52 German Warships sunk in one day

[Roscoe]

I watch a programme on Duke TV called "Abandoned Engineering" and the following was this weeks story - something that I was not aware of.

In waters off Orkney a century ago, 52 German warships were sunk in one day - but this huge naval loss was not inflicted by enemy forces. Instead the scuttling of the German High Seas Fleet in Scapa Flow was a deliberate act of sabotage ordered by a commander who refused to let his ships become the spoils of war.

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-48599958

[piroska]

"The men in the drifters were ordered to open fire on the defenceless German sailors. They had no weapons, they were not allowed them and they didn't have any."

[zqwerty]

I seem to remember that "the scuttling of the German High Seas Fleet in Scapa Flow" is considered to be the start of the downhill slope of the British Empire.

[Lurking]

Wonder they didn't re-cycle them!.

Yes!, it took a Kiwi to win the Battle of Britain for them. Air Marshall PARK and they have only recently erected a statue in his honour in London.

We watched a lot of Newsreel's of these battles at High School in the 1940's.

lurking.

[zqwerty]

My Uncle "Digger" Harding from Wellington, was one of the New Zealanders you speak of who went across to England to function as Wing Commander for Bomber Command, I believe, in the Royal Air Force and it was because of that he met my mother's sister and eventually married her and came back to NZ and ultimately it is why my family and I got the idea to come here.

[prefect]

Wonder they didn't re-cycle them!.

Yes!, it took a Kiwi to win the Battle of Britain for them. Air Marshall PARK and they have only recently erected a statue in his honour in London.

We watched a lot of Newsreel's of these battles at High School in the 1940's.

lurking.

Dead right Lurk
When ever I passed through Thames with the kids I told this is town that produced the man who saved the world.
As far as the scuttling of the Imperial German Navy I would expect any surrendering country to destroy their equipment I am sure we would have. The Pomgolians drained the oil of the trucks at Dunkirk and run them up same thing.
Luftwaffe squadron fuhrers ordered planes destroyed where they could before surrendering to the allies.

[bellbird]

My uncle was a RNZAF pilot during WWII who also went to England, unfortunately he was one of those who did not return.

[R2x1]

52 sunk in a single day! That would not happen today, the volume of orange cones alone would have buoyed them up.
OSH would have saved them just like it saves 200 roofers every day, for a mere $75,000 added to the cost of every every house (Plus GST of course.).

[1101]

The German sailors were stuck on those ships, 7 months after the war ended . So no surprise they scuttled the fleet .
Im sure they were happy to finally go home

The steel in those ships was valuable for scientific purposes , as its uncontaminated by any fallout from all the nuke tests in the 50's, 60's & 70's
I think some of that steel was sent into space , used to make some research equipment on early space shots .

[Roscoe]

The steel in those ships was valuable for scientific purposes , as its uncontaminated by any fallout from all the nuke tests in the 50's, 60's & 70's
I think some of that steel was sent into space , used to make some research equipment on early space shots .

Yes, I heard that as well - just recently.