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The Illustrated War News - submarine B11
The Illustrated War News - submarine B11

The Illustrated War News - submarine B11

DateDecember 1914
Object number00051850
NameNewspaper
MediumPaper
DimensionsOverall: 190 x 270 mm
ClassificationsEphemera
Credit LineANMM Collection
DescriptionThis issue of The Illustrated War News dates to 16 December 1914. The main picture shows the British Royal Navy submarine B11 with its captain and five crew on deck. The inset image is of the Turkish battle-ship MESSUDIYEH. The caption reads 'The submarine exploit in the Dardanelles: B11 which dived under mines; and the Turkish battle-ship she torpedoed'.HistoryThe Royal Navy submarine B11 was commanded by Lieutenant Norman Holbrook on the morning of 13 December 1914 when it sank the Turkish battleship, MESUDIYE (MESSUDIYEH), off Çanakkale in the Narrows of the Dardanelles. B11 entered the Dardanelles and, diving under five rows of mines torpedoed the Turkish battleship MESSUDIYEH, which was guarding the minefield. Lieutenant Holbrook, aged 26, succeeded in bringing the B11 safely back to Allied territory despite gun-fire and being pursued by torpedo boats, at one point remaining submerged for nine hours. B11 was the last of the British B class submarines to be built between 1904 and 1906. It was eventually converted to a patrol boat and sold for scrap in 1919. The British submarine campaign of 1914-1915 - which included the Australian submarine AE2 - was designed to cause fear and panic along the Turkish sea route along the northern shores of the Sea of Marmara. B11 was one of the most successful of the submarines in achieving this goal. Its links with Australia go further - the NSW town of Germanton renamed itself Holbrook after the gallant submariner and is now home to the Holbrook Submarine Museum. SignificanceThis edition of The Illustrated War News details the successful exploits of the submarine B11 in World War I - highlighting the naval operations of the war.