Finland: Wreck of a British destroyer found

A group of Russian divers found the wreck of the destroyer HMS Vittoria, belonging to the British Royal Navy. The vessel was sunk in the second decade of the 20th century by a submarine of the 1st Submarine Squadron of the Baltic Fleet. The whole incident was reported by a spokesman for the Russian Ministry

ByTomasz Andrukajtis

Published: November 12, 2013 - 10:10

Updated: February 9, 2023 - 01:23

Finland: Wreck of a British destroyer found

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HMS Vittoria was an Admiralty V class destroyer that was sunk during the Russian Civil War, on 1 September 1919. (some give the date as August 31) by the Bolshevik submarine Panthera. At the time, the British Empire was providing support to a “white” Russia in decline.

The sinking of the destroyer was a huge success for the Communists. It was the first time when a Soviet ship sent an enemy ship to the bottom. The torpedoed wreck rested in the waters of the Gulf of Finland at the depth of about 30 m. For this feat the commander of the ship Aleksand Nikolaevich Bakhtin received the highest Soviet decoration – the Order of the Red Banner (which was taken away from him in 1927), and the 19-person crew received commemorative watches with engraved names.

The destroyer HMS Vittoria was built at the shipyard C. S. Swan & Hunter Ltd., Newcastle-Upon-Tyne in 1917. The vessel measured 93.3m in length and 8.2m in breadth. She was powered by two Brown-Curtis steam turbines putting two screws in motion, which allowed her to develop a speed of 34 knots.

Source: lenta.ru

About author

Tomasz Andrukajtis

Editor-in-chief of the DIVERS24 portal and magazine. Responsible for obtaining, translating and developing content. He also supervises all publications. Achived his first diving certification – P1 CMAS, in 2000. Has a degree in journalism and social communication. In the diving industry since 2008.