Vittoria Dock
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Vittoria Dock is a dock in Birkenhead, Wirral Peninsula, England. It was built between 1905 and 1909 within the Great Float.
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[edit] The name 'Vittoria'
The dock is named after the Battle of Vittoria, fought on 21 June 1813 and was designed by A.G.Lyster.
An alternative view is that Vittoria Dock has derived its name as a tribute to the first ship to circumnavigate the globe, Magellan's Vittoria.[1] However, Magellan's ship was named after the church of Santa María de la Victoria de Triana, therefore, this Vittoria naming may be questioned.
Vittoria Dock is sometimes incorrectly quoted as 'Victoria Dock', thought in reference to Queen Victoria.
[edit] History
During its construction on 6 March 1909, a temporary dam collapsed, killing 14 navvies. This incident is now referred to as the Birkenhead Dock Disaster.
Between 1937 and 1941, HMS Conway, a training ship, was based here. Between the 1920s and 1970s, the Clan Line and Blue Funnel shipping companies had loading facilities at the dock. The dock fell into disuse as container shipping came in to use.[1]
When the Warship Preservation Trust closed in February 2006, most of its exhibits, which included the Rothesay class frigate HMS Plymouth and wooden hulled minesweeper HMS Bronington, were later moved to Vittoria Dock for safe storage.[2]
[edit] Future
The dock is hoped to encompass part of Wirral Waters, a redevelopment by Peel Group. An initial planning application was to be submitted in the summer of 2007.[3]
[edit] References
- ^ a b (Spring 2000) Wirral Champion Journal, No.1, pp24-27. ISBN (ISSN) 1470-2746-01.
- ^ Places of Interest - Historic Warships. Retrieved on 2007-10-12.
- ^ NW Enquirer article
