The Great Michael

Great Michael took tons of timber in the making All the woods of Fife, bar that of Falkland Imported wood from Norway Forests cut from other parts of Scotland, Wood came from France, as far as the Baltic sea. An all because King James IV, wanted a Scots Navy Michael was 73 m long,11 m in beam. His oak walls were 3.0 m thick. He displaced 1,000 tons, had four masts, He carried 24 Flemish guns Had a crew of 300 sailors,120 gunners,1,000 soldiers People looked on the giant ship and gasped Launched in 1511, the largest ship afloat, Named after the archangel Michael The child of carpenters, masons and shipwrights This was a Scottish statement as well as a boat In 1512 James boarded upon St Andrew's day Holding an audience with the French ambassador The Auld Alliance of Scotland and France was agreed And then the King was killed at the Battle of Flodden To upkeep Michael, Scotland was hard pressed His boat was sold to Louis XII of France The French let Michael slowly rot at Brest