Navy
Secret Battle Of Jutland Plans Sold At Auction
Secret plans showing the designs for Royal Navy ships which fought in the First World War have come to light a century after the only major sea battle of the war, the Battle Of Jutland.
The detailed documents, showing the capital ships of the Grand Fleet, have been sold to the highest bidder at Bellmans auction house in Sussex.
The documents were found in a cardboard box by a couple who were clearing out an elderly relative's attic in Sussex.
The draughtsman's drawings would have been highly sensitive in the lead-up to the Battle of Jutland. There are calls for them to be saved for the nation as an important historical collection.
Former First Sea Lord, Admiral Lord West got a look at the designs before they went on sale. He commented on their importance:
"They have an importance particularly when one is looking at the battle cruiser that blew up and sank. There was lot of dispute about were they too lightly armoured?"All of those things are fascinating for deep naval historians and I would hope that some museum would get these because they are important artefacts if they are the only documents of that type that exist."
Archive image of HMS Invincible at the Battle of Jutland
The Battle of Jutland took the lives of more than 6,000 British personnel. More than 100,000 sailors and 250 ships were involved.
31st May will mark 100 years since the biggest naval confrontation of the First World War.
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