The passive: simple past tense

 Complete this short article about the ship 'Mary Rose’. Put the verb into the correct simple past form. Some verbs are active, and some are passive.

The warship Mary Rose (build) in the years 1509-10. In 1544 England (start) a war against France, and in 1545 French ships (send) across the Channel towards England. Some English ships (go) out from Portsmouth to meet them. One of these ships was the Mary Rose. It was carrying 91 guns and 700 men — twice as many as normal. It (sink) quickly to the botTom of the sea even before it (attack) by the French. About 650 men (die). This terrible accident (see) by the king of England himself.

The next month an attempt (make) to raise the Mary Rose, but it (fail). The ship (forget) for hundreds of years.

In the 1970s new plans (make) to raise the ship. Thousands of objects (bring) up from the ship by divers. Then, on 1st October 1982, the Mary Rose (lift) out of the sea. Many people (see) the raising of the ship on television. Finally the Mary Rose (take) into Portsmouth dock 437 years after she had sunk.

Activity

Use these notes to write a paragraph about a ship called the ‘Cutty Sark’.

famous sailing ship - built in the 1860s - brought tea from China - later wool from Australia - owned by many different people - finally brought into dry dock in LonDon in 1954 - made into a museum