HMS ''E49'' was an E-class submarine built by

Swan Hunter Swan Hunter, formerly known as Swan Hunter & Wigham Richardson, is a shipbuilding design, engineering, and management company, based in Wallsend, Tyne and Wear, England. At its apex, the company represented the combined forces of three powe ...

Wallsend Wallsend is a town in North Tyneside, England, at the eastern end of Hadrian's Wall. It has a population of 43,842 and lies east of Newcastle upon Tyne. History Roman Wallsend In Roman times, this was the site of the fort of Segedunum. This f ...

for the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against ...

. 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 German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

U-boat U-boats were naval submarines operated by Germany, particularly in the First and Second World Wars. Although at times they were efficient fleet weapons against enemy naval warships, they were most effectively used in an economic warfare ro ...

on 10 March 1917. There were no survivors. ''E49'' lies down with her bows blown off.

Design

Like all post-''E8''

British E-class submarine The British E-class submarines started out as improved versions of the British D-class submarine. The E class served with the Royal Navy throughout World War I as the backbone of the submarine fleet. The last surviving E class submarines wer ...

s, ''E49'' had a displacement of at the surface and while submerged. She had a total length of and a beam of . She was powered by two Vickers eight-cylinder two-stroke diesel engines and two electric motors.Akerman, P. (1989). ''Encyclopaedia of British submarines 1901–1955''. 149–150. Maritime Books.

/ref> The submarine had a maximum surface speed of and a submerged speed of . British E-class submarines had fuel capacities of of diesel and ranges of when travelling at . ''E49'' was capable of operating submerged for five hours when travelling at . ''E49'' was armed with a QF 12-pounder 12 cwt naval gun, 12-pounder QF gun mounted forward of the conning tower. She had five 18 inch (450 mm)

torpedo tube A torpedo tube is a cylindrical device for launching torpedoes. There are two main types of torpedo tube: underwater tubes fitted to submarines and some surface ships, and deck-mounted units (also referred to as torpedo launchers) installed aboa ...

s, two in the bow, one either side amidships, and one in the stern; a total of 10 torpedoes were carried. E-Class submarines had wireless systems with power ratings; in some submarines, these were later upgraded to systems by removing a midship torpedo tube. Their maximum design depth was although in service some reached depths of below . Some submarines contained Fessenden oscillator systems.

Memorial

A memorial to the 31 submariners lost in the sinking of E49 was unveiled in

Baltasound Baltasound (or Baltasund) is the largest settlement on the island of Unst in Shetland, Scotland. It comes from the Old Norse man's name Balti (Baltisund). Unst is the most northerly inhabited island in the United Kingdom. The village lies halfw ...

Unst Unst (; sco, Unst; nrn, Ønst) is one of the North Isles of the Shetland Islands, Scotland. It is the northernmost of the inhabited British Isles and is the third-largest island in Shetland after Mainland and Yell. It has an area of . Unst ...

, on 12 March 2017. The memorial was organised by retired local police constable Harry Edwards. The unveiling was attended by members of the crew of Royal Navy submarine

HMS Vengeance (S31) HMS ''Vengeance'' is the fourth and final of the Royal Navy. ''Vengeance'' carries the Trident ballistic missile, the UK's nuclear deterrent. ''Vengeance'' was built at Barrow-in-Furness by Vickers Shipbuilding and Engineering Ltd, later ...

and descendants of E49 First officer Basil Beal and second-in-command Reay Parkinson.

References

Bibliography

External links

'Submarine losses 1904 to present day' - Royal Navy Submarine Museum
{{DEFAULTSORT:E49 British E-class submarines of the Royal Navy Ships built on the River Tyne 1916 ships World War I submarines of the United Kingdom World War I shipwrecks in the North Sea Royal Navy ship names Maritime incidents in 1917 Ships built by Swan Hunter History of Shetland Protected Wrecks of Scotland