HMS Black Prince (1904)

HMS "Black Prince" was a "Duke of Edinburgh" class armoured cruiser of the Royal Navy (RN) during World War I. At the beginning of the war, the "Black Prince" was one of the four armoured cruisers serving in the First Cruiser Squadron commanded by Rear-Admiral Ernest Charles Thomas Troubridge. She participated in the Pursuit of Goeben and Breslau.

Captain Frederick Dundas Gilpin-Brown was her captain when war broke out. He was succeeded by Captain James Douglas Dick in January 1915, who was in turn succeeded by Captain Thomas Parry Bonham, RN.

As a member of Rear Admiral Sir Robert Keith Arbuthnot's First Cruiser Squadron, the "Black Prince" participated in the Battle of Jutland, where she was sunk with heavy loss of life. The circumstances under which she sank were mysterious for some years after. During the battle, the ship lost contact with the rest of the British fleet, sending off a wireless signal at 8:48 to report a submarine sighting. As the British had lost contact and did not see the ship destroyed, they were unsure as to whether a submarine or surface ship was responsible for sinking the "Black Prince". [ Admiral Viscount Jellicoe of Scapa, "The Grand Fleet 1914-1916: Its Creation, Development and Work" p. 481 ]

Recent historians, however, hold to the German account of the ship's sinking. Separated from the rest of the British fleet, the "Black Prince" approached the German lines at approximately midnight. Realizing his error, Bonham ordered his crew to turn around, but it was too late. The German battleship "Thüringen" fixed the "Black Prince" in its spotlights and opened fire. Up to five other German ships, most of them within 1000 yards, joined in the bombardment; the "Black Prince" was sunk within 15 minutes.

The wrecksite is designated as a "protected place" under the Protection of Military Remains Act 1986 [ [http://www.opsi.gov.uk/si/si2008/uksi_20080950_en_1 SI 2008/950] Designation under the Protection of Military Remains Act 1986] .

Footnotes

References

*Colledge

When last seen, she was mistaken for a German battlecruiser, with two widely-spaced funnels. The two midships funnels must have collapsed. Flames were pouring out of her and her magazines later blew up.