SS Iberian (1900)

SS Iberian was a British cargo steamship that was built in England in 1900 and sunk by a U-boat in 1915. Throughout her career she was owned and operated by Frederick Leyland & Co of Liverpool.

This was the second Leyland Line ship that was called Iberian. The first was completed in 1867 for Bibby Line, transferred to Leyland Line in 1873, and lost in 1885.

Building
Toward the end of the 1890s, Leyland & Co ordered two single-screw cargo ships from Sir James Laing & Sons of Sunderland. Yard number 576 was launched on 21 March 1900 as Iberian and completed that June. Yard number 579 was launched on 30 July as Belgian and completed that October. They were not sister ships: Iberian was 55 ft longer and had a beam 3.5 ft greater than Belgian. They were the only two ships that Laing ever built for Leyland.

Iberian's registered length was 437.0 ft, her beam was 48.8 ft, and her depth was 29.9 ft. Her tonnages were and. She had a three-cylinder triple-expansion engine that was built by John Dickinson and Sons of Monkwearmouth. It was rated at 470 NHP, and gave her a speed of 12 kn.

Leyland registered Iberian at Liverpool. Her UK official number was 113367 and her code letters were RQNM. By 1914 she was equipped for wireless telegraphy, supplied and operated by the Marconi Company. Her call sign was MHA.

Loss
Toward the end of July 1915 Iberian left Manchester, England for Boston, Massachusetts, laden with general cargo. On 30 July SMU U-28 (Germany) torpedoed her in the Southwestern Approaches about 9 nmi southwest of Fastnet Rock, Ireland. U-28s commander, Kapitänleutnant Freiherr Georg-Günther von Forstner, reported that the torpedo hit Iberians stern, and that she sank rapidly, stern-first, with her bow clear of the sea, and her hull almost vertical. Five of Iberian's crew were killed in the sinking. 62 abandoned ship in her lifeboats, but two of these also died, raising the total number killed to seven.

About 25 seconds after the ship had sunk, there was a powerful explosion, which was almost certainly her boilers exploding. The explosion threw débris from the ship about 80 ft above the surface of the sea. Forstner reported that as well as the débris, the explosion threw into the air a giant sea creature, about 60 ft long. It had four limbs with large webbed feet, a long, tapered head, and a long, tapered tail. The animal was visible for 10 to 15 seconds before disappearing below the surface.

Wreck
Iberian's wreck is at 51.25°N, -9.6°W, at a depth of about 104 m. It is in the territorial waters of the Republic of Ireland and protected by Irish law.