View source for Holy Loch

{{Short description|Sea loch in Argyll and Bute, Scotland}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}}
{{Infobox body of water
| name               = Holy Loch
| native_name        = {{native name|gd|An Loch Sianta/Seunta}}
| other_name         = 
| image              =  Holy Loch 06.jpg
| alt                = A sea loch surrounded by hills
| caption            = The Holy Loch seen across the [[Firth of Clyde]] from Tower Hill, [[Gourock]], with [[Hunters Quay]] on the left and [[Strone]] to the right
| image_bathymetry   = 
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| image_size         = 
| location           = [[Cowal|Cowal Peninsula]], [[Argyll and Bute]], Scotland
| group              = 
| coordinates        = {{coord|55.987|N|4.933|W|region:GB|display=inline,title}}<br />National {{gbmapping|NS1713980778}}
| type               = Sea loch
| etymology          = 
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| catchment          = 
| basin_countries    = Scotland, United Kingdom
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| date-flooded       = <!-- {{Start date|YYYY|MM|DD}} For man-made and other recent bodies of water -->
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| elevation          = Sea level
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| frozen             = No
| islands            = 0
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|pushpin_map=Scotland Argyll and Bute
| pushpin_label_position  = <!-- left, right, top or bottom -->
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}}

The '''Holy Loch''' ({{langx|gd|An Loch Sianta/Seunta}}) is a [[sea loch]], part of the [[Firth of Clyde]], in [[Argyll and Bute]], Scotland.

The "Holy Loch" name is believed to date from the 6th century, when [[Saint Munn]] landed there after leaving [[Ireland]]. [[Kilmun Parish Church and Argyll Mausoleum]] is said to stand where Saint Munn's church was once located.

[[Alexander Robertson & Sons|Robertson's Yard]] at [[Sandbank, Argyll and Bute|Sandbank]], a village on the loch, was a major wooden boat building company in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

During [[World War II]], the loch was used as a British [[Royal Navy]] submarine base. From 1961 to 1992, it was used as a United States Navy [[ballistic missile submarine]] base. In 1992, the Holy Loch base was deemed unnecessary following the demise of the Soviet Union and subsequently closed.

==Geography==
Open on the [[Firth of Clyde]] at its eastern end, the loch is approximately {{convert|1|mi|km}} wide and between {{convert|2|and|3|mi|km|0}} long, varying with the tide. [[Dunoon]] on the [[Cowal]] peninsula lies on the shores of the Clyde just to the south of the loch, and houses continue round the villages of [[Kirn, Argyll and Bute|Kirn]], [[Hunters Quay]], [[Ardnadam]] and past Lazaretto Point, the village of [[Sandbank, Argyll and Bute|Sandbank]], with open countryside at the end of the loch, then on the northern shore [[Kilmun]], and at Strone Point the village of [[Strone]] continues on the western shore of the Firth of Clyde, almost joining [[Blairmore, Argyll|Blairmore]] on [[Loch Long]].

All the villages used to have piers served by [[Clyde steamer]]s, and now [[Western Ferries]] runs between Hunters Quay and McInroy's Point on the outskirts of [[Gourock]], while the [[Argyll Ferries]] service runs from Dunoon to Gourock pierhead. At the end of the loch, the [[A815 road|A815]] (after being joined by the [[A880 road|A880]] at Ardbeg) leads north, to the east of the [[River Eachaig]], to the [[Benmore Botanic Garden]] and [[Arboretum]] (also known as the Younger Botanic Gardens), [[Loch Eck]] and on towards [[Inveraray]].

==History==

===Medieval period===
On the shore of the Holy Loch at [[Kilmun]] (Gaelic ''Cill Mhunnu'', 'the church of St Munnu') stands a nineteenth-century church. It stands on the site of a sequence of earlier churches, and an early carved stone on the site suggests that there was a church here perhaps as early as the sixth or seventh century.  The dedication to St Munnu, otherwise known as Fintan, [[Fintán of Taghmon|St Munn (Fintán of Taghmon)]], reflects devotion to an Irish saint who founded a church at Taghmon in Leinster. The remains of a 12th-century church are still visible at Kilmun.<ref name=HistKilmleaflet>{{citation |work=Historic Kilmun (leaflet by Argyll Mausoleum Ltd, Kilmun) |title=Visit Historic Klmun |date=2015}}</ref> At the present site of [[Kilmun Parish Church and Argyll Mausoleum|Kilmun Church]], a church building is recorded in the 13th century.<ref name=HistScot>{{cite web |work=[[Historic Scotland]] |title=Kilmun, St Munn's Parish Church (church of Scotland) including Argyll and Douglas Mausolea |url=http://www.britishlistedbuildings.co.uk/sc-5073-kilmun-st-munn-s-parish-church-church-of-s |access-date=8 April 2015}}</ref> By the 15th century, the significance of Kilmun as a local centre of [[Christianity]] was so great that the adjacent [[loch]] became known as the ''Holy Loch'', and the powerful [[Clan Campbell]] adopted it as their spiritual home.<ref name="HistKilmleaflet"/> From the 14th century, [[Dunoon Castle]], a short distance away, was held by the Campbell family and in the 1440s [[Duncan Campbell, 1st Lord Campbell|Sir Duncan Campbell]] of [[Lochawe]]  (later 1st Lord Campbell), the then chief of the clan, lived near Kilmun in a private residence named Strathechaig.<ref name=AMlistofburials>{{cite web |work=Historic Kilmun |title=The Argyll Mausoleum: List of Burials |url=http://www.historickilmun.org/history/list-of-burials|access-date=9 April 2015}}</ref>

===Modern history===
====Robertson's Yard====
{{Main|Alexander Robertson & Sons}}
Alexander Robertson started repairing boats in a small workshop at Sandbank in 1876, and Alexander Robertson & Sons went on to become one of the foremost wooden boat builders on the Clyde. Their 'golden years' were in the early 20th century when they started building classic 12 & 15 metre racing yachts. Robertsons was chosen to build the first 15-metre yacht designed by [[William Fife]] (''Shimna'', 1907). More than 55 boats were built by Robertsons in preparation for the First World War and the yard remained busy even during the Great Depression in the 1930s, as many wealthy businessmen developed a passion for yacht racing. During World War II the yard was devoted to Admiralty work, producing a wide range of large high speed [[Fairmile Marine]] Motor Boats (MTBs and MGBs).

After the war the yard built the successful one-class Loch Longs and two 12-metre challengers for the [[America's Cup]]: ''Sceptre'' (1958) (17 tonnes) and ''Sovereign'' (1964). The Robertson family sold the yard in 1965, and it was turned over to GRP production work (mainly Pipers and [[Etchells]]). During its 104-year history, Robertson's Yard built 500 boats, many of which are still sailing. The yard ceased trading in the early 1980s; at this point it was owned by Terry Hooper who ran the yard servicing mostly the US Navy. After the US navy packed up and left the area Hooper sold the yard in the 1990s. The site has since been converted to residential building and the new Holy Loch Marina development. The yard today is still widely known in the area as 'Hooper's Yard'.

====World War II====
[[File:HMS Graph, HMS Sturgeon, HMS Tigris, P 42 at Holy Loch WWII.jpg|thumb|{{HMS|Graph}}, {{HMS|Sturgeon|73S|6}}, {{HMS|Tigris|N63|6}}, ''P 42'' at Holy Loch WWII]]

During [[World War II]] the loch was used by the [[Royal Navy]] as a [[submarine base]], served by the depot ship {{HMS|Forth|1938|6}}. The loch was used extensively for trials and exercises by Royal Navy submarines during the war, the submarines {{HMS|Vandal|P64}} and {{HMS|Untamed|P58}}  were lost in the Clyde after being sunk by accidents during exercises. ''Untamed'' was later salvaged.

Near the Holy Loch an anti-submarine boom was constructed between Dunoon and the [[Cloch]] Point Lighthouse to defend waters from German [[U-boat]]s.

====US Navy at Holy Loch====
{{Main|Submarine Squadron 14}}

[[File:USS Abraham Lincoln (SSBN-602) in USS AFDB-7.jpg|thumb|{{USS|Abraham Lincoln|SSBN-602}} in the floating drydock {{USS|Los Alamos|AFDB-7}}]]

Between 1961 and 1992, Holy Loch was the site of the [[United States Navy]]'s [[Fleet Ballistic Missile]] (FBM) Refit Site One. It was the home base of Submarine Squadron (SUBRON) 14, part of [[ComSubLant|Submarine Force, US Atlantic Fleet]]. To make maximum use of its submarine-launched ballistic missile ([[SLBM]]) force, the American military had determined that it required an overseas base for refit and crew turnover.  Negotiations with the British government began in March 1959 when President [[Dwight D. Eisenhower]] mentioned the need to British prime minister [[Harold Macmillan]] at a meeting at [[Camp David]].

Holy Loch was one of several locations on or near the [[Firth of Clyde]] considered for the refit site. Others were [[Faslane]], the channel between [[Largs]] and [[Cumbrae]], [[Rosneath Bay]], and [[Rothesay, Argyll and Bute|Rothesay Bay]]. Site selection criteria included the requirements for a sheltered anchorage, relative proximity to an international airport, and sufficient shore facilities to provide housing for military personnel and their families. Agreement for the use of Holy Loch was reached near the end of 1960 and the arrival of the first tender, {{USS|Proteus|AS-19}} scheduled for December. Divisions within the British government and concerns about protests by the [[Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament]] (CND) caused her arrival to be rescheduled to 3 March 1961.<ref name="Lavery">{{cite web|url=http://www.jmr.nmm.ac.uk/server/show/ConJmrArticle.2/setPaginate/No |last=Lavery |first=Brian |title=The British government and the American Polaris base in the Clyde |publisher=Journal for Maritime Research |date=September 2001 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050503205041/http://www.jmr.nmm.ac.uk/server/show/conJmrArticle.2/setPaginate/No |archive-date=2005-05-03}}</ref> Protests at the site followed.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=2507&dat=19610515&id=oBI1AAAAIBAJ&pg=4603,2219229&hl=en |title=Anti-Polaris Protest at Dunoon. Angry Kerbside Exchanges |work=The Glasgow Herald |date=15 May 1961 |page=8 |access-date=11 December 2016}}</ref>

Between 1961 and 1982, the Naval Support Activity ashore was administered by US Naval Activities London. In 1982, Naval Support Activity (NAVSUPPACT), Forward Base, Holy Loch, Scotland became its own command. NAVSUPPACT ultimately managed 42 facilities and leased 342 housing units for Navy personnel and their dependents.

Holy Loch's most prosperous period occurred with the naval base and its 3,000 Americans.<ref name="ndukwe20231008">{{Cite news |last=Ndukwe |first=Ijeoma |date=2023-10-08 |title=Accidentally Bought, Expertly Rebuilt |language=en-US |page=RE10 |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2023/10/02/realestate/scotland-villa-home-renovation.html |access-date=2023-10-11 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> A monument was built to the US Navy years in the Castle Gardens, Dunoon.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://canmore.org.uk/site/319147/dunoon-dunoon-castle-us-navy-submarine-monument |title=Dunoon, Dunoon Castle, U.S. Navy Submarine Monument &#124; Canmore |website=canmore.org.uk |access-date=2025-03-18}}</ref>

Over the years, five different [[submarine tender]]s and one [[floating dry dock]] served in the loch.

{| class="wikitable"
|+ Submarine tenders
|-
! style="background:black; color:white;" | Arrived
! style="background:black; color:white;" | Departed
! style="background:black; color:white;" | Tender
! style="background:black; color:white;" | Notes
|-
|March 1961
|January 1963
|{{USS|Proteus|AS-19}}
|Commenced first ''site one'' refit 6 March 1961. ({{USS|Patrick Henry|SSBN-599}})
|-
|January 1963
|August 1966
|{{USS|Hunley|AS-31}}
|
|-
|August 1966
|May 1970
|{{USS|Simon Lake|AS-33}}
|
|- 
|May 1970
|November 1975
|{{USS|Canopus|AS-34}}
|
|-
|November 1975
|January 1982
|{{USS|Holland|AS-32}}
|
|-
|January 1982
|June 1987
|USS ''Hunley'' (AS-31)
|
|-
|June 1987
|March 1992
|USS ''Simon Lake'' (AS-33)
|
|}

{| class="wikitable"
|+ Floating dry dock
|-
! style="background:black; color:white;" | Arrived
! style="background:black; color:white;" | Departed
! style="background:black; color:white;" | Drydock
! style="background:black; color:white;" | Notes
|-
|June 1961
|February 1992
|{{ship||Los Alamos|AFDB-7}}
|February 1964, completed the first "off centre" docking of a [[UGM-27 Polaris|Polaris]] submarine
|}

Two notable incidents occurred during the three-decade long deployment of SUBRON 14 at Holy Loch. On 29 November 1970, a fire erupted on [[USS Canopus (AS-34)|USS ''Canopus'']], killing three of her complement. Almost four years later, on 3 November 1974, the nuclear ballistic missile submarine [[USS James Madison (SSBN-627)|USS ''James Madison'' (SSBN-627)]] collided with a Soviet submarine, assumed to be a [[Victor-class submarine|Victor-class nuclear-powered attack submarine]], during a dive just after departing from Holy Loch. The American submarine was dented and suffered a nine-foot scratch on her hull. She spent a full week at the base for inspection and repairs.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://fas.org/blogs/security/2016/02/nuclear-weapons-at-sea/ |title=Declassified: US Nuclear Weapons At Sea - Federation Of American Scientists |website=Federation Of American Scientists |language=en-US |access-date=2016-06-17}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |title=Blind Man's Bluff: The Untold Story of American Submarine Espionage |last1=Sontag|first1=Sherry |last2=Drew|first2=Christopher |publisher=PublicAffairs |year=2016 |isbn=978-1610393584 |page=313}}</ref>

[[Laurel Clark]], known to her shipmates as "Doc Salton", was assigned as the Radiation Health Officer and Undersea Medical Officer at SUBRON 14. Clark was one of the astronauts killed in the [[Space Shuttle Columbia disaster|Space Shuttle ''Columbia'' disaster]] on 1 February 2003.<ref name="Clark">{{cite web|url=http://www.argyllonline.co.uk/index.asp?id=206 |title=Dunoon and the US Navy |website=Argyll Online |access-date=2010-01-31 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110115134042/http://www.argyllonline.co.uk/index.asp?id=206 |archive-date=2011-01-15 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

New technologies and the end of the Cold War led to the base being deemed unnecessary. The last submarine tender to be based there, the {{USS|Simon Lake|AS-33}}, left Holy Loch in November 1991, ahead of the base closing the following June.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.heraldscotland.com/news/12548646.After_30_years_the_last_US_submarine_sails_out/ |title=After 30 years the last US submarine sails out |work=The Herald |date=11 November 1991 |access-date=14 December 2016}}</ref> The closing of the base caused significant economic decline.{{r|ndukwe20231008}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Holy Loch}}
{{oscoor gbx|NS1713980778}}
* [https://www.aboutsubs.com/holy-loch.htm/ About Subs, Holy Loch - Webpage] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200518182709/https://www.aboutsubs.com/holy-loch.htm |date=18 May 2020 }}
* [https://www.rbge.org.uk/visit/benmore-botanic-garden/ Benmore Botanic Garden]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/19991012151308/http://history.navy.mil/photos/sh-usn/usnsh-h/as31.htm USS Hunley (AS-31), Pictures while at the Holy Loch]

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Holy Loch}}
[[Category:Lochs of Argyll and Bute]]
[[Category:United States Navy submarine bases]]
[[Category:Sea lochs of Scotland]]
[[Category:Military installations closed in 1992]]
[[Category:Firth of Clyde]]
[[Category:Royal Navy submarine bases]]
[[Category:Cowal]]
[[Category:Closed installations of the United States Navy]]
[[Category:Military installations established in 1942]]