Emily Chan
Last year, the wreck of a British World War II submarine was discovered off the coast of Greece. After searching for 25 years, a veteran Greek diver named Kostas Thoctarides finally found the wreck of the HMS Triumph in the Aegean Sea. It was located off Cape Sounion at a depth of about 666 feet.
According to Thoctarides, the submarine’s hatches and periscope were down, indicating that it had been on a deep dive when it sank in 1942. Additionally, the depth and directional rudders were straight.
“In its tower, you can see the wooden wheel helm, compass, and 4-inch cannon that is slightly raised upward,” said Thoctarides. “The hatches on either side of the cannon leading inside the hull are also shut.”
The fore section had been severely damaged by an explosion that most likely caused the submarine to sink.
It was unclear whether the explosion was from a depth charge, naval mine, or one of the sub’s own torpedoes.
HMS Triumph was launched in 1938. During World War II, it completed more than 20 missions, including attacks on Axis ships and submarines in the Mediterranean Sea.
However, the vessel is most famous for participating in covert operations, such as the rescue of several Allied soldiers stuck in North Africa and an infiltration into Greece, which was enemy territory at the time.
In 1941, the Triumph also secretly carried Captain Bill Hudson, an officer with the British Special Operations Executive (SOE), to the Axis-held Serbian port of Petrovac on the Adriatic Coast. The top-secret mission helped lay the foundation for all special military operations since.
Thoctarides and his team had been looking for the Triumph’s wreck for 25 years. The task proved difficult because of frequent bad weather and strong underwater currents.
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