BATTLESHIP BLOWN UP.

Sun (Christchurch), Volume I, Issue 252, 27 November 1914, Page 7

BATTLESHIP BLOWN UP.

DISASTER AT SHEERNESS.

TREMENDOUS LOSS OF LIFE.

By Cable. — Press Association—Copyright. (Received November 27, 8.45 a.m.) LONDON- November 26i

Official: H.M.S. Bulwark, an armoured ship of 15,000 tons, carrying four 12-inch guns, was blown Sheerness Harbour at 8 o'clock this 1 morning. Jt is believed :that the disaster was owing to the* explosion of the maga- '• zine. : ' '; ■'/ ' Only twelve were saved out of a crew of 780. . , :; (Received November 27, 9! a.m.) LONDON, November 26. The Rt. Hon, Winston Churchill, in the House of Commons, announcing the disaster, said that the Admirals were convinced that the internal magazine had exploded and rejnt the ship asunder. There was no upheaval of water, and the Bulwark had entirely disappeared when the smoke cleared away.. •.•:'•'■';■■■"■■ I

• The loss of the ship has not sensibly affected the military position, bat the loss of life was very severe. (Received November 27, 12.10 p.m.) LONDON, November 26. The Bulwark: disappeared in three minutes. , The explosion shook every building . in the vicinity/ 1 and some debris was thrown for six miles. The concussion was felt at Southend (on the opposite side of the Thames channel), and dense clouds of smoke arose across the estuary of the Thames.

The Bulwark was a battleship of 25,000 tons displacement, and was launched at Devonport in 1899, being completed in 1902. She cost £997,846. She was armoured -with Harveyised and Krupp steel,"carrying from 2in 'to 3in on her deck, 3in above belt, 12in bulkhead armour, 9in belt armour, and from sin to 12in armour for the protection of her heavy guns. Her armament conrjpted of four 12-in guns, twelve 6-in guns, eighteen smaller guns, besides machine guns, and four torpedo tubes. Her speed at her trials was 18.15 knots. She carried a complement of 781 officers and men. She belonged to the fifth squadron of the Second Home Fleets Sheerness is one 'of the principal dockyards under the control of the British Admiralty, its greatest depth of water at ordinary high tide being 26ft. It possesses five docks, the average dimensions of which are 280 ft by 63ft, and three basins for the'accommodation of vessels. Sheerness is a strongly fortified seaport; on the coast of Kent, and has a population of about 20,000.' The blowing up of the Bulwark resembles, the similar disaster to the American battleship Maine, which, while lying at anchor in Havana. Harbour, was blown up, and 250 men killed. The Bulwark, however, was lying in the safety of a well-fortified home harbour, while the Maine was, in a sense, on guard duty in Cuba during the revolt against Spanish rule. The American people sympathised with the revolutionists, and when the Maine was destroyed so suddenly and inexplicably on April 24, 1898, the explosion was attributed to Spanish treachery, and war was precipitated, which resulted in America taking Cuba, though afterwards she handed the control over to

the Cubans under, a Republican Government. No shot was fired at; the Maine, and there was no warship; nearwhieh might have torpedoed .her. -The Spanish warships on the coast of Cubaat the time were small and andAdmiral Cevera 's fleet did not set sail from Spain until after war was declared. It was for a long "While believed that the destruction of the Maine was due to ; tier magazines having been exploded ' through\ treachery, and all sorts of; fanciful theories were invented to aeeount for the manner in which it was done. After the blowing up of the French battleship Jena-in Toulon Harbour on March 13, 1907, the theories began to be revteed; for it was proved by an exhaustive inquiry that'' the loss of the Jena*was due to the* disintegration of oldammunitiony and it has since been; thought" that : the loss of the Maine' might' have been due to a similar cause. A further disaster in TOU7 lbh Harbour on September 25, 1911, in which the Liberte was blown up, and hei' sister ship, the Republique, was injured by the debris falling upon hen added' in support of this contention!.; The destruction of the Liberte was attributed to fire and the spontaneous, combustion of powder. .In the blowing !up of the Jena, over-120 officers and men were killed, and 226 were killed and 184 injured through the destruction of the Liberte. It is possible that the Bulwark has been destroyed • through some similar cause, though the fact that Sheerness, at the mouth of the Thames, in a direct line with the German submarine base, added to the fact that the Germans are, apparently well-supplied, with information ;' concerning depths and channels of important English harbours, suggests that perhaps she may have been the victim of a daring submarine raid.