ANTONIO

The SS Antonio was a British steamship built in 1905, a typical merchant vessel of her time. Owned by the Egypt & Levant Steamship Co., she spent her career transporting cargo on vital trade routes. With the outbreak of the First World War, ships like the Antonio became the lifeline of the Allied war effort, but also prime targets for Germany's campaign of unrestricted naval warfare.

On March 7, 1917, while navigating the English Channel, the Antonio's luck ran out. Just seven miles off the relative safety of Dartmouth, she struck a German naval mine laid by a U-boat. The ensuing explosion ripped through the hull, and the ship sank rapidly. The sinking was swift and violent, claiming the lives of the captain and ten of his crew, a tragic reminder of the hidden dangers that lurked beneath the waves even in home waters.

Today, the SS Antonio lies upright and remarkably intact at a depth of 52 meters. She is a classic English Channel technical dive, offering a superb glimpse into the past for experienced, suitably qualified divers. The wreck's superstructure, masts, and deck machinery are still recognizable, though now draped in a beautiful carpet of jewel anemones, hydroids, and dead man's fingers. The dark, deep water and potential for strong currents make this a challenging dive, but the reward is an atmospheric and poignant exploration of a well-preserved WWI casualty.