Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

Scapa Flow consultation launched 100 years after scuttling of German fleet

It was a deliberate act of destruction that transformed a quiet part of Scotland into the world’s biggest naval graveyard.

And now, 100 years after the scuttling of the German High Seas Fleet at Scapa Flow on Orkney, a public consultation has been launched with a view to making the site a Historic Marine Protected Area.

The news was announced by First Minister Nicola Sturgeon at Scotland’s International Marine Conference in Glasgow.

She said: “Marine protected areas are an undoubted success story.

“In the last seven years, the network has doubled and they now account for more than a fifth of Scotland’s seas.

“It is important we conserve sites of historic interest and that the public are able to have a say on how we do this.

“Scapa Flow is clearly a very important part of Scotland’s maritime history, particularly during the world wars.

“As we move towards the 2020 Year of Coasts and Waters, it is right that appropriate steps are taken to ensure this wartime heritage is preserved in a way that we can enjoy, remember and understand responsibly.”

Historic MPAs are designed to preserve maritime assets of national importance, so they can be protected, valued and understood.

Orkney has one of the most outstanding collections of First and Second World War naval wreckage remains, both above and under the water.

Since 2001, the remains of three battleships and four cruisers of the German fleet, which were scuttled a century ago, have been protected as scheduled monuments.

But the change to a Historic MPA is considered a more appropriate way to manage this fragile part of Scottish history.

Philip Robertson, deputy head of designations at Historic Environment Scotland, said: “Scapa Flow is an internationally significant heritage asset which attracts visitors from all over the world.

“It’s important the public have their say in how best to manage the site, balancing the protection of Orkney’s important wartime heritage, while taking account of the importance of the harbour to its economic growth.

“I’d like to encourage everyone with an interest in Scapa Flow to take this opportunity to share their views about our nation’s priceless marine heritage.”

>> Take part in the consultation here <<

As part of the Armistice agreement at the end of the First World War, Germany had to surrender most of its vessels and a total of 74 ships arrived in Scapa Flow for internment.

On June 21, 1919, under the mistaken belief that peace talks had failed, Rear Admiral Ludwig von Reuter gave the command to scuttle the entire fleet.

A total of 52 ships went to the seafloor, making it the greatest loss of shipping ever recorded in a single day.