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This exhibition features six vessels filmed for the BBC Four series Boats that Built Britain. Two are on the National Register of Historic Vessels, managed by National Historic Ships
Trade – Phoenix
'clinging to the yardarm for all I was worth, I looked down at the deck fifty feet below me and nearly fell from sheer terror' Jenni Atkinson, 1976
Image: On the Yard. Credit: Jenni Atkinson
The boat
Phoenix was built as an evangelical mission schooner and later used to carry cargo. She was sold to Square Sail in 1988 and is now used for film work. She is known for her roles in the Hornblower series, Moll Flanders and Frenchman’s Creek.
Image: Phoenix under sail today.
Credit: Square Sail Shipyard
As an island nation, Britain relied for centuries on ships to facilitate trade. Most of these were small: only the largest wooden square-rigged merchant ships were over 1000 tons. British sailors went all over the world and ports everywhere expanded with growth in industry. Sailors’ quarters developed around each harbour and became notorious for their mix of drink, prostitution and crime.
Phoenix was built in Denmark in 1929 but is now based in Cornwall. She featured in the television series as a classic representation of a traditional merchant sailing vessel.
By the 20th century, steam-power had revolutionized the British shipping industry. Sailing vessels were no longer financially competitive, though some continued to operate in coastal and other marginal trades until just after the Second World War.
Square-rigger under sail
Today, Phoenix is rigged as a brig and carries 12 sails which comprise 4000 square feet of canvas. Here (left) the photographer Alan Villiers has captured the power and scale of square-rigged vessels under sail. (Credit: Alan Villiers, NMM, London, N61536)
Below: Manning the yards on Phoenix (Jenni Atkinson)
The story
Phoenix’s crew kept a ‘watch system’, taking it in turns to sleep or stay on deck and sail the ship. Part of the helmsman’s job was to strike the ship’s bell, marking time until the next changeover.
Image: Jenni Atkinson at the helm of Phoenix
Credit: Jenni Atkinson
In 1976, Jenni Atkinson was a London office copywriter, with a love of sailing and a driving ambition to make a deep-sea voyage. She joined Mariners International and helped hunt for a vessel to enter in the bi-annual Tall Ships Race.
After an extensive search, the team found Phoenix in Dordrecht, Holland. Jenni Atkinson immediately resigned her post and signed on as a deckhand for the Race. Through hard work and determination, they made the ship ready for sea.
Phoenix was the only square-rigger to complete the entire course, sailing 10,000 miles from Plymouth, via the Canaries and Bermuda, to New York and back. She won her class in the fourth leg of the Race after crossing the Atlantic in 36 days.