Heritage

Contentsthe first world war underwater cultural heritage and the unesco 2001 convention19investigated. It can be used to build new relationships between schools across theEuropean Union.Between 2009 and 2012, archaeologists from France, Great Britain, Belgium and theNetherlands studied over 150 underwater archaeological sites and collected data fromboth primary sources and national archives.In three of the participating countries, one school cooperated with the project: theToynbee School in Hampshire, England; the Collège Diwan in Guissény, France; andthe Sint-Bernarduscollege in Nieuwpoort, Belgium. The sixty-two students and nineteachers involved received an introduction to maritime history and archaeology, anddiscovered how underwater cultural heritage fits into traditional school courses andnational curricula.Via e-twinning, the three schools worked together on the interactive project, ‘MysteryShipwreck’. The project started out with a scenario in which an anomaly hadbeen discovered on the sea bed during geophysical research. Next, divers were calledin to investigate the anomaly. From that moment on, the students took on the rolesof maritime archaeologists, starting with a virtual dive. Through guided sessions,and with the help of educational materials, the students were able to participate inwhat would become an incredibly interesting archaeological and historical quest.The project was imbedded in the school curriculum differently in each of the threeparticipating countries. In Great Britain and Belgium, the project took place duringafter-school sessions or lunch breaks. In France, the project was part of Bretonlanguage classes.Eventually, the students identified the ‘mysterious shipwreck’ as a Belgian steamship,built and launched in England in 1911. On 12 March 1918, it had been charteredby the French government and was leaving Calais heading in the direction of Bristol.The ship was armed with one cannon and had 25 people on board, including at least12 Belgians, 3 Russians, 2 Dutchmen, 2 Britons, a Swede and a Norwegian. On 13March 1918, around 2.00 a.m., the ship was torpedoed by a German U-boat. Thecrew abandoned ship, but only 13 survived: 11 sailors died due to the explosion,drowned or succumbed to hypothermia. While the survivors were in the lifeboats,they managed to catch a glimpse of the German submarine, which submerged againat about 2.30 a.m. The history of the shipwreck – the name of which will not be givenhere because of possible follow-up projects – clearly demonstrates a common inheritanceof the war, being the result of the shared maritime history of the participatingcountries..