Disappointment has been expressed in south Pembrokeshire this week following news that the historic three-masted tall ship, The Earl of Pembroke, has been scrapped.

Locals are saying that the magnificent vessel should have been offered back to Pembrokeshire and given a fitful resting place in the heritage boat yard in Pembroke Dock.

“What a shame it wasn’t offered to the heritage boat yard,” commented one resident.

“This would have proved a lovely new landmark for the town. So much of our heritage has been lost, and this would have been a real boost.”

The Earl of Pembroke was built in Sweden 1945, when she was known as Orion, and was used to haul timber in the Baltic Sea until being laid up in Denmark in 1974.

The 44.2-metre ship was later moved to the UK in 1980 where full restoration work began in 1985, with film work in mind.

The restoration saw the rig changed from a schooner to a barque type, which more closely resembled Captain Cook’s 'HMS Endeavour'.

The ship was also renamed to 'Earl of Pembroke', in homage to 'HMS Endeavour‘s' original name.

The three-masted ship was then used in films including Treasure Island, Count of Monte-Cristo, Shipwrecked, Cloud Atlas and Alice in Wonderland.

It also appeared at a number of festivals, such as the Southampton Boat Show and Liverpool Maritime Festival.

Following eight decades in the water, the Earl of Pembroke has now been sent to the scrapyard.

The ship went on to feature in numerous movies, including Treasure Island, Shipwrecked, Count of Monte-Cristo, Alice in Wonderland and Cloud Atlas. It also appeared at a number of festivals, such as the Southampton Boat Show and Liverpool Maritime Festival.

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The vessel was resold by Metaco LLP in 2017 to Scarlet Sails Ltd and in recent years, had been docked in the Den Helder post in Holland.

However, according to local Dutch media, the current owners could no longer meet the costs of the vessel’s maintenance.

A post on the Facebook page of Dutch shipbreakers Hoeben RDM Schepen confirms the vessel was scrapped in nearby Kampen on 2 December 2022.