H Class Submarines

The first batch of ten of these Submarines were built by Vickers of Montreal, Canada. The parts being supplied by the Bethlehem Steel Company of the U.S.A. A second batch that had been ordered were impounded by the Americans until the end of the war. They were eventually released on the U.S. entry into the war in 1917.

These boats were single-hulled and suffered from a low reserve of buoyancy. H1 of this class crossed the Atlantic in 1915, this was a record length for any submarine of the time.

H11 and H12 were the only two boats of the second group to reach Britain and served with the 14th Flotilla stationed at Blyth. The remainder of Group2 were either ceded to Chile in exchange for ships which were being built in Britain at the outbreak of war or presented to the Royal Canadian Navy.

The following were ceded to Chile in return for ships which were being built in Britain at the outbreak of war: H13, H16, H17, H18, H19, H20. The following were presented to the Royal Canadian Navy: H14, H15.

20 Built

Submarine	Builder	Built
H1 - H10	Vickers, Montreal, Canada	1915 - 1915
H11 - H20	Fore River, Quincy, U.S.A.	1915 - 1915

Technical Information

Displacement (tons):	364 sf 434 sm
Length (Metric):	45.8
Breadth (Metric):	4.7
Draught/Height (Metric):	3.8
Machinery:	Nelseco diesel engines 480hp 2 Electric Motors 620hp
Speed (kts):	13 knots sf 11 knots sm
Oil Supply (tons):	16
Armament:	4 x 18 inch tubes (bow). Reloads:8.
Range:	1,600 nm at 10 kts sf 130 nm at 2 kts sm.
Complement:	22 Officers and Ratings
sm = submerged, sf = surfaced, oa = overall, hp = horsepower, na = not available.

[Top]

Type:	H1 Class
Pennant No.:	H.1
Laid Down:	11th January 1915.	Canadian Vickers, Montreal.
Commissioned:	26th May 1915.	Lt. W. Pirie.
Commander:	1915 1917 1918	Lt. W. Pirie. Lt. Owen. Lt. Heaton.
Complement:	22	Officers and Ratings.
Service Career:	1915 - Dardanelles Flotilla. Adriatic Squadron - 1917. 1918.	Hindu Kush at Mudros, Lemnos. Venice. H.M.S. Adamant, Brindisi.
	Sailed in company with H2, H3 and H4 from St. John's, Newfoundland to Gibraltar with the AMC Calgarian. Each boat was towed for one day to allow maintenance to be carried out. (The above information courtesy of the late Dave Perkins (the fore-endy), of Canada). Whilst in the Sea of Marmara in 1915 engaged and sank one gunboat, five steamers and seventeen large sailing ships. She also destroyed three trains all by gun action. Accidentally attacked and torpedoed the Italian H5 on 17th April 1918, the Italian was way out of her position and had wandered into H1's patrol area.
Fate:	Sold 7th March 1921.

[Top]

Type:	H1 Class
Pennant No.:	H.2
Laid Down:	January 1915.	Canadian Vickers, Montreal.
Commissioned:	4th June 1915.	Lt. D. W. Fell.
Commander:	1916	Lt. D. W. Fell.
Complement:	22	Officers and Ratings.
Service Career:	Adriatic Squadron	Venice.
	Sailed in company with H1, H3 and H4 from St. John's, Newfoundland to Gibraltar with the AMC Calgarian. Each boat was towed for one day to allow maintenance to be carried out. (The above information courtesy of Dave Perkins (the fore-endy), of Canada). In the absence of HMS Adamant H2 was appointed as the nominal depot ship at Venice and Lt. Fell was appointed Senior British Naval Officer instead of the Commanding Officer of HMS Adamant which at the time was Commander Charles G. Brodie.
Fate:	Sold 7th March 1921.

[Top]

Type:	H1 Class
Pennant No.:	H.3
Laid Down:	January 1915.	Canadian Vickers, Montreal.
Commissioned:	3rd June 1915.	Lt. H. E. Winser.
Commander:	1916	Lt. G. Jenkinson.
Complement:	22	Officers and Ratings.
Service Career:	Adriatic Squadron	Venice.
	Sailed in company with H1, H2 and H4 from St. John's, Newfoundland to Gibraltar with the AMC Calgarian. Each boat was towed for one day to allow maintenance to be carried out. (The above information courtesy of Dave Perkins (the fore-endy), of Canada).
Fate:	Struck a mine in the Adriatic, 15th July 1916.

[Top]

Type:	H1 Class
Pennant No.:	H.4
Laid Down:	January 1915.	Canadian Vickers, Montreal.
Commissioned:	5th May 1915.	Lt. H. E. Smyth.
Commander:	1917 1918	Lt. O. North. Lt. Cdr. O. North.
Complement:	22	Officers and Ratings.
Service Career:	Adriatic Squadron - 1917. 1918	Venice. H.M.S. Adamant, Brinidisi.
	Sailed in company with H1, H2 and H3 from St. John's, Newfoundland to Gibraltar with the AMC Calgarian. Each boat was towed for one day to allow maintenance to be carried out. (The above information courtesy of Dave Perkins (the fore-endy), of Canada). Attacked and torpedoed the UB-52, 23rd May 1918. This was the only contribution by the British Adriatic Force to the war effort.
Fate:	Sold 30th November 1921.

[Top]

Type:	H1 Class
Pennant No.:	H.5
Laid Down:	January 1915.	Canadian Vickers, Montreal.
Commissioned:	10th June 1915.	Lt. C. H. Varley.
Commander:	1916	Lt. A. W. Forbes.
Complement:	22	Officers and Ratings.
Service Career:	Not known at present.	Not known at present.
	Sank U51, 14th July 1916.
Fate:	Rammed and sunk in error in the Irish Sea by the steamer Rutherglen. No survivors.

[Top]

Type:	H1 Class
Pennant No.:	H.6
Laid Down:	14th January 1915.	Canadian Vickers, Montreal.
Commissioned:	9th June 1915.	Lt. R. N. Stopford.
Commander:	1916	Lt. R. N. Stopford.
Complement:	22	Officers and Ratings.
Service Career:	1916 - 8th Flotilla.	Harwich.
	Whilst operating as submarine cover for a surface force which was intended to attack Zeppelin sheds in the German Bight she ran aground. When all attempts to resurface her failed she was interned by the Dutch along with the crew. She was eventually refloated and interned at Niewediep, after negotiations with the British she was purchased by the Dutch and became 08 in the Royal Netherlands Navy. During the Second World War she was scuttled by the Dutch at Willemsoord in May of 1940. The Germans raised her and she was commissioned into the Kriegsmarine as UD1. On 3rd May 1945 she was scuttled at Kiel and eventually broken up.
Fate:	Scuttled and broken up at Kiel, Germany 1945.

[Top]

Type:	H1 Class
Pennant No.:	H.7
Laid Down:	1915.	Canadian Vickers, Montreal.
Commissioned:	25th June 1915.	Lt. E. G. Ebblewhite.
Commander:	1915	Lt. E. G. Ebblewhite.
Complement:	22	2 Officers and 20 Ratings.
Service Career:	Not known at present.	Not known at present.

Fate:	Sold 30th November 1921.

[Top]

Type:	H1 Class
Pennant No.:	H.8
Laid Down:	1915.	Canadian Vickers, Montreal.
Commissioned:	25th June 1915.	Lt. B. L. Johnson. RNVR.
Commander:	1915	Lt. B. L. Johnson. RNVR.
Complement:	22	2 Officers and 20 Ratings.
Service Career:	Not known at present.	Not known at present.

Fate:	Sold 29th November 1921.

[Top]

Type:	H1 Class
Pennant No.:	H.9
Laid Down:	1915.	Canadian Vickers, Montreal.
Commissioned:	29th June 1915.	Lt. A. P. Williams-Freeman. DSO.
Commander:	1915	Lt. A. P. Williams-Freeman. DSO.
Complement:	22	2 Officers and 20 Ratings.
Service Career:	Not known at present.	Not known at present.

Fate:	Sold 30th November 1921.

[Top]

Type:	H1 Class
Pennant No.:	H.10
Laid Down:	9th February 1915.	Canadian Vickers, Montreal.
Commissioned:	29th June 1915.	A/Cdr. A. H. Quicke.
Commander:	1918	Lt. M. Collier.
Complement:	22	Officers and Ratings.
Service Career:	1916 - 8th Flotilla.	Harwich.

Fate:	Lost, cause unknown, in the North Sea around 20th January 1918.

[Top]

Type:	H1 Class
Pennant No.:	H.11
Laid Down:	Not known at present.	Fore River, Quincy.
Commissioned:	2nd December 1915.	Not known at present.
Commander:	Not known at present.	Not known at present.
Complement:	22	Officers and Ratings.
Service Career:	1918 - 14th Flotilla.	Blyth.

Fate:	Sold 1921.

[Top]

Type:	H1 Class
Pennant No.:	H.12
Laid Down:	Not known at present.	Fore River, Quincy.
Commissioned:	2nd December 1915.	Not known at present.
Commander:	Not known at present.	Not known at present.
Complement:	22	Officers and Ratings.
Service Career:	1918 - 14th Flotilla.	Blyth.

Fate:	Sold April 1922.

[Top]

H Class

Coastal Defence Submarine

20 Built

Technical Information