{"id":703,"date":"2024-03-22T12:03:57","date_gmt":"2024-03-22T12:03:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/seswpcourse.hosted7.connect.ie\/?p=703"},"modified":"2024-03-27T10:27:11","modified_gmt":"2024-03-27T10:27:11","slug":"hms-a5-forgotten-submariners-lost-at-cobh","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/seswpcourse.hosted7.connect.ie\/index.php\/2024\/03\/22\/hms-a5-forgotten-submariners-lost-at-cobh\/","title":{"rendered":"HMS A5 (Forgotten Submariners) Lost at Cobh"},"content":{"rendered":"

Forgotten Submariners<\/span><\/h1>\n
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Early in 1999, Chief Petty Officer Owen O\u2019Keeffe of the Irish Naval Service was visiting Old Church Cemetery near Cobh, County Cork. The purpose of his visit was to do some research on U S Navy graves dating back to the First World War. In the course of his search for the American graves, Owen O\u2019Keeffe came across five particular graves which had like headstones. The graves were very neglected and overgrown and the headstones which were in the form of crosses were moss covered.<\/span><\/p>\n

On discovering, through research, that the graves were those of Royal Navy Submariners who were killed in an explosion onboard H M Submarine\u00a0A5<\/em>\u00a0in February 1905, Owen O\u2019Keeffe decided to do something about restoring the graves. As well as the restoration task, Owen decided to research the cause of death of the occupants of the five graves.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Wreath laying at the restored A5 graves<\/span>
\n<\/a>\"layingHM Submarine <\/span>A5\u00a0<\/em>was built in Barrow-in-Furness launched in March 1904 and commissioned on 11 February 1905. Her displacement was 190 tons surfaced,length 105 feet beam 12.5 feet and a draught of 10.5 feet, so she was tiny by today\u2019s standards or even those of the immediate post war era. The A5\u2019s engines were powered by petrol and she had a range of approximately 300 miles. Her armament consisted of two 18 inch Bow Torpedo Tubes and she carried 4 torpedoes, two in the Tubes and two spare.\u00a0<\/span>A5<\/em>\u2018s crew consisted of 2 officers and 9 ratings.<\/span><\/p>\n

H M Naval Base Haulbowline located on the western side of Cork Harbour was quite large and had a dockyard and dry dock capable of holding a vessel of cruiser size. The Base was almost entirely self-contained and even had its own hospital. The design of the buildings were and are very similar to the buildings in Royal Navy bases world-wide. Cork being a natural harbour is the ideal location for a Naval Base. The ships based at Haulbowline would have looked after the Western Approaches area of the Atlantic. Cobh in Cork Harbour of course was also the last port of call of western bound trans-Atlantic Liners.<\/span><\/p>\n

Once commissioned,\u00a0A5<\/em>\u00a0accompanied by her depot ship, H M S\u00a0Hazard,<\/em>\u00a0sailed from Barrow-in-Furness and calling at Kingstown (now D\u00fan Laoghaire), Co Dublin and Dunmore East, Co Waterford before arriving at Queenstown,(now Cobh), Co Cork on 13 February 1905. H M Submarine A5 was the first submarine to be seen at the Haulbowline Naval Base. She attracted a great deal of attention and a large number of people were out to view the new arrival. Apart from being the first submarine to arrive at the Haulbowline Naval Base, the public were aware that a sister ship of\u00a0A5<\/em>, the\u00a0A1<\/em>, had been sunk during 1904 when in collision with a Liner.<\/span><\/p>\n

On arrival in harbour the A5 berthed alongside \u201cHazard\u201d which in turn was moored to a buoy. The crew moved over to the depot ship which must have been a great relief when one considers the noise from the engines and the very cramped conditions within the small submarine when underway. It is difficult to imagine how the crew were able to get much sleep because of the engine noise etc.<\/span><\/p>\n

During 14 and 15 February 1905, preparations were underway for\u00a0A5<\/em>\u00a0to carry out some exercises, in a type of shop-window effort to demonstrate her capabilities to the Commanding Officers of ships present in the naval base and some 60 to 70 naval officers who had arrived at Haulbowline to witness the exercises and attend a subsequent lecture on submarines. These exercises were scheduled for 16 February and it was immediately prior to sailing on that fateful day that the submarine commenced refuelling from \u201cHazard\u201d. The A5\u2019s engines were petrol fuelled. Refuelling was completed at 0805.<\/span><\/p>\n

Approximately two hours later an explosion occurred inside\u00a0A<\/em>5 toward the stern, this was followed by a second explosion some thirty minutes later. The second explosion was located in the conning tower area. So great was the force of the explosions that members of the crew were actually blown out of the boat through the main hatch, into the water and subsequently two crew members were picked up by a tug.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Colour party at the restored A5 graves<\/span><\/p>\n

\"colour<\/div>\n

The following were either killed by the explosion or died subsequently from injuries received:<\/span><\/p>\n