 HMS E9 | |
| History | |
|---|---|
 United Kingdom | |
| Name | HMS E9 |
| Builder | Vickers, Barrow |
| Laid down | 1 June 1912 |
| Launched | 29 November 1913 |
| Commissioned | 18 June 1914 |
| Fate | Scuttled, 3 April 1918 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type | E-class submarine |
| Displacement |
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| Length | 181 ft (55 m) |
| Beam | 15 ft (4.6 m) |
| Propulsion |
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| Speed |
|
| Range |
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| Complement | 30 |
| Armament |
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HMS E9 was a British E class submarine built by Vickers, Barrow. She was laid down on 1 June 1912 and was commissioned on 18 June 1914.
Like all post-E8 British E-class submarines, E9 had a displacement of 662 long tons (673 t) at the surface and 807 long tons (820 t) while submerged. She had a total length of 180 feet (55 m) [1] and a beam of 22 feet 8.5 inches (6.922 m). She was powered by two 800 horsepower (600 kW) Vickers eight-cylinder two-stroke diesel engines and two 420 horsepower (310 kW) electric motors. [2] [3] The submarine had a maximum surface speed of 16 knots (30 km/h; 18 mph) and a submerged speed of 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph). British E-class submarines had fuel capacities of 50 long tons (51 t) of diesel and ranges of 3,255 miles (5,238 km; 2,829 nmi) when travelling at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph). [1] E9 was capable of operating submerged for five hours when travelling at 5 knots (9.3 km/h; 5.8 mph).
E9 was not fitted with a deck gun during construction, and it is not known whether one was fitted later, as was the case with many boats up to E19. She was the first of her class to be constructed with five 18 inch (450 mm) torpedo tubes, two in the bow, one either side amidships, and one in the stern; a total of 10 torpedoes were carried. [2]
E-Class submarines had wireless systems with 1 kilowatt (1.3 hp) power ratings; in some submarines, these were later upgraded to 3 kilowatts (4.0 hp) systems by removing a midship torpedo tube. Their maximum design depth was 100 feet (30 m) although in service some reached depths of below 200 feet (61 m). Some submarines contained Fessenden oscillator systems. [1]
Her complement was three officers and 28 men. [1]
When war was declared with Germany on 5 August 1914, E9 was based at Harwich, in the 8th Submarine Flotilla of the Home Fleets. [4]
At dawn on 13 September 1914, the submarine, commanded by Lieutenant-Commander Horton, torpedoed the German light cruiser SMS Hela six miles southwest of Heligoland. Hela was hit amidships with the two torpedoes, fired from a range of 600 yards. All but two of her crew were rescued by the German submarine U-18 and another German ship. Although pursued most of the day by German naval forces, E9 managed to reach Harwich safely. [5] Three weeks later, Horton sank the German destroyer S116 off the mouth of the River Ems. For sinking the cruiser and the destroyer, Horton was awarded the Distinguished Service Order (DSO).
E9 was scuttled outside Helsinki (Helsingfors) 1.5 nautical miles (2.8 km; 1.7 mi) off Grohara Light in the Gulf of Finland on 3 April 1918 to avoid seizure by advancing German forces.
HMS E9 was salvaged for breaking in Finland in August 1953.
While in command of the E9, Horton initiated the tradition of submarines flying the Jolly Roger upon returning from successful combat patrols. Remembering comments by First Sea Lord Admiral Sir Arthur Wilson, who complained that submarines were "underhanded, unfair, and damned un-English" and that personnel should be hanged as pirates, [6] [7] Horton flew the flag when the E9 returned to port following the sinking of the Hela. They flew additional flags after each successful patrol, but when there was no room for more flags, they began adding symbols, each indicating a certain achievement, to a single large flag. [8] This practice was imitated by other British submarines during World War I, and it was renewed again during World War II. The Admiralty initially disapproved of the practice, but was unable to stop it. [7] The Jolly Roger has since been adopted as the logo of the Royal Navy Submarine Service. [9]
HMS E3 was the third E-class submarine to be constructed, built at Barrow by Vickers in 1911-1912. Built with compartmentalisation and endurance not previously achievable, these were the best submarines in the Royal Navy at the start of the First World War. She was sunk in the first ever successful attack on one submarine by another, when she was torpedoed on 18 October 1914 by U-27.
HMS E2 was a British E class submarine built by Chatham Dockyard. E2 was laid down on 14 February 1911 and launched on 23 November 1912.
HMS E1 was a British E-class submarine that was built by Chatham Dockyard and cost £101,700. E1 was laid down on 14 February 1911. She was launched on 9 November 1912 and was commissioned on 6 May 1913. During World War I she was part of the British submarine flotilla in the Baltic.
HMS E6 was a British E-class submarine built by Vickers Barrow-in-Furness. She was laid down on 12 November 1911 and was commissioned on 17 October 1913. She cost £106,900.
HMS E7 was a British E class submarine built at Chatham Dockyard. She was laid down on 30 March 1912 and was commissioned on 16 March 1914. She cost £105,700.
HMS E8 was a British E-class submarine built at Chatham Dockyard. She was laid down on 30 March 1912 and was commissioned on 18 June 1914. She cost £105,700. During World War I, she was part of the British submarine flotilla in the Baltic.
HMS E10 was a British E class submarine built by Vickers, Barrow-in-Furness. She was laid down on 10 July 1912 and was commissioned on 10 March 1914. She cost £105,700. E10 was lost in the North Sea on or around 18 January 1915.
HMS E12 was a British E class submarine built by HM Dockyard, Chatham. She was laid down on 16 December 1912 and commissioned on 14 October 1914. Her construction costs totalled £101,900.
HMS E56 was a British E-class submarine built by William Denny, Dumbarton. She was laid down on 1 December 1914, launched 19 June 1916 and was commissioned on 8 August 1916. E56 was sold for scrap at Granton, Edinburgh, on 9 June 1923.
HMS E22 was a British E-class submarine built by Vickers, Barrow-in-Furness. She was laid down on 27 August 1914 and was commissioned on 8 November 1915.
HMS E49 was an E-class submarine built by Swan Hunter, Wallsend for the Royal Navy. She was laid down on 15 February 1915 and was commissioned on 14 December 1916. E49 was mined off the Shetland Islands on 12 March 1917. The minefield was laid by the German U-boat UC-76 on 10 March 1917. There were no survivors. E49 lies 96 ft (29 m) down with her bows blown off.
HMS E48 was a British E class submarine launched by Fairfield Shipbuilding and Engineering Company, Govan in 1916 and was completed by William Beardmore and Company, Dalmuir. She was launched on 2 August 1916 and was commissioned in February 1917.
HMS E27 was a British E class submarine built by Yarrow Shipbuilders, Scotstoun. She was launched on 9 June 1917 and commissioned in August 1917. HMS E27 was sold to John Cashmore Ltd in Newport for scrapping on 6 September 1922.
HMS E32 was a British E class submarine built by J. Samuel White, Cowes, Isle of Wight. She was launched on 16 August 1916 and commissioned in October 1916. HMS E32 was sold in Sunderland on 6 September 1922.
HMS E34 was a British E class submarine built by John Thornycroft, Woolston, Hampshire. She was launched on 27 January 1917 and commissioned in March 1917. HMS E34 sank the U-boat UB-16 off Harwich in the North Sea on 10 May 1918. E34 was mined near the Eijerlandse Gronden, the sands between the Frisian islands Texel and Vlieland on 20 July 1918. There were no survivors.
HMS E47 was an E-class submarine launched by Fairfield, Govan for the Royal Navy and completed by William Beardmore, Dalmuir. She was launched on 29 May 1916 and was commissioned in October 1916.
HMS E36 was an E-class submarine built by John Brown, Clydebank for the Royal Navy. She was laid down on 7 January 1915 and was commissioned on 16 November 1916.
HMS E41 was a British E class submarine built by Cammell Laird, Birkenhead. She was laid down on 26 July 1915 and was commissioned in February 1916.
HMS E42 was a British E-class submarine built by Cammell Laird, Birkenhead. She was launched on 22 October 1915 and commissioned in July 1916. She served during the First World War, hitting with a torpedo the battlecruiser SMS Moltke on 25 April 1918 and making an unsuccessful attack on U-92 on 1 July 1918. E42 was sold for scrap at Poole on 6 September 1922.
HMS E43 was a British E class submarine built by Swan Hunter, Wallsend. She was laid down on 22 December 1914 and was commissioned on 20 February 1916. On 19 January 1917 E43 collided with E36 off Harwich in the North Sea; E36 sank with all hands. E43 was sold on 3 January 1921 but became stranded under tow west off St Agnes Head, Cornwall on 25 November 1921.
 Royal Navy | |
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 Royal Australian Navy | |
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Shipwrecks and maritime incidents in April 1918 | |
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| Shipwrecks |
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| Other incidents |
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