‘Virtually intact’ wreck off Scotland believed to be Royal Navy warship torpedoed in WWI | Scotland

A group of UK divers has hailed the invention of a wreck off Scotland believed to be a Royal Navy warship sunk in the course of the first world battle however nonetheless “nearly intact”.

The group discovered what it thinks is HMS Hawke – which sank after being hit by a German torpedo in October 1914 – within the North Sea earlier this week.

Paul Downs, who was among the many divers and filmed footage of the long-lost wreck, described it as “a as soon as in a lifetime” discovery given its “unbelievable” situation.

“She is nearly intact,” he informed AFP. “The state of preservation is unbelievable for a wreck that’s 110 years outdated and got here to a violent finish.”

Misplaced in Waters Deep, a gaggle which searches for WWI shipwrecks in Scottish waters, spearheaded the years-long effort to seek out the warship.

The group is now awaiting official affirmation from the Royal Navy after offering it with their findings.

Solely 70 of HMS Hawke’s crew survived, whereas greater than 500 died, after it was attacked by a German U-boat within the early months of WWI.

The warship, an Edgar-class cruiser first launched in 1891, was 387ft (118 metres) lengthy and 60ft large.

It caught hearth, exploded after which disappeared beneath the murky waters of the North Sea off north-east Scotland in lower than eight minutes.

The vessel has rested on the seabed – 110 metres down – ever since.

Downs stated that depth possible performed a task in preserving it.

Its weapons, different armaments, decking and a few inside options like a clock and wall-mounted barometer had been all nonetheless seen, regardless of greater than a century on the seabed.

“It avoids the storms that the North Sea will get in the course of the winter,” Downs stated.

He famous the warship had additionally been constructed with “completely top-quality” supplies on the top of the British empire.

“All of the brass work on the wreck, just like the portholes and the breaches for the deck weapons, are all nonetheless shiny … it’s in all probability as a result of the truth that she was simply constructed so nicely.”

Misplaced in Waters Deep spent years pinpointing the place it suspected the warship had sunk, together with researching the U-boat commander’s journal and the logs of different Navy cruisers that had been in touch with it.

The group was additionally helped by a report of a seabed “obstruction” reported within the Eighties – although the wreck was really discovered 1km (greater than half a mile) away from that.

HMS Hawke was one of many first Royal Navy vessels misplaced within the battle, as Britain’s fleet initially struggled to adapt to the specter of German U-boats.

“Traditionally, she’s very vital,” famous Downs.

He predicted the wreck couldn’t be efficiently salvaged after so lengthy sitting on the seabed, however the last determination can be right down to the Royal Navy.

“I’d think about that she’s going to develop into a managed wreck, so she’ll be classed as a battle grave.

“So sooner or later sooner or later, you might be able to dive, however simply not contact something.

“It’s mainly an archaeological web site. So all the pieces’s filmed and photographed and left in situ.”

The Royal Navy informed UK media it appreciated the efforts made to find the wreck.

“As soon as the proof to assist this discover is obtained, it’s going to allow our historians to formally establish the wreck,” a spokesperson stated.