Campaigners battling to have a shipwreck recognised as an official war grave are taking fresh evidence to the High Court next month.

The SS Storaa was carrying a cargo of pig iron, steel and military vehicle parts to Cardiff when it was torpedoed ten miles off Hastings in November 1943.

A total of 21 men were killed including Petty Officer James Varndell whose two daughters have brought the legal action in order to gain protection of the wreck.

The ship, which was protected by cannon and machine guns, had a total of 37 crew on board - many of them Danes who had volunteered to serve in the Merchant Navy.

Since the tragedy the merchant vessel has lain in 130ft of water, accessible to divers who have identified human remains on the vessel's decks. Recognising the wreck as a war grave under the Protection of Military Remains Act would ban divers from plundering the seabed to retrieve possessions and human remains.

However, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) has so far resisted, insisting it does not qualify for consideration under the definition of "in military service".

But eminent Hastings-based archaeologist Dr Peter Marsden believes the recent discovery of tank caterpillar tracks and military vehicle parts indicates it was in service.

To prove their case, Dr Marsden and six other campaigners are heading to the High Court for a two-day judicial review from October 26.

Dr Marsden, of the Shipwreck Heritage Centre in Rock A Nore Road, Hastings Old Town, said: "The MoD said SS Storaa doesn't comply with the definition of being in military service.

"But it was carrying military cargo and sailing under Admiralty instructions.

"We found that the cargo comprises in part of caterpillar tracks from Sherman tanks as well as the chassis of American military vehicles.

"These have all been identified by experts in Second World War military vehicles. It doesn't prove anything about who was on board.

"But our argument is that a ship carrying war materials shows that the vessel was in military service and acting in support of the Armed Forces.

"If this ship was not in military service then why were guns found on board?"

The High Court case is the latest round of action by campaigners in their long-running crusade. In 2000 two applications seeking to gain protection for the wreck were rejected by the MoD and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.

The MoD said it was not in military service while the department said it was not of historically outstanding importance.

Dr Marsden said the aim of gaining protection for the wreck was not to stop divers from exploring it but to prevent interference of the dead and to gain recognition for them.

He said: "There has been a lot of talk about stopping people diving on the vessel but that's not an issue at all and the Act doesn't stop that.

"What it does do is stop salvaging the possessions of the dead. This court case will hopefully resolve all the issues and make it clear where the boundaries should be drawn."