If you ever sailed a tall ship or even dreamed of sailing a tall ship, you are probably familiar with Alan Villiers. Adventurer, author, photographer, master mariner, ship owner, World War II hero and sail training pioneer, Villiers first stepped aboard a tall ship at the age of 15 and thereafter made his life on the sea.
Villiers was involved in one way or another with so many ships that still sail today or that are museum attractions such as:
- America’s Tall Ship US Coast Barque EAGLE;
- Sagres II, Portugal
- Gazela in Philadelphia;
- HM Bark Endeavour in Sydney, Australia
- HMS Bounty, Smithtown, New York
- Joseph Conrad at Mystic Seaport;
- Mayflower II in Plymouth, MA;
- Star of India in San Diego;
- Falls of Clyde in Honolulu, HI;
- Balclutha in San Francisco;
- Cutty Sark in Greenwich, England
The following videos are titled The Cape Horn Road and if you watch them you will be amazed by the footage and entertained by Villiers’ narration.
National Maritime Museum of Australia, Villiers’ Centenary Exhibit (2003)
Rounding Cape Horn in a Windjammer, National Geographic (1931)
Happy Birthday! (b.September 23, 1903)
Technorati tags: Alan Villiers, tall ships, sail training, Cape Horn
Sea-Fever blog 
George;
Not sure where you will find copies of Villiers films but Mystic Seaport webstore offers Irving Johnson’s “Around the Horn in Peking” which has equally dramatic footage.
Good luck and let us know if you find a treasure trove of Villiers’ videos.
I’m looking to buy the film ‘The Cape Horn Road’ or any other film by him. I’m a sailing ship enthusiast and collect books and build models. I am based in Ireland and finding it difficult to find. Hope someone can help me.
I got a copy of the video – Square Riggers of the 1930s – off the web (ebay) but the National Maritime Museum, Greenwich may still have copies for sale. My interest is that my great-uncle was the captain of the Grace Harwar from about 1905 – 1910
Very cool! Tell us more!
Well doneshowing the fill, yes the first one smmes as theCrace Haward and the scound one the Joshep Contrad the shi of his own.
very last ships anyway.