Portsmouth, England, United Kingdom — Northwestern Europe (the British Isles)
Conservation in Action
HMS M.33 stayed in service for almost 70 years and went through many changes. Therefore, the team working on her faced hard choices: which parts of the ship to restore and which to leave alone? Should anything original ever be removed to allow public access? Should original paintwork be re-covered?
After in-depth research, we have balanced conservation and restoration. Inside the hull we preserved and stabilised — so the engines which were lifted out in 1943 have not been replaced. Instead, the conservation team has spent many hours expertly cleaning and coating every exposed surface by hand — so you will see the ship in the raw, with every plate, every rivet and every layer of history exposed.
It has taken 3,600 hours to apply 275 litres of ‘waxoyl’ preservative to interior.
The Upper Deck we restored, putting back the guns that were removed in 1924, as they are so important to understanding her role. The cabins, Mess Deck and Wheelhouse now give an impression of how they looked in 1915.
Our staff and volunteers on board can help explain just whet is original and what is new.
( photo captions )
Below: Research included analysis of the many layers of paint on board. Tis has helped us date the different colours shown.
Right: M.33’s guns were removed in 1924. We have restored guns which survive from other First World War ships — the aft gun was mounted on HMS Canada and came all the way from Chile.
Above: The rusted hull in 1997 when M.33 came into the dock. A project using electrolysis stabilised the ship, by removing 9 tonnes of corrosion from the hull.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: War, World I • Waterways & Vessels.
Location. 50° 48.107′ N, 1° 6.611′ W. Marker is in Portsmouth, England. Marker can be reached from the intersection of Queen Street and Wickham Street, on the left when traveling north. Located in Portsmouth Historic Dockyard. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Portsmouth, England PO1 3LR, United Kingdom. Touch for directions.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. A Unique Survivor (a few steps from this marker); Heavy Weather (a few steps from this marker); HMS M.33 (a few steps from this marker); HMS M.33’s People (a few steps from this marker); No. 1 Dock (a few steps from this marker); Ship Shape (within shouting distance of this marker); A Long Life (within shouting distance of this marker); Bruce Austin Fraser (within shouting distance of this marker). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Portsmouth.
Also see . . .
1. Monitor HMS M33 at the National Museum of the Royal Navy. (Submitted on September 4, 2018, by Michael Herrick of Southbury, Connecticut.)
2. HMS M33 on Wikipedia. (Submitted on September 4, 2018, by Michael Herrick of Southbury, Connecticut.)
Credits. This page was last revised on January 27, 2022. It was originally submitted on September 4, 2018, by Michael Herrick of Southbury, Connecticut. This page has been viewed 108 times since then and 7 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on September 4, 2018, by Michael Herrick of Southbury, Connecticut.