Archaeological remains associated with the GALATEA are not confirmed at this location, but may be present in the vicinity. This entry is for the Documented Loss of the GALATEA on the 21 January 1945.

The wreck of the GALATEA was identified by the UKHO as wreck UKHO 9959. Research by Dr Innes McCartney (2022: 191) for the Echoes from the Deep project, following a detailed survey by Bangor University in May 2017, demonstrated that UKHO 9959 was c. 30m longer than the GALATEA and could not therefore be its remains.

Event and Historical Information:
The GALATEA was a Norwegian-registered steamship built in Bergen in 1912. Technical and configuration specifications are given as 1152gt, 228ft length x 35ft breadth x 26ft depth. It was torpedoed and sunk on 21 January 1945 by U-1051 (NPRN 274461) with the loss of 21 crew.

The loss location was given as 52 34N, 05 20W in contemporary sources and that forms the basis for the location of the 'documented loss' of the ship.

Sources include:

McCartney, I., 2022. Echoes from the Deep. Leiden: Sidestone Press. https://www.sidestone.com/books/echoes-from-the-deep

UKHO ID 9959: Contains public sector information, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0, from UK Hydrographic Office.

https://www.wrecksite.eu/wreck.aspx?11200

J. Whitewright, RCAHMW, December 2023.

Site Record

Galatea