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E 5 (I 85)

Built By: Vickers (Barrow)
Build Group: E1
Fate: On 7th March 1916 Submarine E5 was on patrol in the North Sea north of Juist Island when it was sighted by a German Battle Cruiser SMS Seydlitz. An attack was carried out on the Submarine - apparently without effect.

Later a Submarine, believed to be E5, was sighted by German Cruiser SMS Regensburg further east and close by a German minefield off the west of the Ems River. Submarine E5 was not seen again and is thought to have been lost in the minefield.
E 5 (I 85)
E 5 (I 85)
E 5 (I 85)
E 5 (I 85)
E5
E5

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Commanders
1913: Lieutenant Commander   C S Benning
1916: Lieutenant Commander   Harrington D Edwards

1914: 8th Flotilla Portsmouth, HMS Maidstone and Adamant
1914 - 8th Flotilla. HMS Maidstone, Harwich.

Supported the British surface fleet at the 'Battle of Helgoland'.

E5 had a very short career before and after her commissioning. She had an engine room explosion on 8 June 1913, 20 days before commissioning. 13 were killed.

A further three men were killed when there was an oil blow back into the starboard engine off St Ann's Head. The submarine depot ship HMS Adamant and HMS Alligator carried the medical team out to meet E5 on her way into Pembroke Dock. Ten other men were seriously injured, although all civilian staff from Barrow were safe and unharmed.

E5 Found

By James Tozer for the Daily Mail 21st November 2016

Found, a WWI submarine that took twenty-nine men to their doom: The fate of brave British sailors who vanished at sea is finally revealed after the ship's hull is found off the Dutch coast one hundred years later. Submarine E5, which is reported to be the first British Submarine to fire a torpedo in WWI, vanished in 1916.

Divers have now found the hull of HMS E5 off the coast of the Netherlands. The Submarine is thought to have struck a mine while rescuing survivors from trawler. The hatches were found open in poignant indication that crew may have tried to escape

For just over one hundred years it has kept its secrets, lying almost forgotten on the seabed. But now the descendants of the twenty-nine brave crewmen who died at last know its fate.

Divers found the remarkably intact hull of HMS E5 off the coast of the Netherlands after securing an agreement for a brief suspension of the busy shipping lane beneath which it rests.

Built in Barrow-in-Furness and commissioned in 1913, HMS E5, the Royal Navy didn't start naming its submarines until 1942, was feared to have struck a mine while rescuing survivors from a stricken trawler near Heligoland Bight on March 7, 1916.

The Submarine’s resting place remained a mystery until amateur maritime archaeologists won permission to examine a wreck off Schiermonnikoog, near the German border.

Encrusted with limpets and barnacles, it proved to be that of the 178 foot E5, its hatches open in a poignant indication that its crew made a vain effort to escape.

Its conning tower, which once bore its identifying 'Pennant Number' of 85, lay nearby on the seabed but there was no sign of major damage to the hull, indicating that it was not sunk because of enemy action.

Remy Luttik, who led the Zeester diving team, said: 'A piece of the puzzle of the maritime history of the North Sea has surfaced. The results offer hope for relatives looking for their missing loved ones.'

Roll of Honour
34
 
Clarke, Lewis Alfred 
Died: 8th Jun, 1913.
Leading Stoker
Died in Pembroke Dock Naval Hospital following an explosion inside E5 main engines
Greenall, James Alexander 
Died: 8th Jun, 1913.
Chief Engine Room Artificer
Killed when an explosion occurred inside E5 main engines
Moore, Walter Lancelot 
Died: 8th Jun, 1913.
Engineer Commander
Lost both legs and an arm and suffered third degree burns when an explosion occurred inside E5 main engines. Died in hospital at Pembroke Dock
 
Crane, Arthur Thomas  J6686 (Po)
Died: 24th Feb, 1916.
Leading Telegraphist Aged: 25
It is reported that he was accidentally lost overboard and drowned
 
Aldred, Albert  K 12395
Died: 7th Mar, 1916.
Stoker 1st Class Aged: 27
Arnold, William James  197172
Died: 7th Mar, 1916.
Petty Officer Aged: 35
Atkinson, Henry Warkman  J 12152
Died: 7th Mar, 1916.
Able Seaman Aged: 22
Bassett, John Thomas  203189
Died: 7th Mar, 1916.
Leading Seaman Aged: 32
Bonner, William Arthur  K 13881 Born: 6th Nov, 1884. 
Died: 7th Mar, 1916.
Leading Stoker Aged: 31
RN DoB 06/11/1887
Bor, Thomas Humphrey  (RNR)
Died: 7th Mar, 1916.
Lieutenant Aged: 24
Buchanan, Philip  (RNR) EA 1407
Died: 7th Mar, 1916.
Engine Room Artificer Aged: 26
Chinn, Robert Leonard  K 14836
Died: 7th Mar, 1916.
Stoker 1st Class Aged: 21
Cowburn, Francis Garratt  309136
Died: 7th Mar, 1916.
Stoker Petty Officer Aged: 31
Dale, Alan Denzil  K 15770
Died: 7th Mar, 1916.
Stoker 1st Class Aged: 25
Davis, Frederick William  M 496
Died: 7th Mar, 1916.
Engine Room Artificer 4th Class Aged: 22
Edwards, Harrington Douty  DSO
Died: 7th Mar, 1916.
Lieutenant Commander Aged: 30
Commanding Officer
Goff, George  K 20958
Died: 7th Mar, 1916.
Stoker 1st Class Aged: 24
Kingcome, Howard William  J 11519
Died: 7th Mar, 1916.
Signalman Aged: 20
Lane, Joseph Frederick  K 16052
Died: 7th Mar, 1916.
Stoker 1st Class Aged: 23
Lefever, James  J 11476
Died: 7th Mar, 1916.
Able Seaman Aged: 22
McDowell, William  211344
Died: 7th Mar, 1916.
Leading Seaman Aged: 33
Moore, George Frederick  K 14005
Died: 7th Mar, 1916.
Stoker 1st Class Aged: 22
Morris, Ernest Richard  268807
Died: 7th Mar, 1916.
Chief Engine Room Artificer Aged: 40
Oates, Charles John  J 4526
Died: 7th Mar, 1916.
Able Seaman Aged: 24
Owen, Arthur Robert  199878
Died: 7th Mar, 1916.
Petty Officer Aged: 32
Parker, William  J 6076
Died: 7th Mar, 1916.
Able Seaman Aged: 22
Parrell, Charles  270476
Died: 7th Mar, 1916.
Chief Engine Room Artificer 2nd Class Aged: 35
Pendred, Alfred Joseph  J 2418
Died: 7th Mar, 1916.
Petty Officer Aged: 25
Powell, Robert Albert  K 798 Born: 27th Apr, 1887. 
Died: 7th Mar, 1916.
Leading Stoker Aged: 28
RN DoB 27/04/1888. Actual 27/04/1887
Rice, Cecil Frank  M 7200
Died: 7th Mar, 1916.
Engine Room Artificer 4th Class Aged: 28
Shepherd, William Edwin  J 35848
Died: 7th Mar, 1916.
Boy Telegraphist Aged: 17
Smith, Ernest  K 17473
Died: 7th Mar, 1916.
Stoker 1st Class Aged: 21
Thirlwell, Arthur Robert  235171
Died: 7th Mar, 1916.
Able Seaman Aged: 27
Watson, Sidney Frederick 
Died: 7th Mar, 1916.
Lieutenant Aged: 22

Events

 09-06-1911   Laid Down
 17-05-1912   Launched
 07-06-1913   Completed
 08-06-1913   An explosion occurred inside E5's Main Engines, resulting in the death of one Officer and two men. In addition, nine men were badly burned.
 07-03-1916   At 08.10 on the morning the German battle cruiser Seydlitz sighted a submarine north of Juist Island. The cruiser and her accompanying torpedo boats dropped depth charges but to no avail. A few hours later another German cruiser, the Regensburg sighted a submarine to the east, not far from a German minefield of the Western Ems. E5 failed to return from her patrol and it is believed that this was the submarine seen by the Regensburg near the minefield.
 21-11-2016   Divers found the remarkably intact hull of HMS E5 off the coast of the Netherlands after securing an agreement for a brief suspension of the busy shipping lane beneath which it rests. The wreck of E5 was found by off the island of Schiermonnikoog, there was no sign of major damage to the hull, indicating that it was not sunk as a result of enemy action. Remy Luttik, head of the diving team, said he was relieved: “A puzzle piece of the maritime history of the North Sea could be clarified.”
Comments

Comment by: Robert Clark on October 24th, 2022

My paternal grandfather, Lewis Alfred Clark, was badly burnt in the 1913 fire and died four days later from his injuries He is buried in Pembroke Dock Cemetery. My father was just three months old when the incident occurred.

Comment by: Keith Feay on January 23rd, 2021

Hello,
My wifes late mother was the daughter of petty officer stoker Francis Garratt Cowburn.
The family have the certificate and bronze plaque given to serviceman lost in WW 1.
He was born in the Altrincham area and was married in Manchester at the age of 25.
Unfortunately we don't have a lot of information about his early life before he joined the Royal Navy

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