A mounted small section of (Battle-damaged?) OAK from H.M.S. VICTORY dated 1805

A mounted small section of OAK timber that claims to be from from H.M.S. VICTORY dated 1805 *Appears to be battle-damaged* Souvenirs from the illustrious H.M.S. VICTORY have been widely collected in the UK for centuries MOST are fashioned from Victory wood obtained in 1905 HMS Victory is a 104-gun first-rate wooden sailing ship of the line. With 247 years of service as of 2025, she is the world's oldest naval vessel still in commission She was ordered for the Royal Navy in 1758, during the Seven Years' War & laid down in 1759 That year saw British victories at Quebec, Minden, Lagos & Quiberon Bay & these may have influenced the choice of name when it was selected in October the following year In particular, the action in Quiberon Bay had a profound effect on the course of the war; severely weakening the French Navy & shifting its focus away from the sea. There was therefore no urgency to complete the ship & the signing of the Treaty of Paris in February 1763 meant that when Victory was finally floated out in 1765, she was placed in rdinary *Her construction had taken 6,000 trees, 90% of them oak* When Admiral Horatio Nelson was appointed Commander-in-Chief of the Mediterranean Fleet in 1803, he hoisted his flag aboard Victory & in 1805 took her into action at the Battle of Trafalgar. She served as a harbour ship from 1824-1922, when she was placed in dry dock at Portsmouth, England. Here she was repaired & is now maintained as a museum ship HMS Victory, a 100-gun first-rate ship of the line launched in 1765, one of the most famous warships ever launched She served in the American War of Independence, the French Revolutionary Wars & the Napoleonic Wars. She was Keppel's flagship at Ushant, Jervis's flagship at Cape St Vincent & Nelson's flagship at Trafalgar She served as a harbour ship after 1824 & was moved to a dry dock at Portsmouth in 1922, where she has been the flagship of the Second Sea Lord (until 2012) & the First Sea Lord (presently), & is preserved as a museum ship