HMS Vanguard commemorations

Commemorations will be held this summer to mark the huge loss of life when a Royal Navy battleship was destroyed while at anchor in Scapa Flow.

A series of internal explosions destroyed HMS Vanguard on the night of July 9, 1917. Just two of the 845 men on board survived.

The catastrophic loss of Vanguard, a dreadnought battleship which had seen action at the Battle of Jutland, is one of the most tragic accidents in the history of the Royal Navy. The many hundreds of casualties will be remembered later this year on the centenary of the sinking.

Relatives of some of those who died will be among those taking part in a series of commemorative events on July 9.

These will be preceded by a musical concert in St Magnus Cathedral on the evening of July 8, performed by an ensemble and Corps of Drums from the band of Her Majesty’s Royal Marines.

On July 9, a wreath laying service involving two modern-day Royal Navy vessels will take place above the wreck of the Vanguard, which lies in 34 metres of water to the north of Flotta.

This will be followed by a service of commemoration at the Lyness Royal Naval Cemetery in Hoy, where 41 of the ship’s crew were buried.

Later in the day there will then be a watch night service at St Magnus Cathedral. Starting at 11pm it will mark the moment when the ship went down.

“These will be very poignant events,” said Brian Archibald, head of marine services, engineering and transportation with Orkney Islands Council. “They offer the opportunity to remember the sinking of HMS Vanguard and the terrible loss of life in Scapa Flow on that July day 100 years ago.

“We are very pleased that descendants of men who served aboard the ship will take part in the commemorations. There will be limited space aboard the vessels involved in the laying of wreaths above the wreck, and so priority will be given to relatives who have travelled to Orkney for the occasion.

“Many other people from our community will want play their part in commemorating the loss of the Vanguard and her crew, and all are welcome at the services at Lyness Cemetery and back in the cathedral on July 9.”

More detailed information about the Vanguard commemorations will be published in the weeks ahead.