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Title: Captain Phillips Wearing Ursula Suit
Description: A photograph of Lieutenant Commander George Phillips talking to Captain J S Bethell at Blyth in December 1939. Phillips was the Commanding Officer of HMS Ursula. The boat had just returned from North Sea patrol where it had attacked the German cruiser 'Leipzig'. Phillips is pictured wearing his famous Ursula suit. Phillips was unhappy with the standard pre-war issue foul weather gear which consisted of oil skins, hats and towels wrapped around the necks. Watchkeeping onboard submarines could be quite a physical ordeal in rough weather, with the submarine bridge being only a few feet above the sea level. Lieutenant Lakin, Ursula’s navigating officer, was a keen motorcyclist who wore a one-piece over-suit made by Barbour. Phillips told him to wear it while he doused him with a fire hose. Despite the force of the water, Lakin remained dry. Phillips decided that the overalls, with a few alterations, might be the answer for submarine lookouts and bridge personnel. Phillips visited the company Barbour in South Shields and persuaded them to cut the suit in two, make the jacket hooded and the trousers with elastic at the waist and ankles. He paid for the prototype suits out of his own pocket. Warm, comfortable and waterproof, they became standard issue in the Submarine Service.
Creator: Royal Navy Submarine Museum
Accession Number: RNSM 58