A German U-boat said lost after a "monster attack" off Scotland during the first world war may have been recently found by engineers laying underwater power cables. Already the find is being tied to the Loch Ness monster.
Naval folklore had suggested that submarine UB-85 sank in 1918 because of a "monster attack," according to BBC News, and experts believe the submarine found off the Galloway coast could be the same vessel.
The Mirror said the wreckage was stumbled on by the Western Link cable-laying project of ScottishPower and National Grid and sonar images appear to show a U-boat mostly intact, said BBC News.
The U-boat's commander, Captain Günther Krech, described the encounter after the crew was rescued and aboard the British ship HMS Coreopsis, said the BBC News. Krech said his U-Boat could not dive because of damage caused by a "strange beast" that jumped out of the water, said The Guardian
"The monster had horns, small deep-set eyes, glinting teeth, and was so heavy that when it scrambled up the side of the U-boat, the whole vessel listed sideways. It then viciously attacked the forward gun, chomping lumps out it," The Guardian's Maev Kennedy quoted Krech telling the British press. "The damage forced the entire crew to surrender to the British patrol: the men were taken off and the submarine scuttled."
Historian and nautical archaeologist Innes McCartney told the BBC News that the truth was likely less dramatic and without monsters.
"In reality, the real sea monster was the U-boat, here trying to sink ships," McCartney said. "The submarine was caught on the surface at night, recharging its batteries. It saw the patrol ship coming. It attempted to do a crash dive to get away."
"Once the submarine was under water, it rapidly started flooding from above so they had no option but to blow all the compressed air they had, bring the submarine to the surface at which point all they could do was surrender."
Gary Campbell, keeper of the Official Sightings Register of the Loch Ness Monster, said there could be some legitimacy to Krech's story, reported The Mirror.
"The WWI report from the captain of the British ship HMS Hilary a year earlier makes it clear that sea farers at that time were well aware of large sea 'monsters' that could be harmful to their ships," Campbell said, who joked about the monster contributing to the war effort.
"The area of sea where the attack took place has a history of sea monster sightings – they have ranged from the north coast of Wales to Liverpool bay. What the German captain said could well be true," Campbell continued.
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.