Career (UK) | |
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Name: | Havengore (2nd of that name) |
Namesake: | Havengore Island, a low-lying marshy island off the coast of Essex. The derivation of the word Havengore is Old English, 'haefen' meaning an anchorage and 'gor' meaning muddy. The adjoining Havengore Creek marked the northern end of the PLA's jurisdiction prior to 1964, when it was extended to include the whole of the Thames Estuary. By convention many PLA vessels are named after features of the River Thames. |
Owner: | Christopher Ryland |
Operator: | Venues of Distinction |
Ordered: | 1954 |
Builder: | Tough Brothers, Teddington |
Launched: | 1956 |
Sponsored by: | Port of London Authority |
Commissioned: | 4 February 1956 |
Recommissioned: | 1997 |
Decommissioned: | 1995 |
Maiden voyage: | 1 February 1956 |
Out of service: | 1995 |
Reclassified: | 2006 |
Homeport: | London |
Identification: | MHQK |
Motto: | "Walk always in the Ranks of Honor" |
Nickname: | 'H' |
Honours and awards: |
Bearer of Sir Winston Churchill during his State Funeral in 1965 |
Status: | Fully operational |
Notes: | An earlier PLA vessel, the S.Y. Havengore was a small steam yacht. Launched in 1910, she performed the role of a patrol vessel operating from Barking to the outer port limits. She was broken up in the 1940s. |
Badge: | A demi-bulldog affronty vested in a Union Flag holding a twisted rope coil with an azure background, two sea lions combatant, representing the PLA, supporting a "V" for Victory. |
General characteristics | |
Class and type: | Class V Passenger ship; ex survey ship |
Tonnage: | 89.19 tons gross, 46.31 registered |
Length: | 25.81 m (84.7 ft) |
Beam: | 4.95 m (16.2 ft) |
Draft: | 1.90 m (6.2 ft) |
Installed power: | Twin Gardner 8L3 Diesels delivering 304 h.p. at 900 r.p.m. |
Speed: | 12.29 knots |
Capacity: | 40 passengers |
Crew: | up to 10 |
Havengore is a former hydrographic survey launch re-registered as a passenger vessel for up to 40 passengers. Based on the River Thames, Havengore has also served as a ceremonial vessel. She is best known for her association with Sir Winston Churchill.
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Havengore was commissioned by the Port of London Authority in 1954 to replace its former survey vessel the Shorne Meade. Built by Tough Brothers of Teddington, she is of double diagonal construction in teak over a framework of English oak. The National Physical Laboratory helped design and test her twin counter-rotating propellers and underwater fittings, while Decca Radar oversaw trials of her survey systems. Launched in 1956, she is named after a Thames landmark, Havengore Island.[1][2]
Havengore entered service with the Port of London Authority on 4 February 1956. As the PLA's hydrographic survey vessel, she was responsible for recording changes to the bed of the River Thames and Thames Estuary. She was the first survey vessel in the UK to install a computer to record survey data, using punched tape; replacement Unix workstations were installed in 1989. After becoming the longest-serving PLA vessel, she performed her last hydrographic work in 1995, when she was withdrawn from service and sold.[1][2]
After changing hands in 1995, Havengore was restored and refitted at the Chatham Historic Dockyard in Kent. Subsequently she was used by the Havengore Education and Leadership Mission (HELM) to provide excursions for underprivileged children on the River Medway. Changing hands again in 2006, three further phases of restoration - including the reuse of parts from a 0-4-0 diesel locomotive - have ensured that she remains fully operational in compliance with MCA regulations, while respecting her historic fabric.[3][4][5]
Havengore participated in the river pageants held to mark the Queen's Silver Jubilee and the 200th anniversary of the Battle of Trafalgar and has taken part in services marking Armistice Day and Armed Forces Day. Moored at St Katharine Docks, Havengore currently undertakes a mixed programme of public service and charitable events and is also available for corporate hospitality purposes.[6][7][8]
On 30 January 1965 Havengore carried Sir Winston Churchill on his last journey by water along the River Thames from Tower Pier to Festival Pier during his State Funeral. This event was broadcast live to an estimated worldwide audience of 350 million viewers, one in ten of the then world population. Archive newsreel footage is available via the BBC website.[9] Havengore carries a commemorative plaque presented by the International Churchill Society inscribed with the words of the BBC broadcaster that day, Richard Dimbleby CBE: 'And so Havengore sails into history ... not even the Golden Hind had borne so great a man'.[10]