Built in France in 1744, the Invincible was captured three years later and subsequently purchased by the Royal Navy who commissioned her as a Third Rate ship of the line. In 1758 the ship ran aground due to a jammed rudder and tipped onto her port side, rapidly filling with water. Despite several efforts, the Invincible could not be freed. The crew safely left the ship and the guns were salvaged, however the hull remained on the sand.
The wreck of the Invincible was discovered by a local fisherman in 1979, and the following year it was designated a protected wreck, under the Protection of Wrecks Act, 1973.
The Invincible lies on Dean Sand, approximately 1.5 miles SE of Horse Sand Fort, Hampshire at the entrance to Spithead. It lies at a depth range of 7-9.5m.
Wessex Archaeology carried out multibeam sonar, magnetometer and sub-bottom profiler geophysical surveys on the site in June 2003. The magnetometer results implied that some metal anomalies could be buried within the sediments around the ship; possibly the debris associated with the vessel. Comparing the sub-bottom profiler results with the dive observations, it was clear that the amount of sediment covering the archaeological remains was gradually increasing; providing increasing protection.
In 2003, Wessex Archaeology completed a Designated Site Assessment for the Invincible on behalf of English Heritage. The full report can be downloaded here, and contains further information regarding the remains and condition of the vessel, the wreck site environment and details of the dive survey.
A brief summary of the site is also available from English Heritage.
Chatham Historic Dockyard displays a range of over 600 artefacts retrieved from the Invincible, and more information can be found by visiting their website and searching 'Invincible'.
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Wessex Archaeology carried out multibeam sonar, magnetometer and sub-bottom profiler geophysical surveys on the site in June 2003. The magnetometer results implied that some metal anomalies could be buried within the sediments around the ship; possibly the debris associated with the vessel. Comparing the sub-bottom profiler results with the dive observations, it was clear that the amount of sediment covering the archaeological remains was gradually increasing; providing increasing protection.
In 2003, Wessex Archaeology completed a Designated Site Assessment for the Invincible on behalf of English Heritage. The full report can be downloaded here, and contains further information regarding the remains and condition of the vessel, the wreck site environment and details of the dive survey.
A brief summary of the site is also available from English Heritage.
Chatham Historic Dockyard displays a range of over 600 artefacts retrieved from the Invincible, and more information can be found by visiting their website and searching 'Invincible'.
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