HMS Prince of Wales was the second of five
King George V class battleships, built under
the limitations of the Washington and London
naval limitation treaties. Restricted to
35,000 tons, these vessels mounted 10 x 14"
main guns. Well balanced designs, they offered
a good turn of speed, good armor protection,
dual-purpose secondary mounts, and decent
firepower. These numerous and valuable vessels
served well in the Med, Atlantic, and Pacific
theaters of operations.
Completed in March of 1941, and surviving
only until December 10th of that same year,
Prince of Wales led an eventful if short
life. While still under construction, she
was damaged by German bombs, which delayed
her completion by several months. She joined
the fleet at Scapa Flow while still being
completed, with civilian contractors still
trying to get two of her three turrets operational.
When the German Bismarck and the heavy cruiser
Prinz Eugen sortied into the North Atlantic,
her commander, Captain Leach, signalled that
his ship was ready for action, and she sailed
in company with HMS Hood to intercept, civilian
contractors included. They and the ship's
crew worked furiously, and after the German
battleship had quickly dispatched Hood, the
incomplete Prince of Wales scored three critical
hits on the Bismarck before breaking off
the action, herself hit by five 15"
and four 8" shells. She retired under
the cover of smoke, with 8 of her 10 main
guns out of action, 600 tons of flooding,
secondary directors destroyed, and most of
her bridge crew dead.
After repairs, Prince of Wales carried Winston
Churchill to Newfoundland to meet with President
Roosevelt in July. She then was assigned
to the Med and Force H, participating in
Operation Haltberg. Then it was back to the
Home Fleet, and then off to the Far East
as the heart of Force Z. In company with
Repulse, she reached Singapore on December
2. Six days later she was sunk by Japanese
land based aircraft, 8 miles from Repulse.
The two vessels were attacked about midway
between Singapore and Saigon. Details of
the attack will be covered in the battle
history pages in the near future.
HMS Prince of Wales was struck by one torpedo
which opened the hull, jammed the steering,
disabled most of the AA mounts, and destroyed
part of the propulsion. Unable to maneuver,
she was struck repeatedly by more torpedoes
and bombs, floundering an hour and a half
after the first strike.
The vessel is considered a war grave, and
divers should not disturb or enter the wreck.
The GPS coordinates are available, but will
not be posted here. Several commercial firms
in Vietnam and Malaya offer charter tours
of the wreck, which, while visible from the
air on a clear day, is often hard to find
due to the deliberate circulation of false
GPS coordinates. Diving on HMS Prince of
Wales is more than a little controversial,
due the vessel's status as a war grave, and
because many of the survivor's and relatives
of those lost in the attack feel that the
wreck should not be visited. However, the
fact is that the vessel is regularly visited,
and it is too late to put the genie back
in the bottle. Several Japanese firms have
expressed an interest in salvaging the wreck,
but lawsuits and public opinion have stalled
these plans. My personal feelings are that
the wreck should be visited as a memorial,
but treated with the utmost respect; take only photos, and leave only bubbles.
Prince of Wales came to rest upside almost
completely down in 230 feet of water. The
vessel rests almost completely upside down,
with one side of the main deck a few metes
off the bottom. An extremely deep dive, Prince
of Wales is visited more rarely than her
consort Repulse. The 40-feet of extra depth,
combined with the less diver-friendly orientation
of the vessel, combine to keep most divers
away. The water is warm and clear, the bottom
is sand, ambient light is plentiful, and
visibility is excellent. Torpedo damage to
the hull is easy to find, and marine life
is abundant. Like Repulse, Prince of Wales
'flies' a white ensign from one screw as
a tribute to the crewmen who lost their lives.
Prince of Wales leaving port on her final
sortie.
