The sinking of H.M.S. Charybdis

H.M.S. Charybdis was sunk off the coast of Guernsey on the 23rd of October 1943. 464 men perished and 107 survived what was the biggset single Channel loss of the Second World War.

Every year, Charybdis Weekend is held in Guernsey to commemorate not only the sailos and marines who lost their lives, but the bravery of the Guernsey people and other Channel Islanders.

Within days of the sinking, the bodies of 21 Royal Navy sailors and Royal Marines had washed up on the Guernsey coast.

The Germans who were occupying Guernsey buried the men with full military honours and in an extraordinary show of defiance,5000 Guernsey people attended the funeral bringing with them 900 wreaths to show their respect for the dead and their loyalty to Britain.

Guernseyman, William De Carteret removed one of the Union Flags draped over a coffin as it was being lowered into the ground. This was presented, many years later in 1973, by his widow, to St. John's Church in St.Peter Port Guernsey where it is now preserved along with other memories of the tragedy.

Mr. De Carteret's brave actions proved to be a very effective demonstration of Guernsey's anti-Nazi feeling and was a turning point in the German occupation of Guernsey as the Germans subsequently banned any members of the Guernsey public from attending the funerals for the additional 29 sailors and marines who were later washed up on Guernsey's coast.