HMS
Triumph. Royal naval battleship of the Swiftsure Class, HMS Triumph
launched 15th January 1903. Was with the Channel Fleet until being
transferred in March 1909 to the Mediterranean. In May 1912, she joined
the 3rd Fleet at the Nore. In April 1913, HMS Triumph relieved HMS Tamare
at Hong Kong. At the outbreak of World War One, HMS Triumph was
re-commissioned using crews from various gunboats, took part in operations
against the German port of Tsing Tao supported by Japanese ships.
Transferred to the Mediterranean between January and February 1915 and
took part in the bombardment of the Dardanelles' forts. Along with her
sister ship HMS Switsure, HMS Triumph were detached to a "Special service
squadron to bombard and destroy the Smyrna forts, with the idea to block
and prevent it being used as a submarine base. Both ships were then
returned to the Dardanelle's to participate in the main attack on the
narrows on the 18th of march. The attacks were successful but were soon
called off due to the discovery of moored mines. (although it would
be considered these mines being of old design it was mines like these
which caused the loss of HMS Irresistible, Ocean and the French Battleship
Bouvet.) While bombarding Gaba Tepe, she was torpedoed by the German
u-boat U-21 and within half and hour she had capsized and sunk with the
loss of 73 men. (described in Corbetts Naval Operations Vol
III. "Six miles away to the south-eastward was the triumph at
her firing station off Gaba Tepe, still under way with her nets down,
light guns manned and all watertight doors closed, and round her the
Chelmer was patrolling at 15 knots. "About 1225 as the destroyer was
rounding the battleship's bows she saw a suspicious white was five hundred
yards on the Triumph's starboard beam. Instantly she made a dash for it
but it was to late. The Triumph had started firing at the periscope, but
in a minute a shack of extraordinary violence seemed to lift her and then
for a while she was smothered for and aft in a shower of falling water and
coal. the torpedo had got fairly home as if her nets had been a spiders
web, When she could be seen again she had listed ten degrees. Ads she
continued to heel mover the Chelmer rushed up under her stern walk, and by
a fine display of seamanship was able to take off a number of men before,
ten minutes after the battleship was struck she capsized. Fort nearly half
an hour she remained floating bottom upwards and then, with a lurch that
sent her stern high in the air, she slowly disappeared. As she went down
the rescued men gave her a last cheer with cries of Goodbye, old
triumph" for her requiem. Happily there were many yo swell the sound
of that farewell. The moment her list had become dangerous the retreat had
been sounded and the men had quickly dropped down from the nets and booms.
Thus thanks to the prompt action of the Chelmer and the other craft which
hurried to the rescue, nearly all were saved. The Chelmer and her boats
along took up over 500 Officers and men, and in the end only three officers
and seventy men were lost.
Armament: four 10 inch guns in pairs, fourteen 7.5 inch guns in
singles, fourteen 14 pdr guns, two 2 pdr guns, four maxims and two torpedo
tubes. Displacement: 11,800. Complement: 700.
Speed: 20 knots.
