In 2023 a prominent Greek diver and researcher announced on he had discovered the lost British submarine HMS Triumph, whose true fate had been shrouded in mystery ever since the vessel and its entire crew disappeared in 1942.
The submarine had disappeared without a trace, with all 64 crew members on board, some 81 years earlier, in the midst of World War II. Various attempts to find it had been mounted at various times by teams from the United Kingdom, Malta and Russia, all without success.
The wreckage was discovered on the seabed by Greek diver Kostas Thoctarides and his team, after a search lasting roughly 25 years. Thoctarides told the state-run Athens-Macedonian News Agency:
It was the hardest and most expensive mission I have ever carried out in my life. The history of the submarine is multifaceted and unique in naval chronicles, as it is inseparably connected with the national resistance and secret services of the time, which operated during the occupation.
The key to unlocking the secret that had remained hidden for more than eight decades, he said, was “research using primary historical sources. There had to be an extensive study of the archives, both in the UK and in Germany, as well as in Italy and in Greece.â€
It lies with an eight-degree starboard list, dozens of kilometers from the shore. The periscopes and hatches are down, indicating that it was in a deep dive during its last moments, while its depth and directional rudders indicate that it was moving at a steady depth, the diver explained. On its turret are the wooden helm, compass and a four-inch cannon that is slightly raised. The hatches on either side of the cannon leading to the interior are also shut. On the fore side of the bridge, the door leading to the gunnery is open, all hatches are closed. The right torpedo tube has opened and an MK VIII torpedo is half-out of the submarine.
The submarine appears to have sunk due to a powerful explosion in the fore section but the cause of the explosion is still unclear.
Our research continues, chiefly on a historical level as new evidence and facts come to light, which combined with the information that we now have from the wreck and the assistance of naval experts specializing in submarines and torpedoes will unlock the secrets of the HMS Triumph
Thoctarides described the site as:
A watery grave for 64 heroes that inspires awe.
First launched in 1938, the Triumph joined the war in earnest in May 1939 and carried out 20 military missions in total. It first sailed to the Aegean at the end of March 1941 to scout the shores of the Dodecanese islands and land officers on Greek shores. She notched up a number of successes, sinking a large number of enemy ships, including the Italian submarine Salpa. She also undertook difficult missions to land Special Operations Executives (SOE) and MI9 agents and rescue trapped soldiers who needed to escape to Alexandria in Egypt.
On December 26, 1941, the Triumph set sail from Alexandria for its 21st and last mission before it was due to return to England for a general repair and maintenance. It had orders to carry out two special operations and, in the meantime, to patrol the specific section of the Aegean. On board the vessel were some very unusual crew members, SOE and MI9 Agent, Lieutenant George Atkinson, Greek SOE wireless expert, Diamantes Arvanitopoulos (codename Diamond), New Zealand liaison officer, Captain Craig, two British Army commandos from the Northamptonshire Regiment and Royal Artillery and five tons of emergency supplies.
Atkinson's mission (codename Isinglass) was to meet up with a Greek resistance cell in Athens and then liberate 18 selected Allied soldiers who had been held prisoner by the Italians. Atkinson carried substantial quantities of money in cash and gold coins, destined as MI9 and SOE assistance to specific individuals in occupied Athens, as well as two sets of radio transmitters for communication with Cairo.
Captain Craig was in charge of the second secret mission codenamed "Coney Island", which was to coordinate the liberation of 30 British fugitives who were on the island of Antiparos. In Atkinson's pocket was his Operation paper with typed heading "Not To Be Taken Ashore". With his mission complicated by dual SOE & MI9 instructions, he was to overlook this warning.
During the night between December 29 and December 30, 1941, the Triumph sailed into the bay of Despotikos, where it let off the special team and supplies. The captain, John S Huddart, told the 30 fugitives that he had orders to carry out a patrol of the Aegean and would return to collect them on January 9-10 in order to take them to Alexandria. He also radioed the successful conclusion of the first leg of the mission. This was the last communication ever received from the vessel.
All members of the SOE team were arrested on Antiparos and Atkinson's Operation paper, which contained the names of 37 members of the Greek resistance in Athens, with their aliases and code numbers, fell into enemy hands. The information was passed on to German authorities and all 37 were rounded up and executed, along with Atkinson. The others were taken to concentration camps.
The Triumph continued its patrol, making its presence felt near the islands of Milos and Naxos. On January 9, 1942, at 11.45am. it attacked the cement freighter Rea as it was being towed by the vessel Taxiarchis south of Sounio, with the torpedo exploding on the rocks.
Thoctarides Added:
Recently, in the same part of the deep, we identified another three British Mk VIII torpedoes of the same type as that carried by the Triumph, this fact makes us believe that the Triumph launched more than one torpedo during its last attack. The last time the submarine was sighted in motion was by an Italian pilot flying in the area, about four nautical miles southeast of Sounio.
This hitherto lost piece of information helped complete the puzzle of the submarine's history. After this, all traces of the vessel disappear and on January 23, 1942, the British Admiralty declared that the submarine must be considered lost, all hands.
In June 2024 42 members of the HMS Triumph Family sailed to her wreck off Cape Sounio in the Aegean to hold a commemorative service for her year of 1941 in the Mediterranean and lay 64 ivy wreaths over the wreck, one for each man lost.
How the British navy hid the heroic voyage of crippled second world war submarine HMS Triumph.
In September 1941 the British press enthralled its readers with a story of naval heroism that the public, battered by German bombing and strict rationing, was crying out for: a tale of survival against the odds.
My research involves looking at how the British media covered the second world war. When I came across this story, I was struck by the way in which the navy kept the it quiet for nearly two years.
Whilst on patrol North East of Heligoland on 26 December 1939, HMS Triumph hit a drifting mine which blew eighteen feet off her bows fully exposing her six internal and two external torpedo tubes. Although all the tubes were loaded, none of her warshots exploded. Unable to dive she was escorted back to Rosyth by Hudson aircraft where repairs were carried out.
HMS Triumph sinks the Italian auxiliary patrol vessels Valoroso, V 190/Frieda and V 137/Trio Frassinetti with gunfire in the Gulf of Sirte off Beurat, Libya.
After a long gun battle HMS Triumph sinks the Italian merchant Ninfea and the Italian tug Dante de Lutti off Ras Tajunes, Libya. During this battle Triumph is also damaged and is forced to abandon her war patrol and retreat to Malta for repairs.
Triumph set sail from Alexandria for its 21st and last mission before it was due to return to England for a general repair and maintenance. It had orders to carry out two special operations and in the meantime, to patrol the specific section of the Aegean.
Near the islands of Milos and Naxos.Triumph attacked the cement freighter Rea as it was being towed by the vessel Taxiarchis south of Sounio, with the torpedo exploding on the rocks.
Lost with all hands. Presumed mined off the island of Milo, southeast of the Greek mainland.
She had earlier struck a mine in December 1940 but miraculously survived. There were no miracles the second time.
Official
T 1 Specification
Length overall
275 ft
Beam
26 ft 6 inch
Depth
14 ft 3 inch
Displacement
1327 tons (surface)
1575 tons (submerged)
Diving Depth
300 ft
Speed
Surface 15.25 knots (design)
Surface 15.25 knots (service)
Submerged 9 knots (design)
Submerged8.75 knots (service)
No. of shafts
2
Endurance
Surface: 7500 miles at 15.25 knots (design)
(ii) Surface: 8000 miles at 10 knots (service)
Submerged: 80 miles at 4 knots (design)
Submerged: 80 miles at 4 knots (service)
Armament
(i) 8 21 inch bow tubes (2 external)
2 x 21 inch amidship tubes
(16 torpedoes carried)
1 x 4 inch gun
(ii) 0.303 inch machine-guns
Complement
(peacetime) 5 Officers and 51 Ratings
(wartime) 6 Officers and 56 Ratings
Notes
(i) As an alternative load, Group 1 submarines could carry 18 mines
(ii) These were later replaced by, or supplemented by one 20mm Oerlikon cannon
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
Part of the military documentary series examining each aspect of the armed forces.
This volume looks at the history and role of the submarine in the modern navy. Starting out as experimental oddities in the American Civil War, the most advanced submarines in the present day hold a crew of several hundred, can remain at sea for a year at a time, and are capable of launching dozens of thermonuclear missles at any spot in the world.
Part of the military documentary series examining each aspect of the armed forces.
This volume looks at the history and role of the submarine in the modern navy. Starting out as experimental oddities in the American Civil War, the most advanced submarines in the present day hold a crew of several hundred, can remain at sea for a year at a time, and are capable of launching dozens of thermonuclear missles at any spot in the world.
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