HMY Iolaire was an Admiralty Yacht that sank at the entrance to Stornoway harbour on 1 January 1919, with the loss of at least 201 men out of the 283 on board. The overcrowded vessel was trying to negotiate a difficult route under exceptionally bad weather conditions. The disaster cost the Isle of Lewis almost the whole of its young male population.

Sinking

His Majesty's Yacht Iolaire () was an Admiralty yacht, originally named the Amalthaea, and re-named in 1918. She was carrying sailors who had fought in the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

back to the Scottish Isle of Lewis in the Outer Hebrides. She left the port of

Kyle of Lochalsh Kyle of Lochalsh (from the Gaelic ''Caol Loch Aillse'', "strait of the foaming loch") is a village in the historic county of Ross-shire on the northwest coast of Scotland, located around west-southwest of Inverness. It is located on the Lo ...

on the mainland late on the evening of 31 December 1918. At on New Year's Day, as the ship approached the port of Stornoway, a few yards offshore and a mile away from the safety of Stornoway Harbour, she hit the infamous rocks "The Beasts of Holm" and sank. Those on board would have been able to see the lights of Stornoway. The death toll was officially put at whom were islanders but as the ship was badly overcrowded and there was a lack of proper records, the toll could have been somewhat higher. John F. Macleod from Ness, Isle of Lewis saved swimming ashore with a heaving line, along which many of the survivors made their way to safety. Only the known) passengers survived the disaster; 71% of the people on the yacht died in the incident. The impact of the disaster was devastating to the Islands; 205 passengers were lost, representing almost an entire generation of young men from the Islands. Iolaire Memorial

The sailors were wearing their uniforms including heavy boots, which made swimming from the wreck difficult; many men of that time had never had the opportunity to learn. Many songs and poems, such as ''An Iolaire'', describe the women of these men finding their men washed up on the shore the next day. The sinking is the worst maritime disaster (for loss of life) in United Kingdom waters in peacetime, since the wreck of the off

Rockall Rockall () is an uninhabitable granite islet situated in the North Atlantic Ocean. The United Kingdom claims that Rockall lies within its exclusive economic zone (EEZ) and is part of its territory, but this claim is not recognised by Ireland. ...

in 1904 and the worst peacetime disaster involving a British ship since on 15 April 1912. An Admiralty enquiry found no satisfactory explanation for the disaster. Its inconclusive findings generated much ill feeling amongst the Lewis population, amidst accusations of a "whitewash". While drunkenness among the crew was discounted at the enquiry, the vessel was sailing at night, in poor visibility and in deteriorating weather. The entrance to Stornoway harbour is not the most straightforward of navigations and it is possible that navigational error was to blame. This hypothesis appears to be supported by the crew of a fishing vessel who noted that ''Iolaire'' was not navigating the correct course for entering the harbour.

Memorial

The sinking was one of the worst maritime disasters in British waters during the 20th century. A memorial was erected in 1958 at Holm, outside Stornoway. A stone pillar sticks out of the water at the site of the wreck, which can be seen to starboard as the car ferry approaches the harbour entrance. The community-led commemoration of the centenary was marked in a number of ways including by musicians such as

Julie Fowlis Julie Fowlis (born 20 June 1978) is a Scottish folk singer and multi-instrumentalist who sings primarily in Scottish Gaelic. Early life Fowlis grew up on North Uist, an island in the Outer Hebrides, in a Gaelic-speaking community. Her moth ...

and Duncan Chisholm, as well as local artists such as Malcolm Maclean. The disaster has been included in the

Arts and Humanities Research Council The Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC), formerly Arts and Humanities Research Board (AHRB), is a British research council, established in 1998, supporting research and postgraduate study in the arts and humanities. History The Arts ...

"Living Legacies (1914-18)" project, led by

Abertay University , mottoeng = "Blessed is the one who finds wisdom." , established = 1994 – granted University Status 1888 – Dundee Institute of Technology , type = Public , chancellor = Alice Brown , principal = Liz Bacon , head_label = Chair of C ...

and The Centre for History,

University of the Highlands and Islands , type = federal, public , image_name = UHI Coat of Arms.jpg , image_size = 150px , established = 2011 – University status 1992 – UHI Millennium Institute , chancellor = The Princess Royal , vice_chancellor = , budget = £139m (202 ...

and the resulting app highlights the nature and extent of the loss felt by families and communities. A national commemorative service was held at the memorial on 1 January 2019 to mark the centenary of the disaster, attended by First Minister of Scotland Nicola Sturgeon and Prince Charles, Duke of Rothesay, who unveiled a new memorial at Holm which depicts the rope used by John F. MacLeod to save 40 lives.

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