Maritime record TQ 87 SW 30 - REMAINS OF A First World War GERMAN SUBMARINE, north of the Bee Ness Jetty

Vertical Datum: LAT Orientation: EW Remains of WWI German sub, with sailing barge SWALE alongside. 03-FEB-1979 2 Stranded hulks in 51 25 48N 000 38 01E. 08-JAN-1980 Stranded wreck in 51 25 48N 000 38 01E. 13-MAR-1991 Shown as one vessel lying E/W, on photoplot (1). Additional photographs (2-5).
Visible on 1999 AP layer on the Heritage GIS project, at 583056,173470. See also two similar class German World War One submarine hulks that survive to the south at 582704, 172652 (TQ 87 SW 1022).

Wreck Site and Archaeological Remains:

Vertical Datum: LAT (1)
Orientation: E/W (1)

Remains of WWI German sub, with sailing barge SWALE alongside. (1)(6)

03-FEB-1979: 2 Stranded hulks in 51 25 48N 000 38 01E. (1)(6)

08-JAN-1980: Stranded wreck in 51 25 48N 000 38 01E. (1)(6)

13-MAR-1991: Shown as one vessel lying E/W, on photoplot. (1)(6)

The wreck SWALE is recorded in NMR 1538287.

The remains of a First World War German U-boat can be seen on aerial photographs taken in 1946 to the west of Humble Bee creek at TQ 8305 7346. This is one of a number of surrendered German U-boats that sank on their way to be broken up in 1921. The wreck has not been removed and can be seen on aerial photographs taken in 2007 and 2011. There is a suggestion that this U-boat may be U 122, U 123 (both 82m in length) or UB 122 (56m in length) all of which suffered the same fate en route to the breakers in 1921. The wreck in the Medway measures circa 50m and does not appear to be significantly truncated so, if these suggested designations are correct, this may be the remains of UB 122. This wreck was mapped from aerial photographs as part of the English Heritage: Hoo Peninsula Landscape Project.(2-5)

Seen to be located on Stoke Saltings, north of Bee Ness Jetty. (7)

Article with photographs of the wreck and a location map consistent with aerial photographs.

This site was first seen from the air around 1965 and then visited at some time prior to 1975 when it was discovered to be around 200ft long and to date from the period of the First World War. When it was visited by the author of the article in 1975 it was seen to have a large area missing on the port side where the engine had been extracted. Both bow and stern were missing, the remains of the bow with its saw-edged net cutter lying in the mud. Submarine experts recognised that this was in accordance with the Armistice conditions and agreements between the Allies.

Most of the external casing was seen to have disappeared, leaving the ballast tanks and pressure hull underneath.

The author appealed for information and a witness came forward to say that he had seen it being placed there just after WWI. Another witness said that in late 1919 or early 1920 some surrendered German U-boats were moored in Bridge Reach of the Medway, with the letters UC and a three-figure number on the conning towers, but although he remembered them being stripped of their engines, he did not recall them being cut up.

It was suggested locally that these engines had been recycled in pairs, two each at local cement works at Halling and Holborough, and two going to Southend Corporation for the local power station. Two more went to the Wembley exhibition of 1924 to supply power, two to Daventry for the 2LO broadcasting station, and two to New Zealand for a hydro-electric project.

Another witness saw three submarines towed into Stoke Mud Hole as a boy and with his friends clambered aboard to explore the largest submarine. Internally there were 15ft pontoons and corrugated rubber tubing, and a painting inside of George V with a noose around his neck.

The most plausible suggestion as to the vessel's identity came from Germany, suggesting that she was either U 122 or U 123. (8)

The author of the article enclosed some further correspondence dating from 1990 disagreeing with the identification as U 122 or U 123, suggesting instead that the vessel is either UB 76 or UB 93 which were 'scrapped at Rochester'. (9)

The investigation in source (8) shows that the vessel did not sink en route to the breakers, but was beached and abandoned following stripping at a nearby yard and was therefore partially broken up. (10)

The most persistent identity for the vessel has been UB 122; however, a large handwritten ledger of the Admiralty Contracts Department, listing disposals of the inter-war period, now in the Naval Historical Branch, also records the disposal of various U-boats, including UB 122. This shows that UB 122, then at Portsmouth, was 'to be taken out and sunk in deep water 30/6/21.' However, three U-boats were sold by the Admiralty on 22/7/20 at Chatham to M Lynch & Sons of Rochester, which were UB 144, UB 145 and UB 150. These were partially dismantled and their engines removed. Admiralty records then show that their hulks were 'dumped'. There are reports of 3 hulks originally [consistent with the witness in (8) who saw three submarines in Stoke Mud Hole], whereas only one now survives. (11)

The respective fates of all the suggested candidates for the identification of this vessel are as follows:

U 122: Surrendered 26 November 1918. Ran ashore on the east coast of England while on passage to surrender. Broken up. (12)

U 123: Surrendered 22 November 1918. Ran aground on the east coast of England en route to being broken up, 1921. (13)

UB 76: Surrendered 12 February 1919. Broken up at Rochester in 1922. (14)

UB 93: Surrendered 21 November 1918. Broken up Rochester, 1922. (15)

UB 122: Surrendered 24 November 1918. Sank off the English East coast en route to the breakers, 1921. (16)

UB 144: Surrendered 27 March 1919. Broken up at Rochester in 1922. (17)

UB 145: Surrendered 27 March 1919. Broken up at Rochester in 1922. (18)

UB 150: No disposal data given. (19)

The disposal of six sets of engines alluded to in (8) suggests that 6 submarines were disposed of at Rochester in 1922. Five of these are accounted for at (14)(15)(17)(18) and (19). One witness in (8) noted UC + a 3-figure number on the conning towers; however, none of the submarines quoted above are UC-type. UC I type U-boats were too small at 34m long (20); UC II vessels were 49m long but none had 3-figure numbers (21); and UC III vessels fulfilling the criteria of 3-digit numbers, a length of 56m, and surrender, were broken up at Cherbourg or Dordrecht (22). Information in (11) appears to rule out UB 122, so the most likely candidates remain UB 144, 145 and 150, consistent with the witness who saw three U-boats towed into Stoke Mud Hole nearby (8), and which would fulfil the criteria of a group of 3, which were hulked (11), with three digits (the other witness in (8)), and length at 55m. (23)

UB-100 may also be in contention for the identity of this wreck site. Although recorded as surrendered to Britain, she was not recorded as broken up until 1922 in Swansea (25), although engines from this vessel are noted as having been recycled for Southend Corporation as per (8), (24) Although a type UBIII submarine, it does fulfil the criterion of a 3-digit number (UB100) as stated in (8), and the dimensions at 55m are consistent with the vessel length. (26)

"Much attention was paid to the Diesel engines from a German submarine, which the firm are overhauling for the Southend Corporation. A plate upon the engine bears the inscription: "Diesel oil engine from the surrendered German submarine U100. Re-conditioned and installed by Belliss and Morcom, Engineers, Birmingham." (24)

The Admiralty Sales Ledger alluded to in (11), at the Naval Historical Branch, was reviewed and transcribed by Aidan Dodson, Unviersity of Bristol, in 2015. This shows that the ledger was inaccurately transcribed in (11) as relating to UB-122.

The ledger instead refers to U122 sold 27 September 1920 [not 22 July 1920], then lying at Pembroke, to M Lynch & Son, [illegible]kham Cement Works, Halling, for £1,000, along with UB-76, UB-93, UB-133, UB-136, UB-144, UB-145, and UB-150, and was re-sold at Upnor. (29)

This monument has been assessed under the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979 as amended for its national importance. The asset does not currently meet the criteria for scheduling. It is not scheduled under the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979 as amended. (27)(28)

Historic England archive material: MD003097 Hoo Peninsula Landscape Project: TQ 87 SW Material still held by Aerial Survey.

<2> 1946, Photograph (Photograph (Print)). SWX9439.

<3> 1946, Photograph (Photograph (Print)). SWX9488.

<4> 1946, Photograph (Photograph (Print)). SWX9492.

<5> 2000, Photograph (Photograph (Print)). SWX10307.

<7> SeaZone Hydrospatial, 2018, Digital marine geographic information derived from SeaZone Hydrospatial (Digital archive). SKE55742.

<8> Patricia o'Driscoll, 1980, Coast and Country (Monograph). SKE56306.

<1/6> Hydrographic Office wreck index, Extracted 20-JAN-1993, Page Nos. N/a (Bibliographic reference). SKE6339.

<24> Gloucestershire Chronicle, 1921, Gloucestershire Chronicle (Newspaper). SKE56308.

<27> Historic England, 2017, Designation Decision Record (Unpublished document). SKE56309.

<29> Aidan Dodson, 2015, Admiralty Sales Ledger 1919-1939 (Index). SKE56310.

<9-11> Oral information, correspondence (not archived) or staff comments (Verbal communication). SKE56307.

<12-23> Peter Higginbotham, Higginbotham, Peter. 2000. The Workhouse. (Website). SKE53741.