HMS Undaunted (N55) was a British U-class submarine of the Royal Navy's second group, built by Vickers Armstrongs at Barrow-in-Furness. She had a very short wartime career and was lost in the Mediterranean in May 1941 with all hands.
Construction
- Ordered: 4 September 1939
- Laid down: 2 December 1939
- Launched: 20 August 1940
- Commissioned: 30 December 1940
- Pennant number: N55
Specifications
HMS Undaunted was typical of the early wartime U-class submarines:
- Length: 58.22 m (191 ft)
- Surface displacement: 540 tons
- Submerged displacement: 730 tons
- Speed:
- 11.25 knots surfaced
- 10 knots submerged
- Armament:
- 4 × 21-inch bow torpedo tubes
- Up to 10 torpedoes
- 1 × 3-inch deck gun
- Crew: 27 to 31 men
Commanding Officer
The submarine was commanded throughout her service by Lieutenant James Lees Livesey, RN.
Service Career
After commissioning, Undaunted underwent trials and training at Holy Loch before joining the 9th Submarine Flotilla at Dundee. She later transferred to the 1st Flotilla at Portsmouth and then sailed for Malta to join the 10th Submarine Flotilla, which was attacking Axis supply routes to North Africa.
This made her one of the early British submarines sent to reinforce Malta, alongside boats such as HMS Union, HMS Upright, and HMS Ursula.
Final Patrol
Undaunted sailed to patrol the waters off Tripoli, Libya. She was due back at Malta on 11 May 1941 but failed to return. She was declared overdue shortly afterwards.
Loss
The exact cause of her loss remains unknown.
The leading theories are:
- Minefield: She may have struck one of several Italian defensive minefields laid off Tripoli. This is generally considered the most likely explanation.
- Attack by Pegaso: The Italian torpedo boat Pegaso reported attacking a submarine with depth charges on 12 May 1941 and observed a large oil slick afterward. Some historians believe this submarine may have been Undaunted.
Because no wreck positively identified as Undaunted has been found, the true cause remains uncertain. [
Significance
HMS Undaunted was:
- One of the earliest U-class submarines sent to Malta.
- The second U-class boat lost during the war.
- Lost only four and a half months after entering service.
Undaunted is particularly poignant because she vanished without a trace, and nearly 85 years later the exact circumstances of her loss remain one of the unresolved mysteries of the Royal Navy submarine campaign in the Mediterranean
