Cofnod Safle

This record comprises a documentary reference to a shipping casualty which has been assigned to the maritime named location ST GEORGE'S CHANNEL pending more information which may allow a more precise location for the loss to be assigned.

Event and Historical Information:
The ENERGY was a 89gt/75rt wooden sailing ketch built at Saul in 1895. The ketch's first owner was William Sims of Saul. In 1915, ownership had been transferred to Richard L Birkin, Basford, Nottingham, with the nominated Managing Owner at that time was John Vickers, Dee View, Connah's Quay, Flintshire. At the time of loss, the vessel was owned by J Hyland and Co and carrying 155 tons of coal from Holyhead to Youghal. On 15 September 1918, the ENERGY was attacked by gunfire from a German submarine at 2.45pm. The crew of the ENERGY were forced to abandon ship and the vessel was shelled until it sank at 3pm. The crew were rescued by a Royal Navy patrol boat, which landed them at Douglas. The submarine was the UB 64 under the command of Oberleutnant zur See Ernst Krieger. The submarine sank the two-masted schooner JOSEPH FISHER (NPRN 274903) on the same day and the steamship SERULA the following day (NPRN 240305).

Sources include:
Larn and Larn Shipwreck Database 2002
Mercantile Navy List 1910, pg496
Mercantile Navy List 1915, pg757
National Archives, Kew, ADM 137/2964

WWW resources:
https://uboat.net/wwi/ships_hit/1964.html
https://www.wrecksite.eu/wreck.aspx?66779

Maritime Officer, RCAHMW, July 2019.