German fleet scuttled at Scapa Flow

1919

Having surrendered at the end of the First World War, the Imperial German High Seas Fleet lay at anchor in Scapa Flow (Orkney) awaiting the outcome of armistice negotiations. Fearing that the fleet would be divided between their enemies as part of reparations under the Treaty of Versailles, the German commander ordered his fleet to be scuttled and 72 ships sank slowly to the bottom. Many of the hulks were subsequently salvaged for scrap, but 3 battleships and 4 light cruisers remain in the Flow and are popular with divers.

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