Archaeological remains associated with the loss of this vessel are not confirmed as present at this location, but may possibly be in the vicinity.
The UKHO has three Wreck IDs associated with the loss of the AGUILA! Two of these (UKHO 69370 and UKHO 11680) are the filing position of the recorded location at the time of sinking. The former of these is the UKHO ID most recently updated by the UKHO and that position has been used for this record.
The third (UKHO 16133) is for a wreck that lies outside of Welsh Waters (see NPRN 518236), and which was last surveyed in 1980. That wreck is recorded with a sonar length of 40m. A new survey of UKHO 16133 would be highly beneficial.
Event and Historical Information:
The AGUILA was a steel-hulled steamship (or liner) built by Caledon Ship Building and Engineering Co, Dundee, in 1909. Technical and configuration specifications are given as 2144gt, 1204nt; 275ft 4in long x 38ft breadth x 17ft depth; 3 masts, 1 deck, passenger deck 179ft, forecastle 46ft; screw propulsion powered by twin boilers linked to a triple expansion engine producing 278hp, official number 127986. The Caledon Company was established by W. B. Thompson who opened the Tay Foundry at Stobswell Dundee in 1866. During the life of the yard 509 ships were built, each gaining a reputation for quality and longevity. As a consequence, the yard was often rewarded by repeat business, e.g. the AGUILA was one of several built for the Yeoward Line Ltd for their fruit importation and passenger service between Liverpool, Spain, Portugal and the Canary Islands. The ship was launched in May 1909 and underwent its sea trial on 2 July 1909. The AGUILA's maiden voyage was Dundee to the Norwegian Fjords, accommodating 82 first-class passengers and with a normal crew complement of 42. The contract price paid for the ship was £34,000. At time of loss, the AGUILA was on passage from Liverpool to Lisbon and Los Palmas under the command of Captain Bannerman.
At 6pm on 27 March 1915, the AGUILA began to be chased by the German submarine U-28 off Pembrokeshire (the U-boat being under the command of Baron von Forstner). The AGUILA at once increased her engine revolutions to full speed, but being only capable of 14 knots was soon overtaken by the enemy, the submarine being capable of 18 knots. U-28 fired a single shot across the bow of the AGUILA forcing the steamship to stop. AGUILA was given four minutes to evacuate the ship, but even before these had passed the submarine opened fire. Edwards, the chief engineer, Anderson, a boatswain, and the donkeyman, McKirkman, all of Liverpool, were killed by gunfire and shrapnel. One of the AGUILA's lifeboats with ten of the crew, one lady passenger, and the stewardess, capsized. Neither the stewardess nor the lady passenger were seen again. The passenger is recorded as being 25-year-old Dolly Smith, of Glasgow, who fell overboard after being hit by shrapnel and was presumed drowned.
In all, 20 shells hit the ship before the enemy fired a single torpedo which caused the AGUILA to break in two and sink. A little later, Captain John Randell, master of the steam trawler OTTILIE, was stopped by U-28. The German commander, Kptlt Freiherr Georg-Gunther von Forstner, passed the information 'English ship sunk. West, 11 degrees North, four boats launched.' and allowed the trawler to go to the assistance of the AGUILA's crew. Two hours later, the trawler came upon the lifeboat containing Captain Bannerman and nineteen officers and men, and after getting them aboard, steamed for Fishguard. Survivors were also picked up by the steamship ST STEPHEN and landed at Milford Haven. The loss location is given as 20 miles or 47 miles southwest of the Smalls (sources differ). Nothing was found of the vessel during an area search by HMS FOX in 1989 and hence the wreck site remains unlocated. A total of 8 lives were lost. The crewmen commemorated on the Lutyens-designed memorial for Merchant Navy seaman and fishermen at Tower Hill, London, are as follows: R A Chantler, Boatswain; Ernest Chard, Second Mate; William George Edwards, Chief Engineer; Martha Emily Jenkins, Stewardess; Mathew Kirkman, Donkeyman; and J Peterson, Able Seaman. Over two days, 27-28 March 1915, U28 sank the AGUILA, SOUTH POINT (NPRN 519180), VOSGES and the FALABA in the Western approaches.
Sources include:
Abergavenney Chronicle, 2 April 1915, p.6
Baner ac Amserau Cymru, 3 April 1915, p.2
Barry, T W S, 1994, Sunward by Yeoward: The Story of Yeoward of Liverpool - the first 100 years
The Caledonian Shipyard, Friends of Dundee City Archives
Great War at Sea: AGUILA sunk 27 March 1915, People's Collection Wales
Goddard, T, 1983, Pembrokeshire Shipwrecks, pp.99-100
Haverfordwest and Milford Haven Telegraph, 31 March 1915, p.2
Hocking, C, 1989, Dictionary of Disasters at Sea in the Age of Steam: including sailing ships and ships of war lost in action 1824-1962, p.13
Larn and Larn Shipwreck Database 2002
Lloyd's Register Casualty Returns, 1 January - 31 March 1915, p.8 (i)
Lloyd's Register of British and Foreign Shipping, 1 July 1914 - 30 June 1915, number 345 in A
Mercantile Navy List 1911, p.9, Memorial University of Newfoundland, Digital Archives
Robert Pool, personal communication, November 2023.
Tennant, A J, 1990, British Merchant Ships Sunk by U-Boats in the 1914-1918 War, p.240
U-Boat Project: Commemorating the War at Sea
UKHO ID 11680: Contains public sector information, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0, from UK Hydrographic Office.
UKHO ID 16133: Contains public sector information, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0, from UK Hydrographic Office.
UKHO ID 69370: Contains public sector information, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0, from UK Hydrographic Office.
Vessels Lost in WW1: Agenoria to Alaunia, Benjidog Historical Research Resources: Tower Hill
J. Whitewright, RCAHMW, November 2023
This record was enhanced in 2020 with funding from Lloyd's Register Foundation as part of the project ‘Making the Link: Lloyd's Register and the National Monuments Record of Wales’. Visit Lloyd’s Register Foundation Heritage and Education Centre for more resources.