Scottish government<\/a> on Monday, means it will now be an offence to remove anything from the wrecks. <\/p>\nA second Historic MPA was also announced for the wreck of the Queen of Sweden, a 147-metre-long Swedish East India Company ship, which sank during a storm in 1745 off the coast of Shetland. <\/p>\n
Scotland’s cabinet secretary for climate action and energy, Gillian Martin, who announced the new protections, said: \u201cThese two new Historic Marine Protected Areas \u2013 at Scapa Flow, and the Queen of Sweden wreck site in Shetland \u2013 are important additions to our network of Historic MPAs, which protect the most significant wreck sites across Scotland\u2019s seas. <\/p>\n
\u201cThe designation of these sites recognises their national value and will help to ensure that future generations can continue to explore, learn from, and be inspired by Scotland\u2019s underwater heritage. I\u2019m grateful for the support from local authorities, heritage bodies, and marine industries in bringing these designations forward.\u201d <\/p>\n
![\"It](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/iStock-90853711.jpeg\")
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open image in gallery<\/p>\n
It will now be an offence to remove anything from the wrecks (Getty Images)<\/p>\n
Director of heritage at Historic Environment Scotland, Elizabeth McCrone, said: \u201cWe are delighted that Scapa Flow and the Queen of Sweden have been designated as Historic Marine Protected Areas.<\/p>\n
\u201cThese sites are nationally important parts of Scotland\u2019s maritime history, and this recognition will ensure they can be protected and enjoyed responsibly for generations to come.\u201d<\/p>\n
Scapa Flow served as the main naval base for the British Home Fleet during both world wars. The natural geography of the bay includes a large and protective landlocked harbour, with deep entrances essential for big ships.<\/p>\n
Orkney Islands Council leader, Heather Woodbridge, said: \u201cWrecked vessels, including those of the German High Seas Fleet, are a significant heritage asset and attract visitors from all over the world, contributing to the economy of Orkney. Sadly, the condition of the wrecks is deteriorating, and these important remains will not last forever. <\/p>\n
“Officially recognising and protecting these sites is therefore vitally important to maximise their longevity. This Historic MPA will ensure these irreplaceable assets are protected from future human damage or disturbance while still allowing for responsible access, research and education where appropriate.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Your support helps us to tell the story From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":336406,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,4],"tags":[748,393,4884,1144,712,16,15,1764],"class_list":{"0":"post-336405","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-uk","8":"category-united-kingdom","9":"tag-britain","10":"tag-england","11":"tag-great-britain","12":"tag-northern-ireland","13":"tag-scotland","14":"tag-uk","15":"tag-united-kingdom","16":"tag-wales"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/115011595031458029","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/336405","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=336405"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/336405\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/336406"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=336405"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=336405"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=336405"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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