National Submariner's War Memorial

Walking along the Victoria Embankment you will discover many memorials on either side of the road. There are memorials to military servicemen and women, poets, writers, journalists, architects and more. One of the most prominent is the National Submariner's War Memorial.

Designed by the architect Arthur Heron Ryan Tenison and contains a bronze sculpture designed by Frederick Brook Hitch, which was cast by the Parlanti Foundry.

Chief of the Submarine Service, Rear Admiral Sir Hugh Sinclair, unveiled the memorial on December 15, 1922, which was then dedicated by Archdeacon Charles Ingles, the Chaplain of the Fleet.

The memorial is affixed into granite blocks, that were once part of the entrance to Temple Pier, and consists of the sculpture which contains the names of all the submarines lost by the Royal Navy in both world wars.

The main sculpture shows four sailors within a submarine, while other figures, representing the ocean, attempt to catch the submarine in a net. Below this is a depiction of a submarine at sea.

The left part of the sculpture has a figure of 'Truth', with a list of all submarines lost in World War I, while on the right a blindfolded figure of 'Justice' stands beside a list of submarines lost in World War II. This list was added in November 1959.

Either side of the main sculpture are twenty wreath-hooks (forty in total), in the shape of anchors.

In November 1992 another plaque was affixed to the memorial, marking almost seventy years of the memorials dedication.

In recent years another plaque was added, which contains a QR Code that allows you to access the 'Submarine Book of Remembrance'. This book contains a list of all submariners who have given their lives, in the Royal Navy, and contains their stories and the stories of their vessels.

On the Sunday preceding Remembrance Sunday this memorial becomes a focal point for the laying of wreaths, by submariners.

The memorial was funded by public subscription and was granted Grade II listed status, in 1972, which was upgraded to Grade II* listed in 2017.