HMS Victory

On a wet and windy day Year 7 pupils from St Bede’s Prep School travelled to Portsmouth to tour the Historic Dockyard and HMS Victory as part of their studies of 'The Defence of the Realm' in Integrated Studies. Neither the weather nor the fact that Nelson's flagship was being refurbished dampened the spirits of the children as they learnt much more about life at sea in Nelson's time.

His flagship, the oldest commissioned warship in the world, still looked magnificent, even with most of the masts and rigging down. As well as seeing how men and boys would have lived, fought, worked and been disciplined on board, the children also marvelled at the Trafalgar Sail; the only sail to have survived the famous battle itself. All were amazed at just how large this sail is; what a formidable sight the Victory must have been in full sail!

There was a genuine sense of sadness, respect and admiration when the children learnt about Nelson's demise and a fair amount of patriotism when discovering how Nelson and Collingwoods’ fleets won the day. The children also enjoyed some 'hands-on' exhibits, learned how the ships were built and even had a go at a cannon firing computer game. As ever, a great day out was had by all.