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On may 23.1918. U.b.57, made it's biggest kill, at dawn that day she sent the huge linner, Moldavia to the bottom of the sea. Now
she lies 24miles out in the channel and is one of Britain's most exciting dives. The Moldavia and her sister ship, the Mongolia, were the first of the famous
P&O 'm' series of passenger-liners.
The Moldavia was 520.6 ft long and a beam of 58.3 ft, and was built at Greenock by Caird and Co. She was a huge ship- 9,505 tons and if there was any criticism of her design
it was that there were so many portholes. (Over a thousand of them) that the builder said the ship's sides seemed' unduly perforated. She cost £336,178 when she was launched in 1903, the equivalent of some £10 million
today.
On May 23, u.b.57 let its torpedoes go. The Moldavia was hit in her port side amidships, the damage in those first few moments did not seem to serious, and she continued on course and under her own steam. The
crew had mustered at their battle stations and there were bluejackets manning each of the ten guns aboard, but there was nothing to shoot at.
The troops (all 907) of them, were mustered on deck for a roll call, 56
failed to answer there names, the missing had been in a compartment immediately behind where the torpedo's struck, most would have been in there bunks and hammocks and stood no chance at all. She steamed on for 15
minutes then slowly she started to slow down and settle. The captain new his ship was lost, and the rest of the convoy picked up the survivors. Behind them the Moldavia put her head gently under and then quite suddenly
the great ship kicked up her stern and was gone.
The moldavia and most of her 1000 portholes are at 50 23 08; 00 28 43. She lies on her port side and the depth to her highest point is 28mtr. The depth to the
seabed is 45mtr5 (50 metres in places). Shot lines go to the stern, the highest point. The liner is a fantastic sight, some of her guns, over 20ft long, point surface wards, vis is often so good that sitting on stern
the diver can see one third of the liner. Looking along rows of portholes seem to cover the whole side. Many are almost dropping out though the iron of the ship is in good state. The seabed, for the record, is of sand
and shingle. Though divers never see it as they never get off the wreck. Near the stern there is much decking still in place, and this slides down vertically to the seabed. The twin propellers have been salvaged, as
have the condensers, there have been diving fatalities on this wreck, and because of the great depth care must be taken.
Souvenir hunting for portholes can be dangerous, for not only are they heavy, but the
sheer number of them may make divers try to squeeze the last moments out of their dives. The ship requires meticulous planning, dive run times are required (note) a second Moldavia was built in 1922, much
bigger than her sunken sister at 16,436 tons, she was brooken up in 1938 for scrap |
