butterfly
HONOURED MEMBER RIP
Well I guess you 'pays your money and takes your chance', well I will be the first to admit that certainly applies to this piece.
For curiosity sake I took a chance and bought this bit and if it is what it claims to be then it is quite possibly the smallest piece of torpedo you will ever see!!
As always when I buy such pieces I ask what is known about it, in this case it would appear very little. I was told that it was found amongst effects after an in-law had passed away, it was in an old box containing other WW1 era items but appears to have no connection to the family history. So we are left with a small envelope with the inscription 'Small piece of Phosphor Bronze from German Torpedo fired at HMS Falmouth', together with the smallest of fragments.
So first of all lets take a look at HMS Falmouth. She was a Weymouth Class Second Class Cruiser layed down in 1909 and completed in 1911. The following is an extract taken from the following link....... http://www.ww1britainssurvivingvessels.org.uk/vessels/steam-cutter-no-26 ...this gives a good account of events leading up to her being sunk,
On the outbreak of the war, H.M.S. FALMOUTH was assigned to the 5th Cruiser Squadron operating in the Mid Atlantic. In August 1914 she sank four German merchant ships, and later that month was reassigned to the 1st Light Cruiser Squadron of the Grand Fleet.
On 28 August 1914, H.M.S. FALMOUTH took part in the Battle of Heligoland Bight, and on 24 January 1915 she took part in the Battle of Dogger Bank. She was still part of the Squadron when on 31st May to 1st June 1916 she took part in the Battle of Jutland.
Two and a half months later, on 19 August 1916, the German High Seas Fleet came within 50 miles of our coast in East Anglia, for what some thought was to be a second Jutland. In fact they were the bait in a trap of four lines of U-Boats lying in wait for the Grand Fleet, steaming down from Scapa Flow, for their second Jutland. H.M.S. FALMOUTH was part of the Cruiser Screen in front of the Grand Fleet, who sprung the trap, when they crossed one of the lines of U-Boats, and two Cruisers were torpedoed.
Having fired on a Zeppelin H.M.S. FALMOUTH was regaining station when she was hit by two of a spread of three torpedoes, one in the forepeak, and the other in the steering compartment. After checks they found that they could steam slowly, so they took off most of the crew, and started to head for the Humber. An hour later another U.Boat made two torpedo attacks, which missed, and the escorts sank the U.Boat.
The next day when a tug was towing her H.M.S. FALMOUTH crossed one of the other lines of U.Boats, and was hit by two more torpedoes, one between Nos. 2 and 3 Boiler Rooms; and the other further aft; the escorting destroyer PORPOISE sank the U.Boat. Abandon Ship was finally given, the crew were taken off by the destroyers, and the boats were launched and towed to safety. After a head count of survivors it was found that eight men were missing, and a search party re-boarded H.M.S. FALMOUTH, but found no survivors; the eight had been in the boiler rooms hit by the torpedo. Finally at 8 oclock that night H.M.S. FALMOUTH finally sank 7 miles south of Flamborough Head, in 11 fathoms. Her guns were later salvaged.
Various accounts make no mention of casualties or if they do they conflict, however further research revealed this list of casualties for the 19th August 1916, you will also note a large list on the same day for HMS Nottingham, what the above account doesnt mention is that prior to the initial torpedo strikes on HMS Falmouth, HMS Nottingham was torpedoed and sunk, orders were then given to retreat, it was then that HMS Falmouth took the first hits........ http://www.naval-history.net/xDKCas1916-08Aug.htm (scroll down to Aug 19th)
......................................................................................................................................................
So back to the alleged small piece of torpedo....... when I first saw this piece I dismissed it, my initial thoughts were, 'oh yes, likely story'; I mean what are the chances of finding a small piece like this aboard a ship after a torpedo strike. Explosion, casualities, gaping holes below the waterline, water rushing in, fire, smoke, complete chaos - 'oh look, a tiny bit of torpedo fragment' - not likely!!
However curiosity got the better of me and I bought it. The description on the envelope appears to be specific, by that I mean '....from German Torpedo fired at HMS Falmouth'. How on earth could someone be so certain that this is the case, after all the aftermath of a torpedo strike would not be a pretty sight and to associate such a tiny piece to a specific item would seem farfetched........unless????
......well perhaps the size or lack of it may be key. For someone to be so sure of its origins there may be only one way to be so. Perhaps, and I do say 'perhaps', this was removed from a wound, it is certainly large enough to do serious damage to someone if it hit the right spot, it is also small enough to inflict a lesser wound if it didnt. Of course I cannot prove or disprove this theory and perhaps I never will, but the fact there were surviving casualties gives more credability to the theory. At the end of the day it is a 'curiosity' and that is all, but sometimes maybe its not all about the piece, its about learning our history that counts. I enjoyed reading about HMS Falmouth, it took four torpedoes to finally finish her, that says something about British shipbuilding of the time.
I apologise if you were hoping to see some fantastic torpedo relic or piece of ordnance, but if you stuck with it this long, I hope at least you enjoyed reading about these events as I did..........of course given the powers of bocn someone may surprise me by recognising where on a German WW1 torpedo this is likely to have come from and in doing so confirm the inscription on the paper envelope
regards Kev
!!
For curiosity sake I took a chance and bought this bit and if it is what it claims to be then it is quite possibly the smallest piece of torpedo you will ever see!!
As always when I buy such pieces I ask what is known about it, in this case it would appear very little. I was told that it was found amongst effects after an in-law had passed away, it was in an old box containing other WW1 era items but appears to have no connection to the family history. So we are left with a small envelope with the inscription 'Small piece of Phosphor Bronze from German Torpedo fired at HMS Falmouth', together with the smallest of fragments.
So first of all lets take a look at HMS Falmouth. She was a Weymouth Class Second Class Cruiser layed down in 1909 and completed in 1911. The following is an extract taken from the following link....... http://www.ww1britainssurvivingvessels.org.uk/vessels/steam-cutter-no-26 ...this gives a good account of events leading up to her being sunk,
On the outbreak of the war, H.M.S. FALMOUTH was assigned to the 5th Cruiser Squadron operating in the Mid Atlantic. In August 1914 she sank four German merchant ships, and later that month was reassigned to the 1st Light Cruiser Squadron of the Grand Fleet.
On 28 August 1914, H.M.S. FALMOUTH took part in the Battle of Heligoland Bight, and on 24 January 1915 she took part in the Battle of Dogger Bank. She was still part of the Squadron when on 31st May to 1st June 1916 she took part in the Battle of Jutland.
Two and a half months later, on 19 August 1916, the German High Seas Fleet came within 50 miles of our coast in East Anglia, for what some thought was to be a second Jutland. In fact they were the bait in a trap of four lines of U-Boats lying in wait for the Grand Fleet, steaming down from Scapa Flow, for their second Jutland. H.M.S. FALMOUTH was part of the Cruiser Screen in front of the Grand Fleet, who sprung the trap, when they crossed one of the lines of U-Boats, and two Cruisers were torpedoed.
Having fired on a Zeppelin H.M.S. FALMOUTH was regaining station when she was hit by two of a spread of three torpedoes, one in the forepeak, and the other in the steering compartment. After checks they found that they could steam slowly, so they took off most of the crew, and started to head for the Humber. An hour later another U.Boat made two torpedo attacks, which missed, and the escorts sank the U.Boat.
The next day when a tug was towing her H.M.S. FALMOUTH crossed one of the other lines of U.Boats, and was hit by two more torpedoes, one between Nos. 2 and 3 Boiler Rooms; and the other further aft; the escorting destroyer PORPOISE sank the U.Boat. Abandon Ship was finally given, the crew were taken off by the destroyers, and the boats were launched and towed to safety. After a head count of survivors it was found that eight men were missing, and a search party re-boarded H.M.S. FALMOUTH, but found no survivors; the eight had been in the boiler rooms hit by the torpedo. Finally at 8 oclock that night H.M.S. FALMOUTH finally sank 7 miles south of Flamborough Head, in 11 fathoms. Her guns were later salvaged.
Various accounts make no mention of casualties or if they do they conflict, however further research revealed this list of casualties for the 19th August 1916, you will also note a large list on the same day for HMS Nottingham, what the above account doesnt mention is that prior to the initial torpedo strikes on HMS Falmouth, HMS Nottingham was torpedoed and sunk, orders were then given to retreat, it was then that HMS Falmouth took the first hits........ http://www.naval-history.net/xDKCas1916-08Aug.htm (scroll down to Aug 19th)
......................................................................................................................................................
So back to the alleged small piece of torpedo....... when I first saw this piece I dismissed it, my initial thoughts were, 'oh yes, likely story'; I mean what are the chances of finding a small piece like this aboard a ship after a torpedo strike. Explosion, casualities, gaping holes below the waterline, water rushing in, fire, smoke, complete chaos - 'oh look, a tiny bit of torpedo fragment' - not likely!!
However curiosity got the better of me and I bought it. The description on the envelope appears to be specific, by that I mean '....from German Torpedo fired at HMS Falmouth'. How on earth could someone be so certain that this is the case, after all the aftermath of a torpedo strike would not be a pretty sight and to associate such a tiny piece to a specific item would seem farfetched........unless????
......well perhaps the size or lack of it may be key. For someone to be so sure of its origins there may be only one way to be so. Perhaps, and I do say 'perhaps', this was removed from a wound, it is certainly large enough to do serious damage to someone if it hit the right spot, it is also small enough to inflict a lesser wound if it didnt. Of course I cannot prove or disprove this theory and perhaps I never will, but the fact there were surviving casualties gives more credability to the theory. At the end of the day it is a 'curiosity' and that is all, but sometimes maybe its not all about the piece, its about learning our history that counts. I enjoyed reading about HMS Falmouth, it took four torpedoes to finally finish her, that says something about British shipbuilding of the time.
I apologise if you were hoping to see some fantastic torpedo relic or piece of ordnance, but if you stuck with it this long, I hope at least you enjoyed reading about these events as I did..........of course given the powers of bocn someone may surprise me by recognising where on a German WW1 torpedo this is likely to have come from and in doing so confirm the inscription on the paper envelope
regards Kev
!!