Up to 1900, the British Admiralty had stolidly refused to have anything to do with submarines, considering them to have a defensive role only, for the weaker maritime nations, and to be a 'damned un-English weapon'. But the fact that the French had clandestinely 'torpedoed' one of their own capital ships with a dummy weapon and were now rapidly building up a submarine fleet undoubtedly helped persuade the Admiralty to 'test the value of the submarine boat as a weapon in the hands of our enemies'. Accordingly, five submarines were ordered, to be built at Barrow by Vickers, Sons and Maxim, under licence from the Holland Torpedo Boat Company of America (later to become the Electric Boat Company).
The founder of the Holland Torpedo Boat Company was John P. Holland, an Irish emigrant to America. He had long had an interest in submarines - seeing them as a means of demoralizing, or even destroying, the English Fleet. His first submarine design was for a one-man boat, 16 feet long, the propeller being mechanically driven by the occupant.
By 1893, development of the working submarine was well advanced, and the US Naval Board recognized that there was a place for the submarine in naval warfare, and laid down a set of requirements for naval submarines. These requirements were met by a boat of Holland's design, and in 1895 he was awarded a contract to build a submarine boat for the US Government.
Development proceeded rapidly from here, and the design destined to become the Royal Navy's Holland No. 1 was, it is thought, America's Holland Number 10 - known as the Adder Class. It was fitted with a 4hp Brayton petrol engine.
Working drawings supplied to Vickers had many discrepancies and in some particulars were obviously incorrect. But building went on to these plans, and it was only after the boat almost turned on end during dock trials that Vickers were allowed to make modifications. The problems were due, in part, to the difficulties of communication with the Holland Boat Company, and the fact that construction of the RN Holland 1 was ahead of the prototype Adder Class and the drawings had therefore not been proved.
In the American design no periscope was fitted and the only way to see was to look through a scuttle in the low conning tower. A periscope designed by Capt R H S Bacon (Superintendent of Submarines at Barrow) and built by Howard Grub - head of a Dublin opticians - was fitted to the Hollands. This was a hinged periscope, raised and lowered on a ball and socket joint on the hull. The viewed image was only upright when ahead; when abeam it was on its side; and when astern it was upside down.
During the Holland construction programme, association with the Electric Boat Company was severed and Vickers seriously began the task of designing submarines themselves. (It is interesting to note that Vickers' association with the Electric Boat Company was renewed in the 1960s, with the construction of Britain's first nuclear-powered submarine HMS Dreadnought.)
The five Holland Class were completed by mid-1903 at a cost of £35,000 each. Although they were poor sea boats as designed and could dive to only 100 feet, their performance and reliability was improved by several shipyard improvements until they were sufficiently successful to convince the Admiralty to continue further submarine development. Hollands 1 to 3 were eventually sold to T W Ward for breaking up in 1913, but Holland 1 foundered off the Eddystone Lighthouse whilst under tow. Holland 4 was deliberately sunk by gunfire during experiments in October 1912 and Holland 5 sank whilst under tow from Portsmouth to Sheerness.
Incredibly, in April 1981, the wreck of the first Holland boat was found on the seabed and, subsequently salvaged in 1982. Taken to the Royal Navy Submarine Museum at Gosport, she was found to be in remarkably good condition considering her 70-year enforced rest under the sea but soon began to deteriorate when removed from her natural element.
A major restoration programme was started by the Museum and this gained impetus through a four-phase Centennial Appeal to which Barrow shipyard's recent owners GEC and current owners BAE SYSTEMS have made significant financial contributions during 1999-2001. Having completed the initial enhanced conservation and exhibition phase, the Submarine Museum has announced its intention to put Holland 1 back on display. Fittingly, this is scheduled to take place on May 24th 2001 during the Centenary Celebrations of the Royal Navy's Submarine Service.
