Something happened the year after WWI that proved to bring the last German deaths in the war, and marked the end of a true German fleet

Something happened the year after WWI that proved to bring the last German deaths in the war, and marked the end of a true German fleet. The High Seas Fleet was escorted to Scapa Flow in the Orkney Islands of Scotland in November of 1918.

These ships weren’t going back into German hands, in fact they were forbidden to hoist the German flag. What was to be done with them instead was send them to other nations, but by June 21st, 1919, talks are still going. Meanwhile, the German naval high command organized a plan for the final defiance. On that day in June, Peggie Gibson, a 10 year old at the time, recalled, “...both the British Fleet and the German Fleet were lying in Scapa Flow.

AMAZON PRIME VIDEO WATCH NOW World War II Total War

And out and sailed in the pathway between the ships so that we got a very good view of the ships. We had been warned by the teachers that we hadn’t to make any noise or cheer. And on our way down, we got a message from another ship which said that the British Fleet had gone out that morning, for exercise, and that they were not returning, until they got this amazing news, which of course was, that the German Fleet was sinking. They stood at end on the bows, they went over, they dived, they sank low, they rose in the water. I myself saw 12 capital ships go down, I’ll never forget the sight of it”. In an instant, as described by Peggie, the whole German fleet began to sink as crews scuttled their ships or ran them aground. In the midst of it all, some German naval men were shot by Royal Navy armed guards for not reboarding their sinking ship. Two more men were later executed after trial, the last naval deaths of the war. In all, 74 ships were destroyed. Destroyers involved: H-145, S-138, S-137, S-136, S-132, S-131, V-129, V-128, V-127, V-126, V-125, B-112, B-111, B-110, B-109, G-104, G-103, G-102, G-101, V-100, G-92, V-91, V-89, V-86, V-83, V-82, V-81, V-80, V-78, V-73, V-70, S-65, S-60, S-56, S-55, S-54, S-53, S-52, S-51, S-50, S-49, V-46, V-45, V-44, V-43, G-40, G-39, G-38, S-36, S-32. Cruisers involved: Nürnberg, Karlsruhe, Frankfurt, Emden, Dresden, Cöln, Brummer, Bremse. Battlecruisers involved: Von der Tan, Seydlitz, Moltke, Hindenburg, Derfflinger.

Thank you for reading. Bookmarks us for more info.

All What's You Should Know Dig into history, fact, science, true crime, and beyond with All What's you should know — where you'll discover the most interesting things that you Should know Click Here For more trending stories