Divers claimed to have found the wreckage of the 'Nancy', a ship which sank off the western shores of the Isles of Scilly more than two centuries ago while sailing from Mumbai to London.
LONDON: Divers claimed to have found the wreckage of the 'Nancy', a ship which sank off the western shores of the Isles of Scilly more than two centuries ago while sailing from Mumbai to London.
It was believed that the vessel broke up into pieces after it ran into fierce storms near the treacherous rocks west of the island in 1784.
Divers Todd Stevens and Ed Cumming have claimed that they have found the wreckage and are hopeful to discover some of the lost treasure.
Stevens, from the Isles of Scilly, said it took a year to track down the wreck and they believe they have enough evidence to prove it is the 'Nancy'.
"Everything points to it being the Nancy, the location, the size. It is the right period. Tests carried on pieces of pottery show they came from India at that time," Stevens said.
The saga of 'one of Britain's most romantic shipwrecks' has fascinated many, particularly because on board was Ann Cargill, a famous opera singer who was carrying an illegitimate child home after her visit to India.
Cargill, 23, was among 49 people on board. Her body was recovered with clutching the baby but the wreckage of the ship could not be traced.
Cargill was known for her colourful romantic life and had gone to India to be with her lover Captain John Haldane, who was stationed in Kolkata with the East India Company.
She was reportedly sent home by the then Prime Minister William Pitt, the younger, who said: "An actress should not be defiling the pure shores of India".
On her death, Cargill was said to be worth 200,000 pounds. She was believed to be travelling with cases of valuable jewels.
"It has been a real thrill. This kind of discovery is what you go diving for. We are hoping that there is some jewellery left down there. That would prove that it is definitely the 'Nancy'. If we find anything, we will donate it to the local museum," said the diver.
"It would have been an almost hopeless position. Up until then it had been a good passage, but then they hit the storm. There was no lighthouse," Cumming said, "It is one of the best stories I have ever told. It has everything, a beautiful actress, a tragic shipwreck and a lost fortune."
According to the Times, in 1779 and 1780 Cargill was the worlds highest-paid actress, earning around 10 pounds a week.
She fell in love with Captain John Haldane, a commander in the East India Company who was known for his misfortune. He had already lost one ship when he and Cargill sailed for India.
Cargill's performances had caused a sensation in Mumbai and Kolkata reportedly earning her "wealth beyond the dreams of avarice" as she was showered with gifts by rich admirers.
After Prime Minister Pitt's condemnation of Cargill, Haldane took command of the 'Nancy' for its three-month voyage to England but the ship struck disaster in the Isles of Scilly when it was almost in sight of home.
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