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The sinking of HMS Goliath was one of the most
significant naval events in the
Gallipoli campaign. During the
night of 12/13 May, the Muavenet-iMilliye arrived undetected at
Soganlldere position in the north
of Morto Bay. The commander of
the destroyer was Captain Ahmed. Taking advantage of the
darkness of the night, the destroyer
infiltrated Morto Bay and launched
three torpedoes at HMS Goliath. The
battleship sank in a few minutes, with
the loss of 570 crew. Returning to
Constantinople the destroyer was greeted
with great joy and ceremony and
the Sultan rewarded her crew with
medals and decorations. This success
was followed by the sinking of the
Triumph on 25 May and the Majestic
on 27 May, sunk by the German
submarine U-21, commanded by
Captain Otto Hersing. These threats to the Royal Navy forced De Robeck to pull back much of his ships and scale back all but the most necessary naval activity around the Straits.
Original painting held at the Naval Museum, Çanakkale. |
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