Holland V Submarine

Holland V Submarine and 18^th Century Canons

Divers prepare to unravel mysteries of the deep.

Hundreds of years of maritime activity, two World Wars and numerous seafaring accidents have seen the seas and shores around the south coast become steeped in legend and undiscovered pockets of history.

One piece of naval history that remained undiscovered until 1995 is the Holland V submarine.

Lying, upright in 30 metres (100ft) of water, the Holland V was the Navy’s first submarine accepted for service.  

She was commissioned over a hundred years ago, on 19^th January 1903. However, the Holland series of submarines rapidly became obsolete and in 1912 she was being towed to Sheerness for decommissioning when she founded and sank in her current position off the coast of Eastbourne, six miles southeast of the Royal Sovereign Lighthouse.

The cause of the sinking was believed to be as a result of flooding through a torpedo hatch and she lay undiscovered for almost a century.

 The wreck is protected and monitored by English Heritage but those granted with a special licence are able to dive the wreck for research purposes.

The wreck was found by chance by a Kent diver, Jerry Dowd who passed the information of the whereabouts of the submarine to renowned historian and diver, Innes McCarthy who made his first exploration dives in 2001.

The Nautical Archaeology Society (NAS) based in Portsmouth have been conducting research dives on the Holland V ever since.

The NAS have taken on the ongoing research of the wreck. Continually documenting information gathered on dives conducted under licence each year. 

With two dives planned for this season, on 25^th June and 11^th September, the NAS hope to add further to the documented account of the wreck and monitor its condition on the seabed.

“We have been diving the Holland V since 2005 and have spent a lot of time clearing the wreck of netting and fishing lines” advises Mark Beattie-Edwards, NAS Operations Director and current licensee of the Holland V wreck. Mark continues, “This has really opened up this important wreck for further investigation, photos and research.”

Important, as the Holland V was the first submarine to be commissioned by the Royal Navy and is believed to be the most intact example of the Holland series of submarines.

To make the dives in June and September even more spectacular and to gather further historical data the group will also be diving an 18^th Century wreck known as the Norman’s Bay Wreck.

The wreck site was discovered in 2005 by local divers trying to free lobster pots from the seabed. Whilst underwater they encountered a number of canons and a huge anchor. 

This important find was immediately reported to the Hastings Shipwreck Heritage Centre and English Heritage and recommended for designation under the Protection of Wrecks Act (1973).

Subsequent dives in 2006 and 2007 allowed for timber samples to be removed from the site for dendrochronological analysis so their origins and a date could be determined.

One thought was that this was the wreck of the Resolution which was grounded within Pevensey Bay at the turn of the 18^th century but insufficient data has been collected and there are a large number of potential wrecks it could be.

“The wreck could be one of a number of other known losses in the area, “advises Mark, “most of which seem to be related to the Battle of Beachy Head in July 1690, where an allied English Dutch force was heavily defeated by the French.”

The site is littered with ballast stones and iron guns and is a haven for wildlife, including Tompot Blennies and large schools of Bib.  Common Starfish are in abundance and even rare Humpback Prawn have been spotted on the site.

This may be the stuff of legend and more akin to the Pirate of the Caribbean but discoveries like these are occurring around our coasts on a regular basis.

It is hoped that this seasons research dives will yield even more fascinating facts and information about the two sites.

If you would like more information on these dives and the work conducted by the Nautical Archaeology Society please take a look at their website http://www.nasportsmouth.org.uk/