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A spotted grey seal swimming underwater in clear blue-green water, looking towards the camera — Isles of Scilly

Isles of Scilly · United Kingdom · Wreck

Lady Charlotte

Boilers still standing upright among the scattered wreckage

Area photo: Jerome Paillet (IFREMER, Laboratoire d'Océanographie Physique et Spatiale, Centre Bretagne - ZI de la Pointe du Diable - · CC BY 4.0

The Lady Charlotte is a cargo steamer, once named the Aphrodite, that ran aground on St Mary's in fog in 1917. Her remains spread from 10 m down to 35 m, covered in anemones and nudibranchs, and her boilers still stand on the seabed as the centrepiece of the dive.

Also known as Aphrodite.

Where it is and how deep

Depth profile of Lady Charlotte: typical dive 10–35 m (33–115 ft) 18 m · Open Water30 m · Advanced40 m · Recreational limit10 m35 mtypical dive
Depths on a shared scale to 40 m (130 ft); dashed lines mark common certification limits.

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

The dive

The wreckage lies between 10 m and 35 m. The most interesting part starts at the boilers, which stand at about 15 m and are the landmark divers work from. Heading gradually down the slope from there, divers pass piles of steel plates and other wreckage, with anemones and dead man’s fingers on nearly every surface and starfish, nudibranchs and crabs hiding among them.

The wreck

Vessel
Lady Charlotte (ex Aphrodite)
Type
Cargo steamer, about 3,593 tons
Built
1905
Sunk
1917
Cause
Lost in dense fog on passage from Cardiff to France and ran aground on St Mary's.
Lies
Broken up between 10 m and 35 m, with the boilers standing at about 15 m.

The Lady Charlotte was a cargo steamer of about 3,593 tons, built in 1905 by the Tyne Iron Steamboat Company and formerly known as the Aphrodite. On 11 May 1917, travelling from Cardiff to France, she became lost in dense fog and ran aground on St Mary's Island, where her wreckage now lies.

Marine life and season

  • Nudibranchs
Month-by-month season rating for Lady Charlotte
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Off-seasonOff-seasonOff-seasonFairPrimePrimePrimePrimePrimeFairOff-seasonOff-season

Season follows Isles of Scilly: Weather keeps the season short: most charters run from May to September, and a summer storm can still interrupt a trip.

Dive videos

Lady Charlotte 260624 · Ian Hicks SCUBA on YouTube

Sources

  1. Diving the Isles of Scilly: Wrecks, Reefs, and Seal Encounters — Divernet

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