Archaeological remains associated with the loss of this vessel are not confirmed as present at this location, but may be in the vicinity.

Event and Historical Information:
The PAROS (ex-RICHMOND CASTLE) was a steel hulled steamship built in 1898 by W Pickersgill & Sons, Sunderland. Technical and configuration specifications are given as 3576gt, 2298nt; 350ft length x 46ft breadth x 17ft height; single deck; 6 bulkheads; poop deck 31ft; boat deck 102ft; forecastle 33ft; Screw propulsion linked to 3cyl triple expansion engine producing 314 horsepower; machinery by G. Clark Ltd., Sunderland. At time of loss the PAROS was registered at London and had been requisitioned by the Admiralty. It was being operated by Turner, Brightman & Co, London. On 17 August 1915, the vessel was carrying wheat from Karachi to Manchester when it was torpedoed by German submarine U-38. The loss location is given as 30 miles north-northwest of Bardsey Island. The PAROS was amongst 10 vessels sunk on 17 August by U38. The U-boat had begun its patrol in April in the North Sea, passing north around Scotland to then come south to cruise between southern Ireland and Ushant, France. This patrol accounted for 5 trawlers, 3 sailing vessels and 22 merchant ships. Max Valentiner and U38 go on to be amongst the five most successful commanders and German submarines of the Great War.

Sources include:

Great War at Sea: The QUEEN sunk 17 August 1915, People's Collection Wales
HMSO, 1988, British Vessels Lost at Sea 1914-18 and 1939-45, p.9
Koerver, H J, (ed), 2012, German Submarine Warfare 1914-18 in the eyes of British Intelligence, p.175
Larn and Larn Shipwreck Database 2002
Lloyd's Register Casualty Returns, 1 July - 30 September 1915, p.9 (i)
Lloyd's Register of British and Foreign Shipping, 1 July 1915- 30 June 1916, number 176 in P
Paros, uboat.net
Tennant, A J, 1990, British Merchant Ships Sunk by U-Boats in the 1914-1918 War, p.224
U-Boat Project: Commemorating the War at Sea

Maritime Officer, RCAHMW, February 2019.

This record was enhanced in 2020 with funding from Lloyd's Register Foundation as part of the project ‘Making the Link: Lloyd's Register and the National Monuments Record of Wales’. Visit Lloyd’s Register Foundation Heritage and Education Centre for more resources.