DOyly-Hughes ordered the destroyer Ardent to turn about and visually investigate the sighting, while nonchalantly maintaining his westward course at cruising speed. Copyright 2023 Center for the National Interest All Rights Reserved, first carrier-launched naval air strike in history, North Korea: We Asked 27 Experts What They Think Will Happen in 2019. The Lancastria Tragedy: Sinking and Cover-Up, June 1940. 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. 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). Some survivors claimed that a bomb had gone straight down a funnel, others thought bombs hit No, 4, 2, and 3 holds. Merchant ship movement card (catalogue reference: BT 389) In the top left corner of the record is the ship's name. 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. There were only 11 survivors. Just seven minutes later, the Scharnhorst opened fire on the investigating Ardent, busting open a boiler. This is the story of Beryl Myatt, a child evacuee during the Second World War. When sent to newspapers or other publications it prevented particular information from being made public for reasons of state security. On Lifeboat 10, just one child had survived and 14 had died. Contributed on: 30 March 2004. Only Colin stood out, because he was dressed in a bright red jacket. With his red life-jacket already on over his pyjamas, he headed up the stairs. Published: 00:26 GMT, 10 March 2012 | Updated: 00:27 GMT, 10 March 2012. Row 1. From somewhere out there in the deep, a German U-boat had fired a torpedo directly into the ship, just below the childrens sleeping quarters. 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. World War II: The armed merchant cruiser (17,046 GRT, 1925) was torpedoed and sunk in the Atlantic Ocean west of. I knew that if I fell asleep, Id die. 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 . She looked at me and said: What have you done with all your clothes? he says. Even so, he was already freezing and soaked to the skin. Palm Springs residents sue to remove 25-foot Marilyn Monroe statue depicting her iconic My Daily Horoscope: What does 2nd March hold for MY star sign? Your email address will not be published. World War II: The tug (239 GRT) struck a mine in the North Sea and sank. World War II: The naval tug (100 GRT) was scuttled at Lorient, France. Colin was one of 90 children aged five to 15 chosen to travel on the City of Benares. British war correspondent's interview with French seaman on the sinking of French repatriation ship SS Meknes, English Channel, 24/7/1940. When do the clocks change in 2023? those of the BBC. Therefore, destroyers, fishing boats, and other small craft had to ferry the evacuees to Lancastria while being bombed and machine-gunned by the Luftwaffes Junkers Ju 11 bombers of Kampfgeschwader 30. 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 (. as the source. The 17th June 1940 saw one of the most horrific events of World War II and the single worst maritime disaster in British history. Oscar Cainer tells all. World War II: The cargo ship was scuttled in, World War II: The tanker (4,995 GRT, 1913) was partially sunk by British commandos in the, World War II: The tanker (6,101 GRT) was scuttled at, World War II: The cargo ship (6,470 GRT) was scuttled at, World War II: The trawler (203 GRT) was bombed and sunk in the. by Sebastien Roblin. 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. World War II: The auxiliary minesweeper (464 GRT) was bombed and sunk at Dunkerque, France, by Luftwaffe aircraft. Under the Official Secrets Act, the report on the Lancastria cannot be published until the year 2040. The great betrayal: How journalist Isabel Oakeshott leaked Matt Hancock's WhatsApps after they worked Don't just stick to the Malbec! All nine crew were rescued by the trawler, The coaster (270 GRT) ran ashore on Kalder Steel, off, The cargo ship (3,303 or 3,240 GRT, 1913) struck a submerged wreck in the, The coaster (121 GRT, 1918) sank off the mouth of the. 1 June [ edit] 2 June [ edit] 3 June [ edit] 4 June [ edit] 5 June [ edit] 6 June [ edit] 7 June [ edit] 8 June [ edit] World War II: The armed merchant cruiser (17,046 GRT, 1925) was torpedoed and sunk in the Atlantic Ocean west of. However, some information about the Lancastrias sinking was made public within a matter of days, particularly six individual death notices in local newspapers. Theyd just woken up.. (Look 18/06/1940), World War II: The naval trawler (348 GRT, 1929) ran aground at Brest, France and was abandoned without loss. By late-June 1940, internees had begun to be moved out of Warth Mills. The SS Cap Arcona was a large ocean liner originally built in 1927 for the Hamburg-South America line. If a ship had a former name this would be written in brackets. Grave 1. I thought: Wake up, Colin! It was his mother who came to collect him. World War II: The cargo ship (1,525 GRT, 1920) was scuttled as a blockship at Dieppe, France. However, in May 24, the Allies began evacuating forces in Norway due to Germanys successful offensives into the Low Countries and France. Other Nazis are planning to escape to America. The loss of the LANCASTRIA was also the most . World War II: The auxiliary patrol vessel (302 GRT, 1906) was scuttled at Brest, France. Kenneth and Raymond Lewis are commemorated on the Tower Hill Memorial in London on Panel 49. Chapter 4 Secret Session Speeches by Churchill provides extracts of five speeches made between June 20th 1941 and December 10, 1942, including one made in response to the sinking of HMT Lancastria on June 17, 1941. Some like it, NOT! Below the waves, however, the convoy was being trailed by U-48, a German U-boat. As HMS Hurricane approached Lifeboat 2, Colin and the remaining passengers started singing Rule Britannia. The survivors were now completely alone in the dark. 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. There are no actual transcripts of these speeches, but they have been reconstructed from Churchills notes given to Charles Eade. World War II: The auxiliary minesweeper (301 GRT, 1907) was scuttled at, World War II: The naval tug (179 GRT) was scuttled at, World War II: The cargo ship (1,199 GRT) was scuttled at, World War II: The cargo ship (3,594 GRT, 1920) was scuttled at Rochefort, France. It was there that, suddenly, he began to relive the horrors of the sinking. Seager Co. Tempus Shipping Ltd). Despite his mothers disapproval, Colin developed a curious desire to return to the sea. 11, two out of 11 children remained. The much smaller vessel immediately laid a smoke screen which it used as cover to launch hit-and-run torpedo attacks. 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). It was 10pm. His parents found out Colin was alive only when they spotted a photo of him in a newspaper. Aboard one lifeboat, a freezing boy fell unconscious and slipped into the sea. World War II: The auxiliary minesweeper (150 GRT) was scuttled at Lorient, France. Most of the content on this site is created by our users, who are members of the Once his infection had cleared, he was told to get out of bed. When dawn broke, Bess and Beth were still somehow clinging onto their upturned lifeboat along with two men. In 1940, these included Fairey Swordfish torpedo bombers, Gloster Sea Gladiator fighters, as well monoplane Blackburn Skua monoplane bomber/fighters. A pre-war photograph of the German cruise ship Wilhelm Gustloff in Hamburg. She did not return to Liverpool in time to take part in the famous Operation Dynamo at Dunkirk, which evacuated 338,226 Belgian, British, and French troops between May 26 and June 4,. It was fourth English pounds. World War II: The armed merchant cruiser (17,046 GRT, 1925) was torpedoed and sunk in the Atlantic Ocean west . Naval Institute is maintaining and preserving the former Naval Historical Foundation website so readers and former NHF members can still access past issues of Pull Together and other content. Those who succumbed to sleep soon joined the growing numbers of the dead. World War II: The auxiliary patrol vessel (1,160 GRT, 1934) struck a mine of Le Verdon-sur-Mer, France and was beached. Wynn has previously authored and co-authored books for the Your Towns & Cities in the Great War series published by Pen & Sword in addition to half a dozen non-fiction books and crime thrillers.. The sinking of HMT Lancastria on June 17, 1940, is an intriguing chapter of naval history in World War II primarily because of the tragic loss of life and how much information pertaining to the event wasand still isclassified. by Norwegian commandos 11/03/39, Sent from Gibraltar to Marseilles; Released A2477018. Copyright 2011-2022 Naval Historical Foundation. As he worked, he knew that a single wave could sweep him away. In the event that you consider anything on this page to be in breach of the site's House Rules, please click here. But he couldnt. 2012 Sean Longden. From the half-submerged Lifeboat 2, Colin watched as the Benares sank below the waves. 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. Only a few dozen would survive one of the most controversial naval battles of World War IIperhaps the only time battleships single handedly took out an aircraft carrier. As it grew lighter, he could see corpses floating around each lifeboat. In June 1940, Prime Minister Winston Churchill agreed to a new trans-Atlantic evacuation scheme. She was later salvaged by the British, repaired and re-entered service. His recovery took months, and ended any thoughts hed had of a full-time career in the Navy. A German submarine torpedoed the ship hours after Britain declared war on Hitler in 1939 - more than 100 people, including many Americans, were killed. Lancastria was attacked, apparently by five Junkers Ju 88 dive bombers, and the ship capsized, and sank within twenty minutes mid-afternoon on June 17 off the French port of St. Nazaire. World War II: The cargo ship (7,340 GRT) was bombed and sunk off Le Havre, France by Luftwaffe aircraft. The views expressed are theirs and unless specifically stated are not She was 578 ft. in length and 16,000 gross tons, designed to accommodate 2,200 passengers in three classes. As it hovered over the waves, it suddenly lurched, then one end jerked downwards and was smashed by a wall of water. As it hovered over the waves, it suddenly lurched, then one end jerked downwards and was smashed by a wall of water. 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. Armed Guard Casualties Officially, the Royal Navy maintains this was to save fuel. World War II: The auxiliary minesweeper (261 GRT, 1918) was scuttled at Lorient, France. The date was September 17, 1940. Home, www.USMM.org 1998 - 2006. 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. The U.S. The mine exploded sinking the vessel. referenced. 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. At Customs, they asked: Where are your passports? We laughed. About 124,000 troops were assembling and the Admiralty had dispatched some 30 merchant vessels of all sizes to the rescue. Meanwhile, hail and rain continued to fall. Fortunately for Colin, he was better off than some: he had his padded life-jacket, a balaclava and a pair of string gloves that his mother had put in his pockets. Return to Allied Ships hit by U-boats Front page About Contact us FAQ Glossary What's new Charles C. Kolb, PhD, is a USNI Golden Life Member. Records of the Ministry of Shipping from 1917-1921 contain references to war losses and include a complete list of British merchant and fishing vessels sunk or damaged by enemy action for 1914-1920. The BBC is not responsible for the content of any external sites Photo Courtesy of Library of Contemporary History, Stuttgart Attack entries for Alexia If you can help us with any additional information on this vessel then please contact us. All morning, Colin continued to heave corpses away from his boat. This left Colin sitting up to his chest in water with only the lifeboats buoyancy tanks preventing the boat from vanishing beneath the waves. What had happened was that Id lain there, grieving away, and my blood had stopped flowing. What had happened was that Id lain there, grieving away, and my blood had stopped flowing. 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