Mystery of UK’s ‘graveyard of ships’ the Manacles home to decaying shells of 1,000 vessels whose demise is unexplained
Various theories were put forward as to why one cruise ship fell foul of the rocks
BRITAIN’S “graveyard of ships” is home to the decaying shells of a thousand vessels.
The Manacles are a set of treacherous rocks in Falmouth Bay, Cornwall, renowned for its shipwrecks.
The fatal shore off the Lizard Peninsula has claimed countless lives with numerous ships sinking there over the years.
And the rugged coastline is so dangerous that it was once coined the “graveyard of ships”.
One of the most famous wrecks here is the SS Mohegan, a luxury steamer that had been en route to New York in October 1898 when it was utterly destroyed by the Manacles.
Over a century later, the reason why the Mohegan’s journey was disastrously cut short is an enduring maritime mystery.
There was no reason for the ship to be sailing so close to the coastline.
And she maintained her doomed course even as a horrified coastguard fired off warning rockets.
Ripped open by the rocks as the passengers were sitting down to dinner, the Mohegan sank with the loss of 106 lives, including the captain.
The wreck is a sought-after location for divers who are drawn by both the poignant backstory and the visible remains of the ship.
In the aftermath of the disaster an inquiry was held into why the Mohegan had steered such an incorrect course.
Many theories were put forward, but since the crew all died, the mystery has remained unanswered to this day.
One such theory attributed the tragedy to a magnetic influence set up by the rocks in the Manacles district.
This influence was supposed to affect the compass and this was a suggested possible explanation of the cause of the Mohegan’s demise.
Most of the dead were buried in a mass grave at St. Keverne church which more or less overlooks the very spot where the Mohegan struck.
Now, the remains of the Mohegan are stuck down in between huge pinnacles of rock which are covered in pink and white dead mens fingers
It includes the shattered hull and looming boilers, which are shrouded with coral.
The eerie wreck is now a haven for conger eels and other sea life.
The treacherous set of rocks has also claimed a number of lives and ships over the years.
The HMS Primrose, an 18-gun Cruizer-class brig-sloop, sank on January 22 1809, with only one of the 126 on board surviving.
The John carrying 263 emigrants to Canada, sank on the Maen Land in May 1855.
190 people were washed off the decks and drowned with only 86 surviving.
