| Built By: | Swan Hunter (Tyne) |
| Build Group: | F17 |
| Fate: | Sold to Italian Ship breakers in 1964 and scrapped at La Spezia, |
Commissioned as HMS Artifex in January 1961
| 06-02-1924 | Launched |
| 30-09-1939 | Passenger ship Aurania requisitioned by the Admiralty from the Cunard White Star Ltd, Liverpool for conversion to an armed merchant cruiser. |
| 24-03-1942 | Sold to the Admiralty following damage sustained in an attack by U-123, laid up for some time, but finally converted into a repair ship finished in 1944 |
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| Official | ||
| Admiralty Approved | 13th Jun, 1946 | |
| Symbology | The name is derived from the Latin for "artificer". | |
| Design Notes | Three sledgehammers: one erect, two in saltire, surmounted by a black anvil on a gold background. | |
| Displacement | 19,000 tons |
| Length | 538ft |
| Beam | 65ft 3in |
| Draught | 32ft 4in (max) |
| Speed | 15 knots |
| Armament | Several 20mm AA guns |
| Compliment | 592 |
| Class: | 1935 - 1970: Improved S Class |
| Built By: | Scotts (Clyde) |
| Build Group: | S3 |
| Fate: | |
| Scrapped Faslane 10/49 | |
The 'X' stood for experimental, but it might equally have meant extraordinary, exotic or extravagant, as this giant submarine attracted superlatives. Built in the early 1920s, it was the world's largest, most heavily armed, and deepest diving submersible of the day. A controversial project conceived behind the backs of politicians, X.1 would remain an unwanted stepchild. As British diplomats attempted to outlaw the use of submarines as commerce raiders, the Admiralty was building the world's most powerful corsair submarine, designed to destroy entire convoys of merchant ships.
This book explores the historical background of submarine cruisers, the personalities involved in X.1's design and service, the spy drama surrounding her launch, the treason trial of a Royal Navy submarine commander, the ship's checkered career, and her political demise. Despite technical successes, the X.1 became the target of a misinformation campaign aimed at persuading foreign naval powers that the cruiser submarine did not work. While the myth of her failure persists even today, it was ignored by other navies, who went on building submarine cruisers of their own. The book analyses the submarine cruisers built by the US, French, and Japanese navies, as well as the projected German copy of X.1, the Type XI U-Boat.
20 pages added or updated in the last 3 month
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Thankyou for your support.
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|
||
| Official | ||
| Admiralty Approved | 13th Jun, 1946 | |
| Symbology | The name is derived from the Latin for "artificer". | |
| Design Notes | Three sledgehammers: one erect, two in saltire, surmounted by a black anvil on a gold background. | |
| Displacement | 19,000 tons |
| Length | 538ft |
| Beam | 65ft 3in |
| Draught | 32ft 4in (max) |
| Speed | 15 knots |
| Armament | Several 20mm AA guns |
| Compliment | 592 |
| Class: | 1935 - 1970: Improved S Class |
| Built By: | Scotts (Clyde) |
| Build Group: | S3 |
| Fate: | |
| Scrapped Faslane 10/49 | |
The 'X' stood for experimental, but it might equally have meant extraordinary, exotic or extravagant, as this giant submarine attracted superlatives. Built in the early 1920s, it was the world's largest, most heavily armed, and deepest diving submersible of the day. A controversial project conceived behind the backs of politicians, X.1 would remain an unwanted stepchild. As British diplomats attempted to outlaw the use of submarines as commerce raiders, the Admiralty was building the world's most powerful corsair submarine, designed to destroy entire convoys of merchant ships.
This book explores the historical background of submarine cruisers, the personalities involved in X.1's design and service, the spy drama surrounding her launch, the treason trial of a Royal Navy submarine commander, the ship's checkered career, and her political demise. Despite technical successes, the X.1 became the target of a misinformation campaign aimed at persuading foreign naval powers that the cruiser submarine did not work. While the myth of her failure persists even today, it was ignored by other navies, who went on building submarine cruisers of their own. The book analyses the submarine cruisers built by the US, French, and Japanese navies, as well as the projected German copy of X.1, the Type XI U-Boat.
20 pages added or updated in the last 3 month
Please help to maintain this site by reporting any Errors, Broken Links, Information or Site Issues on this page using this button
If you find this site useful, please consider supporting my work with a small Donation.
Please Note: Donations made using this option go directly to the site owner and not to the Submariners Association.
Thankyou for your support.
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