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HMS Hampshire was an armoured cruiser. She had been present at the Battle of Jutland at the end of May, 1916 as part of the 2nd Cruiser Squadron and immediately after was assigned to take Lord Kitchener, the Secretary of State for War, on a diplomatic mission to Russia. Leaving the naval base at Scapa Flow in the Orkneys on 5th June, 1916, she had been at sea for only two hours when she hit a mine laid by the German submarine U-75 and sank within fifteen minutes. Lord Kitchener and his staff all died and only 12 of the crew of 655 survived. Among those who lost their lives was William Bex.