George Tryon was born on 4th January 1832 and entered the navy at the age of 16. He saw
action in the Crimean war between 1854 and 1856. In 1861, he was given command of the
first British ironclad, HMS Warrior, which post he held until 1864. In 1867 he was
Director of Transport during the Abyssinian campaign.
Between 1874 and 1881 he held several commands on the Indian and Mediterranean stations.
From 1884 to 1887 he was Commander in Chief of the Australian station and was knighted
in 1887. In 1891 he was appointed Commander in Chief of the Mediterranean fleet.
Tryon was a legend in his own lifetime, having a strong personality that overawed all
those who served under him. One officer wrote 'Most people felt no use arguing with George
Tryon and that it was better to acquiesce quietly'. It seemed that most of his officers
just wanted Tryon to tell them what to do, rather than risk making a mistake in front
of him. Tryon realised this, and made attempts to encourage initiative. One of his
methods was his own signalling system known as TA, which involved Tryon raising his TA
signal and then the fleet following the flagships movements, rather than the usual
system of signals and acknowledgements involved in manoeuvring. The Times newspaper called
TA 'unsound in theory and perilous in practice'.
On the Mediterranean station, Tryons second in command was Rear Admiral Sir Hastings
Markham. Markham did not apparently enjoy working with Tryon. The problem was largely due
to Markham being incapable of following the constant stream of tests from his superior.
Tryon was never slow to criticise Markham, but the Vice Admiral was no bully.
On 22nd June 1893, the fleet left Beirut for exercises. Tryon flew his flag in Victoria,
and the 11 predreadnoughts included Sanspareil, Collingwood, Nile and Camperdown, which
led the second column with Markham on board.
In the afternoon, Tryon decided to reverse his 2 columns. 'I shall form the fleet into
columns of two divisions, six cables apart [6 cable = 1200 yards] and reverse the course,
by turning inwards', he told Staff Commander Thomas Hawkins-Smith. The combined turning
circles of Victoria and Camperdown were 1600 yards, or 8 cables. Hawkins-Smith realised
this, and suggested to Tryon 'It will require at least eight cables for that, sir'. Tryon
agreed 'Yes, it shall be eight cables'. But soon after, Tryon gave instructions to his
flag lieutenant, Lord Gillford, he said 'Will you make a signal to form columns of
divisions line ahead, columns disposed abeam to port. And make the columns six cables
apart'. Notably, Tryon gave Gillford a piece of paper with the figure '6' on it.
Gillford left without further comment, and had the necessary flags raised. Soon enough, all
the other ships had acknowledged the signal, except Camperdown. Hawkins-Smith noticed the
signal that had been raised and asked Gillford 'Haven't you made a mistake? The admiral
said the columns were to be eight cables'. Gillford showed him the piece of paper with '6'
on it, and Hawkins-Smith went to see the admiral, who told him 'Leave it at six cables'.
The fleet was sailing at 9 knots towards the Syrian coast, and action was required soon
to avoid grounding. Tryon appeared on the bridge and noticed Camperdown had not
acknowledged the signal. He ordered 'What are you waiting for?' to be raised. This was a
public rebuke, and Markham would have to obey. As Camperdown turned, Victorias commander,
Captain Archibald Bourke remarked to Tryon 'We had better do something, sir, we shall
be too close [to Camperdown]'. As the ships closed, he added 'We are getting too close,
sir! We must do something, sir! May I go astern?'. Tryon replied quietly 'Yes, go astern'.
'Full speed astern, both screws.' ordered Bourke, and ordered watertight doors closed.
Tryon shouted to Markham 'Go astern, go astern', but there was nothing that could be done
and Camperdowns ram bow ripped 9 feet into Victoria. Just before impact, Tryon received
Markhams reply to Tryons questioning signal 'Because I did not quite understand
your signal'.
The other ships started to lower boats, but Tryon believed his ship was not badly damaged
and ordered them to stop. Victoria was listing to starboard, and the forecastle was
underwater, with water coming down the barbettes. Within 5 minutes of impact, the bows
were 15 feet under water. Within 15 minutes of the collision, Victoria had capsized and
vanished beneath the surface, taking Tryon and 357 of her crew with her. One notable
survivor was John Jellicoe, future commander of the Grand Fleet.
After holding a ceremony, Markham ordered a return to Malta. The court martial was held
there and concluded that Tryon was responsible for the sinking, but regretted that Markham
had not effectively questioned the order. It seems likely that Tryon had made a deliberate
mistake in the hope that Markham or another officer would question it, but the sinking
destroyed his reputation created during a career of unparalleled achievement.
Written by Andrew Cashmore
