''Blue Mermaid'' is a steel-hulled

Thames sailing barge A Thames sailing barge is a type of commercial sailing boat once common on the River Thames in London. The flat-bottomed barges with a shallow draught and leeboards, were perfectly adapted to the Thames Estuary, with its shallow waters and narr ...

constructed between 2015 and 2019. She was built specifically to operate under sail and does not carry an engine. She is a replica of an older vessel of the same name, built in 1930 but sunk by enemy action during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

''Blue Mermaid'' (2015)

''Blue Mermaid'' was built to carry cargo, and in 2023 she received permission from the

Maritime and Coastguard Agency The Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) is an executive agency of the United Kingdom that responsible for implementing British and international maritime law and safety policy. It works to prevent the loss of lives at sea and to prevent marine ...

to carry cargoes of up to 110 tonnes, on the

Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after the R ...

and along the

North Sea The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Norway, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium. An epeiric sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian S ...

coast between

Lowestoft Lowestoft ( ) is a coastal town and civil parish in the East Suffolk district of Suffolk, England.OS Explorer Map OL40: The Broads: (1:25 000) : . As the most easterly UK settlement, it is north-east of London, north-east of Ipswich and sou ...

and

Sandwich A sandwich is a food typically consisting of vegetables, sliced cheese or meat, placed on or between slices of bread, or more generally any dish wherein bread serves as a container or wrapper for another food type. The sandwich began as a po ...

. In 1900 there were around 4,000 such barges, each with a crew of two and using just the wind and the tide, but she is the first sailing barge built for trade in Britain since 1930 and the first since the 1970s to be authorised as a commercial cargo carrier. ''Blue Mermaid'' is long and has a hold that can carry 84 pallettes or of loose cargo. She has a couple of cabins aft for skipper and mate and bunks forward for five or six more crew. The hold can also be used for accommodation when it is empty. ''Blue Mermaid'' was built at Toms shipyard in

Polruan Polruan ( kw, Porthruwan) is a coastal village in the parish of Lanteglos-by-Fowey in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is bounded on three sides by water: to the north by Pont Creek, to the west by the River Fowey and to the south by the ...

, near

Fowey Fowey ( ; kw, Fowydh, meaning 'Beech Trees') is a port town and civil parish at the mouth of the River Fowey in south Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. The town has been in existence since well before the Norman invasion, with the local ch ...

Cornwall Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a historic county and ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people. Cornwall is bordered to the north and west by the Atlantic ...

, and launched from there as a bare hull on 28 May 2016. The vessel was towed around the coast to

Maldon Maldon (, locally ) is a town and civil parish on the River Blackwater, Essex, Blackwater estuary in Essex, England. It is the seat of the Maldon District and starting point of the Chelmer and Blackwater Navigation. It is known for Maldon Sea ...

where she was fitted out at the Downs Road Boatyard. She will operate out of the

Heybridge Basin Heybridge Basin is a village and civil parish about 1 mile from Maldon, in the Maldon district, in the county of Essex, England. In 2018 the built up area (which includes Osea Island) had an estimated population of 732. The parish was formerly par ...

. ''Blue Mermaid'' belongs to the Maldon-based charity Sea Change Sailing Trust who have many years of experience taking all kinds of people sailing. Richard Titchener with his partner Hilary Halajko, runs both the barge and Sea Change Sailing Trust. They are also involved in training young people for a hands-on career in Maritime Heritage, supplying crew with heritage sail experience, essential for looking after and sailing the aging fleet of Britain's historic vessels.

''Blue Mermaid'' (1930)

''Blue Mermaid'' was one of seven

Thames barge A Thames sailing barge is a type of commercial sailing boat once common on the River Thames in London. The flat-bottomed barges with a shallow draught and leeboards, were perfectly adapted to the Thames Estuary, with its shallow waters and narr ...

s built between 1925 and 1930 for F W Horlock,

Mistley Mistley is a large village and civil parish in the Tendring district of northeast Essex, England. It is around 11 miles northeast of Colchester and is east of, and almost contiguous with, Manningtree. The parish consists of Mistley and New Mist ...

. In 1924 the Horlocks commissioned seven new steel Thames barges, of which ''Blue Mermaid'' was the sixth. Six of these 'seven sisters' are still afloat: ''Blue Mermaid'' was lost to a mine in World War II. They were built at Mistley.

References

Bibliography

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Blue Mermaid Blue Mermaid 1930 ships Individual sailing vessels Ships built in Mistley Transport on the River Thames Sailing ships of the United Kingdom