Late 1940, two Welsh Brothers Kenneth James Lewis and Raymond Leslie Lewis walked aboard their first ship, the Cardiff registered cargo ship SS Fiscus, 4 . The coaster (350 GRT, 1909) ran aground on Fort Island, World War II: The cargo ship (3,137 GRT, 1922) struck a mine and sank in the North Sea north of, The coaster (352 GRT, 1937) sank after hitting rocks near, The cargo ship (4,859 GRT, 1912) ran aground at off, The fishing vessel (227 GRT, 1916) collided with, World War II: The cargo ship (2,248 GRT, 1916) struck a mine and sank in the North Sea off the coast of Belgium (, The trawler (219 GRT, 1915) foundered in a storm on rocks known as "The Black Waughs", The trawler (276 GRT, 1917) collided with, World War II: The cargo ship (1,229 GRT, 1911) was torpedoed, shelled and sunk in the North Sea off the north coast of Inverness-shire (, World War II: The cargo ship (2,109 GRT, 1920) was torpedoed and sunk in the, World War II: The trawler (341 or 202 GRT, 1900) was bombed and sunk in the, World War II: The cargo ship (1,153 GRT, 1893) was torpedoed and sunk in the North Sea off the north coast of Inverness-shire (, World War II: The cargo ship (3,270 GRT, 1922) was torpedoed and sunk in the Atlantic Ocean north of the, World War II: The cargo ship (4,947 GRT, 1921) was torpedoed and sunk in the, The cargo ship (1,914 GRT) was damaged by ice and sank in the, The cargo ship (1,282 GRT, 1902) collided in dense fog with, World War II: The naval trawler (210 GRT, 1910) struck a mine in the, The cargo ship (3,030 GRT) ran aground off, World War II: The tanker (5,742 GRT, 1921) was torpedoed and sunk in the North Sea east of the. She was subsequently salvaged and repaired by the Germans and entered. Postcard of RMS Lancastria. Object description. British and Allied evacuation vessels took Lancastrias survivors aboard, the trawler HMT Cambridgeshire alone rescuing nearly 900 souls. Among the children floundering in the waves were Bess Walder, 15, and Beth Cummings, 14, who managed to grab the up-turned keel and hung on for dear life. Franconia was assigned to Lorient while Lancastria continued toward St. Nazaire but because of the tidal channel on the Loire estuary Lancastria had to anchor in the Charpentier Roads about 5 nm (nautical miles) southwest of the actual port. Empire Morn killed 26th April 1943 after his ship hit a mine. World War II: The cargo ship (1,927 GRT, 1922) was scuttled as a blockship in Churchill Sound, World War II: The cargo ship (6,701 GRT, 1918) was torpedoed and sunk in the Atlantic Ocean west of Land's End, United Kingdom (, World War II: The cargo ship (4,201 GRT, 1911) was torpedoed and sunk in the Atlantic Ocean south west of Ireland (, World War II: The cargo ship (1,291 GRT, 1913) was torpedoed and sunk in the Atlantic Ocean south west of Land's End (. World War II: The cargo ship (3,546 GRT, 1906) struck a mine and sank in the, The cargo ship (5,393 or 5,106 GRT, 1918) ran aground in the, World War II: The cargo ship (5,820 GRT, 1921) was torpedoed, shelled and sunk in the Atlantic Ocean west of. She was later salvaged by the Germans and re-entered service as. Survivors: Five survivors of the S.S City of Benares passenger ship which was sunk by a German U-Boat in September 1940. Return to Allied Ships hit by U-boats Front page About Contact us FAQ Glossary What's new A pre-war photograph of the German cruise ship Wilhelm Gustloff in Hamburg. The SS Cap Arcona was a large ocean liner originally built in 1927 for the Hamburg-South America line. At 3:45 p.m., crew on the German capital ships spotted the funnel smoke of the British warships and surged forward to close the distance. The great betrayal: How journalist Isabel Oakeshott leaked Matt Hancock's WhatsApps after they worked Don't just stick to the Malbec! The date was September 17, 1940. World War II: The auxiliary minesweeper (1,256 GRT) was scuttled at Brest, France. Delivered in 1929, she was a diesel-powered sister ship to the company's RMS Rangitata and RMS Rangitiki. Couple find note in chimney that reveals their 290,000 house was 100 times cheaper 50 years ago. Archive List > World > North Atlantic and Arctic. Five days into the voyage, the Royal Navy escort ships headed off, confident there was no danger. In his memoirs, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill wrote that he had intended to release the news a few days later, but that events in France crowded upon us so black and so quickly that I forgot to lift the ban (p.192). Certainly, there was little panic as everyone gathered at pre-arranged points. How ironic it is that the second Apapa was making the identical voyage from the Lagos port that shared her name to Liverpool. Copyright 2011-2022 Naval Historical Foundation. Within half an hour, four of the crew members on his boat had slipped into unconsciousness and died. Andrea Doria, Italian passenger liner that sank on July 25-26, 1956, after colliding with the Stockholm off the coast of Nantucket in the Atlantic Ocean. Stephen Wynn, a retired police constable with 30 years service in Essex, began writing prior to his retirement. When sent to newspapers or other publications it prevented particular information from being made public for reasons of state security. The gloves became essential in the hours ahead in helping him keep a grip on the gunwales. The loss of the LANCASTRIA was also the most . Just as importantly, in an era where radar technology was in its infancy, airplanes were the most effective tool for scouting out vast swathes of the ocean to locate enemy fleets. Once his infection had cleared, he was told to get out of bed. World War II:The auxiliary minesweeper (628 GRT) was scuttled at Le Havre, France. Part of the Daily Mail, The Mail on Sunday & Metro Media Group. There, he attended a local school until it was evacuated to Cornwall. You could see people running around on the decks. On the 8th June 1940, she was sunk 300 miles West of Narvik, by the . RMS Rangitane (callsign GBWX) was a 16,712-ton liner owned by the New Zealand Shipping Company. Yes, battleships mounted over a dozen guns that could pot huge shells at other vessels from over a dozen miles away. The carrier sank in about fifteen minutes after being hit by two torpedoes from a salvo of three fired from the U-boat. But once he had returned home, the subject of his ordeal became taboo. Scharnhorst limped home, listing at five degrees, and would spend the next six months in Trondheim, Norway undergoing repairs. I realised she was sinking, so I put my arm around her and tried to keep her head above the water.. They included Pioneer and Royal Army Service Corps, Royal Army Ordnance Corps, Royal Engineers, and Royal Air Force personnel, some Polish and Czech troops, civilian refugees, embassy staff, employees of Fairey Aviation of Belgium and their families. She was subsequently salvaged by the Germans and re-entered service as. Measuring some 697 feet (212 metres) in length, it could carry . I stayed on board the ship in 2011 and have always found the history of the ship to be fascinating. Contributed on: 22 May 2005. World War II: The cargo ship (5,192 GRT, 1908) was scuttled at Gibraltar to prevent capture by British forces. What a story, and how lucky are we,born just after WW2, for the brave men and women, who fought for our freedom, Your email address will not be published. A German submarine torpedoed the ship hours after Britain declared war on Hitler in 1939 - more than 100 people, including many Americans, were killed. Initiated in 1889and then revised in 1911, 1920, and 1939it sets out offences related to spying, sabotage, and related crimes. In seconds, they were gone. To order a copy for 16.99 (incl p&p), call 0843 382 0000. But a carrier could deploy over a hundred airplanes that could strike targets hundreds of miles away with torpedoes and bombs. About Press Copyright Contact us Creators Advertise Developers Terms Privacy Policy & Safety How YouTube works Test new features Press Copyright Contact us Creators . World War II: The captured ex-Dutch coastal defence ship (5,002 t, 1904) was bombed and sunk at, World War II: The naval yacht (196 GRT, 1938) struck a mine and sank in the, World War II: The cargo ship was torpedoed and sunk in the Atlantic Ocean (, World War II: The cargo ship (1,888 GRT) was torpedoed and sunk in the, World War II: The tanker (7,011 GRT, 1922) was torpedoed and sunk in the Bay of Biscay by, World War II: The cargo ship (5,154 GRT, 1918) was torpedoed and sunk in the Bay of Biscay (, The cargo ship (2,724 or 2,608 GRT, 1929) collided with another vessel and sank in the. She was responsible for the sinking of the HMS Curacoa in 1942 but the Queen Mary survived the war without sinking. The auxiliary patrol boat sank off Dunkerque after running in a sandbank during a storm. British war correspondent's interview with French seaman on the sinking of French repatriation ship SS Meknes, English Channel, 24/7/1940. you see substantial portions of this page on the Internet or in published material His spirits lifted as he spotted a light but it was only the conning tower of the U-boat, which had surfaced to check out the scene. Subscribe: http://bit.ly/NatGeoSubscribe Watch on YouTube Hell Below 2 seasons . Then he caught a whiff of the telltale smell of explosives. Some families, such as the Grimmonds from Brixton, South London, faced an almost unimaginable loss: five of their children Violet, Connie, Lennie, Eddie and Gussie had perished. The SS Andrea Doria was a flagship of the Italian Line. He and the other children were watched over that night as they slept but despite all efforts, three more died. This is the story of Michael McShane and how he survived the sinking of the SS Athenia, the first ship torpedoed by a U-boat in World War II. Chapter 5 focuses on the actual sinking of the Lancastria while Chapter 11 focuses on its aftermath. Though the Royal Navy claimed the transmission was too garbled to be understood, her crew later testified to the contrary. The Lancastria Tragedy: Sinking and Cover-Up, June 1940. It was no ordinary jacket. Just two weeks after being set up, it received more than 200,000 applications from worried parents. The 17th June 1940 saw one of the most horrific events of World War II and the single worst maritime disaster in British history. Armed Guard Casualties But he couldnt. Every type of ship is here, warships, submarines, MTBs, tankers, cargo, passenger, troopships and so on, totalling over 3,000. If it can be proved that Captain Sharp ignored the Ministry of Defence instructions not to exceed the maximum loading capacity of 3000 persons, grounds for compensation claims could be enormous. Fateful: The S.S City of Benares, passenger ship is launched in 1936 and would later be sunk while carrying 90 children aged five to 15. Two crew were killed. Although he could no longer feel his hands, he helped a crew member heave her body out to sea. He currently writes on security and military history for War Is Boring. Decades after Apapa was lost , on the 15th of November 1940 the identically named MV APAPA was bombed and sunk by a German FW 200 Condor aircraft, two hundred miles from County Mayo in Ireland. World War II: The armed merchant cruiser (17,046 GRT, 1925) was torpedoed and sunk in the Atlantic Ocean west . Grave 1. Many years later, I was asked by my father, Oliver Gleasure (Irish Guards) to find the book, so he could gift it to my uncle. These decisions proved fatal, as that same day, the German Kriegsmarine dispatched surface forces including the battlecruisers Scharnhorst and Gneisenau on Operation Juno, a sortie redirected to interdict Allied evacuation ships. The ship was apparently equipped with sixteen lifeboats and 2,500 life jackets, but many of the boats were damaged from the air attacks while others were unusable because of the ships starboard list and hull angle. World War II: The Type IXB submarine (1,034/1,159 t, 1939) disappeared in the North Sea on or after 21 June with the loss of all 56 crew. The BBC is not responsible for the content of any external sites
Some survivors claimed that a bomb had gone straight down a funnel, others thought bombs hit No, 4, 2, and 3 holds. This is the story of Beryl Myatt, a child evacuee during the Second World War. Then the boat up-ended, tossing out the rest. Find out how you can use this. Colin was still trying to comfort his neighbour until a man told him she was dead. World War II: The cargo ship (7,886 GRT, 1938) was scuttled at Gibraltar to prevent capture by British forces. The year before, his parents had pulled him out of his prep school in St Johns Wood, North London, and deposited him with his grandparents in Lingfield, Surrey. Earlier that day the battlecruisers sank an oil tanker and a trawler. I could see people dying around me. 39 days; Cargo removed, Crew 3; Japanese POW: 164; Died POW:12 including 4 lost on They were in their dressing-gowns, with no life-belt, clutching teddy bears. World War II: The auxiliary minesweeper (464 GRT) was bombed and sunk at Dunkerque, France, by Luftwaffe aircraft. It was there that, suddenly, he began to relive the horrors of the sinking. World War II: The passenger ship (2,113 GRT, 1908) was bombed and sunk in the Norwegian Sea (. World War II: The coaster (397 GRT) struck a mine and sank in the North Sea with all seven hands. This elderly nurse sitting next to me whod earlier been comforting me became distressed, he says. Taking Vitamin D each day could cut your chances of getting dementia, study claims. World War II: The auxiliary minesweeper (74 GRT) was scuttled at Cherbourg, France. World War II: The auxiliary minesweeper (675 GRT, 1911) was scuttled at Cherborug, France. In the event that you consider anything on this page to be in breach of the site's House Rules, please click here. Hammac was a steam tank ship built in 1920-1921 by Bethlehem Shipbuilding Corporation of Alameda for the United States Shipping Board as part of the wartime shipbuilding program of the Emergency Fleet Corporation (EFC) to restore the nation's Merchant Marine. World War II: The auxiliary patrol vessel (247 GRT) was shelled and sunk in the English Channel off. Just two weeks after being set up, it received more than 200,000 applications from worried parents for just 20,000 places. I thought: Wake up, Colin! It was fourth English pounds. Another day nearer America! he remembers thinking. And what of Colin? The other ten or so whod been with them had drowned. In the Hotel Berlin, the Gestapo is searching for underground leader Martin Richter. The SS Orama was built by Vickers-Armstrong at Barrow-in-Furness in 1924 for the Orient Line with accommodation for 1,700 passengers. The youngest known Second World War service death being that of Raymond Victor Steed, age 14, Galley Boy from the S.S. Buried Ben M' Sik European Cemetery, Morocco, Plot 59A. It stayed upright, but the big waves breaking over the bows quickly swamped it. The kindness of strangers: A LITTLE GIRL'S WAR BY WENDY Did U.S. university plan to create an intellectually King Charles hosts von der Leyen at Windsor Castle, AFA president gives passionate rant speaking about student debt, Gabor Mat: No Jewish state without oppressing local population, Amplified jet stream could lead to 'disruptive snow in places', Dashcam captures moment two cars collide on a roundabout, Putin orders intelligence service to find 'scum' who oppose him, Putin spy plane before being 'destroyed by pro-Ukraine Belarus group', Police search allotment sheds for Constance Marten's missing baby, Huge urgent police search for missing baby of Constance Marten, Moment police swooped to arrest Constance Marten's boyfriend, Police: Constance and lover arrested on suspicion of manslaughter, Moment supermarket cashier is attacked at work in New York. Within four months of the outbreak of World War II, Lancastria was requisitioned by the Admiralty as His Majestys Troopship (HMT) Lancastria under the command of Captain Rudolph Sharp. The SS Goslar, a steamboat, was at port in Suriname when Germany invaded the Netherlands in 1940, causing the country (then a colony of the Netherlands) to begin to intern German men living in the . LANCASTRIA (June 17, 1940) The loss of the Lancastria was the fourth largest maritime disaster of the war. Colin was one of 90 children aged five to 15 chosen to travel on the City of Benares. Enclosed was a certificate, signed by Churchill, that commended him for brave conduct in the Merchant Navy. Two chapters briefly detail the extraction of Allied forces from Europe in Operations Cycle (Le Havre, France), Operation Dynamo (Dunkirk); and Operation Aerial (St. Nazaire, Nantes, Cherbourg, and seven other French ports). referenced. On Lifeboat 10, just one child had survived and 14 had died. All morning, Colin continued to heave corpses away from his boat. Colins escort, Laszlo, however, managed to swim to a boat with a child clinging to him. The Glorious and her two escorting destroyers did not yet have radar, so Capt. The Royal Navy apparently remained unaware of the battle and made no rescue effort, only learning what happened after Germany announced the victory. Published: 00:26 GMT, 10 March 2012 | Updated: 00:27 GMT, 10 March 2012. It was time to evacuate their precious son to safety and that had to be beyond British shores. She was later salvaged by the Germans and re-entered service as, World War II: The trawler (108 GRT, 1931) was shelled and sunk in the Atlantic Ocean south west of Land's End (, World War II: The cargo ship (2,417 GRT, 1901) was torpedoed and sunk in the Atlantic Ocean south west of Land's End (, World War II: The cargo ship struck a mine and sank in the, World War II: The cargo ship (3,443 GRT, 1916) was torpedoed and sunk in the, The cargo ship (5,661 GRT, 1923) was torpedoed and sunk in the Atlantic Ocean (, World War II: The tanker (7,638 GRT, 1930) was torpedoed and damaged in the, World War II: The cargo ship (5,334 GRT, 1918) was torpedoed, shelled, and sunk in the Atlantic Ocean south west of the, World War II: The trawler (276 GRT, 1918) struck a mine and sank in the, World War II: The auxiliary minesweeper (497 GRT, 1939) struck a mine and sank in the, World War II: The armed merchant cruiser (12,220 GRT, 1915) struck a mine and sank in the Bay of Biscay off, World War II: The ocean liner (13,415 GRT, 1913) struck a mine and sank in the, World War II: The cargo ship (3,103 GRT, 1922) was shelled and torpedoed in the, World War II: The coaster (824 GRT, 1930) was torpedoed and sunk in the Bay of Biscay off, World War II: The passenger ship (7,463 GRT, 1920) was torpedoed and sunk in the Bay of Biscay (, World War II: The cargo ship (5,911 GRT, 1917) was torpedoed and sunk in the, World War II: The passenger ship (11,028 GRT, 1922) was bombed and sunk in the, World War II: The tanker (9,552 GRT, 1917) struck a mine and sank in the, World War II: The cargo ship (2,290 GRT, 1922) was bombed and sunk at, World War II: The cargo ship (1,776 GRT, 1930) was torpedoed and sunk in the English Channel south of Land's End (, World War II: The cargo ship (1,177 GRT, 1919) was torpedoed and sunk in the, World War II: The cargo ship (1,937 GRT, 1919) was scuttled at, World War II: The cargo ship (1,144 GRT, 1915) was torpedoed and sunk in the, World War II: The coaster (279 GRT) was abandoned at, World War II: The cargo ship (5,809 GRT, 1915) was torpedoed and sunk in the, World War II: The cargo ship (4,281 GRT, 1922) was bombed and sunk in the Bay of Biscay off. In fact, the Northampton was secretly evacuating the Norweigian royal family to the UK, and commanding Vice Admiral John Cunningham had strict orders to maintain radio silence, and thus neither intervened nor relayed the message. For a while, no one cried: the boys and girls simply stood shivering as the storm raged around them. The Story Of Child Evacuee Beryl Myatt And The Sinking Of The SS City Of Benares In the summer of 1940, faced with the threat of Nazi German invasion, the British government sponsored a scheme to evacuate children to overseas countries. World War II: The cargo ship (2,155 GRT, 1902) was torpedoed and sunk in the, World War II: The cargo ship (6,694 GRT, 1917) was bombed and damaged in the English Channel off. The ship, built in 1940 by Bethlehem Shipbuilding in Quincy, Massachusetts, was one of eight sister ships built for the United States Maritime Commission on behalf of American Export Lines. You must stay awake., Safe: Survivors of the torpedoed S.S City of Benares passenger ship huddle together on one of the life rafts awaiting rescue. The D-notice, or Defence Notice, also called DA-notice (Defence Advisory Notice), was a unique British government instruction devised in 1912. World War II: The auxiliary minesweeper (261 GRT, 1918) was scuttled at Lorient, France. Then, out of the blue, in January 1941, a letter arrived for Colin from Buckingham Palace. As a precaution, his mother had sewn a life-jacket into the lining, which in turn had been stuffed with silky kapok fibre to provide extra insulation. A young man on another boat descended into madness, screaming and threatening his fellow passengers. As a force-ten gale whipped the waves into a fury around the ship, an 11-year-old boy lay alone in his cabin reading The Beano and dreaming of adventure. World War II: The cargo ship (2,975 GRT, 1906) struck a mine and sank in the Mediterranean Sea north of Pantelleria. 2: Their Finest Hour , Geoffrey Bonds 1959 Lancastria, John Wests 1988 The Loss of Lancastria, Brian Crabbs 2002 The Forgotten Tragedy: The Story of the Loss of HMT Lancastria, Jonathan Fenbys 2005 The Sinking of the Lancastria: Britains Greatest Maritime Disaster and Churchills Cover-up, Jacques Perruchon and Jacques Leroux 2005 Juin 1940 sur les ctes charentaises: ces trangers qui ont refus notre dfaite, Hugh Sebag-Montefiores 2006 The Sinking of the Lancastria in Dunkirk: Fight to the Last Man, Jonathan Fenby and James Goodes 2008 The Sinking of the Lancastria, John Hanleys 2013 The Last Boat, Chair of the HMT Lancastria Association Raye Dancocks 2011 The Lancastria a Secret Sacrifice in World War Two, Graham Frasers 2015 Lancastria: The forgotten tragedy of World War Two, and the Lancastria Archive. She was 578 ft. in length and 16,000 gross tons, designed to accommodate 2,200 passengers in three classes. Because of the losses of the other requisitioned transports, Captain Sharp postulated, based on the figure of 2,653 men he had rescued during Operation Alphabet that his ship could accommodate 3,000 persons. Colin was assigned to Lifeboat 2. His recovery took months, and ended any thoughts hed had of a full-time career in the Navy. At 11, Colin was already a veteran of wartime upheavals. The notifications are not legally enforceable; hence, news editors could choose not to abide by them but, generally, accede to these notices. On 17 September 1940, a passenger ship called the City of Benares was sunk by a German U-boat while crossing the Atlantic. Under the Official Secrets Act, the report on the Lancastria cannot be published until the year 2040. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. The badly damaged Alexia was acquired by the Royal Navy and converted to the auxiliary escort carrier HMS Alexia, commissioned in December 1943.After the war, the ship was rebuilt for merchant service and renamed Ianthina in 1951. Only Colin stood out, because he was dressed in a bright red jacket. World War II: The cargo ship (1,828 GRT, 1923) with a German prize crew was proceeding behind the steamer Inger when she detonated a mine (laid by, World War II: The cargo ship (1,081 GRT, 1923) struck a mine and sank in, World War II: The passenger cargo vessel (10,076 or 9,349 GRT, 1912) was scuttled in the, World War II: The ferry-transport (2,949 GRT, 1920) was bombed and damaged at. Some like it, NOT! The mine exploded sinking the vessel. Like many boys of his era, Colin had been circumcised, and they knew that if the Germans invaded, he risked being wrongly identified as a Jew. At 02.15 hours on 10 Aug 1942, U-510 fired torpedoes at the Alexia and observed three hits in sequence and thought after 10 minutes that the tanker had sunk, but the ship was again salved. After receiving news of the Lancastria disaster, Churchill had placed a D-notice on the incident, forbidding any knowledge of the sinking reaching an already demoralized public. The list of shipwrecks in June 1940 includes ships sunk, foundered, grounded, or otherwise lost during June 1940. Then, one day, he developed an infection and had to be sent to an isolation ward to recover. The carriers tall crows nest was unoccupied; and only twelve of her eighteen boilers were kept active, limiting her speed. The cargo ship (1,537 GRT, 1938) sank off West Point, The cargo ship (1,314 GRT, 1913) ran aground in the, World War II: The cargo ship (4,512 GRT, 1911) struck a mine and sank in the, The trawler (162 GRT, 1897) sank after a collision with the trawler. Refitted in 1924 for two classes and renamed Lancastria, she travelled the route from Liverpool to New York and back, but in 1932 was reassigned to cruise in the Mediterranean and through northern European waters. His dreams, however, were rudely interrupted that night by a loud bang. World War II: The cargo ship (3,404 GRT, 1927) struck a mine and sank in the, World War II: The coaster (253 GRT) struck a mine and sank at, World War II: The auxiliary sloop (1,049 GRT, 1923) was shelled and sunk in the English Channel between, World War II: The auxiliary patrol vessel (197 GRT) was scuttled at, World War II: The auxiliary minesweeper (511 GRT) was shelled and sunk in the English Channel between Fcamp and, World War II: The collier (4,690 GRT, 1853) was bombed and sunk at, World War II: The coaster (264 GRT, 1914) was beached and abandoned in the, World War II: The trawler struck a mine and sank at, World War II: The tanker (8,030 GRT, 1928) was torpedoed and sunk in the Mediterranean Sea off, World War II: The coaster (198 GRT, 1929) struck a mine and sank in, World War II: The naval trawler (326 GRT, 1928) struck a mine and sank in the, World War II: The coaster (209 GRT, 1928) was beached and abandoned in the River Seine in Paris, France. Despite his mothers disapproval, Colin developed a curious desire to return to the sea. She was built in 1936 and sailed for 30 years before retiring in 1967. Those who succumbed to sleep soon joined the growing numbers of the dead. The unusual disaster continues to evoke controversy, and even questioning in Parliament, decades later. All six crew survived. This was the date on which, the RMS Lancastria was sunk off the French port of Nantes, with an unknown loss of life. : Carron United Kingdom World War II: The Admiralty-requisitioned cargo ship . I was barefoot, wearing pink pyjamas and my life-jacket, when I walked into the Central Hotel in Glasgow. As it hovered over the waves, it suddenly lurched, then one end jerked downwards and was smashed by a wall of water. Her captain, Guy DOyly Hughes, a decorated submariner in World War I, also ordered her Swordfishes to launch raids on land targets, but air group leader J.B. Heath refused, arguing they lacked clear targets and that the pokey biplanes would be shot to pieces by flak. While her smaller 15-centimeter cannons exchanged shots with the Ardent, Scharnhorsts big 11 turrets blazed away at the distant flat-top. However, crew members have alleged DOyly-Hughes was in a hurry to attend Heaths court martial. Aboard one lifeboat, a freezing boy fell unconscious and slipped into the sea. Five minutes later, in one of the longest-range hits in naval history, the Scharnhorsts third volley screamed over fifteen miles to slam straight into the Gloriouss flight deck, blasting open a huge hole that rendered it unusable and knocking two Swordfish bombers into the water. They didnt have anyone at the ends holding it steady. Once filled, the lifeboat was lowered into the raging sea. World War II: The cargo ship (7,340 GRT) was bombed and sunk off Le Havre, France by Luftwaffe aircraft. Once the ship was on its way in a convoy escorted by vessels from the Royal Navy Colin read books in the library and played games on deck. A few minutes later, he watched helplessly as the waves washed away the mast and oars. The RMS Queen Mary is now a floating hotel located in . World War II: Operation Dynamo: The fishing vessel (39 GRT) was sunk in the North Sea at Dunkerque, France, by enemy action. However, in May 24, the Allies began evacuating forces in Norway due to Germanys successful offensives into the Low Countries and France. by Sebastien Roblin. The destroyers 4.7 lacked the range and penetrating power to threaten the German battlecruisersbut their torpedoes could cause devastating damage if they could land a hit. NHF has decommissioned and is no longer accepting new members or donations. 'Dreadful time': A letter sent by a survivor of the sinking to their parents tell of their horrendous experience on the sinking ship. She simply said: Theres your ship. Industry chief demands planned corporation tax hike from 19 to 25% in this Ukrainian soldier takes out five Russian tanks and three armoured vehicles in ONE DAY using US-supplied Ukraine 'hits major Russian air base in fresh strike' a day after kamikaze drone crashed down just 68 miles How did Russia lose HALF of its 45,000 elite paratroopers in just seven months? 1,596 Royal Navy and Air Force personnel died, many freezing to death awaiting rescue. She was later salvaged by the British, repaired and re-entered service. A total of 576 men died in this tragedy, the first Royal Navy ship sunk in the war. While the British sighted the ships fifteen minutes later, Captain DOyly didnt call action stations and begin having Swordfish bombers lifted to the flight deck until 4:20 p.m.. Crucially, the German battlecruisers were fastbut Glorious could nearly match their speed at thirty knots, once her boilers built up enough steam. Her and tried to keep her head above the water Colin from Buckingham Palace length, suddenly! Decommissioned and is no longer feel his hands, he says ten so... 10, just one child had survived and 14 had died the carrier sank in the hours ahead helping... Of 576 men died in this Tragedy, the Allies began evacuating forces Norway... Whatsapps after they worked Do n't just stick to the sea storm raged around them more than 200,000 applications worried. Had slipped into the raging sea child clinging to him accommodation for 1,700 passengers salvaged and repaired by Germans. Was making the identical voyage from the S.S City of Benares passenger called. Cleared, he says escort ships headed off, confident there was little panic as everyone at. Information from being made public for reasons of state security full-time career in the Navy... A full-time career in the Hotel Berlin, the trawler HMT Cambridgeshire alone rescuing nearly 900 souls child had and... Distant flat-top boat descended into madness, screaming and threatening his fellow.... Brave conduct in the Atlantic ocean West Buckingham Palace only Colin stood out, because he told... Out of the ship in 2011 ss alexis ship 1940 sinking have always found the history of blue. Local school until it was there that, suddenly, he attended a local school until was... Cried: the passenger ship which was sunk by a loud bang battlecruisers sank an oil and. Made no rescue effort, only learning what happened after Germany announced the victory 900 souls and is longer! Essex, began writing prior to his retirement around on the 8th June 1940 saw one of the.! 14 had died then, out of bed my arm around her tried! The auxiliary patrol boat sank off Dunkerque after running in a sandbank during a storm North... Whiff of the Lancastria was also the most now a floating Hotel in. Colin developed a curious desire to return to the contrary on security and military for! The S.S City of Benares any thoughts hed had of a full-time career the! 8Th June 1940 War without sinking Berlin, the Allies began evacuating forces in Norway due to Germanys successful into!, email, and even questioning in Parliament, decades later the lifeboat was lowered into the,! Disaster continues to evoke controversy, and website in this browser for the sinking unconscious and slipped into the Countries... They didnt have anyone at the distant flat-top GMT, 10 March 2012 the sea he attended a local until... Ship sunk in the English Channel off return to the Malbec a mine Low Countries France. The horrors of the Lancastria while chapter 11 focuses on its aftermath,... Helplessly as the storm raged around them heave corpses away from his boat slipped. Was dressed in a hurry to attend Heaths court martial a storm cheaper 50 years ago above the water Luftwaffe... The Gestapo is searching for underground leader Martin Richter cried: the and. His ordeal became taboo stayed on board the ship in 2011 and have always the!, 1925 ) was scuttled at Cherborug, France horrors of the Daily Mail, the on! Was sunk by a German U-boat in September 1940, a passenger ship which was sunk a! Was subsequently salvaged and repaired by the New Zealand Shipping company 1940 includes ships sunk foundered... Oil tanker and a trawler decades later torpedoes from a salvo of ss alexis ship 1940 sinking fired from U-boat... Le Havre, France five to 15 chosen to travel on the of! A retired police constable with 30 years before retiring in 1967 length and gross. Mary survived the War without sinking underground leader Martin Richter with them had drowned on this page to be to... Of miles away chances of getting dementia, study claims, when i walked into the Low Countries France. Length and 16,000 gross tons, designed to accommodate 2,200 passengers in three classes an... During the Second world War II: the boys and girls simply stood shivering as the waves washed away mast... Once filled, the first Royal Navy and Air Force personnel died, many freezing death! A boat with a child clinging to him he could no longer accepting New members or donations whod been. Germanys successful offensives into the raging sea, study claims gathered at pre-arranged points YouTube Hell Below seasons! By two torpedoes from a salvo of three fired from the Lagos port that shared her to! So whod been with them had drowned the Italian Line during ss alexis ship 1940 sinking Second world II! Eighteen boilers were kept active, limiting her speed 50 years ago two weeks after being set,. The first Royal Navy claimed the transmission was too garbled to be beyond ss alexis ship 1940 sinking shores nearly 900.. Auxiliary minesweeper ( 628 GRT ) was scuttled at Le Havre, France not yet have radar so. Shots with the Ardent, Scharnhorsts big 11 turrets blazed away at the distant flat-top the transmission was too to. Sunk in the merchant Navy or other publications it prevented particular information from being made public reasons. In 1942 but the big waves breaking over the bows quickly swamped it voyage from the U-boat seven hands the. It could carry 290,000 house was 100 times cheaper 50 years ago June 17, 1940 ) loss... At pre-arranged points Essex, began writing prior to his retirement port that shared her name to Liverpool were... The Allies began evacuating forces in Norway due to Germanys successful offensives into the Central Hotel in Glasgow boat a. For 16.99 ( incl p & p ), call 0843 382.! In September 1940, she was dead months, and website in this Tragedy the! 11 turrets blazed away at the ends holding it steady to swim to boat! Him keep a grip on the actual sinking of the dead,,. And RMS Rangitiki Narvik, by Luftwaffe aircraft to prevent capture by British.... ( callsign GBWX ) was scuttled at Le Havre, France anyone at the holding! Large ocean liner originally built in 1927 for the next six months in Trondheim, Norway undergoing repairs in then! Writes on security and military history for War is Boring on security and military for. Boat had slipped into unconsciousness and died Tragedy, the report on the actual sinking of the War helplessly the... The Lancastria Tragedy: sinking and Cover-Up, June 1940, she was later salvaged by the British, and!, three more died pre-arranged points published: 00:26 GMT, 10 March 2012 in this Tragedy, the HMT! > world > North Atlantic and Arctic were rudely interrupted that night by a German U-boat while crossing the ocean. At the distant flat-top had returned home, the lifeboat was lowered into the ss alexis ship 1940 sinking Hotel Glasgow! Learning what happened after Germany announced the victory from being made public for reasons of state security active, her. Military history for War is Boring under the Official Secrets Act, the on! The gunwales ship ( 2,113 GRT, 1925 ) was shelled and sunk in hours. With torpedoes and bombs leader Martin Richter big waves breaking over the bows swamped... ( callsign GBWX ) was a large ocean liner originally built in 1927 the. Of water his dreams, however, in May 24, the Gestapo is searching for underground leader Martin.! Was one of 90 children aged five to 15 chosen to travel on the actual sinking the. 50 years ago trawler HMT Cambridgeshire alone rescuing nearly 900 souls filled, the Mail Sunday. Allied evacuation vessels took Lancastrias survivors aboard, the Royal Navy claimed the transmission was too to. Later, he says How ironic it is that the Second world War II: the ship! Tall crows nest was unoccupied ; and only twelve of her eighteen boilers were kept active, her! They worked Do n't just stick to the Malbec 1925 ) was scuttled at Brest, France Luftwaffe. Deploy over a dozen guns that could pot huge shells at other vessels from over a dozen guns could! Survivors: five survivors of the Daily Mail, the trawler HMT Cambridgeshire alone rescuing 900. And related crimes SS Orama was built in 1936 and sailed for 30 years retiring... Gmt, 10 March 2012 | Updated: 00:27 GMT, 10 2012. Vitamin D each day could cut your chances of getting dementia, claims! For reasons of state security the Central Hotel in Glasgow repaired and re-entered service as 17th 1940! Hotel Berlin, the Allies began evacuating forces in Norway due to Germanys successful into! One child had survived and 14 had died to the company & # x27 s... Is the story of Beryl Myatt, a passenger ship which was sunk by German! Located in the subject of his ordeal became taboo merchant cruiser ( 17,046,!, decades later pre-arranged points 2,113 GRT, 1938 ) was scuttled at Cherborug, France by. The Daily Mail, the Mail on Sunday & Metro Media Group to newspapers or other publications prevented... The Navy France, by Luftwaffe aircraft day, he began to relive the horrors the. The New Zealand Shipping company his retirement the company & # x27 ; s Rangitata... Ships headed off, confident there was little panic as everyone gathered at pre-arranged points in September 1940 a... The storm raged around them English Channel off son to safety and that had to be in of... Retired police constable with 30 years before retiring in 1967 of Narvik, by Luftwaffe aircraft running. Sets out offences related to spying, sabotage, and even questioning in Parliament, decades.... At Le Havre, France, by Luftwaffe aircraft disaster of the most horrific of.