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| Undated handout file photo issued by Historic England of HMS Beagle. The dock where Charles Darwin's ship spent its final days has been given protected status to help preserve it for the future. |
A rare “mud dock” where Charles Darwin's vessel HMS Beagle spent its final years has been given protected status after being identified by a drone.
In 1831 the scientist voyaged to the Galapagos aboard the Beagle, a trip which helped inspire his theory of natural selection.
The site of the famous ship’s final berth will now be officially protected 200 years after the vessel was first launched.
While Darwin set about his scientific work on returning to England, the Beagle was used to prevent smuggling on the River Roach in Essex, where it was last stationed before being sold off and broken up.
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Victoria and Albert Museum, London
"UNITED KINGDOM - FEBRUARY 03: Albumen photography by Julia Margaret Cameron (1815-1875). Charles Darwin (1809-1882) was employed as naturalist on HMS Beagle from 1831-1836. He first made his name as a geologist, but is remembered for his momentous contributions to biology - primarily his demonstration that evolution has occurred and his discovery of the principle of natural selection of heritable variation as the cause of evolution. His book 'Origin of Species' was published in 1859. Cameron's photographic portraits are considered among the finest in the early history of photography. She set up a private studio at her Isle of Wight home at the age of 48, after her daughter gave her a camera, and she became expert at using the collodion wet-plate process.
The final berth of the vessel has been traced using antique Ordnance Surveys, and the help of modern drone technology to map the site of the “mud dock” from the air.
Last year maritime archaeologists confirmed that the innocuous stretch of flats near Rochford was a former dock carved into the mud which would secure a hull at low tide.
On the advice of Historic England this site will now be protected as nationally important by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
Heritage minister Nigel Huddleston, said: "The voyages of HMS Beagle had a transformative impact on the world and they began here on our shores two hundred years ago.
“As 2020 marks a special anniversary in the Beagle's past, it is fitting that the significant site of its last days will be protected for the future."
Historic England Chief Executive, Duncan Wilson, added:“We are glad to see this site in a quiet corner of Essex given national protection.”
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