German submarine U-331 sank the British battleship HMS Barham in the Mediterranean in 1941.
On 25 November 1941, U-331 fired a spread of torpedoes at Barham near the Egyptian coast. Three torpedoes struck the battleship, causing a catastrophic explosion in an ammunition magazine. Barham capsized and sank rapidly, killing 862 people.
U-331 was a Type VII C submarine commanded by Lieutenant Hans-Diedrich von Tiesenhausen. The attack was one of the most significant German submarine successes in the Mediterranean during World War II. Barham had been a major Royal Navy warship since World War I.
The submarine did not escape unscathed. British escorting aircraft attacked U-331 shortly afterward, forcing its surrender on 17 November 1942. It was later sunk off Algeria. HMS Barham’s loss was initially kept secret by British authorities, although film footage of the sinking was eventually released.