Once I was a clever boy learning the arts of Oxford... is a quotation from the verses written by Bishop Richard Fleming (c.1385-1431) for his tomb in Lincoln Cathedral. Fleming, the founder of Lincoln College in Oxford, is the subject of my research for a D. Phil., and, like me, a son of the West Riding. I have remarked in the past that I have a deeply meaningful on-going relationship with a dead fifteenth century bishop... it was Fleming who, in effect, enabled me to come to Oxford and to learn its arts, and for that I am immensely grateful.


Monday, 31 October 2022

A sister ship to the Vasa


As a boy I recall being fascinated by reports of the salvaging in 1961 of the Vasa from Stockholm harbour where it sank in 1628 on its maiden voyage, and of getting the book about the ship and its contents.

Now something like sixty years later a sister ship of the Vasa has been found. The Äpplet was constructed in 1629, learning the lessons of the fate of the Vasa and served until 1659 when it was sunk as a defensive measure to block one of the approaches to Stockholm harbour.

An online article from Popular Mechanics outlines the history of the ship and its discovery in December 2021 and also the complex problems posed in any attempt to raise and conserve its remains. I would hope these issues can be resolved and that such a project can be undertaken. 



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