Although not even 100 years ago, relating to the events of 1914-18 is not easy. Other wars since the 'War to end all wars' intrude and probably most of the men who sailed and served, were wounded or saw their shipmates die in them are few and far between, and become less with the few years remaining. Fortunately some of their ships survive. Not many, but across the world, representatives of just about every ship type that existed - dreadnought, pre-dreadnought battleships, monitors, armoured cruiser, protected cruisers, light cruiser, torpedo boats, submarines. The most disappointing lack is that none of the dashing destroyers of that time exist, except for their forerunner, the experimental turbine-driven 'Turbinia'.

Many of these veterans are unknown, but some were the most famous of their time - Italian Commander Rizzo’s tiny Mas.15 which sank Austrian dreadnought 'Szent Istvan', the even lighter CMB.4 in which British Lieutenant Agar won an almost hush-hush Victoria Cross against the Bolsheviks, and in contrast the mighty American battleship 'Texas', sole survivor of the ground-breaking 'dreadnoughts' of British Admiral Fisher, which served with the huge British Grand Fleet at Scapa Flow in 1917 and 1918. Even HM light cruiser 'Caroline' little known, but the sole survivor of the greatest single naval battle in history - Jutland, in which men of great courage and leadership manoeuvred huge fleets with limited communications and almost unbelievable skill amidst the smoke, dark and confusion of this North Sea battleground.

With imagination, visiting just one of these preserved metal hulls might do more than anything else to bring to life the reality of the many warships built and often sunk, and the hundreds and even thousands of men who died with them:

USS Texas in 1914
With thanks to Charles Moore

BY COUNTRY

Australia - Austria - Britain - Bulgaria - Canada - Chile - Germany - Greece - Holland - Italy - Japan - Norway - Russian - Spain - Sweden - Turkey - United States

BY TYPE

Dreadnought - pre-dreadnought battleship - old battleship - monitor - armoured cruiser - protected cruiser - light cruiser - torpedo boat - submarine - minelayer - patrol/escort ship - coastal craft

BY COUNTRY
(this section provides more complete details)

Australia

CERBERUS, built 1870, 3,300 ton coastal defence monitor - Port Melbourne, Victoria. Restoration is planned

Austria

U.20, 1916, 170t coastal submarine - Heeresgeschichtliches Museum, Vienna. Salvaged midships hull and conning tower

Britain

CAROLINE, 1914, 4,700t light cruiser - Milewater Basin, Belfast, Northern Ireland. Took part in 1916 Battle of Jutland, later Naval Reserve ship. Restoration of this one survivor of Jutland was planned

CMB-4, 1916, 5t coastal motor boat - Imperial War Museum, Duxford Airfield, Cambridgeshire, England. Took part in 1919 attacks on Bolshevik warships at Kronstadt where her CO won the Victoria Cross

M.33, 1915, 58t monitor - Hartlepool, County Durham, England. Was being restored

No.1, 1901, 110t submarine - Submarine Museum, Gosport, Hampshire

TURBINIA, 1894, 45t experimental high speed turbine ship - Exhibition Park, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, England. Famous for her unauthorised dash through the rows of warships assembled for Queen Victoria’s 1897 Diamond Jubilee Review off Spithead, Portsmouth

WARRIOR, 1861, 9,200t battleship - Portsmouth, Hampshire, England. First iron-hulled, propeller-driven, watertight-compartment-fitted ship of the line

Bulgaria

DRSKI, 1908, 97t first class torpedo boat - Varna Naval Museum, Black Sea coast

Canada

ARCADIA, 1914, 1,700t hydrographic survey/patrol ship - Maritime Museum, Halifax, Nova Scotia

Chile

HUASCAR, 1865, 2,030t ironclad turret ship - Talcahuano, south of Valparaiso

Germany

U.1, 1906, 240t submarine - Deutsches Museum, Munich

Greece

AVEROFF, 1911, 9,900t armoured cruiser - Port Faliro, Poros Island, south of Athens

Holland

BONAIRE, 1877, 840t 4th class screw steamship - Delfzijl, north Holland at mouth of River Ems

BUFFEL, 1868, 2,280t turret ram monitor - Afdeling Maritime Museum, Rotterdam

SCHORPIOEN, 1868, 2,140t turret ram monitor - Den Helder, north of Amsterdam

Italy

Mas.15, 1916, 16t anti-submarine motor boat - Vittoriano Museum, Rome. Under the command of Cdr Luigi Rizzo, "Mas.15" sank Austrian dreadnought "Szent Istvan" in 1918

PUGLIA, 1901, 3,100t protected cruiser - La Spezia, Gulf of Genoa

Japan

MIKASA, 1902, 15,100t pre-dreadnought battleship - Yokosuka, south of Tokyo

Norway

RAP, 1873, 7t torpedo boat - Marine Museum, Horten

Russia

AURORA, 1900, 6,700t protected cruiser - Neva River, St Petersburg. She took part in the Battle of Tsushima and fired the first shot of the Russian revolution at St Petersburg

Spain

PERAL, 1890, 80t submarine - Spanish Naval Academy, Cartagena, southern Spain

Sweden

HAJEN, 1904, 110t submarine - Marine Museum, Karlskrona

Turkey

NUSRET, 1912, 360t minelayer (reproduction) - Army-Navy Park, Channakkale, Dardanelles. During the allied Naval attack on the Dardanelles in 1915, she laid the row of mines that sank British battleships "Irresistible" and "Ocean", French "Bouvet" and damaged British battlecruiser "Inflexible"

United States

OLYMPIA, 1895, 5,860t, protected cruiser - Penn’s landing, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

TEXAS, 1914, 27,000t dreadnought battleship - San Jacinto Battlefield State Park, La Porte, Texas. Served with the British Grand fleet, 1917-18 as the US flagship

BY TYPE

Dreadnought

TEXAS, 1914, 27,000t dreadnought battleship - San Jacinto Battlefield State Park, La Porte, Texas, US

Pre-dreadnought battleship

MIKASA, 1902, 15,100t pre-dreadnought battleship - Yokosuka, Japan

Old battleships

HUASCAR, 1865, 2,030t ironclad turret ship - Talcahuano, Chile

WARRIOR, 1861, 9,200t battleship - Portsmouth, Hampshire, England.

Monitors

BUFFEL, 1868, 2,280t turret ram monitor - Afdeling Maritime Museum, Rotterdam, Holland

CERBERUS, built 1870, 3,300 ton coastal defence monitor - Port Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

M.33, 1915, 58t monitor - Hartlepool, County Durham, England

SCHORPIOEN, 1868, 2,140t turret ram monitor - Den Helder, Holland

Armoured cruiser

AVEROFF, 1911, 9,900t armoured cruiser - Port Faliro, Poros Island, Greece

Protected cruisers

AURORA, 1900, 6,700t protected cruiser - Neva River, St Petersburg, Russia

BONAIRE, 1877, 840t 4th class screw steamship - Delfzijl, Holland

OLYMPIA, 1895, 5,860t, protected cruiser - Penn’s landing, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, US

PUGLIA, 1901, 3,100t protected cruiser - La Spezia, Italy

Light cruiser

CAROLINE, 1914, 4,700t light cruiser - Milewater Basin, Belfast, Northern Ireland.

Torpedo boats

DRSKI, 1908, 97t first class torpedo boat - Naval Museum, Varna, Bulgaria

RAP, 1873, 7t torpedo boat - Marine Museum, Horten, Norway

TURBINIA, 1894, 45t experimental high speed turbine ship - Exhibition Park, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, England

Submarines

HAJEN, 1904, 110t submarine - Marine Museum, Karlskrona, Sweden

No.1, 1901, 110t submarine - Submarine Museum, Gosport, Hampshire, England

PERAL, 1890, 80t submarine - Spanish Naval Academy, Cartagena, Spain

U.1, 1906, 240t submarine - Deutsches Museum, Munich, Germany

U.20, 1916, 170t coastal submarine - Heeresgeschichtliches Museum, Vienna, Austria

Minelayer

NUSRET, 1912, 360t minelayer - Army-Navy Park, Channakkale, Turkey

Patrol-escort ship

ARCADIA, 1914, 1,700t hydrographic survey/patrol ship - Maritime Museum, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada

Coastal craft

CMB-4, 1916, 5t coastal motor boat - Imperial War Museum, Duxford Airfield, Cambridgeshire, England

Mas.15, 1916, 16t anti-submarine motor boat - Vittoriano Museum, Rome, Italy