Scapa flow1/26/2024 ![]() Markgraf (salvage abandoned, still at Scapa Flow).Kronprinz Wilhelm (salvage abandoned, still at Scapa Flow). ![]() König (salvage abandoned, still at Scapa Flow).König Albert (raised by Metal Industries, 1935).Prinzregent Luitpold (raised by Cox and Danks, 1931).Kaiserin (raised by Metal Industries, 1936).Grosser Kurfürst (raised by Metal Industries, 1937).Friedrich der Grosse (raised by Metal Industries, the bell is on display in Stromness Museum).Bayern (raised by Metal Industries 1933).The 11 German battleships that sunk were: Von der Tann (raised by Cox and Danks 1930).Seydlitz (raised by Cox and Danks 1928).Hindenburg (raised by Cox and Danks 1930).Derfflinger (raised by Metal Industries 1939).The 5 German battle cruisers that sank on that day were: Today they still rest within her upturned hull - a protected war grave 100 feet beneath the water of Scapa Flow.The German High Seas Fleet – Derrflinger photo © Copyright Orkney Photographic Archive Battle cruisers and Battleships But none would ever forget the loss of Royal Oak and so many men. The Royal Navy, and the survivors of HMS Royal Oak, got on with fighting the war, as did the fathers, brothers and wives of those who’d perished. The loss of Royal Oak was a tragic and demoralising event for Britain, but on the context of the war, it was soon overtaken by events. It would contribute to the end of this ancient tradition of boys serving their apprenticeships on fighting ships. There had been 163 of them aboard the ship, some as young as 15. In Britain, the loss of Royal Oak caused shock and grief, particularly over the large loss of boy-sailors. The Nazi propaganda machine cranked into overdrive, and milked this admittedly brilliant achievement for all it was worth. Prien was awarded the Knight’s Cross, Germany’s highest military award, and became a celebrity. Günther Prien and the crew of U-47 were welcomed as heroes in Germany, and Hitler sent his private plane to fly them to Berlin so he could congratulate them personally. It was less than a third of the Royal Oak’s crew. Thick fuel oil covered, choking and blinding them.īut thanks to the heroic work of Daisy II (the battleship’s tender which was moored alongside at the time of the attack) 386 men were pulled from the water alive. As U-47 escaped from Scapa Flow undetected, more than 300 British sailors jumped into the dark, freezing water of Scapa Flow. Only the very quick-witted, or very lucky, got out from inside the ship. The electricity failed within minutes, plunging the ship into darkness. She quickly began to roll over, and then the cordite magazines caught fire, sending balls of flame racing through the ship. This time three explosions amidships sealed the Royal Oak’s fate. So Prien reloaded his torpedo tubes and attacked again. They couldn’t conceive that they might be under attack. But the crew of Royal Oak - most of whom were below decks asleep in their hammocks - thought there had been a small internal explosion. His first four torpedoes caused only small damage, due to a number of misses and malfunctions. He found the Royal Oak lying at anchor, oblivious to any danger. Kapitanleutnant Günther Prien, commander of the German submarine U-47, exploited this weakness and entered the anchorage shortly before midnight on 13th October 1939. Blockships, which obstructed the narrow channels into the Flow, had rusted away to nothing. There were not nearly enough men, searchlights, guns or patrol ships to make Scapa Flow secure. But in the interwar years, the defences were neglected, and when war broke out with Germany in 1939 they were in bad shape. It’s well-organised defences gained it a reputation as a secure anchorage, where British ships were completely safe. Scapa Flow, in the Orkney Islands, was the Royal Navy’s home base in World War One. ![]() It was an even worse shock because it happened inside a famous and supposedly impregnable naval base. Coming just weeks after the outbreak of World War Two, it was one of Britain’s worst naval disasters. On this day in 1939, the battleship HMS Royal Oak was torpedoed and sunk in Scapa Flow with the loss of 833 lives.
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