Report on WW1 warship sunk by U-boat sent to Royal Navy

HMS Hawke sank in 1914

A report on a Royal Navy wreck that was discovered off the Aberdeenshire coast during World War One has been submitted to the navy.

BBC Scotland News told last month how a team of divers found what they believed was HMS Hawke about 70 miles east of Fraserburgh in "remarkable" condition.

More than 500 of the ship's crew died after it was torpedoed by a German U-boat in October 1914.

The authors of a report sent to the Royal Navy have said they believe there is enough information to confirm it was indeed HMS Hawke.

The report will now be considered by the Royal Navy.

The ship caught fire and, following an explosion, sank in less than eight minutes.

Only 70 sailors survived.

A wreck was discovered on 11 August this year by the Lost in Waters Deep group - which searches for shipwrecks to remember wartime losses in Scottish waters.

'Final resting place'

The report to the Navy states: "Whilst there was no named evidence found (such as the ship’s bell or nameplate), the combination of research, features identified by the divers and side-scan sonar are conclusive enough for this wreck to be confirmed as HMS Hawke.

"The wreck is in the area of the last known position of HMS Hawke, it is close to the position marked on the U-boat chart.

"The wreck is clearly a WW1-era warship with features matching those of HMS Hawke, no other warships were lost in this area."

The report added: "The finding of HMS Hawke was the result many years of research and hard work by several civilian volunteers."