Worthing honours HMS Hood sailors on 85th anniversary of wartime tragedy

A remembrance service was held at the war memorial outside Worthing Town Hall to mark the 85th anniversary of the disaster, which saw the Royal Navy battlecruiser sunk during the Battle of the Denmark Strait on May 24, 1941.

Organised by the Royal Naval Association and attended by members of the Veterans Association, the ceremony included wreath-laying and tributes to the men from Worthing who died aboard the ship.

The new town mayor, Lysanne Skinner, said she was ‘honoured’ to be invited to take part in the service.

In a Facebook post after the event, she said: “I was honoured to be asked to lay a wreath in remembrance of the 13 men from Worthing who lost their lives when HMS Hood sank during WWII on this day in 1941.

“Today marks the 85th anniversary of the tragedy. Organised by the Worthing branch of the Royal Naval Association and attended by members of the Veterans Association, it was also an honour to meet the relatives and descendants of some of the brave men who lost their lives.

“We will remember them.”

At the time of her sinking, HMS Hood was the Royal Navy’s largest battlecruiser.

Worthing Borough Council explained, before the memorial service: “During the Second World War, she engaged German warships in the Battle of the Denmark Strait.

“On the morning of May 24th 1941, the Hood was struck by enemy shells that penetrated her armour and detonated around 100 tonnes of ammunition. The resulting explosion was catastrophic – the ship broke apart and sank in less than three minutes. Of the more than 1,400 men on board, only three survived.

“This Sunday, the Mayor of Worthing, Councillor Lysanne Skinner, will join veterans and members of the public to remember the 13 Worthing men who lost their lives that morning.

“The remembrance service will take place from 11am at Worthing War Memorial, outside Worthing Town Hall, where commemorative wreaths will be laid.

“Thank you to the Worthing Branch of the Royal Naval Association for organising this important tribute.”

The 13 men from Worthing who lost their lives were remembered by name during the service:

– Cyril Austin Cox, Stoker 1st Class, aged 24;

– Victor George Garman, Leading Stoker, aged 29;

– Roy Frederick Knight, Midshipman, aged 18;

– Percy Christopher Boylett Long, Boy 1st Class;

– William Francis Puttick, Stoker 1st Class, aged 20;

– Reginald Thomas Rose, Stoker 1st Class, aged 20;

– Henry Wells, Stoker 2nd Class, aged 31;

– George Herbert Knight Carn, Chief Yeoman of Signals;

– Norman Jeffs, Stoker 1st Class;

– Thomas George Martin, Stoker 1st Class;

– Stanley George Parton, Stoker 1st Class;

– Anthony Charles Rumney Robins, Sub-Lieutenant;

– John Henry Smith, Regulating Petty Officer