Sunk by a German submarine Researchers dive to historic wreck from World War 1
According to the team, the dives took place at great depths and under challenging conditions.
Image: dpa
The "ProjectXplore" team has set itself the goal of finding historically significant shipwrecks.
Image: dpa
Almost 200 sailors lost their lives when the ship sank on March 11, 1915.
Image: dpa
According to the team, the dives took place at great depths and under challenging conditions.
Image: dpa
The "ProjectXplore" team has set itself the goal of finding historically significant shipwrecks.
Image: dpa
Almost 200 sailors lost their lives when the ship sank on March 11, 1915.
Image: dpa
A research team dives to a depth of 106 meters in the British North Channel and identifies a World War I relic. There is a moving story behind it - with a German submarine as the aggressor.
15.11.2025, 22:08
dpa
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- Almost 200 sailors lost their lives when the HMS Bayano sank on March 11, 1915.
- The shipwreck lies at a depth of 106 meters in the North Channel between Ireland and Scotland.
- An international research team has set off on a dive to the World War II relic.
An international research team has identified a British cargo ship that was sunk by a German submarine over 100 years ago. The wreck of the HMS Bayano, which was armed for the naval blockade against Germany during the First World War, lies at a depth of 106 meters in the North Channel between Ireland and Scotland. Almost 200 sailors lost their lives when it sank on March 11, 1915.
"Conditions are challenging at this depth and time on the seabed is short, but the site is remarkably well preserved, making it an exceptional piece of underwater heritage," said expedition member Alexandra Pischyna. According to the team, the dives took place at great depths and in challenging conditions.
The wreck lies 1.7 nautical miles from the position given by the surviving Royal Marine, Private Arthur Craze, and 2.4 nautical miles from the position listed in the so-called war diary of the German submarine U-27 of Captain Lieutenant Bernd Wegener. U-27 of the Imperial Navy was built in Danzig and sunk in 1915.
"The wreck is the HMS Bayano"
The identification of the Bayano is "not based on a single photo, but on a series of mutually confirming indicators", said Steffen G. Scholz, head of the expedition for underwater photography and videography after the dives in October. Among other things, he cited the size of the cannon, the location and dimensions as well as the structural features of the ship.
"The wrecks have very different historical meanings. The HMS Bayano has a really interesting story behind it. Great Britain organized a naval blockade against the Germans during the First World War," said Scholz. "Civilian ships were also armed for this purpose, so-called AMCs (Armed Merchant Cruisers), such as the HMS Bayano. In this sea area, only one ship was sunk with exactly this configuration, two six-inch guns. This is one of the reasons why the identification is clear: the wreck is the HMS Bayano."
The research team states that they also drew on German archives, contemporary reports and the recorded statements of survivors for the identification. Lieutenant Commander Guy describes how Captain Henry Carr stood on the bridge until the very end, waved goodbye and shouted: "Good luck, lads" before the ship disappeared into the waves.
15 to 20 wrecks in view
The "ProjectXplore" team has set itself the goal of finding historically significant shipwrecks. "At the moment, we have 15 to 20 wrecks in our sights and want to work on them," Scholz told the German Press Agency. "Sometimes the project and the task are very specific, sometimes there is only the history and the sea area. Then it only continues when new sources emerge, for example a tip from a fisherman whose net has become entangled."
According to Pischyna, the researchers are "very careful to leave everything as we find it". Souvenirs from the wrecks are not brought to the surface. "It's a historical site and it should be preserved as such. There are groups that do things differently," said the expedition member about the Bayano dive.