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Scapa Flow (
Old NorseOld Norse is a North Germanic language that was spoken by inhabitants of Scandinavia and inhabitants of their overseas settlements during the Viking Age, until about 1300....
:
Skalpaflói) is a body of water in the Orkney Islands,
ScotlandScotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
,
United KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe. It is an island country, spanning an archipelago including Great Britain, the northeastern part of Ireland, and many small islands...
, sheltered by the islands of Mainland,
GraemsayGraemsay is an island in the western approaches to Scapa Flow, in the Orkney Islands of Scotland. The island has two lighthouses.-Geography and geology:...
,
BurrayBurray is one of the Orkney Islands in Scotland. It lies to the east of Scapa Flow and is one of a chain of islands linked by the Churchill Barriers.-Geography and geology:...
,
South RonaldsaySouth Ronaldsay is one of the Orkney Islands off the north coast of Scotland. It is linked to the Orkney Mainland by the Churchill Barriers, running via Burray, Glimps Holm and Lamb Holm.-Geography and geology:...
and
HoyHoy is one of the Orkney Islands in Scotland. With an area of , it is the second largest of the Orkney Islands after the Mainland. It is connected by a southern causeway called The Ayre to South Walls...
. At 140 square miles with a sandy bottom and relatively shallow (not deeper than 160 feet and most of it about 70 feet deep), it is one of the great natural harbours/anchorages of the world, with sufficient space to hold a number of navies.
VikingA Viking is one of the Norse explorers, warriors, merchants, and pirates who raided and colonized wide areas of Europe from the late eighth to the early eleventh century. These Norsemen used their famed longships to travel as far east as Constantinople and the Volga River in Russia, and as far...
ships anchored in Scapa Flow more than 1000 years ago, but it is best known as the site of the
United KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe. It is an island country, spanning an archipelago including Great Britain, the northeastern part of Ireland, and many small islands...
's chief
navalA navy is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval warfare and amphibious warfare; namely, lake- or ocean-borne combat operations and related functions...
base during
World War IWorld War I , also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All Wars, was a global military conflict which involved most of the world's great powers, assembled in two opposing alliances: the Triple Entente and the Triple Alliance...
and
World War IIWorld War II, or the Second World War , was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including all great powers, organized into two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. The base was closed in 1956.
Base for the British Grand Fleet
Historically, the main British naval bases were located near the
English ChannelThe English Channel is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates England from northern France, and joins the North Sea to the Atlantic. It is about long and varies in width from at its widest, to only in the Strait of Dover...
to better face England's old enemies of France, Spain, and the Netherlands. In 1904, in response to the build-up of the German
Kaiserliche MarineThe Kaiserliche Marine or Imperial Navy was the German Navy created by the formation of the German Empire. It existed between 1871 and 1919, growing out of the Prussian Navy and Norddeutsche Bundesmarine. Kaiser Wilhelm II greatly expanded the Navy, causing a naval arms race between the German...
's
High Seas FleetThe High Seas Fleet was the main battle fleet of the Imperial German Navy during World War I. The fleet was based at Wilhelmshaven in the Jade estuary, and commanded by Admirals Friedrich von Ingenohl , Hugo von Pohl , Reinhard Scheer , and Franz von Hipper...
, it was decided that a northern base was needed, to control the entrances to the
North SeaThe North Sea is a marginal, epeiric sea on the European continental shelf. The Dover Strait and the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian Sea in the north connect it to the Atlantic Ocean. It is more than long and wide, with an area of around...
. Originally,
RosythRosyth Dockyard is a large naval dockyard in Rosyth, Fife, Scotland, which today primarily undertakes refitting of Royal Navy surface vessels. Rosyth Dockyard is owned by Babcock PLC.-History:...
was considered for the base, and then
InvergordonInvergordon is a town and port in Easter Ross, in Ross and Cromarty, Highland, Scotland.The town is served by Invergordon railway station....
at
Cromarty FirthThe Cromarty Firth is an arm of the North Sea in Scotland. It is the middle of the three sea lochs at the head of the Moray Firth: to the north lies the Dornoch Firth, and to the south the Beauly Firth....
but construction in both places was delayed, leaving them largely unfortified by the time of the First World War. Scapa Flow was used many times for exercises in the years leading up to the War, and, when the time came for the fleet to move to a northern station, Scapa Flow was chosen for the main base of the
British Grand FleetThe Grand Fleet was the main fleet of the British Royal Navy during the First World War.-History:It was formed in 1914 by the British Atlantic Fleet combined with the Home Fleet and it included 35-40 state-of-the-art capital ships. It was initially commanded by Admiral Sir John Jellicoe...
, even though it was also unfortified.
John Rushworth JellicoeAdmiral of the Fleet John Rushworth Jellicoe, 1st Earl Jellicoe, GCB, OM, GCVO was a British Royal Navy admiral who commanded the Grand Fleet at the Battle of Jutland in World War I. His handling of the fleet at Jutland remains controversial...
, admiral of the Grand Fleet, was constantly nervous about potential submarine or destroyer attacks on Scapa Flow, and the base was reinforced with minefields, artillery, and concrete barriers starting in 1914. These fears were borne out when
GermanGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered to the north by the North Sea, Denmark, and the Baltic Sea; to the east by Poland and the Czech Republic; to the south by Austria and Switzerland; and to the west by France, Luxembourg, Belgium,...
U-boatU-boat is the anglicized version of the German word , itself an abbreviation of Unterseeboot , and refers to military submarines operated by Germany, particularly in World War I and World War II...
s twice attacked British ships in Scapa Flow, though the attacks themselves did no damage. The first, by
U-18, took place in November 1914; but the sub was rammed by a trawler searching for submarines while it was trying to enter Scapa Flow, causing the submarine to flee and then sink. The second attack, by
UB-116, in October 1918, encountered the sophisticated defences then in place at Scapa Flow, was detected by hydrophones and then destroyed by shore-triggered
minesA naval mine is a self-contained explosive device placed in water to destroy ships or submarines. Unlike depth charges, mines are deposited and left to wait until they are triggered by the approach of or contact with an enemy ship...
before it could enter the anchorage.
Scuttling of the German fleet
Following the German defeat in the First World War, 78
shipA ship is a large vessel that floats on water. Ships are generally distinguished from boats based on size and passenger capacity. Ships may be found on lakes, seas, and rivers and they allow for a variety of activities, such as the transport of people or goods, fishing, entertainment, public...
s of the
Kaiserliche MarineThe Kaiserliche Marine or Imperial Navy was the German Navy created by the formation of the German Empire. It existed between 1871 and 1919, growing out of the Prussian Navy and Norddeutsche Bundesmarine. Kaiser Wilhelm II greatly expanded the Navy, causing a naval arms race between the German...
's
High Seas FleetThe High Seas Fleet was the main battle fleet of the Imperial German Navy during World War I. The fleet was based at Wilhelmshaven in the Jade estuary, and commanded by Admirals Friedrich von Ingenohl , Hugo von Pohl , Reinhard Scheer , and Franz von Hipper...
were
internedInternment is the imprisonment or confinement of people, commonly in large groups, without trial. The Oxford English Dictionary gives the meaning as: "The action of ‘interning’; confinement within the limits of a country or place"...
in
Gutter SoundGutter Sound is an inlet of the vast anchorage of Scapa Flow in the Orkney Islands of Scotland. Gutter Sound was the site of the mass-scuttling of the interned German Imperial High Seas Fleet in 1919.-Scuttling of the fleet:...
at Scapa Flow pending a decision on their future in the peace
Treaty of VersaillesThe Treaty of Versailles was one of the peace treaties at the end of World War I. It ended the state of war between Germany and the Allied Powers. It was signed on 28 June 1919, exactly five years after the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand. The other Central Powers on the German side of...
. On 21 June 1919
Rear AdmiralRear Admiral is a naval commissioned officer rank above that of a Commodore and Captain, and below that of a Vice Admiral. It is generally regarded as the lowest of the "Admiral" ranks, which are also sometimes referred to as "Flag officers" and/or "Flag ranks"...
Ludwig von ReuterLudwig von Reuter was a German admiral during World War I, who commanded the Kaiserliche Marine's High Seas Fleet when it was interned at Scapa Flow at the end of the war. On 21 June 1919 he ordered the scuttling of the fleet to prevent the British from seizing the ships.Von Reuter was born in...
, the German officer in command at Scapa Flow, after waiting for the bulk of the British fleet to leave on exercises, gave the order to scuttle the ships to prevent their falling into British hands. Fifty-one ships sank without loss of life. However, nine German sailors died when British forces opened fire as they attempted to scuttle their ship, reputedly the last casualties of the First World War.
World War II
Early in World War II, on 14 October 1939,
U-47, under the command of
Günther PrienLieutenant Commander Günther Prien was one of the outstanding German U-boat aces of the first part of the Second World War, and the first U-boat commander to win the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. Under Prien's command, the submarine U-47 sank over 30 Allied ships totaling about...
, penetrated Scapa Flow and sank the World War I-era battleship anchored in Scapa Bay. Her second torpedo attack blew a 30-foot (9 m) hole in the
Royal Oak and as a result she flooded and quickly capsized. Of the 1,400-man crew, 833 were lost. The wreck is now a protected
war graveA war grave is a burial place for soldiers or civilians who died during military campaigns or operations. The term does not only apply to graves: ships sunk during wartime are often considered to be war graves, as are military aircraft that crash into water...
. After the attack,
Winston ChurchillSir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill KG, OM, CH, TD, FRS, PC was a British politician known chiefly for his leadership of the United Kingdom during World War II. He served as Prime Minister from 1940 to 1945 and again from 1951 to 1955. A noted statesman and orator, Churchill was also an officer...
ordered the construction of a series of causeways to block the eastern approaches to Scapa Flow; they were built by
ItalianItaly , officially the Italian Republic , is a country located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe and on the two largest islands in the Mediterranean Sea, Sicily and Sardinia. Italy shares its northern, Alpine boundary with France, Switzerland, Austria and Slovenia...
prisoners of warA prisoner of war or enemy prisoner of war is a combatant who is held in continuing custody by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict...
held in Orkney. These "
Churchill BarriersThe Churchill Barriers are a series of four causeways in the Orkney Islands, Scotland, with a total length of 1.5 miles . They link the Orkney Mainland in the north to the island of South Ronaldsay via Burray and the two smaller islands of Lamb Holm and Glimps Holm.The barriers were built in the...
" now provide road access from the Mainland to Burray and South Ronaldsay, although they block maritime traffic.
Three days after this submarine attack, four
LuftwaffeLuftwaffe is a generic German term for an air force. It is also the official name for two of the four historic German air forces, the Wehrmacht air arm founded in 1933 and disbanded in 1946; and the current Bundeswehr air arm founded in 1956.Schweizer Luftwaffe is also the name of the Swiss Air...
Junkers Ju 88The Junkers Ju 88 was a World War II German Luftwaffe twin-engine, multi-role aircraft.Designed by Hugo Junkers' Junkers company in the mid-1930s, it suffered from a number of technical problems during the later stages of its development and early operational roles, but became one of the most...
bombers raided Scapa Flow in one of the first bombing attacks on Britain during the war. The attack badly damaged an old base ship, the battleship , with one bomber shot down by an anti-aircraft battery on Hoy.
Usage by the petroleum industry
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Scapa Flow is one of the petroleum refining and transfer points for
North Sea oilNorth Sea oil is a mixture of hydrocarbons, comprising liquid oil and natural gas, produced from oil reservoirs beneath the North Sea. In the oil industry, the term "North Sea" often includes areas such as the Norwegian Sea and the UK "Atlantic Margin" that are not, strictly speaking, part of the...
. A 30-inch, 128-mile long underwater pipeline transports oil drilled from the
Piper oilfieldThe Piper oilfield is a substantial North Sea oilfield. Oil extracted from it is piped to Scotland, where it is refined at a purpose built refinery on the island of Flotta, in the Orkney Islands....
to the
FlottaFlotta is a small island in Orkney, Scotland, lying in Scapa Flow. The island is known for its large oil terminal and is linked by Orkney Ferries to Houton on the Orkney Mainland and Lyness and Longhope on Hoy....
oil terminal. The Claymore and Tartan oil fields also feed into this line.
Scuba diving
The wreckage of the German fleet has become increasingly popular as a venue for recreational
Scuba diversScuba diving is a form of underwater diving in which a diver uses a scuba set to breathe underwater for recreation, commercial or industrial reasons.Unlike early diving, which relied exclusively on air pumped from the surface, scuba...
. Divers must first obtain a permit from the Island Harbour Authorities, which is available through diving shops and centres. The wrecks are mostly located at depths of 35 to 50 metres. Divers are permitted to enter inside the wrecks, but not to retrieve artefacts located within 100 metres of any wreck. However time and tide has washed broken pieces of ships' pottery and glass bottles into shallow waters and onto beaches. The underwater visibility, which can vary between 2 and 20 metres, is not sufficient to view all the length of most wrecks at once, however, current technology is now allowing
3D3D computer graphics are graphics that use a three-dimensional representation of geometric data that is stored in the computer for the purposes of performing calculations and rendering 2D images...
images of them to be seen.
The wrecks of the and the dreadnought , which exploded at anchor during the First World War, are
war graveA war grave is a burial place for soldiers or civilians who died during military campaigns or operations. The term does not only apply to graves: ships sunk during wartime are often considered to be war graves, as are military aircraft that crash into water...
s. Only divers of the British armed forces are permitted to visit them.
Scapa Flow Visitor Centre
The Scapa Flow visitor centre, at
LynessLyness is a village on the east coast of the island of Hoy, Orkney. During the Second World War it was home to HMS Proserpine, the main base for the naval fleet based at Scapa Flow. Today a car ferry links it to Houton on Mainland, Orkney....
on the island of Hoy, is located in the former naval fuel pumping station and a converted storage tank. Exhibits include a large three dimensional representation of the island and of the ships as they were prior to scuttling. The island is accessible by local ferry several times daily from
HoutonHouton is a settlement 5 miles southeast of Stromness on the island of Mainland, Orkney, Scotland. From here, a ferry sails to Lyness on Hoy and the oil terminal at Flotta. Nearby are the remains of the round church of St Nicholas and the Earl's Bu, the ruins of a former manor house of the Earldom...
. The centre has catering facilities for day trippers.
External links