📍 HMS P38 Submarine Memorial
Location Map Coordinates 35.902231, 14.519625
Royal Navy U-class Submarine (1941–1942)
Introduction
HMS P38 was a Royal Navy Third Group U-class submarine built by Vickers-Armstrongs at Barrow-in-Furness. Commissioned in October 1941, she joined the famous Tenth Submarine Flotilla at Malta, where British submarines were playing a vital role in attacking Axis supply routes to North Africa.
Although her operational career lasted barely four months, HMS P38 quickly demonstrated the offensive capability of the Malta submarine force. During her first patrol she sank the Italian merchant vessel Ariosto, before sailing on a second patrol to intercept an important Axis convoy bound for Tripoli.
HMS P38 disappeared on 23 February 1942 after coming under sustained attack from the Italian torpedo boat Circe. She was lost with all hands and is commemorated on the Submarine Roll of Honour at Fort St Elmo, Valletta.
Technical Specifications
| Class | U-class submarine (Third Group) |
|---|---|
| Builder | Vickers-Armstrongs, Barrow-in-Furness |
| Laid Down | 2 September 1940 |
| Launched | 9 July 1941 |
| Commissioned | 17 October 1941 |
| Length | 191 ft (58.2 m) |
| Beam | 16 ft 1 in (4.9 m) |
| Displacement | 540 tons surfaced / 730 tons submerged |
| Speed | 11.25 knots surfaced / 10 knots submerged |
| Complement | 27–31 officers and men |
| Armament | Four 21-inch bow torpedo tubes with up to ten torpedoes, one 3-inch deck gun |
| Commanding Officer | Lieutenant Rowland J. Hemingway DSC, RN |
Operational Service
Following sea trials and work-up in home waters, HMS P38 arrived in Malta during January 1942 and immediately joined offensive patrols in the central Mediterranean. Her role was to intercept the merchant ships and naval escorts supplying Axis forces fighting in Libya, one of the Royal Navy's most important strategic objectives during the siege of Malta.
On her first operational patrol, HMS P38 attacked the Italian merchant ship Ariosto off the Tunisian coast on 15 February 1942, sinking the vessel. Unknown to the submarine's crew, Ariosto was transporting Allied prisoners of war, and many perished when the ship went down. This tragic incident highlighted the harsh realities of naval warfare in the Mediterranean, where intelligence was often incomplete and decisions had to be made within moments.
Only days later, HMS P38 sailed once again from Malta to intercept a major Axis convoy approaching Tripoli. It would prove to be her final patrol.
Loss of HMS P38
On 23 February 1942, HMS P38 intercepted an Axis convoy north-west of Tripoli. After attacking the convoy, the submarine was detected by the Italian torpedo boat Circe, which immediately launched a determined anti-submarine attack. Following a series of depth-charge attacks, oil and wreckage rose to the surface, indicating that HMS P38 had been destroyed with the loss of her entire crew. (uboat.net; naval-history.net)
Italian reports stated that the submarine attempted to evade the attack by diving deeper before the explosions fatally damaged her. No survivors were recovered, and HMS P38 became one of the many Malta-based submarines lost while attempting to cut the Axis supply lines to North Africa.
The wreck of HMS P38 has never been positively identified, and her final resting place remains somewhere in the Mediterranean Sea off the Libyan coast.
Roll of Honour – Crew Lost
HMS P38 was lost with all hands on 23 February 1942 while attacking an Axis convoy off Tripoli. The following Roll of Honour is reproduced from Malta Defiant & Triumphant – Rolls of Honour 1940–1943.
| Name | Rank / Rating |
|---|---|
| HEMINGWAY, R J, DSC | Lieut. - CO |
| ATKINSON, L | AB |
| BECKETT, S W | PO Tel |
| BENFIELD, G E | PO |
| BRIGHTMAN, L | AB |
| BROWN, L J | Sto 1 |
| BUTLER, S | AB |
| CHRISTOPHER, H S M, DSM | Sub-Lt RNVR |
| DURNELL, C W, BEM | ERA 5 |
| EDWELL, E R | Ldg Sea |
| EUSTACE, D A | Lieut |
| FERGUSON, A J | Tel |
| GOVER, R E | AB |
| GRAY, A M | Sub-Lt |
| GUEST, G | Ldg Sto |
| HALLSWORTH, A S | AB |
| JACKSON, W | Sto 2 |
| KERR, W T | Sto PO |
| LAWLER, P J A | AB |
| MARRABLE, D L | ERA 2 |
| MERCER, C A G | Ldg Tel |
| MERKEL, P T | PO |
| PIDGEON, S A | Lieut |
| PORTEOUS, K | Sto 1 |
| ROBINSON, A H | Ldg Tel |
| RONALD, G H | AB |
| SALTER, C H | Ch ERA |
| SCHRODER, J C | AB |
| SCOUSE, E O | AB |
| SHIPLEY, P | Sto 1 |
| TURNBULL, F | AB |
| WALLACE, J | Ldg Sto |
| WEAVER, J T | Sig |
Legacy
Although HMS P38 served for only a short time, she demonstrated the aggressive spirit of the Tenth Submarine Flotilla during one of the most difficult periods of the Siege of Malta. Her patrols formed part of the relentless campaign against Axis shipping that helped reduce supplies reaching the German and Italian armies in North Africa.
Today HMS P38 is commemorated on the Submarine Roll of Honour at Fort St Elmo, Valletta, alongside the Royal Navy, Free French and Greek submarines that operated from Malta during the Second World War.