News
Look here for news of what the Society for Nautical Research (South) has been doing lately. To find out about forthcoming attractions see our Events page.
Naval Attaché in Paris
Our November speaker Nick Stanley was the British Naval Attaché and Assistant Defence Attaché in Paris between 2010 and 2013. On his wife’s insistence he turned down promotion to [...]
Queens at War
Our October meeting started with David Hutchings' fascinating talk on Cunard’s Queens at war, starting with an introduction to their predecessors’ failure in their planned role as armed merchant [...]
Moles, Menus and Wrecks of Dunkirk
Our September residential trip saw us taking in the moles, menus and wrecks of Dunkirk. OK, the start could have been better. An agency driver didn’t show up and [...]
From Palmerston to Eisenhower
Our August day visit took us from Palmerston to Eisenhower, Napoleonic Wars to D-Day. A morning in the D-Day map room at Southwick House inspired an excellent turnout, undeterred [...]
A Grave Affair at Haslar Naval Cemetery
In what some would think a grave affair for a day our some of our members spent a fascinating day among the memorials of Haslar naval cemetery. From the [...]
Lifeboats Past and Present: 200 years of the RNLI
Noel Stimson’s talk on Lifeboats Past and Present was a very timely topic in the RNLI’s 200th anniversary year. Prompted by the wreck of SS Racehorse off the Isle [...]
May 2023 Meeting
Our main speaker was Jacob Thomas-Llewellyn on PLUTO – a successful failure. His talk was excellent both for content and delivery and sparked lively discussion afterward. Jacob holds a BA in War, Peace and International Relations and a master’s degree in strategic studies and has recently completed doctoral studies with the Department of History at the University of Reading. He has been published by the Independent, the Conversation and the Royal Logistic Corps. He has also advised and been interviewed by Michael Buerk as part of the Channel 5 documentary, How Britain Won WW2.
John Bingeman’s talk went far beyond its nominal subject of Vasa’s Whipstaff Steering circa 1628, covering illustrations of his and Jane’s rare privilege of an internal inspection of the ship and the corrosive effect of polyethylene glycol (PEG) on iron – a conservation issue relevant to the Mary Rose. Again, a brisk conversation followed.
April 2023 Meeting
Roger Smith gave a fascinating talk on Shinano – the brief story of the Biggest Carrier of WW2. She was converted from the hull of the third Yamato-class battleship mid-build and had a short, profitless life, setting an unhappy record on the way when she was sunk just seventeen hours into her maiden voyage. Roger’s gripping, moment-by-moment account gave a real feeling of ‘being there’.
Continuing the Far East theme, Derek Nudd had the unenviable task of following Roger with a chat about WW2 Japanese language training in the Royal Navy. When war struck the Pacific and Indian Oceans too many linguists were trapped in newly occupied territories, leaving the Allies deaf to enemy intentions. The story of their efforts to catch up has its own interest and provoked a lively follow-on discussion.