HiTHE EPILOGUE OF A GALLANT SHIP - H.M.S HERMES BY PRINCE CASINADER
As I read Ruhanie Perera’s article titled “DEEP INTO THE HISTORY” in the SUNDAY TIMES OF September 11th this year, in a flash back my thoughts went back to April 1942 sixty six years ago, where in the eastern town of Sri Lanka, the capital of the east, as a young school boy, men and women had gathered at a cemetery there as three badly decomposed bodies of three Australian sailors were laid to rest, with only two name boards – K.A.Vatcher and the other Lewis, while the 3rd grave was of the unknown naval sailor, whose name disc tied on his wrist had broken away, defying indication. The three were supposed to be from the Australian war ship possibly the H.M.s.Vampire.
The bodies had been swashed ashore off Batticaloa from the scene where the one handed sea battle had taken place, when the Japanese warplanes mercilessly bombed the war ships of the British eastern fleet.
At the nerve center of Batticaloa’s Government center – the Batticaloa Dutch fort known as Kachcheri (land registry). The officials all ran out of their desks where from this grand stand they could clearly see like a swarm of angry bees the Japanese bombers attacking especially the H.M.S.Hermes.
Amoung the few survivors was the Navigation officer of the Hermes Mr.Black who had managed to swim ashore as the Gallant ship sank not far away from the Batticaloa Bar light house. His report was very revealing.
Glancing up I saw the first attack developing out nof the Sun. By 10.55 A.M. five minutes after the first attack where the bombs hit the Gallant ship, the Hermes sank quite within a few miles off Batticaloa.
Many corpses were washed ashore and about 10 of the crew of the crew were able to swim Ashore.
This Navigation officer later reached a high position in the Judicial Services of Englandas a Judge and Commissioner at the old Baily’on every annivasary of the tragedy Mr.Black unfailingly published an “IN MEMORIAM’ in one of the english papers.
H.M.S.HERMES IN PROUD AND AFFECTIONATE MEMORY OF MY GALLANTCAPTAIN
AND SHIPMATES - N” The Captain of the ship had in true British tradition had gone down with the ship to his watery grave.
After the attack on Trincomalee on the 9th April 1942 Admiral Sir James somerville ordered the ships to get out of Trincomalee hence the Hermes and it’s escort ship H.M.A.S VAMPIRE dashed out along the East coast and met their waterloo.
The Hermes had adisplacemnt of 10,950 Tons and 12,900 with full load. Her overall length was 598 ft. Her beam was 70ft. She was powered by Parsons ngeared Turbines and her speed was 25 knots, built to carry 15 to 20 air crafts. Her complement was to be 551 to 664. After the wreck and loss of the ship, the British Admiralty built another air craft carrier naming that too as Hermes and this air craft carrier palyed a leading role in the Battle of the Falklands.
The wreck of this historical ship lies cheek by jowl along the village of Navalady which was smashed by the recent Tsunami blast, where even a sea cottage I had was blasted. This place full of Fishermen - over the years saw several of these fishermen , going by catamaran, dynamiting parts of the ship closer to the shore and selling same to local black smiths. Once I alerted the Police of this kind of blatant blast of historical objects. A few years ago a Sub Inspector of the Police at Batticaloa lay an ambush and caught a group bringing the spoils of the dynamited propellor and as the police rushed in, they left their spoils and took to their heels.
The recoverd popollor lay on the varandah of the old Batticaloa Police station and later produced in courts and haplessly sold for a song of a few rupees not realising the priceless worth of this historical object, where it lay at the Police station I have a photo, I took with my senior students standing around it.
I am told by fishermen that the wreck could still be seen unless of course the beastly TSUNAMI too shattered the remnants.
Prince Casinader
(Retired Principal)
Ex member of the parliament.
HI divers,
Here is a report from the retired school Principal Mr Prince Casinader who as a young boy witnessed the sea battle of the Indian ocean.
Happy reading Feli
