Top
Home → Boats → Submarines → E Class → E4

E 4 (I 84)

Built By: Vickers (Barrow)
Build Group: E1
Fate: Lost with all hands in collision with E41 on 15th August 1916.

Salvaged and put back into service.

Sold 21st February 1922.

Upload An Image Of This Boat

Commanders
1913: Lieutenant   Ernest William Leir
1916: Lieutenant Commander   J Tenison

1914 - 8th Flotilla. HMS Maidstone, Harwich.

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

Lt. E.W. Leir was affectionately known as the 'Arch Thief' who plundered His Majesty's Navy of anything portable and about whom it was said that only his DSO was earned honestly.

Leir carried out the first major rescue by a submarine. After an engagement with the German destroyer V187 which was sunk, HMS Defender had lowered boats to pick up survivors when a German cruiser arrived on the scene.

Though everyone had been ordered to retire, Leir surfaced and took on board an officer and nine ratings from the Defender and one officer and two men from the German destroyer. He provided the rest of the Germans with boats, food and compass to get them back to Heligoland.

Roll of Honour

32
Bacon, Cyril
K15163
Died: 15th Aug, 1916.
Aged: 22
Stoker
Bacon, James
K18571
Died: 15th Aug, 1916.
Aged: 22
Stoker
Bagwell, Andrew
J9207
Died: 15th Aug, 1916.
Aged: 22
Able Seaman
Baker, Henry Thomas (RNVR)
Tyne 5/158
Died: 15th Aug, 1916.
Aged: 23
Engine Room Artificer
Baldock, Alfred Henry
J5988
Died: 15th Aug, 1916.
Aged: 24
Leading Seaman
Bennett, George Henry
K14986
Died: 15th Aug, 1916.
Aged: 24
Stoker
Broad, Alfred Henry
J6514
Died: 15th Aug, 1916.
Aged: 24
Able Seaman
Carpenter, Henry George
228307
Died: 15th Aug, 1916.
Aged: 29
Leading Seaman
Cooley, Frank Henry
J1314
Died: 15th Aug, 1916.
Aged: 23
Able Seaman
Denison, John
J44783
Died: 15th Aug, 1916.
Aged: 17
Boy Telegraphist
Dudley, Charles Henry
K 6508
Died: 15th Aug, 1916.
Aged: 26
Leading Stoker
Dundee-Hooper, Stewart Briscoe
Died: 15th Aug, 1916.
Aged: 23
Lieutenant
Fenwick, William Thackray
J3846
Died: 15th Aug, 1916.
Aged: 21
Able Seaman
Gadsby, William Wallace
294719
Died: 15th Aug, 1916.
Aged: 36
Petty Officer Stoker
Gibson, John William
K 7355
Died: 15th Aug, 1916.
Aged: 22
Leading Stoker
Halls, William Charles Edward
K 21878
Died: 15th Aug, 1916.
Aged: 25
Stoker
Hewlett, Harry
310896
Died: 15th Aug, 1916.
Aged: 30
Leading Stoker
Hodgson, Ronald William
M 1500
Died: 15th Aug, 1916.
Aged: 22
Engine Room Artificer
Hunter, William (RNR)
Died: 15th Aug, 1916.
Aged: 29
Lieutenant
Jolliffe, Francis Henry
219416
Died: 15th Aug, 1916.
Aged: 32
Leading Seaman
Matthews, Frank Richardson
229890
Died: 15th Aug, 1916.
Aged: 29
Leading Seaman
Millard, Jocelyn Alfred
M3565
Died: 15th Aug, 1916.
Aged: 26
Engine Room Artificer
Nichols, Frederick Noel
219985
Died: 15th Aug, 1916.
Aged: 31
Able Seaman
Preskett, Harry
J1004
Died: 15th Aug, 1916.
Aged: 29
Leading Seaman
Repper, Charles
227906
Died: 15th Aug, 1916.
Aged: 29
Petty Officer
Salisbury, James Henry
201219
Died: 15th Aug, 1916.
Aged: 34
Petty Officer
Smith, Leonard Williams
J9412
Died: 15th Aug, 1916.
Aged: 22
Leading Telegraphist
Snow, Sidney
K 2650
Died: 15th Aug, 1916.
Aged: 30
Stoker
Tenison, Julian Tenison
Died: 15th Aug, 1916.
Aged: 31
Lieutenant Commander
Tovey, Maurice William
J1071
Died: 15th Aug, 1916.
Aged: 24
Signalman
Ward, John James
K11010
Died: 15th Aug, 1916.
Aged: 29
Stoker
Warwick, John Coster
M 6325
Died: 15th Aug, 1916.
Aged: 28
Engine Room Artificer

Events

 16-05-1911   Laid Down
 05-12-1912   Launched
 04-01-1913   Completed
 15-08-1916   Whilst carrying out anti submarine exercises in the North Sea, HMS E41 acting as a target, had begun a surface passage of 12 knots when HMS E4s periscope appeared 50 yards off her starboard bow, on a collision course.

E41 stopped her engines but not before E4 collided forward of the bridge. E41 began to take in water through the forward battery compartment and began to sink by the bow. In less than two minutes the conning tower was under the water.

HMS Firdrake, who had been monitoring the exercise, took less than two minutes to reach the scene of the collision to pick up survivors. There were no survivors from E4. Both submarines were eventually located and salvaged for return to service, although E41 never served again.
E1 Specification
Length overall  181 ft
Beam  15 ft
Displacement   667 tons (surface)
  807 tons (submerged)
Diving Depth  200 ft
Speed  Surface 15.25 knots (design)
  Surface 14 knots (service)
  Submerged 10.25 knots (design)
  Submerged 9.5 knots (service)
No. of shafts  2
Propeller  3 blades, 5 ft 7 inch diameter
Armament  2 x 18 inch bow tubes
  2 x 18 inch beam tubes
  1 x 18 inch stern tube
  (10 torpedoes carried)
  1 x 2-pounder gun
Endurance (Surface)  3000 miles at 10 knots (design)
(Surface)  1500 miles on full power or 3000 miles at 10 knots (service)
(Submerged)  99 miles at 3 knots (design)
(Submerged)  10 miles at 9 knots or 65 miles at 5 knots (service)
Complement  3 Officers and 28 Ratings
Add A Comment (click to open)

This form is for you to comment on, or add additional information to this page. Any questions will be deleted. If you wish to ask a question contact the Branch or the Webmaster using the Contact Us page or ask your question on our Facebook Page

Name E-Mail
Your email will not be shown, but is required
Anti Spam: Type the following code exactly as shown into the box below.

VZky    
Note: All submissions are subject to approval prior to appearing on the page. As a SPAM prevention measure, any comments containing links to other sites will be automatically discarded.

Featured Badge

Taurus (P 339)

Class: 1935 - 1970: T Class
Built By: Vickers (Barrow)
Build Group: T 3
Fate:
Scrapped in April 1960 at Dunston.
Featured Book
Submariners VC
Describes the personnel and actions that resulted in submariners being awarded the Victoria Cross from 1914 to 1945.
Buy from Amazon
Latest Updated Pages
Branch Events
Updated: February 10, 2026
Branch Newsletter
Updated: February 8, 2026
Branch Noticeboard
Updated: February 8, 2026
Branch Rollcall
Updated: February 3, 2026
Branch Rules and Minutes
Updated: February 3, 2026
About Me
Updated: January 31, 2026
Commodore David Charles Langbridge MSC CEng FIME
Updated: January 31, 2026
Lieutenant Commander (WESM) Clive Waghorn
Updated: January 31, 2026
Welcome
Updated: January 31, 2026
Clyde Shipbuilding and Engineering
Updated: January 28, 2026
In Depth Newsletter
Updated: January 19, 2026

11 pages added or updated in the last 1 month

Errors and Corrections

Please help to maintain this site by reporting any Errors, Broken Links, Information or Site Issues on this page using this button

Report An Error

Buy Me A Coffee

If you find this site useful, please consider supporting my work with a small Donation. Or you can make a big one if you like :)

Click to Donate

Please Note: Donations made using this option go directly to the site owner and not to the Submariners Association.

Thankyou for your support.