US government buys Holland submarine

SUBMARINES were widely used for the first time during the Great War of 1914-1918 and they still form a vital part of the make-up of most navies. In the civilian world, they are used for scientific exploration, rescue missions, salvage and even underwater tourism. Recently, visits were made to the wreck of the Titanic and to the deepest parts of the Earth’s surface, the Marianna Trench in the Pacific Ocean.
The idea of submarines has been around for centuries. They were even used by both sides during the American Civil War but not actually in an active combat role Those early submarines were mainly impractical and the designs were soon abandoned. They usually depended on being towed by a surface ship or on human propulsion when underwater.
Liscannor native John Philip Holland was the first person to come up with a workable design for mechanically-powered submarines. His design were first adopted by the United States and he went on to design submarines for Japan, Russia and Great Britain.
The Holland family moved from Liscannor to Limerick, where the young man joined the Christian Brothers with whom he taught at various schools, including Cork. There he was influenced by a science teacher, Brother Burke. Leaving the brothers, he followed his mother and brothers to the United States and settled in Boston.
Two years later, in 1875, he submitted his first designs to the United States Navy but they were rejected. However, one of his brothers was a member of the Fenians and thus was born the idea of developing a submarine to attack British warships. They allocated $6,000 to the project.
The first demonstration, the Holland Number 1, was a complete disaster, with the submarine sinking as soon as it was launched. The problems were identified and Holland carried out a number of successful dives with his next prototype. The Fenian Ram, as the boat for the Fenians was called, was eventually launched in 1881.
He won a navy design competition in 1893 with the Holland V. He modified this and then in 1897 launched Holland VI, his first practical submarine. This was the first submarine capable of operating underwater for any considerable length of time and the first to use the combination of diesel or petrol engines for use on the surface, together with electric motors for use when submerged.
This Holland VI began sea trials and made its first dive in New York Harbour on St Patrick’s Day 1898. In spite of the publicity and strong recommendations, the government were still reluctant to buy. Eventually, after further alterations, they purchased the Holland VI for $150,000, although it had cost almost twice that much to manufacture.
When it was put into service, as the USS Holland, later that year it was the first submarine in the United States Navy. His previous involvement with the Fenian Brotherhood did not prevent him from selling his designs to Great Britain and the two submarines he built for Japan were possibly the first modern submarines used in warfare when they saw action against the Russian Navy.
The Holland VI, designed by Liscannor man John Philip Holland, the first practical modern submarine was purchased by the United States Government on April 11, 1900 – 112 years ago this week.

n Michael Torpey