the Queen's Harbour Master for Plymouth. History Mount Batten, a former Royal Air Force flying boat and search and rescue base, is located at the northeast corner of the Sound. T. E. Lawrence was stationed here as Aircraftman Shaw. Over the years, the Sound has been defended by Drake's Island, Picklecombe Fort, Cawsand Fort, the Breakwater Fort, Fort Bovisand, Staddon Fort and Stamford Fort. A harbour and reservoir were built at Bovisand before the fort existed to supply men-o-war anchored in the Sound with fresh water. Joseph Whidbey supervised the building of the Breakwater from Bovisand Lodge, from which there is a view down the full length of the breakwater. The Titanic was due to have docked here briefly on its return voyage to Britain, and the ship had a painting of Plymouth Sound on board. As of 2019, there is a campaign to create the first National Marine Park in Britain off Plymouth Sound. Notable events The English Fleet assembled in 1355: by Edward of Woodstock, the Black Prince, Duke of Cornwall, departed to the Battle of Poitiers The Pelican 15 November 1577: departed on Sir Francis Drake's circumnavigation The Mayflower 1620, bearing the Pilgrim Fathers The ill-fated Cádiz expedition of 1625 and siege of Saint-Martin-de-Ré of 1627. Returning servicemen brought disease and looting to Plymouth reducing its population by over 20% The first recorded submarine fatality in history occurred in the Sound in June 1774, when a carpenter named John Day perished north of Drake's Island while testing a wooden diving chamber attached to the sloop Maria. Following his surrender to Captain Frederick Maitland of off Rochefort in 1815, Napoleon was taken to Plymouth Sound where he remained on board, 26 July – 4 August, while his future was decided. This event caused a local and national sensation as thousands took to the water; several paintings in London's National Maritime Museum document the event, such as the one shown here. On 27 December 1831, set off from anchorage in the Barn Pool, under Mount Edgecumbe on the west side of Plymouth Sound, on her second survey voyage, captained by Robert FitzRoy with Charles Darwin on board. Departing on 27 August 1966 and arriving on 28 May 1967, Francis Chichester became the first person to sail single-handed around the world by the clipper route. The Sound has been the site of a number of aircraft crashes and shipwrecks: Die