After Germany was defeated in the First World War, 74 of its warships were confined at Scapa Flow in the Orkney Islands pending a decision on their future.

On 21 June 1919 German Rear Admiral Ludwig Von Reuter gave the order to deliberately sink or scuttle the ships to prevent them falling into British hands.

Most of the scuttled vessels were salvaged, but some of them, now rusted and covered in barnacles, remain on the seabed. Reuters photographer Nigel Roddis visited the Orkneys and joined divers in Scapa Flow to photograph the wrecks. This year marks the 100th anniversary of the start of World War One.

Scapa Flow also played a crucial role in the Second World War, as the main British naval base.

This time it was the British deliberately sinking ships, known as 'blockships', to block the path of German U-Boats in the North Sea.