More information : DESIGNATED WRECK SITE - STIRLING CASTLE
Summary:
British 70-gun man of war which was lost in the Great Storm of 1703 on the Goodwin Sands.
Designation History:
Designation Order: (No 1) No 645, 1980
Made: 7th May 1980
Laid before Parliament: 16th May 1980
Coming into force: 6th June 1980
Protected area 50 metres of position 51 16.50N 001 30.45E.
Amendment Order: No 1306, 1980
Made: 1st September 1980
Laid before Parliament: 9th September 1980
Coming into force: 30th September 1980
Protected area 50 metres of position 51 16.426N 001 30.516E
Designation Order No 2393, 2004
Made: 12th September 2004
Laid before Parliament: 14th September 2004
Coming into force: 5th October 2004
Protected area: 300m radius of position 51 16.426N 001 30.516E.
Visit by Government Diving Contractor:
University of St. Andrews - Archaeological Diving Unit (ADU) April 1986 - April 2003
1986, 1987, 1992, 1993, 1995, 1997, 2002 (37)
Wessex Archaeology 1st May 2003
2003 (37) 2006 (40)
Documentary History:
Commanding Officer: Captain John Johnson RN (4)(15)(18)
Built: Deptford (7)
Year Built: 1679, 1678 (7)
Rebuilt: 1699
Crew: 349 (2)(3)(35); 600 (35)
Crew Lost: 269 (15); 275 (18); 279 (2)(3); 'above 500' (35)
Owner: Royal Navy (all sources)
Armament: 70 guns (2)(3)
(26x12pdr, 22x32pdr, 14x9pdr, 4x6pdr, 4x18pdr)
Tonnage: 1087 (10)
Built as part of Samuel Pepys's "thirty ship" building programme for the Restoration of the Navy. (31)
The STIRLING CASTLE was a 70-gun Third Rate built in Deptford in 1679, rebuilt 1699, and was one of the victims of the Great Storm of 1703 which also claimed the warships NORTHUMBERLAND, RESTORATION and MARY on the Goodwin Sands. Like the others, she had been at anchor in the Downs, was dismasted and continued to fire her cannon as distress signals every half-minute right up until the moment she struck. Only 70 of her crew of 349 were saved, including her 3rd Lieutenant, chaplain, cook, surgeon's mate and four marine captains. (2)(3)
Evidence for thinking this is the STIRLING CASTLE wreck includes the recurring initials of I.I. and I.B. on objects of pewter, brass, lead and wood; the Captain of the STIRLING CASTLE was John Johnson and the First Officer one James Beverly. In addition this wreck, as with the other Third Rates NORTHUMBERLAND and RESTORATION has dimensions that make it unlikely to be the MARY, a Fourth Rate. (4)
'Deale, 27th November 1703. We had had so violent a storm at South West that the like has not been known in these parts in the memory of man; it began to blow hard yesterday in the evening, but about 11 at Night it blew so hard with sudden gusts and violent storms of wind, that it made all the Houses of the Town Shake, uncove'd Several Roofs, threw down chimneys, brick walls, &c & so continued till about 9 this morning. We find missing of our Merchant Men upwards of 70 sail, and these Men of War following, viz. the MARY, Rear Admiral Beaumont, NORTHUMBERLAND, Captain Greeway, RESTAURATION, Captain Emms, STERLING CASTLE, Captain Johnson, and the MORTAR BOMB, Captain Ramond, Commanders...It blowes hard still, but being clear'd up to the North East we preceive two Hulls of Ships riding at Anchor near the Breake; which are supposed to be the STERLING CASTLE and RESTAURATION, or the NORTHUMBERLAND; 2 other great ships were seen on the Goodwin Sands, one of them being the MARY who had her flag flying, but the flood coming on we can see no more of them.' (15)
'Deale 28 November 1703. Her Majesty's Ships the STERLING CASTLE, the RESTAURATION, NORTHUMBERLAND, and MARY are all four missing...' (16)
'London, Dec. 1...A gentleman, who was on board the ANTELOPE hospital ship which rid at the storm in the Downs, reports...of the STERLING CASTLE (which went upon the Sand till Sunday night) 80 men were brought off in hoys sent from Deale.' (17)
'There having been various and confused accounts given last week of the loss sustained amongst Her Majesty's ships of war in the late storm, we present the public with the following authentic list of all that are irrecoverably lost...
'The STERLING CASTLE, a third rate, Captain Johnson, on the Goodwin Sands. The captain, the third lieutenant, the chaplain, and the cook, were saved, with about 70 men, of which were four marine officers; the rest were drowned.' (18)
'Sir, These Lines I hope in God will find you in good health, we are all left here in a dismal condition, expecting every moment to be all drowned. For here is a great storm, and is very likely to to continue...the ship call'd the STERLING CASTLE, a third rate, al sunk and drowned above 500 souls...These ships were all close by us which I saw; these ships fired their guns all night and day long, poor souls, for help, but the storm being so fierce and raging, could have none to save them...' (10)
'A list of such of Her Majesty's Ships, with their Commanders' Names, as were cast away by the violent storm on Friday Night the 26th of November 1703, the wind having been from the SW to WSW and the storm continuing from about midnight to past six in the morning:
'Third rate, STERLING CASTLE, 349 men, 70 guns, John Johnson, lost on the Goodwin Sands; the third lieutenant, chaplain, cook, chyrsurgeon's mate, four marine captains, and 62 men saved.' (10)
'From on board a ship blown out of the Downs to Norway....There was a great fleet with us in the Downs...the next day, being Friday, in the evening, it began to gather to windward; and as it had blown very hard all day, at night the wind freshen'd, and we all expected a stormy night. We saw the men of war struck their top-masts, and rode with two cables an-end, so we made all as snug as we could, and prepar'd for the worst.
'In this condition we rid it out till about 12-a-clock; when, the fury of the wind encreasing, we began to see destruction before us: the objects were very dreadful on every side; and tho' it was very dark, we had light enough to see our own danger, and the danger of those near us. About One-a-clock the ships began to drive...
'By two a-clock we could hear guns firing in several parts of this road, as signals of distress; and tho' the noise was very great with the sea and wind, yet we could distinguish plainly, in some short intervals, the cries of poor souls in extremities.
'By four-a-clock we miss'd the MARY and the NORTHUMBERLAND, who rid not far from us, and found they were driven from their anchors; but what became of them, God knows, and soon after a large man of war came driving down upon us, all her masts gone, and in a dreadful condition. We were in the utmost despair at this sight, for we saw no avoiding her coming athwart our haiser: she drove at last so near us, that I was just gowing to order the mate to cut away, when it pleas'd God the ship sheer'd contrary to our expectation to windward, and the man of war, which we found to be the STERLING CASTLE, drove clear off us, not two ship's lengths to the leeward.
'It was a sight full of terrible particulars, to see a ship of eighty guns and about six hundred men in that dismal case; she had cut away all her masts, the men were all in the confusions of death and despair; she had neither anchor, nor cable, nor boat to help her; the sea breaking over her in a terrible manner, that sometimes she seem'd all under water; and they knew, as well as we that saw her, that they drove by the tempest directly for the Goodwin, where they could expect nothing but destruction: the cries of the men, and the firing their guns, one by one, every half minute for help, terrified us in such a manner, that I think we were half dead with the horror of it...' (35)
Finds from this site have been deposited at the Ramsgate Museum and Bleak House Museum (Broadstairs).
Finds include pewter measures, onion and olive bottles, cartridge cases, navigational instruments and a 32pdr 'Rupertino' cannon and its carriage. (30)
Archaeological History:
June 1979:
After local trawlermen brought timbers up from the wreck, members of Thanet B.S.A.C. and the marine archaeological section of the Isle of Thanet Archaeological Unit looked at the site at a time when the wreck was exposed by a shift in one of the sand banks of the Goodwin Sands. About two thirds of the vessel is visible; she stands on her keel, 6-8m high and 57m long, partially embedded in a cliff of sand. She had been revictualled. Divers have labelled forty or so iron guns and raised a bronze Dutch gun with a broad arrow on it. A ship's bell was found but with the date 1701. Heavy finds have been moved using the winches of the trawler SHELANDORA. (7)
The wreck of the 70 gun STIRLING CASTLE has been found by Kent divers in almost perfect preservation. More than 300 items including clothing, artifacts belonging to the crew and a bronze cannon have already been raised. (20)
Some lead sounding weights raised from the wreck held in East Kent Maritime Trust's Ramsgate Maritime Museum.
The port side partially intact emerged from the sands but was covered up again in 1980, re-emerged 1998. (31)
1980 Site Designated:
A donation has been made to the British Sub Aqua Club (BSAC) by Prince Charles to help with the survey of the site. (19)
1983:
Photographic and geophysical survey by the 'Goodwins Archaeological Survey'. (37)
1986:
Site visited by the Archaeological Diving Unit (ADU).
1987:
Site visited by the Archaeological Diving Unit (ADU).
23-SEP-1992:
Site visited by the Archaeological Diving Unit. A large amount of archaeological material was exposed including frames, planks, guns and anchors. Some of the timbers were 1.5m proud of the seabed.
The site was noted as having reached an apparent short-term stability. (37)
1993:
No archaeological material was exposed due to higher sand levels, confirmed by an Archaeological Diving Unit visit in September.
1995:
The site was visited by the Archaeological Diving Unit (ADU) who noted a considerable amount of exposed material on top of a wreck mound about 3 metres high. Ship's timbers and an anchor could be identified.
1996:
Sonar scans were undertaken around the site showing lower sediment levels than last year. Diving on the site revealed that the starboard side was completely covered with sand, but areas of the port side had been newly exposed and the remains of a brick hearth observed.
Seadive investigations in conjunction with ADU. (37)
1997:
A bathymetric survey carried out by the Archaeological Diving Unit (ADU).
1998:
A routine monitoring visit was carried out to the site by Seadive and early signs of the wreck beginning to emerge again were detected. An in-depth survey was then planned for 1999. (26)
1999:
A Project to survey the ship called 'Operation Man O' War' was planned by Seadive, a group of local divers for two weeks in July. In April large amounts of fishing nets were cleared from the site. A 28cm lead sounding weight was removed with the netting and deposited at the Ramsgate Museum. (21)(26)(37)
A two-week survey at the end of June was undertaken which attracted divers from the U.S.A. and the Governments Archaeological Diving Unit. In tricky conditions measurements were taken using tape measures backed up by a Site Surveyor computer programme to build up a 3D computer image in what was good visibility 3m. In July another half a metre of the wreck was exposed, leaving nearly 2m proud at the bow and some 4m clear of the stern. (23) Divers have studied details of two decks of gunports, the bow, stern along with the 15ft rudder assembly. (22) The stern section was largely intact, complete with its rudder, the stern port side has a break showing the whole make-up of the hull, revealing frames and inner and outer planking. On the port side complete gunports are visible with cannon in place. At the start of the season the midships and starboard side were covered with sand but were becoming exposed day by day. The bow timbers had suffered damage from becoming entangled and snagged in netting. A digital video archive of over 320 minutes was also taken. (26)
A pre-disturbance survey of the site has been completed, the 35 strong team had good diving conditions up to the end of September. An intact log line reel, 65cm wide was discovered but by the time a recovery licence was obtained it had broken up and most of it lost as was a wooden platter. However a bronze cooking sieve and candlestick were recovered. It also appears that damage is being caused to the site by fisherman as the the sternpost, which comes within 5-7m of the surface at low-water springs was twisted 30 degrees out of line. (24)
Vessel re-emerged, the sands exposed down to the gun deck, the sand had scoured out under the port side which led to a 2 metre slump and the gun deck collapsing with the rear cannon rolling out of the stern taking timbers with it. The stern post also seemed to have been twisted by 30 degrees, probably by fishing nets. (31)
2000:
Seadive continued to survey the site which was also visited by Mr Clive Solely MP. Mr Solely's visit had been arranged to publicise the problems being faced by voluntary archaeological diving organisations on "Protected Wreck Sites". (25)
Wreck highlighted in BBC 2 documentary 'Treasure Islands' released on 02-MAY-2000. It includes film taken on the site. (27)
The first dives on the site in 2000 were carried out in May. On the second dive, two pewter tankards were uncovered. DCMS was approached and a surface recovery licence issued immediately. During June the whole of the stern port side was uncovered. By the end of July sediment on the gun deck had moved down to the stern end exposing new artefacts. The first to be found was an intact gun carriage with cannon and truck wheels in pristine condition. By the beginning of August a second cannon and carriage had been uncovered, but by mid-August, this cannon had rolled over and smashed through the port side stern ripping off both truck axles. The first cannon and carriage, weighing 3.5 tons, was recovered and has been placed in Ramsgate's inner harbour and covered awaiting conservation. (28)
Survey indicated substantial sand movement and structural collapse. (37)
2001:
Work on the site ran from 20th May to the 28th August. Increased sediment reduction was noted on the site from midships to stern port side, exposing artefacts. The reduction in sediment levels has completely uncovered the stern on the port-side revealing the keelson, garboard strake and associated out hull planking. In the midship area the remains of a sea chest were exposed, possibly a sureons due to the associated medical bottles. A large section of ceiling or main deck floor was removed in all probability by tidal action. However on the port side a sediment build up has covered gun ports and previously exposed ribs from the bow for about 18 metres.
Further reduction in sand at the stern and midships revealed the Surgeon's box and contents, since eroded away or taken by unauthorised divers. (31)(37)
2002:
In July a comprehensive multibeam survey of the site was carried out by the Archaeological Diving Unit (ADU) with the assistance of Reson Offshore UK. This produced bathymetric images of the wreck. A film was also made by RDF Media for Channel 4. (29)(37)
The film mentioned above was transmitted as part of the "Wreck
Detectives" series on Channel 4, on 10-APR-2003 at 8pm. (30)
2003:
The stern port side has started to cover up again but exposing the starboard stern side. (31)
Commission of a desk-based assessment of the site (37), which is source (39).
2006:
Survey visit by Wessex Archaeology. (40)
Environmental and Archaeological Remains:
There are strong currents on the site between 1.5 and 2 knots and the general visibility is poor, 15-30cms.
The site consists of a confused mass of displaced timbers which lie in sandy silt. In 1979 these timbers were in excellent condition and about two thirds of the vessel (only the bow and stern in a state of collapse) was visible. The shifting seabed conditions have dictated which parts of the wreck have been visible over time. In 1979 when the wreck was exposed to the keel, the general depth was around 45 feet. Since then the supporting matrix of sand has continued to shift and the wreck, having little mechanical strength of its own, has collapsed. In 1984 the bow section and bowsprit were 7 feet above the seabed. When it was surveyed in 1991 the least echosounder depth was 12.4 in a general depth of 15.3m. The scour depth was 17.5m with a side scan sonar height of 2.5m. When the Archaeological Diving Unit (ADU) assessed the site in 1993 the wreck was covered and no archaeological material was visible.
Finds from the site consist of a 9 lb Dutch bronze gun (a demi-culverin), swordhilts, German stoneware jar, pewter plate, a ship's bell with a wooden stock (both dated 1701 with broad arrows along them) as well as about 300 small finds including: leather shoes and book covers, shaving kit, a hand-carved draughtboard and a brass candlestick. It has been claimed that there are about 40 x 4lb cannon still in position in their gun-ports. (1)(4)(7)
On the last dive of the season a woven rattan bag containing red grapes still on their vines was recovered. (14)
A lead sounding weight, 28cm long, recovered from within intrusive debris, trawlers nets etc. and removed from the vicinity of the wreck during pre-survey preparations. (Droit 9/94) (32)
A collection of items recovered from the STIRLING CASTLE and the NORTHUMBERLAND, but not specified which belongs to which, including: dividers, wooden bowl, onion bottles, iron shot, buckles, trigger guard, powder horn, parts of a musket, tobacco pipes and candlesticks (Ramsgate Maritime Museum). (Droit A/4005) (33)
19 barrel parts, probably late 17th or early 18th century, a mixture of staves and head pieces, recovered from the STIRLING CASTLE designated wreck site, in position 51 16.4561N 001 03.4121E. (Droit 108/06) (38)
The site lies in approximately 15 metres of water on the Goodwin Sands, an area of fine sand which move easily into suspension in the water column with the strong currents in the vicinity. This leads to poor visibility, except after extended periods of calm weather. In 1999 scouring around parts of the hull was noted as having become more pronounced with the further exposure of the overall structure of the wreck, and is particularly noticeable around the starboard bow and at the stern. These are in fact the areas most affected by the snagging of fishing nets. (37)
The hull structure is almost as exposed as when the vessel was first found in 1979. There are breaks in the structure of the hull, as well as planks springing away from the frames, probably owing to the pressure from sand inside. At the stern, the rudder was exposed 3.8 metres down from the mortise for the tiller. Much of the framing for the transom remains in situ, with some diagonal external planking. It was possible to swim under the turn of the bilge, although the hull had not yet been exposed all the way down to the keel. The range of artefacts visible continues to expand as the sand levels drop. (37)
Natural erosion of the sand around the wreck is the most obvious threat to the site, and the current rate of exposure and consequent loss of material of archaeological interest indicate a high rate of attrition, with the process of sand movement around the wreck being poorly understood. (37)
Until recently the weck was in an excellent state of preservation, largely due to having been buried in an anaerobic environment under the sand. (37)
Archaeological features recorded in 2006 included a heavily concreted iron anchor of Admiralty angle crown type, in such a position that it is clearly inboard, suggesting that it had moved during the wreck event or had been disturbed.
Another heavily concreted iron anchor was also located, thought likely to be a feature recorded in 1999.
Guns whose features were largely obscured by concretion were also noted on the site.
The kitchen or galley fire hearth appears to have been located, comprising a number of bricks, cuprous metal, timber and iron concretion.
The starboard side of the hull was investigated and found to have collapsed outwards in a similar way to that of the port side quarter. It is thought likely that this may have occurred when the site was exposed in 1984, before it was reburied to be re-exposed again in 1998.
There is a substantial scour extending for about 15 metres along the port side of the vessel, leaving it partially unsupported and it appears to have collapsed towards the south, causing the hull and port transom to separate.
Fragments of barrel staves and barrel heads were recovered and a length of rope lacking tar or pitch was also discovered, along with an incoherent mound of concretion and netting overlying timbers. From this concretion three large square-sectioned timbers protrude, surrounded by a variety of smaller broken timbers, some of which appear to have been planks. (40)
Additional sources:
D G R Perkins, The Great Storm Wrecks, East Kent Maritime Trust;
Advisory Committee on Historic Wreck Sites Annual Report 2000;
D Chamberlain: 2002, The Goodwin Sands Man-of-war 1703-2003. Privately published
R Endsor, 2003 The loss of the Stirling Castle in the Great Storm of 1703 and the earliest archaeological evidence of a ships steering wheel. (Forthcoming)
English Heritage, 2002, Desk-based Assessment for Designated Wreck Sites. Unpublished
Date of Loss Qualifier: Actual date of loss |