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Portsmouth Naval Memorial commemorates the 14,952 sailors who were killed during the Second World War.
The three manning ports in the UK – Chatham, Plymouth and Portsmouth – all have a naval memorial. All three are identical and haven unmistakably naval form, an obelisk, and serve as markers for ships.
On 15 October 1924, the memorial was unveiled as part of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) memorials to commemorate the 9,705 naval dead of the First World War with no known grave. After the Second World War ended, the CWGC extended the memorial to add the names of another 14,952. The extension was unveiled by Queen Mother Elisabeth on 29 April 1953.
One of the first mass casualties remembered on the memorial are the men of HM Submarine Oxley, which was torpedoed by HMS Triton in a friendly fire incident off the coast of Norway on 10 September 1939.
On the 24 May 1941, HMS Hood was sunk following a duel with the German Battleship ‘Bismarck’. Only 3 of the crew survived. The 1,383 who have no known grave and are commemorated on the memorial.
On 25 November 1941, 634 sailors died following the sinking of HMS Barham, which was attacked by a U331 and hit by three torpedoes.
Those who are named on the memorial have no known grave but the sea.