600th
Celebration
News
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for
the
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Prince Henry
Sinclair
Anniversary
|
|
To promote recognition of Henry Sinclair, 14th Century explorer
of North America, and to celebrate the 600th anniversary in 1998
October 15, 1996 Issue
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Published by Prince Henry Project Committee
65 Hartwell Street, West Boylston, MA, 01583, USA
Phone: 508-835-2900 Fax: 508-835-2944
E-Mail: henry1398@aol.com
HTML by
John S. Quarterman
|
Plans being made for Memorial in Advocate
Rev. David Chisling, pastor of the United Church,
Nova Scotia, reports that funds are being raised
for a memorial in the village of Advocate. It will
recognize not only Prince Henry Sinclair, but also
others, including the Micmacs and the French
under Champlain, who founded the area. When
the giant Provincial park opens in Cape Chignecto
in 1998, with its 8000 acres of beauty, they
anticipate a major celebration in coordination with
the 600th anniversary of Prince Henry.
``Henry St. Clair'' ship
During the Summer months, communications were
very poor with our Scottish partners at the
University of Edinburgh. Now the situation seems
to have improved, according to both Chris Minty
and Neil Stewart. Revised plans were completed a
month ago, and they have been submitted to
Lloyds of London for insurance underwriting. A
copy of those plans is in our hands. Solicitation
efforts have increased in Great Britain, with the
objective of securing enough funds to enable them
to lay the keel of the ship in December.
The reasons for modifying the original design
researched and drawn by Iain Oughtred were
based upon safety and modernization factors.
Compliance with the tests of The British
Department of Trade & Industry requires a
change in the Sail Plan. According to Captain
Neil Stewart, the sail area will have to be about
1800 square feet, rather than 900, as in Oughtred's
plan. In order to accomplish this, he plans to
have a square mainsail with a fore and aft jib and
mizzen. Also, he intends to add a triangular
``raffee'' topsail. It is planned that to make the sail
safe to reef, the square sail will be lowered to the
deck and disconnected from the mast so that the
yard can be stretched along the deck with both
ends inboard. The mainmast will be 13-1/2 inches
in diameter, round and hollow, about 58-feet tall.
The hollow construction will allow electrical wiring
for the radar to pass out of sight. In Stewart's
words, ``The vessel should have a magnificent and
dramatic appearance.''
600th Celebration Committee
A dedicated group of 15 persons has met nearly
every month to guide the world-wide planning
process for the 600th anniversary of the 1398
Expedition. It has printed this newsletter,
prepared various informative fliers, and founded
two Web Sites. Contact with many organizations
has resulted in beneficial exchange of information.
All efforts are voluntary. Printing and mailing
have recently been supported by the contributions
of Bronze Sponsors. This is a team effort, and we
thank everyone concerned.
Fourteenth century Scottish galleys, or Viking-type ships,
are available in several places today.
Shown here
is one at anchor in Lerwick Harbor in Shetland.
Behind it is the large P&O ferry by the name ``St.
Clair'', which operates regularly between Aberdeen
and Shetland. The proposed ``Henry St. Clair''
Scottish Galley is similar, except for the side-mounted rudder,
common in the Viking days. In
Prince Henry's time, the rudder was rear-mounted.
Impressive presentation
The auditorium of the Maritime Museum of the
Atlantic in Halifax, NS, was filled to capacity non
the evening of September 24th. It was a public
presentation about Prince Henry., sponsored by
the Clan Sinclair Societies of Nova Scotia and
Canada. Elizabeth Ross, former Executive
Director of the Nova Scotia Heritage Society, was
the featured speaker. Having resided briefly at
Rosslyn Castle, she has personally followed the
foot steps of Prince Henry throughout Scotland,
Orkney, Shetland, and Nova Scotia. Her
presentation captured the flavor and ambience of
14th Century Europe. In the background the
sounds of Medieval music was heard. Following
slides of Prince Henry's castles in Europe, she
illustrated his sojourn in Nova Scotia. Jim S. Clair
rendered an excellent reading of the Glooscap
Legends. We thank William E. Sinclair for this
report.
New discovery!
Niven Sinclair reports that with the help of Dr.
Jonathan Wills, who has sailed the waters of
Shetland for over 28 years, Prince Henry's castle in
Shetland was found! The effort required aerial
scouting by helicopter. Thirty-seven possible sites
were narrowed down to three. Then, by foot, the
one site was located. The foundations of the 14th
century castle are clearly visible. The BBC
camerman filmed from the air and from the sea.
In Niven's words, ``The discovery of this castle and
adjacent bay allows us to complete our
understanding of Henry's historic voyage to the
New World in 1398. We know his exact point of
departure and his place of landfall, Guysborough,
in Nova Scotia.''
Information Sources
The Internet is a new source for a very wide range
of information, including Prince Henry! Many
thanks are deserved by John Olin and John S.
Quarterman for their many hours of time and skill
in maintaining our Web Sites. At last count there
were 22 Web Sites where one can find information
related to our Medieval hero. For your
convenience some are listed below:
Donations will help!
The expense of conducting a celebration for the
600th anniversary of Prince Henry's epic voyage
must be raised from voluntary contributions. A
sizeable amount is needed for building the full-sized
Replica of the Sinclair boat. Also, mailing &
printing costs by this 600th Celebration Committee
need to be covered.
Three levels of contribution have been established.
The Bronze Sponsor ($40 per calendar year)
covers a subscription for this ``600th Celebration
News'', as well as a commemorative scroll and an
invitation to one of several Celebration parties.
The Silver Sponsor ($1500 one-time gift) receives
the above, plus their name or logo will be placed
on a pennant flag flying fore or aft on the ship's
rigging. The Gold Sponsor ($15,000 or above one-
time gift) also will have its name or logo
emblazoned on the mainsail and on a large shield,
carried by crew members and displayed on the
ship. (Benefits relating to the ship are dependant
upon the success of its building and sailing.)
Contributions are tax exempt in Scotland, but not
in the United States nor Canada, unless special
arrangements are made for Silver or Gold
restricted gifts.
ACTION
Please make out your check
for Bronze Membership to
``St. Clair Voyage 1398''
and send it today to
Pete Cummings,
PO Box 158,
Worcester, MA, 01613.
Clan Sinclair
.
Last update: 99/06/20 11:36:49
