HMS Glatton war memorial, Woodlands Road Cemetery

Image: © David Anstiss Taken: 9 Feb 2013

HMS Glatton (and her sister ship Gorgon) were originally built as coastal defence ships for the Royal Norwegian Navy, as Bjørgvin and Nidaros respectively. She was purchased from Norway at the beginning of World War I, but was not completed until 1918 although she had been launched over three years earlier. On 16 September 1918, before she had even gone into action, she suffered a large fire in one of her 6-inch magazines, and had to be torpedoed to prevent an explosion of her main magazines that would have devastated Dover. Casualties were very heavy, 60 men were killed outright and 124 were injured of whom 38 later died of their burns. Including 4 officers and 94 men. 1 Officer and 56 men are buried. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMS_Glatton_(1914) for more details about the ship and accident. See http://www.doverwarmemorialproject.org.uk/Casualties/MoreMemorials/Areas/Glatton%20Gillingham/Glatton.htm for more details and a transcript of the memorial inscription.

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