Highlights

:01:39. > :01:38.applause for our guests. APPLAUSE.

:01:39. > :01:48.applause for our guests. Kent fired a 21-gun salute as the

:01:49. > :02:07.applause for our guests. Cemetery. And miles away out in the

:02:08. > :02:07.North Cemetery. And miles away out in the

:02:08. > :02:21.battle and its legacy on board a modern-day warship. More of

:02:22. > :02:21.battle and its legacy on board a Minister, David Cameron, and the

:02:22. > :02:38.First Minister and the bands played the National

:02:39. > :04:01.Anthems of Britain and On their way to the West Door of the

:04:02. > :04:05.Cathedral, they passed the display called Poppies: Weeping Window, a

:04:06. > :04:10.cascade of ceramic poppies from the display in London two years ago.

:04:11. > :04:14.From there, as they came to the West Door, they were welcomed by the

:04:15. > :04:21.Chief of Staff of the German Navy, the First Sea Lord was there, and

:04:22. > :04:25.the Minister, Fraser MacNaughton. Later, we will join the service that

:04:26. > :04:29.took place here this morning, but before we do, a reminder of what it

:04:30. > :04:35.is that's being commemorated and what happened 100 years ago in the

:04:36. > :04:39.bleak emptiness of the North Sea. For Britain, this Battle of Jutland

:04:40. > :04:45.was important, very important, probably the most important sea

:04:46. > :04:48.battle since Trafalgar in 1805. We relied on the Royal Navy, not only

:04:49. > :04:52.to defend us from invasion, but to protect our trade and vital supply

:04:53. > :05:01.lines and any threat to our command of the sea was a threat to both the

:05:02. > :05:06.nation and the Empire. So when in the late 19th Century a fleet of

:05:07. > :05:11.battleships was built to challenge Britain's supremacy, a day of

:05:12. > :05:20.reckoning, known as Der Tag, was inevitable. Sam Willis, a naval

:05:21. > :05:26.historian, whose great-grandfather and great-great-grandfather fought

:05:27. > :05:29.in that battle, he explores what happened on that day.

:05:30. > :05:31.It's impossible for us to imagine the sheer firepower and scale

:05:32. > :05:34.of some of the battleships in the British Grand Fleet.

:05:35. > :05:36.The closest equivalent in the Royal Navy today

:05:37. > :05:45.This is HMS Diamond, a Type 45 destroyer,

:05:46. > :05:48.the very cutting edge of modern naval technology as were so many

:05:49. > :05:57.Commander Marcus Hember is HMS Diamond's captain.

:05:58. > :06:01.Well, HMS Diamond's primary role is air defence of a task group

:06:02. > :06:04.of ships and that's what most of our systems are focused around

:06:05. > :06:06.so we like to say we can track a cricket ball at Mach-3 and shoot

:06:07. > :06:10.it down and that's actually not far from the truth.

:06:11. > :06:12.And am I right in thinking you actually have a particularly

:06:13. > :06:15.direct link back to 1916 and the Battle of Jutland?

:06:16. > :06:18.That's right, my mother's father William Crosby served in HMS

:06:19. > :06:20.Yarmouth during the Battle of Jutland and actually ever

:06:21. > :06:23.since I first went to sea I've had a photograph of him with me.

:06:24. > :06:28.Sir, ship's on station ready for call for fire.

:06:29. > :06:31.The closest modern equivalent to the guns at Jutland is Diamond's

:06:32. > :06:38.4.5 MOD1 gun, used to support troops landing on shore.

:06:39. > :06:40.It's so powerful and deafening, I have to wear full

:06:41. > :06:49.protective gear to experience it from the gun deck.

:06:50. > :07:05.That's an extraordinary physical experience watching that gun fire.

:07:06. > :07:08.I'm very relieved I've got all of this kit on.

:07:09. > :07:15.In 1916 in the fleet there were 150 ships and some of their guns

:07:16. > :07:26.The Battle of Jutland began in the afternoon of the

:07:27. > :07:33.The day before, the British received intelligence that German ships

:07:34. > :07:37.were planning to move out into the North Sea.

:07:38. > :07:40.The British had the Grand Fleet commanded by Admiral Sir John

:07:41. > :07:46.Jellicoe anchored at Scapa Flow, and a squadron of fast ships

:07:47. > :07:52.commanded by Vice-Admiral Sir David Beatty stationed at Rosyth.

:07:53. > :07:55.The Germans had the High Seas Fleet under Admiral Scheer with a division

:07:56. > :07:59.of scouting ships under Vice-Admiral Hipper.

:08:00. > :08:02.The German plan was to engage Beatty and lure him south

:08:03. > :08:08.Once Beatty's force had been defeated the Germans

:08:09. > :08:13.could concentrate their attack on Admiral Jellicoe's ships.

:08:14. > :08:19.At 2.18pm on 31st May HMS Galatea sighted German ships

:08:20. > :08:28.and fired the first shot of the Battle of Jutland.

:08:29. > :08:30.The result was a clash between the most powerful

:08:31. > :08:36.As they turned their guns on each other, the smoke and explosions made

:08:37. > :08:43.visibility almost impossible, leading to chaos and confusion.

:08:44. > :08:45.For the sailors at Jutland it would have been hard enough finding

:08:46. > :08:48.out what was happening on their own ship let alone

:08:49. > :08:52.what was happening elsewhere in the fleet.

:08:53. > :08:54.There would have been an atmosphere of extreme fear as they awaited

:08:55. > :08:58.the enemy attack - this really was the maritime equivalent

:08:59. > :09:05.To steal an advantage over their enemy British sailors

:09:06. > :09:09.took dangerous risks - they kept their magazine doors open

:09:10. > :09:14.to allow them to reload their guns more quickly.

:09:15. > :09:17.The effects were catastrophic, allowing flash fires

:09:18. > :09:22.and explosions to rip through their ships.

:09:23. > :09:26.At 4.02pm, two German salvoes struck HMS Indefatigable.

:09:27. > :09:44.23 minutes later, HMS Queen Mary blew apart under German fire.

:09:45. > :09:47.It took her just ninety seconds to sink.

:09:48. > :10:08.Over half of the British casualties at the Battle of Jutland

:10:09. > :10:17.The injuries sustained at Jutland were appalling.

:10:18. > :10:22.Flash fires in the magazines exposed men to horrific cordite burns.

:10:23. > :10:29.Sailors were scalded by burst steam pipes which took off their flesh.

:10:30. > :10:32.As the battle progressed, the Germans continued

:10:33. > :10:38.But Beatty realised he was sailing into a trap when he spotted

:10:39. > :10:42.the German High Seas Fleet waiting for him.

:10:43. > :10:45.Playing the Germans at their own game, Beatty turned north to draw

:10:46. > :10:50.them back towards Jellicoe and the Grand Fleet.

:10:51. > :10:54.He organized his ships into a classic tactical move

:10:55. > :11:00.This allowed his battleships to bring all their guns

:11:01. > :11:06.Admiral Scheer now found himself up against the entire

:11:07. > :11:12.Over the next half an hour an intense firefight raged.

:11:13. > :11:15.To protect his retreat, he sent his ships in to fire

:11:16. > :11:22.Faced with a torpedo attack, Jellicoe chose not to chase

:11:23. > :11:28.after the retreating German fleet and risk losing more British ships.

:11:29. > :11:31.The Battle of Jutland was the defining naval conflict

:11:32. > :11:37.The last of the great fleet battles fought by surface ships.

:11:38. > :11:41.In the end, it turned out to be a strategic victory for the British

:11:42. > :11:45.although the Germans did launch further attacks, they never again

:11:46. > :11:48.attempted to challenge the British for dominance of the North Sea

:11:49. > :11:54.but turned their attention instead to submarine warfare.

:11:55. > :11:57.The courage and sacrifice of thousands of sailors

:11:58. > :12:00.should not be forgotten, those men who served bravely on some

:12:01. > :12:04.of the greatest ships on earth and were lost

:12:05. > :12:18.Sam, you described the horrors of that battle very vividly. It seems

:12:19. > :12:22.to me that one of the things that gets forgotten is that for most of

:12:23. > :12:26.the time, in the kind of fog of the North Sea, people didn't know where

:12:27. > :12:34.the German Navy was, where their ships were. It was very confusing to

:12:35. > :12:38.fight, is that right? It was very confusing and the signalling

:12:39. > :12:42.techniques were very primitive. So not only can you not see the

:12:43. > :12:46.entirety of your own fleet, because it stretches over so many miles of

:12:47. > :12:50.sea, but you can't get much of a sense of what was happening with the

:12:51. > :12:56.enemy and then it is very difficult to translate messages up-and-down

:12:57. > :13:00.the line. What was the reaction here in Scapa and the rest of Britain

:13:01. > :13:04.when the battle was over? Everyone was horrified. The country went

:13:05. > :13:08.through some sort of post-traumatic stress. An enormous amount of shock,

:13:09. > :13:13.uncertainty, people were looking around trying to find an explanation

:13:14. > :13:16.for what had happened because 6,000 British sailors died. That was

:13:17. > :13:22.unprecedented in British Naval history. They didn't know how to

:13:23. > :13:27.deal with it. What did they expect? An outright victory, like Trafalgar?

:13:28. > :13:33.On the one hand, they expected to win. And on the other, they expected

:13:34. > :13:37.the impact of that victory to be change the war. But neither of those

:13:38. > :13:41.things happened. That was the problem that they faced. It was

:13:42. > :13:46.built up after generations and generations, over a century of

:13:47. > :13:49.British Naval success. It wasn't just Trafalgar. That happened after

:13:50. > :13:57.25 years of sustained success against a whole variety of enemies -

:13:58. > :14:05.the French, the Spanish, the Dutch, the Danes. Winston Churchill, who

:14:06. > :14:08.wasn't at the Admiralty at the time, he said Jellicoe could have lost a

:14:09. > :14:12.war in an afternoon, a famous quotation. He didn't lose the Great

:14:13. > :14:24.War in an afternoon. He didn't win it. He didn't win the war at sea.

:14:25. > :14:29.Was he - is he rightly criticised, he and Beatty? It seems wrong to

:14:30. > :14:31.talk about these things when we are commemorating 6,000 people dead, but

:14:32. > :14:35.it is part of the controversy of the battle?

:14:36. > :14:42.There is a big controversy about the battle, but that is because Britain

:14:43. > :14:45.has so much invested in the sea. There have been controversies over

:14:46. > :14:49.all great British battles, even great victories. But the controversy

:14:50. > :14:54.here was that so many sailors died and so many ships had been sunk. The

:14:55. > :14:57.basic point is that Jellicoe's point was to maintain British superiority

:14:58. > :15:02.in the North Sea and he did that. He did his job. He had to be cautious

:15:03. > :15:08.to do so and he did not risk his feet, but he maintained that

:15:09. > :15:12.superiority and that allowed us to continue blockading Germany. They

:15:13. > :15:16.were wrong, briefly, to boo the ships when they came back to

:15:17. > :15:19.harbour, as was reported? Absolutely, but considering the

:15:20. > :15:24.scale of the impact and the amount of sailors that had died, everybody

:15:25. > :15:29.was heavily invested in the Navy, they would have known that the

:15:30. > :15:35.ships, and suddenly had not tweet 14 not coming back. Let's leave aside

:15:36. > :15:42.the controversies and the historical arguments, this morning's service in

:15:43. > :15:46.St Magnus Cathedral was to honour the courage and sacrifice of sailors

:15:47. > :16:09.on both sides who fought and died in that battle.

:16:10. > :16:18.As the navel him Eternal Father Strong To Save was some, the flags

:16:19. > :16:20.of Britain and Germany were processed down the aisle to be

:16:21. > :17:35.placed on the altar for the service. Oh, hear us when we cry to Thee,

:17:36. > :17:53.For those in peril on the sea! The Chaplain of the Fleet, Venerable

:17:54. > :18:00.Ian Wheatley, begins the account the Battle of Jutland, that will go

:18:01. > :18:05.throughout this service. The Grand Fleet is moved to Orkney in 1914 and

:18:06. > :18:10.it was a huge operation and had a significant affect on the local

:18:11. > :18:14.economy and infrastructure. The scale of activity and the unusual

:18:15. > :18:20.sites could be a novelty to local people. Kirkwall resident and

:18:21. > :18:28.picture frame Margaret Tait recorded this in her diary, as recounted by

:18:29. > :18:35.her descendant, Ellie Sinclair. 24th of October, 1914. Orkney under

:18:36. > :18:40.martial law. All of the Windows have to be darkened at night. All of

:18:41. > :18:43.those facing the sea at Kirkwall. Nobody is allowed along the seafront

:18:44. > :18:47.after dark. This rule is often broken.

:18:48. > :18:50.The streets are very poorly lighted up and as for the lanes and back

:18:51. > :18:57.As a result of all this darkness there's no comfort

:18:58. > :19:13.Now a narrative dialogue of the experiences at Jutland, a dialogue

:19:14. > :19:20.between two nations. Anticipation for a decisive naval battle was high

:19:21. > :19:23.on both sides. After months of relatively small-scale actions,

:19:24. > :19:29.sailors hoped that a real trial of naval power was upon them.

:19:30. > :19:35.Midshipman crew marvel at the sight of the Grand Fleet leaving the Scapa

:19:36. > :19:41.Flow Anchorage. The grey monsters wheeled in succession around us and

:19:42. > :19:45.followed out to sea with the precision and majesty that marks the

:19:46. > :19:51.departure to see of a perfectly trained fleet. A more powerful

:19:52. > :19:54.exhibition of majestic strength and efficiency, devised solely for the

:19:55. > :19:58.utter destruction of the enemy, it would be hard to imagine. I was part

:19:59. > :20:14.of this huge machine and firmly convinced that the machine was

:20:15. > :20:22.convinced -- invulnerable. I was engaged with a desire to engage with

:20:23. > :20:34.a battle cruiser worthy of her. Day and night, the thought never left

:20:35. > :20:39.me. I pictured how the fight became faster and more furious, and how we

:20:40. > :20:41.struggled like two mighty warriors who both know well enough that only

:20:42. > :20:56.one of us will survive. The sense of apprehension was

:20:57. > :21:01.replaced by the implimentation of the hours of practice and drills

:21:02. > :21:16.which had prepared each man for the commencement of battle.

:21:17. > :21:25.What kind of a strange sound was this? Crash, the sound reverberated.

:21:26. > :21:35.The death cry of an English shells. I fell down on the deck

:21:36. > :21:37.and listened. I noticed that the floor vibrated

:21:38. > :21:39.slowly and sang at each crash. It was loud or quiet,

:21:40. > :21:42.depending on the distance The engines shook like

:21:43. > :21:45.a machine gun. Deep in our hearts we were

:21:46. > :22:02.all afraid and tried Leading signalman Charles Farmer was

:22:03. > :22:11.working aloft when an explosion claimed HMS Indefatigable. He was

:22:12. > :22:16.one of only two survivors from a ship's company of 1019. There was a

:22:17. > :22:23.terrific explosion aboard the ship. The magazines went. I saw the guns

:22:24. > :22:28.go on the air, just like matchsticks. 12 inch guns, they were

:22:29. > :22:32.forced up bodies and everything. Within half a minute the ship turned

:22:33. > :22:41.over and she was gone. I was 180 foot up and I was thrown

:22:42. > :23:10.well clear of the ship, otherwise The choir are going to sing Sunset,

:23:11. > :23:42.Sunset, originally composed by the bandmaster aboard HMS Hercules.

:23:43. > :24:25.# We often think of those we love

:24:26. > :24:37.# And all of those who've gone before,

:24:38. > :26:12.The awful reality of a full-scale sea battle was soon realised by

:26:13. > :26:23.those that survived. The Chapel of the battleship HMS Akax reflected

:26:24. > :26:26.the thoughts of many. So many men and a jovial comrades gone, men to

:26:27. > :26:33.whom we had been talking only a few days before, when we went aboard

:26:34. > :26:36.their ships, or they visited us, old shipmates, old station mates, men

:26:37. > :26:43.who had polled in boat races against our men, partners at golf, people in

:26:44. > :26:47.the same term at Osborne or the Britannia, men of the saner loves

:26:48. > :26:52.and hatreds of ourselves. This same tastes and ways, the same weaknesses

:26:53. > :26:53.and joys in living. What had we done that they should be taken and we

:26:54. > :27:24.left. # Bless the Lord, my soul,

:27:25. > :27:27.and bless his holy name. # Bless the Lord, my soul, he

:27:28. > :27:30.rescues me from death. # We light this Candle

:27:31. > :27:33.in Remembrance and Hope, to call to mind Magnus and Rognvald,

:27:34. > :27:36.and all the saints, all those dear to us

:27:37. > :27:40.who have gone before, and today, all those who made

:27:41. > :27:44.the ultimate sacrifice in the Naval And as a sign of hope to future

:27:45. > :27:55.generations, as yet unborn. Jesus said, "I am the Light

:27:56. > :27:59.of the World. Whoever follows me shall

:28:00. > :28:03.not walk in darkness # For a just and equal sharing

:28:04. > :28:52.of the things that earth affords. # To a life of love in action help

:28:53. > :29:22.us rise and pledge our word. # You, Creator God, have written

:29:23. > :29:31.your great name on humankind; # For our growing in your likeness

:29:32. > :29:44.bring the life of Christ to mind; The Father, the Son, the Holy

:29:45. > :30:52.Spirit, amen. If you want to see the whole of that

:30:53. > :30:57.very moving service, it is available on BBC iPlayer. But now let's join

:30:58. > :31:01.Aasmah Mir, who is up behind me at the Altar with two people who took

:31:02. > :31:12.part in the service. Yes, that's right. With me I have

:31:13. > :31:18.Ellie Sinclair, descendant of Margaret Tait. How did it feel today

:31:19. > :31:24.to read out her words in this very building? I felt honoured. She wrote

:31:25. > :31:28.those words 100 years ago and now they have been spoken here. That is

:31:29. > :31:32.special. How do you feel about perhaps representing the people of

:31:33. > :31:36.Orkney in 2016? It is quite a responsibility, isn't it? Again, I

:31:37. > :31:40.feel honoured. Events like this, important events like this, don't

:31:41. > :31:42.happen in Orkney that much. I just think having the Orcadian

:31:43. > :31:47.perspective put across is important. We heard about the impact that the

:31:48. > :31:51.Battle of Jutland had on the inhabitants of Orkney 100 years ago.

:31:52. > :31:55.What is the impact 100 years later? It brings people together and it

:31:56. > :32:01.makes you think and again I think it is important. Commander Mark Barton,

:32:02. > :32:07.you read alongside a German naval officer. Both the officers we saw in

:32:08. > :32:10.that video have left and are on their way back to Germany now. How

:32:11. > :32:13.important would you say the relationship between the two

:32:14. > :32:18.countries is today because it is so different to what it was 100 years

:32:19. > :32:22.ago? As you can see from the readings that we had, the

:32:23. > :32:27.experiences in the battle were very similar. The Germans are a

:32:28. > :32:32.highly-professional Navy, just like us. It is always good to work

:32:33. > :32:35.together. It was good to be back in their company again. How would you

:32:36. > :32:40.characterise the relationship between the two countries today? As

:32:41. > :32:44.a Navy, it is very positive. We work very well together. We train

:32:45. > :32:47.together. We work together. In terms of the reading that you gave

:32:48. > :32:53.together, it was incredibly moving, how did it feel to be delivering

:32:54. > :32:57.those words today? It was a real honour and privilege. It is very

:32:58. > :33:01.important to commemorate both the 8,500 German and British sailors who

:33:02. > :33:09.died in the battle, but it is also very important to remember that it

:33:10. > :33:14.was such a pivotal action in World War One, enabling us to bring an end

:33:15. > :33:20.to the war. Do you think by reading people's actual words, how much life

:33:21. > :33:25.does it give to what went on and the lives that were lost 100 years ago?

:33:26. > :33:40.It gives a huge insight. It is important to remember we tend to

:33:41. > :33:46.look and they were things that were not in their common understanding.

:33:47. > :33:50.Thank you both very much. So, the second part of the

:33:51. > :33:54.commemorations came this afternoon when the Princess Royal and the

:33:55. > :33:59.German President left Kirkwall for the island of Hoy and there, on the

:34:00. > :34:07.southern shores of Scapa Flow, a service was held in the Royal Naval

:34:08. > :34:13.Cemetery at Lyness. As they approached, the Type-23

:34:14. > :34:30.frigate HMS Kent fired a 21-gun salute.

:34:31. > :34:35.21-GUN SALUTE Kent's guns were fired at the start

:34:36. > :34:44.of the service to mark the beginning of the silence.

:34:45. > :37:41.They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old. Age shall not

:37:42. > :37:49.weary them, nor the years condemn. At the going down of the sun, and in

:37:50. > :37:55.the morning, we will remember them. We will remember them.

:37:56. > :38:01.After the silence, wreaths were laid by the German President and the

:38:02. > :38:24.Princess Royal. After them, by Vice-Admiral Sir

:38:25. > :39:08.Timothy Laurence and the Prime Minister, David Cameron.

:39:09. > :39:15.The ship's bell from a light cruiser that fought at Jutland was rung at

:39:16. > :39:45.the very moment the first opening salvoes were fired in the battle.

:39:46. > :40:04.# O God our help in ages past, # Our hope for years to come... #

:40:05. > :40:11.hash When it was built, round it was wrapped a white Ensign from HMS

:40:12. > :40:16.Revenge, the actual Ensign that was hoisted during the Battle of

:40:17. > :40:20.Jutland, when ships going into battle hoisted everything they had,

:40:21. > :40:25.every flag they could so they could be seen by each other through the

:40:26. > :40:30.fog and mist and confusion of battle. This is the actual Ensign

:40:31. > :40:51.flown by HMS Revenge. Let us pray. Almighty and eternal

:40:52. > :40:59.God, from whose love in Christ we cannot be parted, either by death or

:41:00. > :41:03.life, hear our prayers and Thanksgivings for those companions

:41:04. > :41:09.of our way whose lives were given at the Battle of Jutland. Fulfil in

:41:10. > :41:15.them the purpose of your love and bring us all with them to your

:41:16. > :41:31.eternal joy through Jesus Christ, our Lord, amen. Amen. What shall we

:41:32. > :41:38.say to these things if God be for us who can be against us? How shall he

:41:39. > :41:50.not with him also freely give us all things? For I am persuaded but

:41:51. > :41:54.neither death nor life nor angels nor principalities, nor things past,

:41:55. > :41:59.nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any

:42:00. > :42:02.other creature shall be able to separate us from the love of God

:42:03. > :43:51.which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. # Vow to thee, my country

:43:52. > :43:56.# All earthly things above # Entire and whole and perfect

:43:57. > :44:00.# The service of my love # The love that asks no questions

:44:01. > :44:07.# The love that stands the test # That lays upon the Altar

:44:08. > :44:15.# The dearest and the best # The love that never falters

:44:16. > :44:18.# The love that pays the price # The love that makes undaunted

:44:19. > :44:37.# The final sacrifice. May God give you his comfort and his

:44:38. > :44:46.piece, his light and his joy, in this world and the next. The

:44:47. > :44:54.blessing of God Almighty, the Father, the son and the holy spirit,

:44:55. > :45:04.come down upon you this day and for evermore. Amen. With me are two

:45:05. > :45:27.young men who attended that ceremony, I go -- Ivo Beatty, what

:45:28. > :45:30.would you say was the best part of today? Being invited was an honour,

:45:31. > :45:34.the first-hand reports of the action, it gives you more of a view

:45:35. > :45:40.into something that is not very understandable from our perspective.

:45:41. > :45:45.It felt very atmospheric, with the weather, the wind blowing and

:45:46. > :45:50.everything going on, how did it feel to you? It was amazing, especially

:45:51. > :45:58.in that location, with such history behind it. It was extraordinary.

:45:59. > :46:01.Josef, the great-grandson of Admiral John Jellicoe, what does it feel

:46:02. > :46:07.like to have such a strong connection to what happened 100

:46:08. > :46:11.years ago? I feel really proud about what my ancestors did, not just

:46:12. > :46:16.because I have the Jellicoe side, but my father's side, my great,

:46:17. > :46:23.great uncle, Bobby Percy, who died on The Queen Mary, after he survived

:46:24. > :46:29.the initial explosion, but he lost his life when he gave his life

:46:30. > :46:37.jacket to another sailor. So, a very strong connection. We saw you giving

:46:38. > :46:44.that reading at Lyness, how were you feeling? Terrified! But once it was

:46:45. > :46:51.done, I felt it was an honour to be able to say that. Absolutely. Ivo,

:46:52. > :46:58.Joseph is 15, you are 17, how many 17-year-olds do you think no as much

:46:59. > :47:07.about what went on 100 years ago? I think very few know enough of the

:47:08. > :47:11.importance of the battle. People know the name, but not what actually

:47:12. > :47:17.happened, and the significance of what happened. Do you ever feel a

:47:18. > :47:26.responsibility to tell people? I do, slightly, yes. Great for remembering

:47:27. > :47:38.it and heightening awareness of it. Thank you to either Beatty and

:47:39. > :47:42.Joseph Herber Percy will stop during the First World War, the whole of

:47:43. > :47:46.the island of Ireland was part of the United Kingdom.

:47:47. > :47:49.Over 200,000 Irishmen served in British forces, many in the Royal

:47:50. > :47:55.Navy. The commemoration for those sailors, including 350 killed in

:47:56. > :47:58.Jutland, was held in Belfast today. Significantly, it took place on

:47:59. > :48:02.board the last surviving ship from the Battle of Jutland, the light

:48:03. > :48:13.cruiser HMS Caroline. It is very important. Sailors the

:48:14. > :48:18.world over like to get together. This occasion, commemorating those

:48:19. > :48:22.who lost their lives at sea during the First World War, it is a very

:48:23. > :48:27.important occasion to have the two navvies here together. It is a huge

:48:28. > :48:30.day, in 1916 island was not partitioned, we were one nation at

:48:31. > :48:35.that point. Many thousands of Irishmen served at sea, including

:48:36. > :48:39.the merchant, Marines, the fishermen. The community involvement

:48:40. > :48:41.with the sea has been huge for hundreds of years. It is a massive

:48:42. > :49:26.day for all of us. I suspect one of the most poignant

:49:27. > :49:30.moments in today's commemorations for most people may be something

:49:31. > :49:34.that took place at sea over 300 nautical miles south-east of the

:49:35. > :49:40.Orkney Islands. Out there, over the wrecks of British and German ships,

:49:41. > :49:48.their modern day counterparts, HMS Duncan and the FGS Brandenburg, held

:49:49. > :49:53.a service where sailors from both navies scattered flowers onto the

:49:54. > :50:05.sea were so many men lost their lives.

:50:06. > :50:16.Abril Jellicoe's Union Jack and the White Ensign, the actual flags that

:50:17. > :50:22.were hoisted at Jutland, hoisted at HMS Duncan, before the poppies and

:50:23. > :50:53.the forget-me-nots were thrown into the sea.

:50:54. > :51:03.We are coming to the end of this hour. I am joined by Sam Willis and

:51:04. > :51:10.Tom Muir, historian in Orkney. Tom, can I start with you? I have been

:51:11. > :51:13.out on Scapa Flow, I have seen Orkney almost deserted landscape.

:51:14. > :51:17.What was it like when this entire Grand Fleet was stationed here in

:51:18. > :51:21.the run-up to Jutland? What effect did it have? It was like dropping a

:51:22. > :51:27.town into the middle of the islands, really. There were so many people on

:51:28. > :51:35.the ships. They all needed to be fed, they needed water. It's just

:51:36. > :51:40.completely changed the whole island, totally. Had it been a depressed

:51:41. > :51:46.place before this happened? There was a decline in agriculture, due to

:51:47. > :51:51.foreign imports of beef, made possible by refrigerator ships. The

:51:52. > :51:55.economy was in decline. And then, suddenly, there is a huge number of

:51:56. > :52:01.people that need to be fed as well. So, you know, to try to get as much

:52:02. > :52:07.food as possible, locally sourced, so you did not have to bring it in a

:52:08. > :52:13.huge distance. How close did the people become to these thousands of

:52:14. > :52:17.sailors suddenly, presumably, coming ashore, needing recreation? Very

:52:18. > :52:23.close, I know the grandson of one of them. There were love affairs,

:52:24. > :52:28.marriages. I am not sure how much they would have been able to

:52:29. > :52:35.socialise. The general feeling was that they got on extremely well. The

:52:36. > :52:43.only punch-ups you hear about where between sailors, and not sailors and

:52:44. > :52:48.Orcadians. Is there any sense of what it was like to be onshore, when

:52:49. > :52:54.they sailed, on May 30, when they set off for the North Sea? There are

:52:55. > :52:59.some accounts saying the fleet sailing was such a massive

:53:00. > :53:06.undertaking, it must have taken a very long time to sail out in the

:53:07. > :53:14.different divisions. But there was a story from one person who was busy

:53:15. > :53:19.making coffins for the aftermath of the battle, from the Royal Navy. So

:53:20. > :53:24.they were expecting casualties. Most of them buried at sea, but some of

:53:25. > :53:31.them were buried at the Naval Cemetery at Lyness as well. Your

:53:32. > :53:42.grandfather and great, great grandfather served, one of them

:53:43. > :53:49.aboard HMS Calliope, whose bell we heard sounded. What do you know

:53:50. > :53:53.about them? The one that served on Calliope Row won the Conspicuous

:53:54. > :53:57.Gallantry Medal. It is a powerful, personal reminder that the past is

:53:58. > :54:06.not a foreign country inhabited by unknown faces, but by real

:54:07. > :54:10.relatives. They are waiting to be discovered and hoping to be

:54:11. > :54:13.understood. Talking to people in this congregation, exactly that,

:54:14. > :54:17.people seem to have been spurred on by each other to find out what

:54:18. > :54:22.happened. Have you found that here, that people are rediscovering the

:54:23. > :54:31.memories of it, as the 100 year anniversary is coming up? Yes, very

:54:32. > :54:35.much so. Most of the Orcadians were in the Naval reserve. They already

:54:36. > :54:44.have a knowledge of the sea and how to use boats. They tended to be on

:54:45. > :54:49.mine sweepers, ring fence nets and drifters. You made the film, but

:54:50. > :54:54.what is the impact of the commemoration? What has the impact

:54:55. > :54:59.been on you, in terms of what was made of the Battle of Jutland, the

:55:00. > :55:03.reaction to it? I had a great deal of pleasure in seeing the engagement

:55:04. > :55:07.from so many different parts of society, people from all walks of

:55:08. > :55:10.life, young and old, being once again engaged in the Battle of

:55:11. > :55:14.Jutland. It has always been an important part of our family and

:55:15. > :55:18.family history. To see that being shared and understood is very

:55:19. > :55:23.rewarding. Thank you very much. Well, that pretty much ends this

:55:24. > :55:28.look back at the commemorations of the Battle of Jutland, that took

:55:29. > :55:34.place today, the 100th anniversary. An extraordinary struggle between

:55:35. > :55:42.two great navies. Whatever your view, and experts have different

:55:43. > :55:46.views on the battle itself, the German- it never took to see again.

:55:47. > :55:47.We leave you with the words of some of those who fought on that day 100

:55:48. > :55:55.years ago today. I had never seen so many ships

:55:56. > :55:58.in one area of my life before. You could see the flashes

:55:59. > :56:01.of the guns, and the noise. The whole thing was like 100

:56:02. > :56:03.thunderstorms running into one The ship turned right over,

:56:04. > :56:08.it threw me into the water. Luckily I was at the top

:56:09. > :56:11.of the mast, otherwise I was swimming about,

:56:12. > :56:19.practically unconscious. I came to the top of the water,

:56:20. > :56:25.and about half an hour afterwards, If they had seen me they would have

:56:26. > :56:37.probably shot at me. You are not allowed

:56:38. > :56:43.to pick up survivors. The first thing that happened of any

:56:44. > :56:47.incident was the Queen Mary, A few men jumped off

:56:48. > :57:07.the stern into the water. Outstanding sight I saw

:57:08. > :57:21.was when the Invincible went down, she blew up with a vast

:57:22. > :57:24.explosion and went down Hundreds of men

:57:25. > :57:33.struggling in the water. We steamed through the spot,

:57:34. > :57:36.and as we did so, the smell of cordite and the gas

:57:37. > :57:42.from the shells, and burning bodies. I wouldn't say frightened,

:57:43. > :57:47.but it was the only time I felt really bad and I had a nasty feeling

:57:48. > :57:51.in the pit of my stomach.