National Museum of the Royal Navy

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Pelican
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National Museum of the Royal Navy

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Flag flown by HMS Safari in WW II

The National Museum of the Royal Navy at the Portsmouth Historic Dockyard has a new exhibition — Jolly Roger: A Symbol of Terror and Pride. The website describes the exhibition as telling the story of the skull and crossbones flag, commonly known as the Jolly Roger, which has been associated with pirates for centuries. They also comment that “the history of its use by the Royal Navy who started flying the flag from First World War submarines is lesser known.”

Why did Royal Navy submarines fly pirate flags? Apparently, when the submarine was a very new and dangerous technology, many in the surface navy were not wildly enthusiastic about the new ships in the fleet. In 1901, First Sea Lord Admiral Sir Arthur Wilson went so far as to say that submarines were “underhanded, unfair, and damned un-English” and that their crews should be hanged as pirates. The story goes that in response, in 1914 Lieutenant Commander Max Horton began flying the Jolly Roger after returning from successful patrols on the submarine HMS E9. The practice caught on, and soon other Royal Navy submarine commanders began flying pirate flags as well. Apparently, the Admiralty disapproved of the practice but was unable to stop it.

The practice became widespread during World War II, when flotilla commanders would issue pirate flags. The submarines then modified the skull and crossbones flags by adding bars or ship silhouettes to indicate enemy ships sunk or mines for minefields cleared. There were also symbols for clandestine operations and rescues at sea.

The flying of the Jolly Roger is not limited to the Royal Navy. The US super-secret spy submarine, USS Jimmy Carter, has been seen flying the skull and crossbones on returning to port. While some have speculated that the flag signifies another successful top-secret mission completed, the commander will not confirm or deny that that is the case, suggesting the flag is flown as a morale booster.

The National Museum of the Royal Navy exhibition features an actual skull and crossbones flag captured from a pirate ship in the 1790s, as well as flags from submarines from the two world wars.

The oldest pirate flags were likely solid red, indicating “no quarter.” The name of the flag Jolly Roger is thought to have come from the French phrase “joli rouge” meaning “pretty red.”
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ivorthediver
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Re: National Museum of the Royal Navy

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Thanks David , I didn't know that , so further proof of your never to old to learn ..... ;)
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Re: National Museum of the Royal Navy

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THE OLDEST CHRISTMAS PUDDING?

Curators at PHDockyard believe to have the oldest Christmas pudding, 120 years old this festive season on display. The pudding comes from a batch of 1000 shipped to sailors and Royal Marines fighting the Boers in South Africa.
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Re: National Museum of the Royal Navy

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COVID-19 – CLOSURE OF THE NATIONAL MUSEUM OF THE ROYAL NAVY

The National Museum of the Royal Navy has made the difficult decision to close its sites in response to the escalating COVID-19 situation. All of our sites in Portsmouth, Gosport, Belfast, Yeovilton and Hartlepool will be closed from 17.00 on 18 March 2020.
Continues at:
https://www.nmrn.org.uk/coronavirus?fbc ... 0lltQGmq7M
HMS Pelican 1938 - 1958 GGCV L86 U86 F86 What I Have I Hold ~ A wonderful bird is the Pelican its beak can hold more than its belly can.
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Re: National Museum of the Royal Navy

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National Museum of the Royal Navy 'saved from insolvency'

The National Museum of the Royal Navy (NMRN) has been saved from imminent insolvency by a promise of emergency government funding, its director has said.
The museum said the closure of its sites due to the coronavirus lockdown had caused a £6.35m shortfall.
It said it would have filed for insolvency within the next month.
NMRN said the money would enable it to reopen its venues in Portsmouth, Gosport, Hartlepool and Yeovilton.
Continues at
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/amp/uk-england-53511647
HMS Pelican 1938 - 1958 GGCV L86 U86 F86 What I Have I Hold ~ A wonderful bird is the Pelican its beak can hold more than its belly can.
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ivorthediver
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Re: National Museum of the Royal Navy

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Excellent news David .thanks for the update .....
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Re: National Museum of the Royal Navy

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Black Sailors at the Battle of Trafalgar
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ngppl4d ... qm5wzE1alQ
HMS Pelican 1938 - 1958 GGCV L86 U86 F86 What I Have I Hold ~ A wonderful bird is the Pelican its beak can hold more than its belly can.
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Re: National Museum of the Royal Navy

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HMS Pelican 1938 - 1958 GGCV L86 U86 F86 What I Have I Hold ~ A wonderful bird is the Pelican its beak can hold more than its belly can.
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Re: National Museum of the Royal Navy

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HMS Pelican 1938 - 1958 GGCV L86 U86 F86 What I Have I Hold ~ A wonderful bird is the Pelican its beak can hold more than its belly can.
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Re: National Museum of the Royal Navy

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WHEN AND WHY DID RML 497 JOIN US?

Rescue Motor Launch 497 arrived at the National Museum of the Royal Navy Hartlepool at the end of January 2019 and has been safely under cover in our carpark ever since.

The Second World War boat was in very poor condition and could not stay afloat any longer, so she was rescued in the nick of time.

She is one of very few remaining now, so we have been working to dry her out and get her in the best condition we can for future display.

See:
https://www.nmrn.org.uk/news-events/nmr ... QIzYay0FWU
HMS Pelican 1938 - 1958 GGCV L86 U86 F86 What I Have I Hold ~ A wonderful bird is the Pelican its beak can hold more than its belly can.
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