Day 21

This rose of the Winter Solstice is Rosa ‘Mary Rose’ - so pink and right wherever she goes.

When the French fleet arrived, Henry watched from Southsea Castle. The lack of wind gave the French the advantage, the oared French galleys able to advance while the large sailing ships were immobile. Towards the afternoon, however, the wind rose and Lisle led out his large ships, including the Mary Rose.

The Mary Rose fired from her starboard side, then came about to fire from the port side. As she turned, she listed to one side, her starboard side low in the water. The Spanish Ambassador Francois van der Delft, an eyewitness to the battle, wrote that the ship “heeled over with the wind”. The starboard gunports were, crucially, left open, and, with the final nudge from the wind, they fatally dipped below the waterline...

Named after Henry VIII’s flagship which sank in front of his eyes during the Battle of the Solent in 1545, this stunner is definitely regal in her demeanour. Loose-petalled blooms all summer long, in a gorgeous not-quite-knicker-pink, this Queen reigns supreme.

Thank you again David Austin Rosesfor another piece of fabulousness.