Described as “the most exciting maritime archaeological exhibition in years, which takes the visitor as close to the seabed as possible while staying in dry dock”.

Chatham Historic Dockyard Trust is set to welcome Diving Deep: HMS Invincible 1744, described as “the most exciting maritime archaeological exhibition in years, which takes the visitor as close to the seabed as possible while staying in dry dock”.

Visitors to the new exhibition (on loan from the National Museum of the Royal Navy) will be able to tread the seabed virtually and investigate the exciting finds from HMS Invincible – the darling of the Royal Navy that ran aground on a sand bank over 260 years ago, dramatically sunk beneath the waves and was preserved for over two centuries on the ocean floor.

While HMS Invincible’s final resting place remains the bottom of the Solent, this fascinating exhibition, collated after an emergency underwater excavation of the famous 18th century battleship, tells the story of Invincible, her capture, the lasting contribution she made to the Royal Navy fleet and her subsequent sinking and rediscovery by a fisherman in 1979.

After a year at its initial site in Portsmouth Historic Dockyard, final preparations were made in January to welcome this immersive experience to Chatham, where it will launch live to the public on Saturday 12th February 2022 – in time for half term. Especially for the half term break will be fun activities for families to try their hand at maritime archaeology and unearth deep sea treasures buried in a giant dig pit.

Nick Ball, Collections, Galleries and Interpretation Manager at Chatham Historic Dockyard Trust said: “Visitors to The Historic Dockyard Chatham will be able to learn why the Invincible was so special; the captured French ship that became the blueprint for Royal Navy 74-gun ships of the line.

“Originally, a ‘nippy’ French warship, ‘L’Invincible’, was captured by the Royal Navy and every inch of her hull and form were studied and then replicated to form a new fleet that would go on to defeat the French. She was a game-changer who even influenced the subsequent design of the world’s most famous warship – Admiral Nelson’s HMS Victory, built here at Chatham.”

Visitors will learn the story of how the Invincible was rediscovered in 1979 by Portsmouth fisherman Arthur Mack and how in recent years it became crucial to rescue the artefacts on board before the sandbank migrated away.

The exhibition also tells the story of a series of calamitous events that saw the Invincible sink beneath the waves. Visitors will learn about the trial of Kent seaman, Captain John Bentley, and his court-martial for the sinking of the Royal Navy‘s favourite ship.

Fascinating artefacts on show will include wig curlers (so that the Captain could stay coiffered on his journey to America), 18th century sailors shoes, including one pair with what can only be described as kitten heels, and rope still smelling of the tar painted on it in 1758, all brought to the surface during the two excavations in the 1980s and recently in 2017-19.