HMS P32

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📍 HMS P32 Submarine Memorial

Location Map Coordinates 35.902231, 14.519625

Royal Navy U-class submarine operating from Malta during the Second World War.

HMS P32, Royal Navy U-class submarine based at Malta during the Second World War.

HMS P32, a U-class submarine of the Royal Navy operating from Malta during the Second World War.

Overview

HMS P32 was a U-class submarine of the Royal Navy built during the Second World War for operations in the Mediterranean. She joined the Tenth Submarine Flotilla at Malta during one of the most dangerous periods of the siege, when submarines played a vital role attacking Axis supply convoys bound for North Africa.

Unlike many submarines lost on patrol, HMS P32 was destroyed while still in Malta. On 18 August 1941 she struck mines during an air raid in Grand Harbour, suffering catastrophic damage. Although several members of her crew escaped, the submarine could not be repaired and was later scuttled.

HMS P32 is commemorated on the Submarine Roll of Honour overlooking Grand Harbour together with the many Royal Navy submarines lost while operating from Malta during the Second World War.

Technical Specifications

Class	U-class submarine
Pennant Number	P32
Builder	Vickers-Armstrong, Barrow-in-Furness
Launched	30 October 1940
Commissioned	30 April 1941
Length	191 ft (58.2 m)
Displacement	540 tons surfaced; 730 tons submerged
Speed	11.25 knots surfaced; 10 knots submerged
Armament	Four 21-inch torpedo tubes, one 3-inch deck gun
Complement	Approximately 31 officers and men

Operational History

After commissioning in 1941, HMS P32 joined the submarine force operating from Malta. The island had become Britain's principal offensive submarine base in the Mediterranean, with U-class submarines carrying out frequent patrols against Axis convoys supplying German and Italian forces in North Africa.

The small U-class submarines proved particularly suited to Mediterranean operations because of their manoeuvrability and ability to operate in confined coastal waters. Their missions were nevertheless extremely hazardous owing to constant air attack, minefields and aggressive anti-submarine patrols.

Loss of HMS P32

On 18 August 1941, during a heavy enemy air raid on Malta, HMS P32 was lying in Grand Harbour when nearby explosions detonated magnetic mines. The submarine suffered catastrophic damage, rapidly flooded and settled on the harbour floor.

Four members of the control room survived after escaping from the submerged submarine through the conning tower using the Davis Submerged Escape Apparatus. Their remarkable escape remains one of the most extraordinary survival stories of the Royal Navy's submarine service during the Siege of Malta. The remaining thirty officers and ratings lost their lives.

Although salvage attempts were made, HMS P32 was beyond economical repair. She was officially declared a total loss and was later scuttled outside Malta. Today, HMS P32 is commemorated on Malta's Submarine Roll of Honour overlooking Grand Harbour, where the sacrifice of her crew is remembered alongside the other Allied submarines lost while operating from the island during the Second World War.

Roll of Honour – Crew Lost

Three officers and twenty-seven ratings lost their lives when HMS P32 was fatally damaged by mines in Grand Harbour on 18 August 1941. Four members of the control room escaped from the submerged submarine using the conning tower and Davis Submerged Escape Apparatus, making this one of the most remarkable survival stories of the Malta submarine flotilla. The following Roll of Honour is reproduced from Malta Defiant & Triumphant – Rolls of Honour 1940–1943.

Name	Rank / Rating
Ballard, F	AB
Banks, W J T	Stoker Petty Officer
Barnett, A	Telegraphist
Barrow, W C	Petty Officer
Bates, C	Stoker 1st Class
Bowman, L W	Stoker Petty Officer
Breeds, R M	AB
Chapman, V F	Leading Seaman
Cooper, S W	Engine Room Artificer 3rd Class
Corry, C F	AB
Edwards, H	Leading Stoker
Giles, A	Chief Engine Room Artificer
Hargreaves, E	Leading Signalman
Honeysett, F R J	Telegraphist
Kelly, P	Stoker 1st Class
Lyons, T	Telegraphist
Martin, W H	Engine Room Artificer 2nd Class
McLane, W	Ordinary Seaman
Millar, M F	Sub-Lieutenant
Morris, R L S	Lieutenant
Print, G E	Leading Seaman
Roberts, J T	Ordinary Seaman
Scard, R J	Stoker 1st Class
Smithard, R M	Sub-Lieutenant
Stewart, W R	Leading Seaman
Styles, W J	Ordinary Seaman
Waddington, F J	AB
Walford, D E, DSM	Petty Officer Telegraphist
Wallen, F	Stoker 1st Class
Winter, J	AB

Legacy

The loss of HMS P32 illustrates the constant danger faced by the Royal Navy's Malta submarine flotilla even while in harbour. Enemy air attacks and the extensive use of magnetic and acoustic mines made Grand Harbour itself a hazardous place to serve.

The successful escape of members of P32's crew from the flooded submarine became one of the most remarkable survival stories of the Siege of Malta. Their determination and courage demonstrated the professionalism of the Royal Navy's submarine service during one of the darkest periods of the island's wartime history.

Although HMS P32 never completed an operational patrol after arriving in Malta, her loss forms part of the wider story of the submarines based on the island that helped disrupt Axis supply lines throughout the Mediterranean campaign. She is commemorated on the Submarine Roll of Honour overlooking Grand Harbour.

Gallery

HMS P32, Royal Navy U-class submarine operating from Malta during the Second World War. — HMS *P32*, a Royal Navy U-class submarine serving with the Tenth Submarine Flotilla at Malta.

References

George Cross Island Association, Malta Defiant & Triumphant – Rolls of Honour 1940–1943.
Royal Navy patrol reports and Admiralty records.
J. J. Colledge & Ben Warlow, Ships of the Royal Navy.
Imperial War Museums photographic archive.
The National Archives (United Kingdom).

Page last updated: August 2026