Uploaded August 2023 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
The excavation of the Mary Rose was one of the largest underwater excavations ever undertaken. It caused a sensation, it was Britain’s Pompeii – a moment of life frozen in time.
Ghosts of the Mary Rose uses the latest forensic techniques to investigate one of the biggest unsolved mysteries in British history, the identity of the crew of the Mary Rose. It reveals a startling explanation for why the Mary Rose sank.
The Mary Rose sank to the bottom of the sea on 19th July 1545. Almost the entire crew of around 400 sailors and soldiers died. Yet despite the massive loss of life, only one name for certain is known of the ill-fated crew, the Vice Admiral George Carew.
This film follows Dr Hugh Montgomery, a former diver on the Mary Rose, and intensive care doctor at Whittington Hospital NHS Trust, as he tries to learn more about the men of the Mary Rose. Hugh takes three skeletons recovered from the wreck, and with the help of leading osteoarchaeologists and forensic scientists, attempts to find out what jobs these men did, and what they were doing at the time the ship sank.
The first skeleton was found in the hold of the ship. This man has an unusual shoulder injury. Was he a sailor who injured himself climbing the rigging? Or could he have been one of the archers on board?
Divers recovered the skeleton of the second man in the ship’s galley. The location suggests he was a cook, but his bones tell a more complex story.
One of the most intriguing skeletons was found on the main deck alongside a bosun’s whistle. Was he an officer? And what role did he play in the sinking of the ship?
Subscribe to Element 18 – bit.ly/337R2uO
The excavation of the Mary Rose was one of the largest underwater excavations ever undertaken. It caused a sensation, it was Britain’s Pompeii – a moment of life frozen in time.
Ghosts of the Mary Rose uses the latest forensic techniques to investigate one of the biggest unsolved mysteries in British history, the identity of the crew of the Mary Rose. It reveals a startling explanation for why the Mary Rose sank.
The Mary Rose sank to the bottom of the sea on 19th July 1545. Almost the entire crew of around 400 sailors and soldiers died. Yet despite the massive loss of life, only one name for certain is known of the ill-fated crew, the Vice Admiral George Carew.
This film follows Dr Hugh Montgomery, a former diver on the Mary Rose, and intensive care doctor at Whittington Hospital NHS Trust, as he tries to learn more about the men of the Mary Rose. Hugh takes three skeletons recovered from the wreck, and with the help of leading osteoarchaeologists and forensic scientists, attempts to find out what jobs these men did, and what they were doing at the time the ship sank.
The first skeleton was found in the hold of the ship. This man has an unusual shoulder injury. Was he a sailor who injured himself climbing the rigging? Or could he have been one of the archers on board?
Divers recovered the skeleton of the second man in the ship’s galley. The location suggests he was a cook, but his bones tell a more complex story.
One of the most intriguing skeletons was found on the main deck alongside a bosun’s whistle. Was he an officer? And what role did he play in the sinking of the ship?
Subscribe to Element 18 – bit.ly/337R2uO
