Christmas card 1916 from William DOXEY,
in the Navy based at Scapa Flow, showing
Admiral Jellicoe, First Sea Lord Nov 1916.
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"Best wishes for 1916, to Lucy from Billy,
HMS Vanguard, 1st Battle Squadron."
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William DOXEY 1894-1977
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the secret drawer and the fated battleship.
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William 1894-1977 was eldest son of Alfred and Gertrude DOXEY.
William was born and lived in Sheffield. His grandfather William Doxey
1838-1906 owned a decorative Victorian lady's worktable, which came
into the possession of the author, William's grandnephew. The worktable
has a hidden compartment, with a secret latch. The Author's Aunt
May Walker explained this and found the latch. When the hidden compartment
was opened, about 40 Christmas cards dated 1900-1920 were found. Among these
was a card sent by William to his family while he was working onboard
HMS Vanguard in Scapa Flow as a fleet electrician. The card is shown here.
Although based on land at Scapa Flow in July 1916, he was unlucky enough
to be
working on a warship when the Fleet sailed to do battle against the
German Fleet at the "Battle of Jutland". William survived the battle and
lived to about 85. He was lucky not to be on the Vanguard when it sank
with great loss of life seven months after the Christmas card was posted.
William's sister has a memory when she was only 6, seeing William come
home on leave from the Navy, looking very smart in new uniform, opening
a small leather bag and allowing the contents to roll onto the wooden
kitchen table. They were gold sovereigns, his first Navy pay.
The eighth HMS Vanguard of the British Royal Navy was a St Vincent
class battleship, an enhancement of the "Dreadnought" design built
by Vickers at Barrow-in-Furness. She was designed and built during
the Anglo-German naval arms race and spent her life in the British
Home Fleet.
At the outbreak of World War I, Vanguard joined the First Battle
Squadron at Scapa Flow, and fought in the Battle of Jutland as part
of the Fourth Battle Squadron. She was a part of the action from
beginning to end, but did not suffer any damage or casualties.
Just before midnight on Monday, 9 July 1917 at Scapa Flow Vanguard
suffered an explosion, probably caused by an unnoticed stokehold
fire heating cordite stored against an adjacent bulkhead in one of
the two magazines which served the amidships turrets P and Q. She
sank almost instantly, killing an estimated 843 men; there were only
two survivors. The site is now designated as a controlled site under
the Protection of Military Remains Act.
In terms of loss of life, the destruction of the Vanguard remains the
most catastrophic accidental explosion in the history of the UK, and
one of the worst accidental losses of the Royal Navy.
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HMS Vanguard, accidently exploded and sank with loss of 843 lives,
July 1917.
The Vanguard tragedy.
Following is an extract from a notebook maintained by Able Seaman
Ernest "Mick" Moroney who witnessed the Vanguard explosion when on
watch duty aboard HMAS Melbourne at Scapa Flow, 9th July 1917.
Courtesy of Paul Moroney of Australia.
"HMS Vanguard Battleship blown up in Scarpa Flo Hbr (sic) all hands
lost, spectator 9 July 17. 2 saved.
HMS VANGUARD Scarpa Flow North Scotland at 11.20 pm on the 9th July a
great explosion occurred in the midst of the Grand Fleet, a terrible
detonation took place lighting the whole fleet as if it were daylight
there was a crash and one of the big boats went sky high with a crew
of 900 men all searchlights were switched on immediately but not a
thing was to be seen.
A trawler which was close by got smothered in blood and pieces of
human flesh, and afterwards picked up half the body of a marine the
only body recovered up to date. I happened to be on watch and saw
nearly everything no one knows how she went up, but seeing she had a
new ships company it is surmised that it was the work of German
spies (Later) 2 men saved 1 Marine and 1 AB I Officer died immediately
after. 187 men recovered from the sea."
Unstable cordite was later identified as the cause but the truth
remains a mystery.
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