Editing Mary Rose (section)

== Construction ==

[[File:Basire Embarkation of Henry VIII.jpg|alt=A small fleet of large, highly decorated carracks are riding on a wavy sea. In the foreground are two low, fortified towers bristling with cannons and armed soldiers and an armed retinue walking between them.|thumb|upright=2.2|''The Embarkation of Henry&nbsp;VIII at Dover'', a painting that commemorated King Henry's voyage to the [[Field of the Cloth of Gold]] in 1520, painted in 1540. The vessels in the painting are shown decorated with wooden panels similar to those that would have been used on the ''Mary Rose'' on special occasions.]]

Construction of ''Mary Rose'' began on 29 January 1510 in [[Portsmouth]] and she was [[Ship naming and launching|launched]] in July 1511. She was then towed to London and fitted with [[rigging]] and [[deck (ship)|decking]], and supplied with armaments. Other than the structural details needed to sail, stock and arm the ''Mary Rose'', she was also equipped with flags, banners and [[pennon|streamers]] (extremely elongated flags that were flown from the top of the masts) that were either painted or gilded.{{sfnp|Marsden|2003|pp=2–5}}<ref>See Maria Hayward, "The Flags, Fabric" in {{harvp|Knighton|Loades|2000|pp=31–33}} for a more detailed account of the making of the flags.</ref>

Constructing a warship of the size of the ''Mary Rose'' was a major undertaking, requiring vast quantities of high-quality material. For a state-of-the-art warship, these materials were primarily oak. The total amount of timber needed for the construction can only be roughly calculated since only about one third of the ship still exists.{{sfnp|Marsden|2003|p=51}} One estimate for the number of trees is around 600 mostly large [[oak]]s, representing about {{convert|16|ha|acre|abbr=off}} of woodland.<ref name="Damian Goodburn 2009 pp. 66">Damian Goodburn, "Woodworking Aspects of the ''Mary Rose''" in {{harvp|Marsden|2009|pp=66–68, 71}}</ref>

The huge trees that had been common in Europe and the British Isles in previous centuries were by the 16th century quite rare, which meant that timbers were brought in from all over southern England. The largest timbers used in the construction were of roughly the same size as those used in the roofs of the largest cathedrals in the [[High Middle Ages]]. An unworked hull plank would have weighed over {{convert|300|kg|lb|abbr=on}}, and one of the main deck [[beam (structure)|beams]] would have weighed close to three-quarters of a tonne.<ref name="Damian Goodburn 2009 pp. 66"/>

=== Naming ===

The common explanation for the ship's name was that it was inspired by Henry VIII's favourite sister, [[Mary Tudor, Queen of France]], and the rose as the emblem of the [[Tudor dynasty|Tudors]].<ref>See for example {{harvp|McKee|1974|p=4}}; {{harvp|Rodger|1997|p=172}}; {{harvp|Rule|1983|p=15}}; {{harvp|Weightman|1957|p=286}}</ref> According to the historians David Childs, [[David Loades]] and Peter Marsden, no direct evidence of naming the ship after the King's sister exists. It was far more common at the time to give ships pious Christian names, a long-standing tradition in Western Europe, or to associate them with their royal patrons. Names like ''Grace Dieu'' ([[Hallelujah]]) and ''Holighost'' ([[Holy Spirit in Christianity|Holy Spirit]]) had been common since the 15th century and other Tudor navy ships had names like the ''Regent'' and ''Three Ostrich Feathers'' (referring to the crest of the [[Prince of Wales]]).<ref name="Childs 2007 p. 17">{{harvp|Childs|2007|p=17}}; David Loades, "The ''Mary Rose'' and Fighting Ships" in {{harvp|Marsden|2009|p=5}}; Peter Marsden, "Reconstruction of the ''Mary Rose'': her Design and Use" in {{harvp|Marsden|2009|p=379}}</ref>
The [[Virgin Mary]] is a more likely candidate for a namesake, and she was also associated with the [[Rosa Mystica]] (mystic rose). The name of the sister ship of the ''Mary Rose'', the ''Peter Pomegranate'', is believed to have been named in honour of [[Saint Peter]], and the badge of the Queen [[Catharine of Aragon]], a [[pomegranate]]. According to Childs, Loades and Marsden, the two ships, which were built around the same time, were named in honour of the king and queen, respectively.<ref name="Childs 2007 p. 17"/>