Antilla shipwreck
Encyclopedia
The Antilla is World War II
shipwreck
off the coast of Aruba
that is a popular snorkeling
and scuba diving
destination.
When Germany
invaded the Netherlands
on May 10, 1940, the relationship between the two nations was obviously strained. As part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands
, this extended to Aruba. The Antilla was a German U-boat
supply ship that was anchored off the coast of Aruba at the time. When a contingent of Dutch Marines told the Antilla to surrender, the captain asked for an extension, and the Dutch accepted and gave the ship 24 hours to surrender.
The Antilla was fairly new at the time, and rather than see her turned over to the enemy, the captain decided to scuttle the ship. After putting the crew ashore, he heated up the boilers, which were amidships, and opened the seacock
. When the cold sea water hit the hot boilers, they exploded, ripping the ship in half. It sank in eight minutes.
At 400 feet long, the Antilla is one of the Caribbean
’s largest shipwrecks. Only the cruise liners Bianca C and SS Antilles
are bigger, at around 600 feet. It lies on its port side at a maximum depth of 55 feet, though it can readily be seen from the surface. Its location is approximately N 12.60175 W 070.05815.
Unfortunately, over the last few years the Antilla has begun to collapse; the ship used to be open to special wreck penetration scuba diving but now after the hull has been weakened by storms it is collapsing on a daily basis, making it unsafe to go inside the wreck.
Many marine lifeforms have made their home on the ship.
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
shipwreck
Shipwreck
A shipwreck is what remains of a ship that has wrecked, either sunk or beached. Whatever the cause, a sunken ship or a wrecked ship is a physical example of the event: this explains why the two concepts are often overlapping in English....
off the coast of Aruba
Aruba
Aruba is a 33 km-long island of the Lesser Antilles in the southern Caribbean Sea, located 27 km north of the coast of Venezuela and 130 km east of Guajira Peninsula...
that is a popular snorkeling
Snorkeling
Snorkeling is the practice of swimming on or through a body of water while equipped with a diving mask, a shaped tube called a snorkel, and usually swimfins. In cooler waters, a wetsuit may also be worn...
and scuba diving
Scuba diving
Scuba diving is a form of underwater diving in which a diver uses a scuba set to breathe underwater....
destination.
When Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
invaded the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
on May 10, 1940, the relationship between the two nations was obviously strained. As part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands
Kingdom of the Netherlands
The Kingdom of the Netherlands is a sovereign state and constitutional monarchy with territory in Western Europe and in the Caribbean. The four parts of the Kingdom—Aruba, Curaçao, the Netherlands, and Sint Maarten—are referred to as "countries", and participate on a basis of equality...
, this extended to Aruba. The Antilla was a German U-boat
U-boat
U-boat is the anglicized version of the German word U-Boot , itself an abbreviation of Unterseeboot , and refers to military submarines operated by Germany, particularly in World War I and World War II...
supply ship that was anchored off the coast of Aruba at the time. When a contingent of Dutch Marines told the Antilla to surrender, the captain asked for an extension, and the Dutch accepted and gave the ship 24 hours to surrender.
The Antilla was fairly new at the time, and rather than see her turned over to the enemy, the captain decided to scuttle the ship. After putting the crew ashore, he heated up the boilers, which were amidships, and opened the seacock
Seacock
A seacock is a valve on the hull of a boat, permitting water to flow into the boat, such as for cooling an engine or for a salt water faucet; or out of the boat, such as for a sink drain or a toilet....
. When the cold sea water hit the hot boilers, they exploded, ripping the ship in half. It sank in eight minutes.
At 400 feet long, the Antilla is one of the Caribbean
Caribbean
The Caribbean is a crescent-shaped group of islands more than 2,000 miles long separating the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, to the west and south, from the Atlantic Ocean, to the east and north...
’s largest shipwrecks. Only the cruise liners Bianca C and SS Antilles
SS Antilles
Built for the French Line, the Antilles was a near-sister to the SS Flandre of 1952. Her construction was completed and her maiden voyage made in 1953. She differed from her sister mainly because she was painted in white. She was placed on West Indies cruise service in the 1960s.Her career was...
are bigger, at around 600 feet. It lies on its port side at a maximum depth of 55 feet, though it can readily be seen from the surface. Its location is approximately N 12.60175 W 070.05815.
Unfortunately, over the last few years the Antilla has begun to collapse; the ship used to be open to special wreck penetration scuba diving but now after the hull has been weakened by storms it is collapsing on a daily basis, making it unsafe to go inside the wreck.
Many marine lifeforms have made their home on the ship.