HMS Drake was a Royal Navy armoured cruiser - the lead ship of her class, designed with side and deck armour to counter the era’s increasingly powerful explosive shells. Laid down in 1899, launched in 1901, and commissioned in January 1903, she displaced around 14,000 tonnes and could reach 23 knots, among the fastest cruisers of her time.
Early Career
Her first captain was John Jellicoe, who would later command the Royal Navy’s Grand Fleet at the 1916 Battle of Jutland, World War I’s largest naval engagement. Jellicoe’s own correspondence as captain flagged serious construction faults in the ship. Drake went on to ceremonial duties hosting royal visitors before being placed in reserve by 1913 as she approached obsolescence.
Wartime Service
With the outbreak of the First World War, Drake returned to active duty as a convoy escort - among the ships she escorted was the Olympic, Titanic’s sister ship.
Torpedoed
On 2 October 1917, under Captain Radcliffe, HMS Drake had just finished escorting convoy HH24 from America when she was torpedoed by the German submarine U-79, which had been laying mines near Rathlin Island. The torpedo struck the second boiler room, flooding it and killing everyone inside except two survivors. Still able to sail despite steering damage, Radcliffe made for Church Bay, Rathlin Island, rather than risk the longer trip to Belfast Lough. En route, Drake collided with the cargo ship Mendip Range, which was badly damaged and ran aground near Ballycastle, though Drake reached Church Bay.
Sinking
As listing became critical, Radcliffe attempted to beach the ship, but she had to be abandoned; everyone who survived the initial attack made it safely to shore. Drake capsized a few hundred metres offshore in around 14 metres of water. Nineteen crew died in total. The same day, U-79’s mines also claimed the merchant ship Lugano and the destroyer HMS Brisk, initially misattributed to direct torpedo attacks.
Later History
In 1962, the trawler Ella Hewett struck the Drake’s wreck and sank nearby, without loss of life. Charges were used to reduce both wrecks in the 1970s to prevent further shipping hazards, with a further operation in 1978 to address leaking fuel oil. Since 2006, Wessex Archaeology has surveyed the site, which today is a popular dive spot thanks to its shallow depth and relatively clear water.
