HMS E19

At Reval (Tallinn) during World War I
Career (UK)
Laid down: 27 November 1914
Launched: 13 May 1915
Commissioned: 12 July 1915
Fate: Scuttled 8 April 1918 at Helsinki to avoid capture
General characteristics
Displacement:662 tons (surfaced)
807 tons (submerged)
Length:54.86 m
Beam:6.86 m
Draught:3.81 m
Propulsion:Twin-shaft, 2 x 1,600 bhp Vickers diesel, 2 x 840 shp electric motors
Speed:15.25 knots (surfaced)
9.75 knots (submerged)
Range:325 nm surfaced
Endurance:24 days
Complement:3 officers, 28 ratings
Armament:2 x 18" bow tube
2 x 18" beam tubes
1 x 18" stern tube
(10 torpedoes)
1 x 12 pdr deck gun

HMS E19 was an E-class submarine of the Royal Navy, commissioned in 1914 at Vickers, Barrow-in-Furness. [1] During World War I she was part of the British submarine flotilla in the Baltic.

Under the command of Lieutenant Commander Francis Cromie, [2] E19 was able to sink several German ships, most notably on the 11 October 1915 when she sank 4 German transport ships, just south of Öland, within a few hours and without any casualties. [3] [4] On 7 November 1915 E19 sank the German light cruiser SMS Undine.

E19 was scuttled by her crew outside Helsinki 1.5nm south of Harmaja Light, Gulf of Finland, along with E1, E8, E9, C26, C27, and C35 to avoid seizure by advancing German forces who had landed nearby. [5][6]

Trivia

A beer, Slottskällans Vrak, has been brewed using yeast recovered from beer bottles found on the wreck of SS Nicomedia, a ship sunk by E19 off Öland. [7]

References

  1. ↑ Colledge, J. J.; Warlow, Ben (2006) [1969]. Ships of the Royal Navy: The Complete Record of all Fighting Ships of the Royal Navy (Rev. ed.). London: Chatham Publishing. ISBN 978-1-86176-281-8. OCLC 67375475.
  2. ↑ Vrakdykning Deluxe
  3. ↑ The E19 massacre
  4. ↑ The Submarine Massacre of 1915
  5. ↑ E 19 in hylyt.net (Finnish)
  6. ↑ Finnish Submarines in Finnish Navy in World War II
  7. ↑ Vrak - direkt från SS Nicomedia