Søren Larsen © James D Parbery 2020-2021 This Edition 22 March 2021

TIMELINE Søren Larsen © James D Parbery 2020-2021 this edition 22 March 2021

The Danes have been building wooden ships since long before the Viking Era (c.790-1100 AD) and passing on skills from father to son while reﬁning the method and ship design through the centuries. The principal building material, oak, was seriously depleted in most European countries by the late 19th century except in Denmark where oak forests were well managed at the initiative of King Frederich VI 1768 – 1839. Consequently wooden ship building in Denmark continued well into the 20th century.

Søren Larsen, launched in 1948, was one of the last of these ships built in the 20th century for commercial cargo - a Baltic trader or sejlede paket (sailing packet) as the Danes called it. The builders, Søren Larsen og Sønners, named the ship after themselves as she was exceptionally well built and the last of a kind - a ship they could name with pride. Søren Larsen now has a rich history spanning almost seventy-ﬁve years and has sailed every ocean. She is in excellent condition, still sailing, currently based in Sydney, Australia.

If readers have more information, articles, photographs etc to oﬀer please contact James Parbery; [email protected] .

1 of 23 TIMELINE Søren Larsen © James D Parbery 2020-2021 this edition 22 March 2021

THE DANISH YEARS - CARGO SHIP 1948 - 1976

1945 May 5 End of Second World War; Denmark is liberated from German occupation.

Mines had been laid throughout the Danish sea lanes during the war and these remain a hazard to shipping, with a signiﬁcant loss of life until at least 1950 when all mines were ﬁnally cleared.

Søren Larsen under construction at Nykøbing Mors c.1947

1946/47 Construction commences at the Søren Larsen og Sonners Skibsvaerft (Søren Larsen & Sons Shipyard) in Nykøbing, on the island of Mors, Denmark. The hundred foot long motor/sail trading ship is carvel built with 6 x 18 inch oak frames lined with three inch thick oak outer planking and two inch oak inner planking; a very strong construction, designed to withstand icy conditions and soft groundings. The deck and wheelhouse are made of beech. She has a strongly forward stem with slight spoon and a distinctive round cruiser stern.

The ship would be driven by a 149 or 240 horse power* Burmeister & Wain Alpha (B&W Alpha) engine and be rigged as a galeas ketch. The building cost was just under DKK 500,000 (Danish Krone) which is equivalent to the modern spending power of US$830,000 in consumer goods (in 2015). In 1949 DKK 500,000 was equivalent to 3,180 ounces of gold; a 2020 value of US$5.7 million, which is more realistic as a modern comparison for building a new ship. Ref: https://www.historicalstatistics.org/Currencyconverter.html

NOTES: * The B&W Alpha engine was speciﬁed at 149, 200 and 240 HP in 1949 by three separate accounts which makes us wonder if a smaller engine was later replaced with a larger one. We are currently researching that possibility. The engine, which we had always believed to be the original, is currently assessed at 192 HP.

2 of 23 TIMELINE Søren Larsen © James D Parbery 2020-2021 this edition 22 March 2021

Speciﬁcations Original 1948 Current Speciﬁcations Danish imperial British imperial French Metric Registered length 96,9 feet * 104 feet 31.7 metres Beam 25,2 * 25’ 6” 7.8 metres Draught fwd ____ 9’ 4” 2.8 metres Draught aft 10,0 * 11’ 4” 3.4 metres

Tons DW loading 200/225 DW ______Registered tons gross 168 BRT 125.9 tuns 356 cubic metres Registered tons net 117 NRT 86.3 tuns 244 cubic metres

Auxiliary Engine 149/240 HP** 192 HP ? 143 kW Speed under power 7.6 knots Rigging 2 masted galease*** now 2 masted brigantine Hull shape ‘Jagtbygget’ with slight spoon, strongly forward stem and distinctive cruiser stern Material Hull; Danish oak. Deck and wheel house; beech

* See conversion tables for Danish/British/metric in appendix

** We do not know why there are three diﬀerent accounts of engine HP (horse power). Investigations are under way with B&W Alpha engineers in Denmark.

*** Vinden de vor states that Søren Larsen had a notably high mizzen mast.

Søren Larsen in Svendborg 1950 by O.Kure. Collection: Museet for Søfarts, Denmark

3 of 23 TIMELINE Søren Larsen © James D Parbery 2020-2021 this edition 22 March 2021

Motorgaleasen Søren Larsen af Nykøbing Mors © O. Gottliebsen c. 1950

1948 Nov 27 Søren Larsen launched into the Limfjorden at Nykøbing Mors. She would be one of the last of the larger wooden sail cargo ships built in Denmark. The vessel was named after her builder.

1949 April 09 Søren Larsen’s rig and ﬁt-out is complete; ship is delivered to the Nykøbing Mors Shipping Company who would own her for the next sixteen years. The galeas ketch is engaged in ‘packet sailing’ (i.e. regular routes within the islands of Denmark) and she also makes longer voyages to Sweden, Norway, Britain and Iceland. Ref: http://www.jmarcussen.dk/maritim/skibsliste/side.php?id=9629 , Helsingør Søfartsmuseum records, and Vinden er Vor 5 by Kaj Lund 1982, page 152.

Signal letter OUKI Classiﬁcation Co ______Owner Søren Larsen og Sonners Home Port Nykøbing Mors

1949 Sep 29 Søren Larsen is grounded in Limfjorden en route from Kolberg to Nykøbing Mors with a cargo of coal. The Maritime Enquiry, 1st October 1949 in Nykøbing Mors reads; ‘0715 hrs; when Søren Larsen, with pilot aboard, was west of Aalborg, it became foggy. Anchors were made ready and the ship proceeded slowly. 0730 hrs; the ship grounded between Norden (the north) and the ﬁrst red [port lateral mark?]. 1200 Søren Larsen came free by help of a tug, seemingly without damage. The ministry must assume that the grounding was caused by [poor visibility].

4 of 23 TIMELINE Søren Larsen © James D Parbery 2020-2021 this edition 22 March 2021

1950 Trucks, trains and large, m o d e r n s h i p s w e r e increasingly taking the business away from the smaller, traditional vessels such as Søren Larsen. It is likely that Søren Larsen took part in the protest movement in which one hundred and fifty sailing ships from across Denmark berthed at the Langelinje n e a r t h e p a l a c e i n Copenhagen. The ships were led by the flag ship, motor-schooner Svanen, s o l i c i t i n g t h e D a n i s h government to intervene. According to records the Minister of Trade listened a t t e n t i v e l y t o t h e complaints but the Minister of Traffic was ‘resentful’ of the protestors. Protest ships at the Langelinje, Copenhagen 1950

The Minister of Traﬃc was also Minister of the Danish State Railway (DSB) so the ship owners were already at odds with him. The movement to save the small ships ultimately failed, so Søren Larsen’s days as a sail cargo vessel were numbered only a year or so after she was launched.

1958 Søren Larsen runs aground near Dalarö, on the east coast of Sweden during a passage between Sundsvall, Sweden, and Copenhagen (København), Denmark. Ref: Olaf Kures, Vinden er Vor 5 by Kaj Lund, 1982, p152

1959 March 8th Søren Larsen suffers a fire in the engine room while near Kattegat. The ship is en route from Skive to Herøya in ballast. The marine report reads; “At approximately 14:00, when SØREN LARSEN, under a light to moderate breeze was approximately 12 miles NNE from Hals Barre lighthouse, fire odor was smelt in the wheelhouse. An investigation showed that it was burning powerfully in the engine room. Because it was not possible to go down there the only available [extinguishing agents?] were emptied into the engine room, then all openings to the room were closed. At approximately 14:35 Læsø Rende Lighthouse ship was reached, where from more firefighting help was received [by their crew]. At approximately 17:00 SØREN LARSEN received more assistance from a summoned marine ship. At approximately 20:00 the fire was under control and SØREN LARSEN was towed to Frederikshavn where the ship arrived on 9th March at 00:30. In the fire the bulkheads and the deck over the engine room were strongly charred and STB ships side was burned through. There is no enlightened reason to the fire.” Ref: Danish Maritime Incident Register

It is noted in the book Vinden er Vor 5 (p152) that Søren Larsen seemed particularly receptive to ﬁre damage. Similar incidents are described in the Danish Sea Disaster Statistics in 1971 and 1972. Ref: Vinden er Vor 5 by Kaj Lund, 1982, p 152.

1965 Feb 19 Søren Larsen sold to ship’s master Erik Kragh Thomsen of Frederikshavn.

5 of 23 TIMELINE Søren Larsen © James D Parbery 2020-2021 this edition 22 March 2021 ⎈

FILM WORK & SAIL TRAINING in BRITAIN 1976 - 1986

1976 Nov 12 Søren Larsen sold out of trade to Mr. Julian Fitter of Oxford, UK on behalf of Schoonermen of Faversham Ltd, Faversham, UK (near the mouth of the River Thames). For DKK 250,000. Søren Larsen was named Charles Darwin with plans to take passengers on Pacific Island cruises, based in the Galapagos Islands. A company had been formed, [based in Ecuador?] named Veleros de Galápagos, Cia Ltda. However these plans were abandoned after an arsonist set fire to the ship where she lay in Faversham, causing significant damage to the afterguard and wheelhouse. It was the fourth major fire incident in Søren Larsen’s 27 year history [1959, 1971, 1972, 1976], leaving her, again, in a devastated and disabled state. Ref: Vinden er Vor 5 by Kaj Lund, 1982, p 152 & Capt Tony Davies October 2020

1978 August Vessel was purchased by brothers Robin H. and Anthony (Tony) J. Davies, of Square Sail Ltd. The brothers towed the hulk to Colchester, UK in September where she moored on the River Colne for major restoration work. Ship was ballasted with beach pebbles from the River Colne. Fire damage repaired, decks replaced with African Oroko and the ship rigged as a 19th century-style brigantine, as she remains to this day. The ship was renamed Søren Larsen, despite her British flag [perhaps the brothers were spooked by the fire and inspired by the superstition that it is ‘unlucky’ to change the name of a ship]. Danish traditionalists were bemused that a modern hull design should be rigged in the 19th century style but pleased that she retained her old name. Ref; Vinden er Vor 5 by Kaj Lund, 1982, p 153 and Captain Tony Davies, email to J. Parbery Oct 2020

Characters Captain James Onedin & Elizabeth Frazer c.1979

6 of 23 TIMELINE Søren Larsen © James D Parbery 2020-2021 this edition 22 March 2021

1979 March Before the restoration was complete the ship was being used in the latter episodes of the famous BBC series The Onedin Line, set in Liverpool during the period 1860-1880s. The popular TV series ran ninety-one episodes from 1971 to 1980, starring Peter Gilmore as ship owner Captain James Onedin, Jessica Benton as Elizabeth Frazer and Howard Lang as Mr/ Captain Baines.

1980 - 1981 No sooner was the Onedin Line Series concluded when the ship was called upon to feature in The French Lieutenant’s Woman starring Meryl Streep and Jeremy Irons. The film received five Oscar nominations. Film work was a boon for the ship, helping to pay for her full restoration and, eventually, a complete fit-out.

At this time Captain/owner Tony Davies and his wife Fleur Davies had a son, Tristan, who joined them on board when four months old, during the filming of The French Lieutenant’s Woman and Capt. Baines & James Onedin again the following year while filming Shackleton. A daughter, aboard Søren Larsen 1979 Natasha, followed two years later.

1982 - 1983 More films followed, including the BBC TV mini-series Shackleton, about the 1914-17 Antarctic explorer, whose ship Endurance was trapped and then crushed in the ice. To replicate Endurance a temporary mizzen mast and smoke stack were added. A deck house was also constructed over the fore hatch, which became a permanent fixture in the ship. Søren Larsen sailed to the Arctic Circle and into the pack-ice on the east coast of Greenland for filming - the first time a sailing Søren Larsen posing as Endurance in Greenland c.1982 ship had crossed the arctic circle in 70 years.

Other film work followed, including The Count of Monte Cristo and In Search of Marie Celeste. Each winter she was laid up in Colchester; major improvements and conversion work continued. Ref; Captain Tony Davies, email to J. Parbery Oct 2020 and various sources.

1983 - 1986 For three years Søren Larsen was chartered to the Jubilee Sailing Trust, based in Southampton. Søren Larsen pioneered sail training, taking mixed crews of young able bodied trainees alongside physically handicapped trainees to sea. The three year charter brought enough publicity to assist with fund-raising and gave proof to the U.K. Maritime Safety Authority that the concept was safe and viable. This enabled the Jubilee Sailing Trust to then build a purpose designed vessel. STS Lord Nelson and later STS Tenacious, which still operates in Britain today and recently circumnavigated the globe, sailing alongside her prototype Søren Larsen on Sydney Harbour in 2018.

7 of 23 TIMELINE Søren Larsen © James D Parbery 2020-2021 this edition 22 March 2021

FIRST FLEET RE-ENACTMENT and THE SOUTH PACIFIC 1987-1991

1987 Søren Larsen is contacted to the First Fleet Re-enactment Company for an eight month bicentennial voyage to celebrate the founding of modern Australia. Commodore Mike Kichenside selects Søren Larsen as ﬂag ship due to her superior sailing qualities and size. The Fleet gathers at St Katherines Dock near Tower Bridge, London.

1987 April 27 The Fleet depart London for Portsmouth. On board Søren Larsen is the Channel Seven ﬁlm crew, Jonathan & Jane King, Fleet founders, and their eldest daughters, Lowanna, Bryony and Mollie. Commodore Kichenside has his teenage daughter Miranda and Captain Tony Davies is accompanied by his wife Fleur and the their two children, Tristan, 6 and Natasha, 3 yrs old, who will continue on for the 22,000 mile (40,000 km)* journey to Australia. * 40,000 km is roughly the circumference of planet Earth (40,075 at the equator). Although the voyage only encompassed half the globe the ﬂeet's sailing route, following the traditional wind patterns and a deviation to Mauritius, makes a total distance of 22,000 nautical miles.

1987 May 13 More vessels have gathered in Portsmouth, making up a fleet of eleven tall ships. Her Majesty the Queen and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, on deck of the Royal Navy’s modern flag ship, HMS Sirius hoist the flag signal for the First Fleet Re-enactment to depart. Unfortunately Søren Larsen suffers a mishap in the engine room soon afterwards and has to anchor to effect repairs while other ships in the fleet sail on.

1987 Jun - Aug The First Fleet Re-enactment sails Portsmouth - Tenerife - Cape Verde Islands - Rio de Janiero, Upon arriving in Rio the ﬂeet is bankrupt. There is no money to pay the ship owners, crew, or to stock supplies. Fortunately listeners to Radio 2GB in Sydney, prompted by Mike Carlton and inspired by the bold adventure, raise A$900,000 in one weekend - enough to cover expenses. The ﬂeet departs Rio on 9th August.

1987 August 22 D a n i s h First Mate, Henrik Nielsen of the Norwegian square rigged galeas ketch Anna Kristina is flicked overboard while hauling on a jib sheet in the South Atlantic. Søren Larsen and three other vessels of the fleet race to Anna Kristina’s position to conduct a box pattern search the following day. No sighting is made and the search is called off at nightfall, after Søren Larsen’s Fleet Surgeon, Rob Simpson, announces it would be impossible for him to have survived any longer in the water.

First Fleet Re-enactment entering Jervis Bay Malcolm Clarke 1988

Søren Larsen’s American bosun, John Gryska is transferred to Anna Kristina to take Henrik Nielsen’s place as ﬁrst mate for the remaining passage to Cape Town. Ref: ‘The Battle of the Bicentenary’ by J.King, p 271

1987 Sep 10 Fleet arrives Cape Town, South Africa. A memorial service is held for Henrik Nielsen with all crew and ﬂeet personnel attending. Ships stock up supplies for the next leg. Fleet departs Cape Town 29 October. 8 of 23 TIMELINE Søren Larsen © James D Parbery 2020-2021 this edition 22 March 2021

1987 Oct 29 Arrival Port Louis, Mauritius for ‘La Festival de la Mer’. Departs 10th Nov.

1987 Dec 21 First Fleet Re-enactment makes ﬁrst Australian landfall, arriving Fremantle, Western Australia to an enthusiastic welcome. Ships remain in Perth for Christmas.

1988 Jan 1 New Years Eve is spent in the Southern Ocean, en route towards Sydney.

1988 Jan 26 The First Fleet Re-enactment arrives in Sydney NSW on the bicentenary of Australia’s European settlement to a spectacular welcome. Thousands of boats crowd the harbour and at least 2.5 million people (15% of Australia’s population at the time) crowd the shores of Port Jackson to greet the ships. The ﬂeet anchors in Farm Cove, next to the Sydney Opera House to receive an ‘unoﬃcial wave’ from Prince Charles* and Princess Diana. Ref: ‘The Battle for the Bicentenary’ by J.King, pp 165, 305.

* Although The Queen had oﬃcially farewelled the ﬂeet from England (against the advice and wishes of the Australian Government) Prince Charles was under instruction from the Federal Government not to mention or acknowledge the First Fleet Re-enactment, due to the perceived political nature of the event. However, the Prince of Wales was cheeky enough to acknowledge the Fleet ambiguously; “There is no point in trying to gloss over the circumstances in which the country of which you are rightly proud began” he said in his speech, glancing across at the ships anchored in Farm Cove. “Indeed, to face those facts is a necessary part of realising how proud you should be.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_vFXtraj_jM 08:36-08:56 .

1988 Jan-Jun After a month in Darlinrg Harbour, Sydney the First Fleet Re-enactment continues around the eastern and southern sea board, visiting Melbourne, Portland, Port Adelaide, Port Davey, Adventure Bay, Hobart, Eden, Newcastle, Sanctuary Cove, near Brisbane, before returning to Sydney for the decommissioning of the ﬂeet in Cockle Bay in June.

1988 July-Dec Most of the vessels of the First Fleet Re-enactment, including Søren Larsen, HMAV Bounty, Our Svanen, Anna Kristina, Tradewind and One & All remain together for another six months, sailing to Queensland and visiting Brisbane, Hamilton Island (Whitsundays) McKay, Magnetic Island, 1770, Townsville, Cairns, Lizard Island and Restoration Island before making their way back to Sydney.

1989 In December 1988 Søren Larsen sails to Aotearoa (New Zealand), followed by an eight month tour of the South Pacific. This would become a regular, almost annual programme for the ship for the next twenty-two years. The replica HMAV Bounty is also in the Pacific this year, re-enacting the Mutiny of the Bounty (28 April 1789) with descendants Ron Ware-Bligh as master and Glenn Christian as first mate. Søren Larsen’s crew includes Søren Larsen seen from the deck of HMAV Bounty © JDParbery 1988 Marty Woods as shipwright and celebrated Norwegian musicians/entertainers Tron Jensen and the late Tommy Sulen as deck hands.

9 of 23 TIMELINE Søren Larsen © James D Parbery 2020-2021 this edition 22 March 2021

1989 - 1990 150th Anniversary of Waitangi Treaty, New Zealand; to commemorate the treaty made between Maori and Pakeha (white man) in 1840 six ships form as a ﬂeet and visit numerous ports around New Zealand. Søren Larsen was in company with Tradewind, R. Tucker Thompson, Young Endeavour, Spirit of New Zealand and Spirit of Adventure. The ships are frequently met in each port by large Waka Tori; Maori war canoes, carrying up to two hundred men in each canoe. Ports visited include Auckland, Gisborne (Poverty Bay), Whangerei, Opua, Russell and Roberton Island in the Bay of Islands, Napier, Wellington and Christchurch. After a two month dry docking in Tauronga (March-April) the ship then runs her easting down into the Southern Ocean before picking up the trade winds into the South Paciﬁc and on to the Austral Islands, Tahiti, Palmerston Island, Tonga, Fiji, Western Samoa, Norfolk Island, Sydney and back to Auckland.

In Sydney, while berthed outside the newly built, yet to be opened Australian National Maritime Museum (ANMM) at Darling Harbour crew member James Parbery holds an exhibition of drawings on board the ship, made during recent voyages (1987-1990). The exhibition coincides with the media launch of the proposed Homeward Round the Horn voyage, scheduled to depart Sydney in October 1991. Søren Larsen then sails to Auckland to conclude the twelve month season and crew rotation.

Chief Maka of Tofua by JDParbery 1990

1990 ? Captain Tony Davies splits from his brother Robin Davies of Square Sail Ltd, creating a separate company named Square Sail Paciﬁc, becoming sole owner with his wife Fleur Davies. The ship is now permanently based in Auckland, New Zealand, although she still ﬂies the British ensign.

1991 After another season in the South Paciﬁc Søren Larsen returns to Sydney, Australia to join up with hermaphradite brig Eye of the Wind at Pyrmont and t h e n C o c k l e B a y t o prepare for the passage around Cape Horn to Europe and America. Steel buttresses are added to the sides of the d e c k h o u s e t o h e l p w i t h s t a n d e x p e c t e d weather.

Søren Larsen approaching Cape Horn © JDParbery November 1991

10 of 23 TIMELINE Søren Larsen © James D Parbery 2020-2021 this edition 22 March 2021

CAPE HORN / COLUMBUS QUINCENTENARY / UK REFIT 1991 - 1993

1991 - 1992 On 7th October 1991 Søren Larsen and Eye of the Wind depart Sydney on a twelve month voyage to New Zealand, Cape Horn, Falkland Islands, Uruguay, Trisan da Cunha, Saint Helena, Ascension Isle, The Azores, Portugal for a three week dry docking in Lisbon followed by a gathering of tall ships in the Port of Lisbon, Portugal. On 9th December 1991 Søren Larsen becomes the first British registered sailing ship to double Cape Horn since Joseph Conrad in 1936. Søren Larsen completes her first circumnavigation of the globe whilst crossing the South Atlantic. Scientific studies are made on behalf of various universities; to measure the iron content of the water, the temperature at the bottom of the ocean (using a seven mile long copper wire), sending regular meteorological reports to the Bureau of Meteorology and recording the various bird life, whales and dolphins.

On the approach to Cape Horn Søren Larsen weathers sixty foot high waves and 55 knot (100km) winds. During the approach to the Falkland Islands the bob-stay parts at the stem shackle. 2nd mate John Gryska is lowered overboard to repair it. James Parbery is washed overboard from the bowsprit in the South Atlantic but manages to clamber back on board.

While anchored oﬀ Saint Helena, most crew are ashore to visit Napoleon Boneparte’s ﬁnal exile and death bed. A handful of crew are still aboard when a thirty-six foot whale shark attacks the ship, smearing its six-foot wide lips with red anti-foul paint from the hull. Crew members Nigel Snell, Ian Hutchinson and James Parbery are given permission to swim after it. The crew enjoy riding the back of the whale and take a number of photographs before swimming back to the ship.

Søren Larsen & Eye of the Wind in the South Atlantic. Ian Hutchinson 1992

The United Kingdom issues a series of philatelic stamps and ﬁrst day covers to commemorate the voyage of British registered ships Eye of the Wind and Søren Larsen. Stamps are issued for British dependencies Falkland Islands, Tristan da Cunha, Saint Helena and Ascension Island, each visited by the ships.

11 of 23 TIMELINE Søren Larsen © James D Parbery 2020-2021 this edition 22 March 2021

1992 April-Aug Columbus Quincentennary and European Tour; Søren Larsen represents Britain in a ﬂeet of thirty-four tall ships racing from Cadiz, Spain to Tenerife, Puerto Rico, New York, and Boston, ending in Liverpool UK. The ships represent Argentina, Australia, Belgium, Britain, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Denmark, Germany, Italy, Israel, Japan, Norway, Oman, Panama, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Spain, Uruguay and Venezuela. Capt Jim Cottier takes command while Capt Tony Davies takes a break to spend time with family in Britain and New Zealand.

1992 June While in San Juan, Puerto Rico some of the Søren crew are invited to a party aboard the Australian tall ship STS Young Endeavour wearing dinner jackets, tropical board shorts and ﬂip-ﬂops.

1992 June 25 While en route towards New York the crew of Søren Larsen witness the space shuttle Columbia taking oﬀ from Cape Canaveral.

1992 July 4 Søren Larsen joins the Tall Ships Parade of Sail on the Hudson River. The ﬂeet includes replicas of Christopher Columbus’ ships from 1592; Santa Maria, Pinta, and Niña and much larger ships, such as the US Coast Guard Eagle, 1936 and Russian ships Kruzenshtern, 1926 and Sedov, 1921- the largest sailing ship aﬂoat in the world today.

1992 July Søren Larsen visits Mystic Seaport and berths across from the whaling ship Charles W. Morgan 1841 and Alan Villiers’ full rigged ship Joseph Conrad 1882.

1992 July Boston gives a huge welcome to the tall ships, with over a million people arriving in the city each day to see the ships. HRH Prince Philip makes an oﬃcial visit to Søren Larsen and meets the crew.

1992 August The passage across the North Atlantic includes periods of thick fog and heavy gales. Half way across the Atlantic Ocean British sail training ship STS Greater Manchester Challenge Suffers a broken gaff. The damaged spar is transferred across to Søren Larsen where it is repaired on deck by shipwright/2nd Mate Marty Woods and sent back in the dinghy. Despite this Søren Larsen is well ahead in her class in the tall ships race but 60nm from the finish line (on the meridian with Cork, Ireland) the wind backs to NW and it takes three days to tack to the finish line. Søren Larsen is the winner of the Class B ships while the 1,050 tonne Norwegian ship Christian Radich (1937) wins in Class A/overall winner. BBC TV The Last Great Adventure is filmed on board Søren Larsen and aboard other ships and screened twice in the UK by popular demand. https://www.youtube.com/results? search_query=bbc+the+last+great+adventure+1992 The tall ships receive a warm welcome in Liverpool and Søren Larsen, along with other ships of her size, ties up at the Albert Dock. Captain Jim Cottier and crew/musicians Nick Turner, Tron Jensen and James Parbery perform the song Colchestser Packet (written by Jim Cottier during the voyage and named after the ship’s port of registry) live on Merseyside Radio. The three musicians, later known as The Reeelers also perform outside the Albert Dock Hotel, commencing the band’s ‘European Tall Ship Tour’.

1992 Aug - Oct Søren Larsen continues up west coast of Scotland past Mull of Kintyre, through the Caledonia Canal to Fort Augustus and Inverness, then across the North Sea to Nykøbing Mors, where the ship was built. Søren Larsen is piloted in by a previous owner/master and the crew are greeted by the Lord Mayor and brass band, then escorted to a special luncheon at the Town Hall. The ship then sails to Copenhagen, Bremerhaven, Amsterdam and London. The Reeelers perform in each port of call. While at St. Katherines Dock in London the purser, Andy Riley, arranges for the boys to make a recording - at Waterlogged Studios on the Thames River.

12 of 23 TIMELINE Søren Larsen © James D Parbery 2020-2021 this edition 22 March 2021

The ship then sails to Southampton, where the crew are invited for tea & scønes, cheese & cucumber sandwiches and crochet at voyage-crew/circumnavigator Lady Margaret’s cliﬀ-top estate before proceeding to Jersey, in the Channel Islands, then Plymouth ? and around Lands End to the Severn River and along the canal to Gloucester.

1992- 1993 M a j o r r e ﬁ t i n Gloucester UK. Pebble Ballast from Colchester is replaced with tarred pig iron. Steel shoe added to keel, adding one foot draught. Passenger ﬁt-out rebuilt in exquisite Edwardian style. Marty Woods stays on as Head Shipwright / First Mate and meets his future wife, Lisa Savage, who joins as The Cook for eighteen months, Gloucester UK - Auckland New Zealand.

James Parbery leaves the ship in Gloucester, occasionally returning to the ship to assist in the reﬁt. He moves to Cambridge to develop experimental perspective drawings and paintings inspired during the Interior of Søren Larsen’s deck house (detail) JDParbery 1992 Cape Horn voyage.

Immediately after the conclusion of the £150,000 reﬁt Søren Larsen collides with a road bridge on Severn River/canal, causing damage to starboard bow and sending shock waves in the pitch from anchor windlass to deck house. The collision is captured on video by a member of public and shown on 7 O’clock News across the UK. Ship lays over near Bristol while Marty Woods repairs the damage.

RETURN TO THE SOUTH PACIFIC 1993 - 1999

1993 June Article published in Cambridge Varsity Magazine Around the World in 1880 Days about Søren Larsen's circumnavigation, Cape Horn passage and a promotion of future voyages, written by James Parbery - see separate attachment.

1993 July Søren Larsen sails up west coast of Britain, visiting Isles of Scilly, Waterford in Ireland, the Isle of Mann, Liverpool, Glasgow, around the north-east of Scotland to the Outer Hebredes, Orkney Islands, then to Newcastle-upon-Tyne for the Cutty Sark Tall Ship Race to Bergen, Norway, then Esbjerg Denmark, Amsterdam, London, Southampton and back to Gloucester. Ref: Lisa Woods née Savage.

1993 - 1994 Return to the Antipodes via the Carribean, visiting many of its islands, including Los Roques Archipelago (Venezuela) then Panama Canal (Panama), Cocos Island (Costa Rica), Galapagos Islands (Ecuador), Pitcairn Island (Britain), Tahiti (France), Tonga, Fiji (independent kingdoms), New Caledonia (France), Lord Howe Island (Australia), Sydney, Australia and finally Auckland, New Zealand. Armed soldiers of the Venezuela government storm aboard Søren Larsen and hold the crew at gunpoint while the ship is anchored off one of the islands of Los Roques Archipelago. The soldiers demand to know why the ship is in these waters and to see the proper paper work. The drama ensues for about five hours, with some crew fearing for their lives, until the correct document is presented. 13 of 23 TIMELINE Søren Larsen © James D Parbery 2020-2021 this edition 22 March 2021

Upon anchoring in a bay on the small, remote Cocos Island (550 km SW of Costa Rica) Søren Larsen crew encounter treasure hunters working from a converted tug boat. The treasure hunters are vexed at the arrival of another ship in the bay but upon learning that there are wealthy travellers on board they give a presentation, showing the Spanish treasure they had found so far, and hoping to ﬁnd fresh sponsors amongst Søren Larsen’s voyage crew for future expeditions.

The crew swim and snorkel in the bay amongst hammer head sharks and various other species. The pilot book, conﬁrmed by the local ranger had given assurance to the crew that the sharks were so well fed by the abundance of ﬁsh that humans had no need to be concerned.

First Mate Marty Woods is allowed a quick run ashore to see the island after spending the day ferrying crew and passengers to the island. Unfortunately Marty soon becomes lost and after the sun goes down the forest becomes pitch black. Crawling on his hands and knees he manages to feel his way down to a creek and follows it downstream until he gets to the ranger’s house - the sole resident of the island. To not startle the ranger Marty calls out from a distance and approaches the house slowly. The ranger calls the ship on VHF radio and Marty is picked up in the dinghy. The ship might have sailed oﬀ without him, leaving him marooned on the remote island; no-one had noticed he was absent.

Søren Larsen weathers a Force Ten storm (50-55 knots wind) west of Lord Howe Island. The storm springs up quickly and Søren Larsen makes her best speed [12 knots?] under close reefs and a lower topsail upon a ﬂat sea. The crew are bemused when the islanders remark “You should have been here yesterday; we had 100 kilometre winds!”

1994 October 14 Søren Larsen arrives Sydney, Australia; James Parbery hosts a welcome party for oﬃcers & crew at his home in The Rocks with special guests First Fleet Re-enactment founders Jonathan & Jane King and writer/art gallery owner/full voyage trainee Ann Von Bertouch.

1996 - 1999 Paciﬁc Island cruises. Marty Woods promoted to master. Lisa Savage stays on as cook. ⎈

SAIL MILLENIA and the FIRST DECADE 2000 - 2010 2000 OPSAIL Sail Millenia to USA via Panama Canal… It was billed as the tall ships' race of the century and the youth event of the millennium year, and so it was. Seventy-ﬁve sail training tall ships from 25 countries took part in the 10,000 mile race. 7,000 young people, aged between 15 and 25, and from nearly 30 countries, made up most of the crews. Some 14 million people visited the seven ports when the ﬂeet was in. And media coverage worldwide was colossal - print, radio and television coverage in over 30 countries, and the Tall Ships 2000 web-site peaked at over one million hits a week. This ran from May 25 through July 31 with the traditional Parade of Ships in New York on July 4. Ports of call included San Juan, Puerto Rico; Miami, Florida; Norfolk, Virginia; Baltimore, Maryland; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; New York City; New London, Connecticut; and Portland, Maine. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Sail & waiting on details from Andy Riley.

2000 Olympic Games held in Sydney.

2001 Jan 1 Centenary of Federation and commencement of the true millennium

2001 Sep 11 Attacks on World Trade Centre New York and on the Pentagon USA.

14 of 23 TIMELINE Søren Larsen © James D Parbery 2020-2021 this edition 22 March 2021

2003 - 2006 Paciﬁc Cruises continue while wars rage in Afghanistan & Iraq

2006 - 2008 Tony & Fleur Davies of Square Sail Paciﬁc sell Søren Larsen to Steve Randall of Bridgewater Charters. Ship continues South Paciﬁc cruises with Capt Tony Davies acting as advisor for twelve months.

2009 Rogue wave carries deck house away. Mayday 200 nm north of NZ. Helicopter drops extra bilge pumps to help keep ship aﬂoat. Søren Larsen returns to New Zealand for major repairs to starboard bulwark and timber heads, boat skids and a replacement deck house.

2010? P l a n k s f r o m S ø r e n Larsen’s starboard bow come loose while at Søren with deck house removed 2009 sea; ship returns to New Zealand for repairs. Repair work and consequent loss of business is not covered by insurance putting ship into ﬁnancial trouble.

2011 Steve Randall of Bridgewater Charters sells ship to Marty Woods of Sydney Harbour Tall Ships on a ‘buy-lease’ arrangement.

Søren Larsen anchored off a tropical beach. Photographer unknown.

15 of 23 TIMELINE Søren Larsen © James D Parbery 2020-2021 this edition 22 March 2021

SYDNEY HARBOUR TALL SHIPS 2007 - 2020s 2007 August Shipwright and tall ships master Captain Marty Woods purchases Our Svanen and returns the ship to survey condition over a three month period, ready for chartering. Deb Collins, Alistair McFeast and David Warne are involved in the business for a period. The company becomes known as Sydney Harbour Tall Ships (SHTS).

2007 September Our Svanen / Sydney Harbour Tall Ships becomes the first vessel and the first business on Sydney Harbour to be certified carbon neutral.

2008 Jan 22 James Parbery joins Sydney Harbour Tall Ships as mate/host

2008 Sep 15 The collapse of Lehman Brothers USA deepens Global Financial Crisis.

2009 August James Parbery commences as relief master

Hand painted logos JDParbery 2013

2011 Marty & Lisa purchases Søren Larsen on buy/lease arrangement

2011 Convicts Castles & Champagne - tours of Goat Island commence.

2011 Søren Larsen makes last South Pacific cruise, under the command of Captain Tod Thompson. Ship operates at a loss, bringing an end to South Pacific cruising for the time being due to perilous financial situation.

Captain Marty Woods - proud owner of Søren Larsen © Fairfax Media 2011

2013 Søren Larsen sails in company with STS Lord Nelson Melbourne - Hobart - Sydney during the British Jubilee Sailing Trust vessel’s circumnavigation of the globe.

2013 Søren Larsen makes return voyage to Bundaberg, Queensland, commemorating the 125th Anniversary of Bundaberg Rum, founded in 1888. A bureaucrat at AMSA neglects to sign the papers by the critical deadline for Southern Swan’s departure so Søren Larsen is used at the last minute, transferring crew and supplies from Southern Swan to Søren Larsen after midnight (due to a late evening charter), bunkering at 0300 and clearing Sydney Heads at 0400. The transfer to Søren Larsen, causes signiﬁcant ﬁnancial loss to SHTS due to Bundaberg Rum Corporation’s perceived ‘breach of contract’ and refusal to pay (they wanted ‘the black ship’).

16 of 23 TIMELINE Søren Larsen © James D Parbery 2020-2021 this edition 22 March 2021

Søren Larsen’s main mast being stepped. Sydney 2020. Photographer?

2013 Søren Larsen plays a prominent role in the Naval Fleet Review in Sydney; the 100th Anniversary of the forming of the Royal Australian Navy.

2014 ‘Pirate Attack’ theatrical show commences aboard Southern Swan and Søren Larsen, directed by Paul Ellis.

2016 Piratical, pyrotechnical spectacular enacted in company with Southern Swan oﬀ Blues Point and Milsons Point (Luna Park) for international AVON event.

2016 New relief skipper, Andy Law joins company to share skippering between the four vessels, principally aboard Søren Larsen

2017 ‘Pirate Mutiny’ theatrical show commences aboard Southern Swan and Søren Larsen, written and produced by James Parbery.

2018 Søren Larsen sails to Brisbane and return for dry docking at The Yard.

2019 Søren Larsen commences whale watching cruises oﬀ coast of Sydney.

2019 December Chinese Government announces the rise of a deadly corona virus in Wuhan, consequently named Covid-19. Wuhan and other cities locked down.

17 of 23 TIMELINE Søren Larsen © James D Parbery 2020-2021 this edition 22 March 2021

2020 Jan-Feb Søren Larsen sails to Hobart, Tasmania for the Wooden Boat Festival

2020 March 12 The World Health Organisation declares Covid-19 to be a global pandemic. Countries around the world are going into lockdown to attempt its containment.

2020 April 29 250th Anniversary of Captain James Cook arriving Botany Bay 1770. Commemorations are marred by politics while events are cancelled or postponed due to the global Covid-19 pandemic. Fear of the pandemic hits the tourist industry, jeopardising the tall ships business. Several months pass with all cruises cancelled. Some crew remain on ‘Jobkeeper’ maintaining the vessels. Søren Larsen undergoes major reﬁt including repair of main mast.

2020 August Cruises are resumed at about 10% normal capacity. SHTS ships are certiﬁed ‘Covid Safe’ - following strict guidelines to inhibit spread of the virus but business remains slow. Woods leads the maintenance team while Parbery works partly from home, researching ships’ histories.

2021 March Sydney Harbour Tall Ships’ histories submitted to ANMM for submission to ARHV - Australian Register of Historic Vessels.

2022

2023 Nov 27 75th Anniversary naming and launching of Søren Larsen in Nykøbing Mors.

⎈

DANISH UNITS OF MEASUREMENTS The Danes adopted the Greek pous, calling it fod (foot) divided into 12 tomme (inches) through maritime trade in the late Bronze/early Iron Age; c.1200 B.C. Refined versions of this system of measurement have now been used for over three thousand years by the Danes and British, and throughout the British Empire, including the Americas, where it remains the official system of measurement in the USA. The Danish system varies slightly from the British system, despite having the same three thousand year origin. The Danish government, influenced by the French, introduced the metric system in 1907 but it was not widely used. Original plans of Mathilde are all in Danish Imperial measurements. The Australian government enforced the metric system in 1973 in the spirit of economic rationality. 1683 King Christian V of Denmark introduced an office to oversee weights and measures 1698 ‘Iron Copenhagen’ imperial standard established 1799 Napoleon Bonaparte imposes metric system in France and in conquered nations 1820 Imperial Pendulum definition introduced in Denmark 1835 Last refinements to Imperial system in Denmark 1907 French Metric system introduced in Denmark (but not widely used). 1973 Metric system introduced in Australia

Danish Imperial British Imperial French (metric) 1 rut = 16 fod = 16 feet 197.696 inches (almost a cable) 5026.0 mm = 3 feet One Yard 914.00 mm 1 alen = 2 fod = 2 feet 24.712 inches 627.68 mm 1 fod = 1 foot 12.356 inches 313.85 mm 1 kvarter = ¼ alen ½ fod ½ foot/6 inches 6.178 inches 156.92 mm 1 tomme = ‘one thumb’ = 1 inch 1.0297 inches 26.150 mm 1 linie = ‘one line’ = 12th of an inch 0.0858 inches 2.1800 mm 1 skrupel ‘one scruple’ = 12th of a line 0.00715 inches 0.1816 mm____

⎈

SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY in chronological order

1982 Vinden er Vor 5 - Sejlere med dansk fortid [The Wind is Ours, Volume 5 - Sailing ships with Danish Background] by Kaj Lund p152-153, published by Borgen/Narayana Press 1982. ISBN 87-418-5332-6

1987 The Return of the First Fleet by Jonathan King, published by Fairfax Magazines & Robertsbridge 1987

1988 Sailing Home - A Pictorial Record of the First Fleet Re-enactment Voyage by Malcolm Clarke (photographer) and David Iggulden (writer) published by Angus & Robertson 1988. ISBN 0-207-15965-3

1988 The Battle for the Bicentenary by Jonathan King with David Iggulden, published by Hutchinson Australia 1989. ISBN 0-09-169161-3

1988 The Voyage Out - The First Fleet Re-enactment by Anne Von Bertouch, published by Hunnifords Lane Press, Newcastle NSW 1991. ISBN 01-959282824-3-2

1991 Soren Larsen voyage to trace Cook’s exploits article New Zealand Herald, Auckland NZ 6 March 1991, written by Kevin Townsend (see following page)

1991 Tall Ships depart for Cape Horn & Columbus article, Sydney Morning Herald , 8 October 1991, photo by Greg White.

1991 Søren Larsen - Homeward Round the Horn by Captain Jim Cottier, published by The Bush Press of New Zealand 1997. ISBN 0-908608-77-2 19 of 23 TIMELINE Søren Larsen © James D Parbery 2020-2021 this edition 22 March 2021

1992 Fabric of a Family by D. G. Parbery, pp176-177, printed by Jenkin Buxton Pty Ltd, Melbourne 1992, ISBN 0-646-10511-6

1993 Around the world in 1,880 days article in Varsity Magazine, Cambridge UK, 16 June 1993 by James Parbery, describing Søren Larsen’s circumnavigation & passage around Cape Horn

2007 Søren Larsen - A Voyagers Handbook by Ian Hutchinson, illustrated by James Parbery, published by Bridgewater Charters, Auckland New Zealand 2007

2009 Rogue Wave - photo of Søren’s deck after deck house and boat skids debris is removed http://www.oldsaltblog.com/2009/10/update-tall-ship-soren-larsen-–-repairs-after-surviving-a-rogue-wave/

2013 Tall Ships and Tall Tales - A Life Dancing with History by Jonathan King, published by Scribe Melbourne & London 2013. ISBN 978-1-922070-73-9

2013 Melissa Wu dives oﬀ Søren Larsen, article in Sydney Morning Herald, 23 August 2013

2020 Søren Larsen Safety Management System (SMS) Manual, Sixth Edition, by James Parbery - Chapter Four - Speciﬁcations, pp 18-19, published by Dynamic Experience Group Pty Ltd.

[Bibliography to be continued]

⎈

PHOTOGRAPHS in chronological order

1950 Photograph from book extract; Kobenhavn_ships protesting against competition from trucks p76_Svanen at right_from Dorthe Madsen [2]

1950 Photograph of more ships protesting at the Langelinje, Denmark, photograph [1]

[List of Photographs to be continued]

⎈

WEB REFERENCES

Basic data and good photo of Søren Larsen in Nykøbing, Mors c1949; http://billedarkiv.mfs.dk/fotoweb/archives/5001-Museet-for-søfarts-billedarkiv/archive/Arkiv-105/000005370.jpg.info

Søren Larsen Records & Statistics - Helsingør Søfartsmuseum records http://www.jmarcussen.dk/maritim/skibsliste/side.php?id=9629

Constitutional recognition for Aboriginal Peoples News https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-03-17/noel- pearson-speech-indigenous-constitutional-recognition/13256956

For those interested in sailing aboard Søren Larsen as passengers or crew: www.sydneytallships.com.au

NOTE: If reading this document online you can click on the web link and it might take you directly to the site. If that doesn’t work copy the link, then paste it into the browser.

[More web references to be added later]

⎈

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The following people have been of great assistance in researching the history of Søren Larsen - shown here in order of the ship’s chronology;

Magnus Hald Landbo of Frederikshavn, Denmark has been of enormous assistance researching and translating documents for Søren Larsen and Southern Swan. He is expected to join our crew next year.

Dorthe Blom Madsen from Denmark is a grand-daughter of Captain Peter Simonsen, who owned Svanen 1953-1960. She has been helpful passing on contacts and information about the Danish ships and has provided photographs from the 1950s from her personal collection.

Gert Skaarup Nielsen, father-in-law to Dorthe Maden, has spent many hours researching the Danish ships and has uncovered much valuable information. He sailed in ships like Søren Larsen as a boy in the 1950s - our direct contact with that period of history.

Claus Christensen from Denmark is a great grandson of Captain Peter Simonsen of Svanen. Claus has provided translations of some of the Danish references and he joined the crew of Søren Larsen and Southern Swan in September 2020-January 2021, performing much valuable work on Søren Larsen’s main engine.

Eric Kromman from Denmark has oﬀered to assist in the research of the ships’ early years and has sent me some digital documents.

Thorbjørn Thaarup, curator of history and geography and the M/S Maritime Museum of Denmark, has sent me helpful information, photographs, references and links.

Mr. Helge Bjerreskov from MAN Diesel and Turbo has assisted in research on the B&W Alpha engine.

Brian Grusgaard from B&W Alpha in Skegen, Denmark (now retired) is helping with research on the engine.

Captain Tony and Fleur Davies restored Søren Larsen in the 1970s and ensured her continued survival into the 21st century. They made the ship what she is today and introduced the thrill of tall ship adventuring to young and old, from every quarter of the globe over a period of twenty-eight years. Tony & Fleur have provided me with a written overview of the period 1978-1988 and gave me the great privilege of joining their crew 1989-1992, sailing the South Paciﬁc, Europe and the Americas.

Dr. Jonathan King, historian, writer, founder of the First Fleet Re-enactment commissioned Søren Larsen for the Re-enactment voyage and sailed in her during several of the legs. His books have been a rich source of information - a selection is listed below.

Captain John Sørensen from Denmark was master of the Norwegian galeas ketch Anna Kristina during the First Fleet Re-enactment 1987-88 and master of HMAV Bounty in Sydney c.1991-1997. He has oﬀered to assist me with further research later this year.

Andy Riley, MC, promotions manager and purser of Søren Larsen for many years, has oﬀered to provide information regarding the Opsail / Sail Millenia of 1999-2000

Captain Martin Woods, shipwright, tall ships captain, director of Sydney Harbour Tall Ships, joined Søren Larsen in January 1988 and has been signiﬁcantly involved in the ship ever since; as head shipwright (executing numerous major repairs over the years), as 2nd mate, 1st mate, master and now ship owner. He has ensured the continuing survival of the ship and commissioned me to carry out this research, providing most of the construction and statistical details.

If readers have more information, articles, photographs etc to oﬀer please contact James Parbery; [email protected] .

23 of 23