Plymouth, England, United Kingdom

HMS Coronation Inshore

HMS Coronation was a 90-gun second-rate Royal Navy ship-of-the-line that foundered in a storm off Penlee Point, Plymouth, in September 1691, breaking into two distinct wreck sites. The inshore site lies in shallow water of about 6 to 15 metres on a mixed reef and sand seabed close to the rocks at Penlee Point, scattered across a large area. The wreck is a Protected Wreck designated under the Protection of Wrecks Act 1973, so divers must obtain a licence to visit and may not remove any artefacts. The site preserves cannons, anchors, ballast piles, structural timbers and concretions. Visibility on a good day reaches 6 to 10 metres, and water temperatures vary between 8 and 16 degrees Celsius. Currents in the area are moderate and the site is dived from Plymouth charter boats around slack water. Marine life includes ballan wrasse, pollack, conger eels, edible crabs and lobsters, with abundant kelp and red algae on the surrounding reef. The Coronation is one of the most historically important dive sites in southern England.