spoons
Joined: 09 Jan 2007
Posts: 4991
Location: St John's Town of Dalry
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 Posted: Thu Aug 20, 2009 9:49 pm Post subject: HM Submarine K4 and HM Submarine K17 |
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UKNIWM Ref 57976
Location Anstruther Harbour OS Map Ref NO 560 030
Inscription:
"TO COMMEMORATE THOSE MEMBERS/ OF THE SHIPS' COMPANIES OF/ HIS MAJESTY'S SUBMARINES K4 AND K17/ WHO GAVE THEIR LIVES/ IN THE SERVICE OF THEIR COUNTRY/ OFF THE ISLE OF MAY/ ON 31st JANUARY 1918/ ERECTED IN THEIR MEMORY DURING THE SUBMARINE CENTENARY YEAR 2001"
This was a joint venture involving Fife Council, the Royal Navy, naval charities and War Memorials Trust. Unveiled on 31 January 2002
Photos and the following text kindly provided by Dave Avery from the Great War Forum.
''HMS K4 was a British K class submarine built by Vickers in Barrow-in-Furness. She was laid down on 28 June 1915 and commissioned on 1 January 1917
K4 was lost on 31 January 1918 during the night time fleet exercises later known as the Battle of May Island (Operation E.C.1) when she was attached to the 13th Submarine flotilla. While attempting to avoid a collision with HMS K3, she became the victim of collisions with HMS K6 and HMS K7. She was lost with all hands. The wreck is designated as a protected place under the Protection of Military Remains Act 1986.''
''A top-secret mission in the Firth of Forth in 1918 led to 105 deaths when two K-class submarines were sunk with no shots fired in what is known as the Battle of the Isle of May. A flotilla of nine submarines and a convoy of battleships set sail from Rosyth naval base for a night exercise 13 miles off the Fife coast. The vessels were ordered to maintain radio silence and extinguish navigation lights as they made their way through the heavy mist.Disaster struck when the K22 had to change course to avoid a mine-sweeping trawler. The manoeuvre jammed K22's rudder, sending it into K14, killing two of K14's crew members. HMS Inflexible then hit K22, sheering off the submarine's ballast tank and bending her bows round 90 degrees while HMS Fearless struck K17 and sank the submarine in eight minutes. The escaping crew were mown down by HMS Fearless. Nine crew members survived. Submarine K6 tried to take evasive action and collided with K4, causing K4 to sink with all her crew.''
The location, it was in the village of Anstruther- Fife. the memorial itself is opposite the award winning chippy by the harbour, cross the road from there and there is a car park to your left, go past a RNLI station and it's there.
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