Located on the sea bed just off the coast at Poros lies the HMS Perseus submarine which sank on 6th December 1941 after hitting an Italian mine. The submarine was recharging her batteries 3km off shore when the devastating explosion took place.
There was just one survivor called John Capes, whose story was doubted until 1997 when Greek diver Kostas Thoctarides (as part of a Diving Research Team) discovered the wreck interior exactly as John Capes said he had left it, even down to the bottle of rum he drank from before escaping!
John Capes was found unconscious on the shore the next morning by two local fisherman. His escape story was extraordinary – he escaped to the surface using Davis Submarine Escape Apparatus even though the depth of the submarine was around 270ft and the equipment had only been tested to 100ft. He spent the next 18 months moving between houses, on the run to evade the Italian occupiers at the great peril of the islanders. He was overwhelmed by the support and patriotism of the islanders and in 1943 he was taken off the island to Turkey in a secret operation.
Today there is a memorial plaque to commemorate those who died aboard HMS Perseus.
You can dive the wreck but penetration is limited due to respect for the families of the casualties.
Underwater photo kindly used with permission from Makis Sotiropoulos
4 comments
My Father Tom Shattock was a close ww2 shipmate and fellow submariner of Harry Carpenter and was expecting to meet up with Harry in Alexandria on the day Perseus sank I know Harry’s loss shook him up badly leaving him to ponder how long it would be before he met a similar fate
thank you for sharing this story with us!
My uncle, Sidney James Stanley, was one of the submariners who died in the Perseus, and my parents often told my brother and me about John Capes. I am hoping to arrange a trip with the next two generations of Stanleys to see the memorial and do some sightseeing.
Nice to hear from you, it will be a great idea! Hope to meet you!