Mercenaries, migrants and the crew of the Mary Rose

Nelson, Samantha and Fletcher, Catherine ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2055-154X (2022) Mercenaries, migrants and the crew of the Mary Rose. History, 107 (378). pp. 836-860. ISSN 0018-2648

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Abstract

This article reconsiders the presence of foreigners in the crew of Henry VIII's ship the Mary Rose in light of recent archaeological investigations of human remains from the wreck. Through an interdisciplinary analysis drawing on archaeological investigation, the artefacts found on board the Mary Rose and historical documents, this study investigates the context for the presence of foreigners on board the ship, considering how and why these men came to be on board an English warship during the mid-Tudor period. Although media coverage extrapolated from recent archaeological research an image of a multicultural England, this study argues that the challenge to the narrative of Henrician England as ethnically homogenous should also be considered alongside military contexts. In particular, by framing the source material within the context of both short-term military-based and longer-term patterns of migration, this study points to the importance of considering military factors, the wider picture of migration, and, in particular, the intersection between them. Furthermore, it demonstrates that Tudor England relied on foreign soldiers, trade, labour and skills. By placing the archaeological and scientific enquiries into their historical contexts, a more complete narrative of Henrician England can be formed – one that acknowledges the role of strangers and transnational relationships in the defence and maintenance of the English realm.