Thetis Down (Paperback)
The Slow Death of a Submarine
Imprint: Pen & Sword Maritime
Pages: 238
Illustrations: 32
ISBN: 9781526766601
Published: 18th November 2019
Last Released: 15th May 2020
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| Other formats available | Price |
|---|---|
| Thetis Down ePub (6.9 MB) Add to Basket | £6.99 |
On 1 June 1939 His Majesty's Submarine Thetis sank in Liverpool Bay while on her diving trials. Her loss is still the worst peacetime submarine disaster the Royal Navy has yet faced when ninety-nine men drowned or slowly suffocated during their last fifty hours of life.
The disaster became an international media event, mainly because the trapped souls aboard were so near to being saved after they managed to raise her stern about 18ft above sea level. Still the Royal Navy-led rescue operation failed to find the submarine for many hours, only to rescue four of all those trapped. Very little is known about what actually happened, as the only comprehensive book written on the subject was published in 1958.
Many years have now passed since the Thetis and her men died, for which no one was held to be ultimately accountable. However, a great deal of unpublished information has come to light in archives throughout the United Kingdom and beyond. After four years of painstaking research Thetis; The Slow Death of a Submarine explores in minute detail a more rounded picture of what really happened before, during and after her tragic loss. In doing so Tony Booth's book also takes a fresh look at culpability and explores some of the alleged conspiracy theories that surrounded her demise.
The result is the first definitive account what happened to HMS Thetis - and her men - a fitting tribute, as the seventieth anniversary of her loss will be on 1 June 2009.
...a book that will definitely find its place on the bookshelves of naval history buffs and anyone interested in submarines.
Naval Historical Foundation
Click here for the full review
After four years of painstaking research this new book explores in minute detail what really happened before during and after this disaster, and in doing so, maritime author, Tony Booth, takes a fresh look at culpability and investigates some of the alleged conspiracy theories that circulated at the time. The result is the first definitive account of what really happened to HMS Thetis and her men: a fitting tribute some 80 years on.
Model Boats, February 2020 – reviewed by John Deamer
... an extremely readable account of loss, salvage, refit and subsequent wartime career of the submarine Thetis/Thunderbolt.
Navy News April 2009
... a newly unearthed official document proves that the Admiralty decided it was more important to save the vessel then 99 men....
The Mail on Sunday
A really good read, but one that fills you with horror with what the 99 men must have endured, and what the families must have endured for years afterwards. This books brings you up to date with what really happened and tells us what rumours were going around afterwards. Even today, the full storey is not revealed and probably will never be but Tony Booth has done a first rate job of telling us the facts. I certainly recommend this.
Edward Parry-Jones
Edward
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