Lecture Series 2024

Our new Autumn Lecture Series focuses on women and the sea. Discover how women engaged with the Royal Navy in the 17th and 18th centuries, uncover the truth of Mary Bryant, and take a deep-dive into the lives of fascinating female characters from history who called the Cornish coastline home.

Women and the Navy in the Age of Sail with Dr Elaine Murphy

A painting of Van de Velde, an English ship in a gale at sea.

Thursday 19 September, 7.30pm

Dr Elaine Murphy, University of Plymouth, explores some of the ways in which women engaged with the navy in the 17th and 18th centuries.

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Mary Broad/Bryant – The Creation of a Cornish Legend with Dr Charlotte MacKenzie

Convicts embarking for Botany Bay – T. Rowlandson. Credit: National Library of Australia.

Thursday 10 October, 7.30pm

Dr Charlotte MacKenzie tells Mary Broad’s remarkable story, from Cornish convict in Australia to escapee.

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Forgotten Women of the Cornish Coast with Elizabeth Dale

An oil painting of Jenny Mopus (Jenny of Malpas).

Thursday 14 November, 7.30pm.

Cornish writer Clare Howdle interviews Sharon Austin; wreck diver, researcher and founding member of the Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Maritime Archaeological Society (CISMAS), about a life spent pushing the limits and plunging beneath the surface, in search of shipwrecks.

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Risk, Reward, Shipwrecks & Secrets with Clare Howdle and Sharon Austin

Divers survey The Eagle (1707), Tearing Ledge, Isles of Scilly. Credit: Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Maritime Archaeology Society

Thursday 7 November, 7.30pm

Cornish writer and blogger, Elizabeth Dale (The Cornish Bird), uncovers some of the lesser-known stories from Cornwall’s history.

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Member’s discount

National Maritime Museum Cornwall’s Members receive a 10% discount on tickets for the in person lecture at the Museum. Find out more about Membership.