Gallipoli · Turkey · Wreck

HMS Irresistible

A mined 1898 battleship at 65 m, technical divers only

One of the pre-dreadnoughts lost on 18 March 1915, when the Allied fleet's attempt to force the Dardanelles ran into a minefield: Irresistible struck a mine that flooded her and disabled her engines, and about 150 of her crew were lost. The park's dive table lists her at 65 metres and marks her technical. No position for the wreck is published.

Where it is and how deep

Depths on a shared scale to 80 m (262 ft); dashed lines mark common certification limits.

No published position for this site — the map shows Gallipoli and its other sites; operators know the mooring.

The dive

Irresistible sits in the deep tier of the Gallipoli park alongside Bouvet and Triumph, listed on the operator's table at 65 metres and marked technical. That means mixed gas, staged decompression and a plan built around the Dardanelles current, run through the park's operators, since every dive here must be guided — the same rule that covers the shallow wrecks off the landing beaches covers the deep ships in the strait, and the operator decides whether the day's conditions allow it.

Beyond the depth, the published record is bare. No coordinates for the wreck are given, and no operator or survey account says how she lies, what condition the 131.6-metre hull is in, or what has grown on it. What is documented is why she is down there: on 18 March 1915 she struck a naval mine that caused extensive flooding and disabled her engines during the fleet action, and about 150 of her crew were lost. Divers who get on her are looking at a war grave.

The wreck

Vessel: HMS Irresistible
Type: Pre-dreadnought battleship
Length: 131.6 m (432 ft)
Sunk: 1915
Cause: Struck a naval mine during the fleet action of 18 March 1915
Lies: In the Dardanelles at about 65 m; no published position or condition report

Marine life and season

The sources we used don't single out particular species here.

Month-by-month season rating for HMS Irresistible
Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Fair	Fair	Fair	Prime	Prime	Good	Good	Prime	Prime	Good	Fair	Fair

Season follows Gallipoli: April–May and August–September bring the best conditions; the wrecks can be dived all year.

Know before you go

Full decompression dive at 65 m with the strait's current on top of it — technical team, gas plan and surface support required.
No published position or condition report, so the wreck is only reachable through an operator who knows where it is.