 Jutland appearance as possible. The project also concentrated on developing interpretation to the public, educational facilities, improving access, safe-guarding historic fabric and enhancing the understanding of the ship, following her decommissioning as the floating base for Ulster Royal Naval Reserve in 2011.

 

Wessex Archaeology have been involved with the project since early 2014, where Dan Atkinson, Graham Scott and Rosemary Thornber conducted an extensive archaeological survey, the most comprehensive to date, and produced the first Conservation Management Plan for the ship and the associated Alexandra Dock. Since then the refit has been underway, with more recording work required on the exposed deck planking of the starboard waist, potentially dating to the WWI era. 

 

The most recent visit by Ben Saunders followed the return of Caroline after extensive hull repairs in dry dock and the repainting of the hull to bring her back to the Battleship Grey colour she would have worn at the Battle of Jutland, with a smart deep red below the waterline. The refit work is almost complete and Ben is currently updating the Conservation Management Plan to account for the fantastic work that has been completed during restoration; exposing original fabric throughout the ship and bringing her back to life. A particular highlight are the four 1914 Parsons steam turbines within the now accessible engine rooms, which have been carefully cleaned and conserved, exposing fascinating insights into their installation on the ship.

 

Dan and Ben will also be working on a Maintenance Plan for HMS Caroline, helping her keepers to ensure the ship continues to be in first class condition. Many thanks go to Victoria Millar, HMS Caroline’s Curator, and to Billy Hughes, the Ship’s Keeper for all of their help and support.