rms lancastria survivors list

It was not an official government order, but the British media followed Churchills lead. The Lancastria was carrying up to 9,000 troops when it was bombed by German planes and sunk outside the port on 17 June 1940. [22], A fresh air raid began at 15:50 by Junkers Ju 88 bomber aircraft from Kampfgeschwader 30. She arrived in the mouth of the Loire estuary late on 16 June. The loss of His Majesty's Troopship Lancastria on 17 June 1940 still resonates 80 years on from the disaster. Maintained by Sapere Software. There were no Royal Navy vessels available to protect her against submarine attack, so Captain Sharp decided to wait until the Oronsay could leave, along with the Royal Navy escort. Approximately four thousand men, women, and children were buried beneath the waves. It was used until 1993, when the name was changed to DSMA-Notice (Defence and Security Media Advisory Notice). 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. She was sunk off the French port of St. Nazaire while taking part in Operation Ariel, the evacuation of British nationals and troops from France, two weeks after the Dunkirk evacuation. RMS Laconia (1921) - Wikipedia RMS Lancastria was a British ocean liner requisitioned by the UK Government during the Second World War. At midday Captain Sharp was advised to sail immediately but due to navalreports of a U-boat in the area he decided to await fora destroyer escort,a decision whichwas to seal the fate of manyevacuees. [4] She sank around 5nmi (9.3km) south of Chmoulin Point in the Charpentier roads, around 9nmi (17km) from St. Nazaire. Having received an emergency order to evacuate British nationals and troops from France the ship was loaded well in excess of its capacity of 1,300 passengers. Harrowingenough in itself the grey-paintedship was anchored out in the Loireestuarywith personnel ferried out in various small boats itcan be well-imagined thatthese hungry, traumatisedand wounded peoplewere so relieved to be transportedto asafe place.But asmore and more embarkedbelow decks the vessel became hopelesslyovercrowded, indeed a communique was sent stating that the ship should embark as many as possible irrespective of international rules (1). 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. And what do those touched by the catastrophe want now? In fact the casualty figures, especiallyin perspective, are moreshocking and although 59 merchant seamen were lost on theLancastria(4), 126 merchant sailors perishedduring the whole of the previous fortnights Dunkirk evacuation. RMS Lancastria | Military Wiki | Fandom The Lancastria Association Victim registers 1,738 deaths. Ushered down to decks E and F at the very bottom of the ship they nevertheless clutched their life jackets probably entertaining athought thatthesewould make good pillows.Ominously however, the troopswere warnednotto leave their confinedquarters. Lancastria memorial plaque at Liverpool Pier Head. RMS Lancastria: 17 June 1940. | Liverpool Ships and Sailors Many others died from hypothermia, inhaling fuel oil on the surface or drowning. Kate Murphy Schaefer is an undergraduate history instructor who studies the human impact of wars and revolutions. "When we have tried, they (the government) have said it (documents on the Lancastria) are secret. 2 held about 800 RAF personnel. Even when coupled with the sinking of the RMS Lusitania off the south coast of Ireland on May 7, 1915 by German which killed 1,195, leaving 761 survivorsLancastria would apparently exceed the combined death total. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Naval Historical Foundation 1306 Dahlgren Avenue, SE Washington Navy Yard, DC 20374 1-202-678-4333 info@navyhistory.org. HMT Lancastria in the Second World War 1939-1945 - Wartime Memories Project A large number of men who jumped over the side were killed by hitting the side of the hull or had their necks broken by their life jackets on impact with the water. Amanda Holden discovers story behind her grandfather's suicide on BBC On 17 June 1940, whilst being used as part of Operation Aerial to evacuate civilian refugees and British military personnel from France, it was anchored about 5 miles from the coast of St Nazaire. After the war the 'Lancastria Survivors Association' was set up by Major Peter Petit, but this lapsed on his death in 1969. At the outbreak of the Second World War she was requisitioned for use as a troop carrier and was refitted in New York, her company colours painted over in battleship grey. Over 1,400 tons of fuel oil leaked into the sea and was set partially ablaze, possibly by strafing. Your email address will not be published. 5621230. Under the British Official Secrets Act, the report on the Lancastria cannot be published until the year 2040. Her parents Clifford and Vera Tillyer were working in Belgium when they decided to evacuate. "[37] Private Ronald Herbert Yorke (Sherwood Foresters) is quoted in the Ripley and Heanor News on 5 July: "Hundreds of my pals were imprisoned below. She made her maiden voyage, GlasgowQuebec CityMontreal, on 19 June 1922.[6]. 2 and No. Estimates of total survivors were hard to quantify though. She sailed scheduled routes between Liverpool and New York until 1932, and was then used as a cruise ship in the Mediterranean Sea and Northern Europe. 3 holds while a fourth landed close to the port side of the ship, rupturing the fuel oil tanks, though even with this damage, the ship should have stayed afloat for longer unless the report of the bomb in the funnel was true. Catalogue description S.S. "LANCASTRIA" : Lists of R.A.F. Memorials in statue, plaques, and stained glass can be found in Staffordshire, Liverpool, and London. When they reached the water, Jacqueline was kept alive on a floating plank of wood. With the outbreak of the Second World War, she carried cargo before being requisitioned in April 1940 as a troopship, becoming the HMT Lancastria. Eventually, newspapers in New York broke the story at the end of July - five weeks after the disaster. Lancastria Association names 1,738 people known to have been killed. She was refitted for just two classes and renamed Lancastria in 1924, after passengers complained that they could not properly pronounce Tyrrhenia. Around lunchtime, on the 17th, there was an air raid. Lancastria: Families urged to claim WWII medals - BBC News The following brief overview of the Lancastrias history is augmented with verified information from sources that Wynn might have consulted. American and Scottish newspapers did print the story, but not until the end of July. The Ministry of Defence said all known documents relating to the Lancastria have been available at the National Archives at Kew since the early 1970s. The government feared what the news would do the British nation in the midst of its darkest hour. She sailed scheduled routes from Liverpool to New York until 1932, and was then used as a cruise ship in the Mediterranean and Northern Europe. The loss of the LANCASTRIA was also the most . LANCASTRIA (June 17, 1940) The loss of the Lancastria was the fourth largest maritime disaster of the war. Official commemorations of those lost during the disaster were long in coming. The initial cover up at the time of the war is perhaps understandable, because it could be used as propaganda by the Germans. [25] As Lancastria began to capsize, some of those who were still on board managed to scramble onto the ship's underside. Many survivors perished from hypothermia or suffocated on fuel oil. Late in the afternoon, the Germans launched another air raid. 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. RMS Laconia Passenger Lists - Gjenvick She was sunk on 17 June 1940 during Operation Aerial. He was a very quiet man, and his recalling of the Lancastria tended to come only after a couple of pints.". On Saturday, 13 June, relatives of those who were on the Lancastria will gather for a ceremony at the Scottish memorial at the Golden Jubilee Hospital in Clydebank, near to where the ship was built. [41], The Government of the United Kingdom has not made the site a war grave under the Protection of Military Remains Act 1986, stating that it has no jurisdiction over French territorial waters. This number far exceeded the amount of life jackets and lifeboats onboard, but this lack of safety equipment ultimately did not matter. All service personnel killed during the Second World War are recorded by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission and where known that they lost their lives on the Lancastria. "I think that is probably the reason he never went to any of the company reunions. Their names may be lost to history, but they are not forgotten. This isnt just a result of an inaccurate muster ofpersonnel embarked but in the main part by Churchillsdecision by to impose a news blackout stating that the newspapers havehad enough of disastrous news of late meant that the whole catastrophe wasnt reported to the rest of the world until an article appeared in theNew York Pressseveral weeks later. Survivor Reg Brown speaks to BBC Coventry & Warwickshire, AI chatbots 'may soon be more intelligent than us', Russia troop deaths hit 20,000 in five months - US, Palestinian hunger striker dies in Israel prison, The 17 most eye-catching looks at the Met Gala, The burden of being cricket legend Tendulkar's son, 'My wife and six children joined Kenya starvation cult', On board the worlds last surviving turntable ferry. My Great Great Grandfathers son, would it be my Great Nephew, he is was on this vessel, and lived to tell about it, on the RMS Lusitania off the south coast of Ireland on May 7, 1915. Footballers, just like many other blokeswere drafted orenlisted with local teams sending gifted players such as Liverpools Tom Cooper and Evertons reserve goalkeeper William Reidwhilst Preston North EndsTom Finney served in the Royal Armoured Corps.In fact,629 professionalfootballers had joined theservices by April 1940.By this time the British Expeditionary Force (BEF)wassent to France,but afterrelatively little action throughout the winter of 1939 the army faced its toughest battle which ended in theDunkirk evacuation, an event which although essentially a British defeat,didsavethe majority of British troops andforged a new optimism for the nation. [5] Tyrrhenia was 16,243gross register tons(GRT), 578 feet (176m) long and could carry 2,200 passengers in three classes. It was too much for the people to take. Information about the Lancastria sinking might be restricted by the Official Secrets Act. Policy. Frank Holden Snr was on board the luxury transatlantic cruise liner Lancastria in 1940. A number of survivors reported that one bomb had gone down the ship's single funnel which is most likely, given the speed with which the ship sank about 1520 minutes. Osborne said of the sinking: "It was kept secret at the time for reasons of wartime secrecy, but I think it is appropriate today in this House of Commons to remember all those who died, those who survived, and those who mourn them. 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. But despite the crammed conditions for most, earlier onthere was a certain surrealism to the operation as some army officers were quoting it was almost like a cruise with people going to the restaurant, ordering from the menu and enjoying alcoholic beverages in the lounges. (2), One steward reported that the cocktail bar was reserved for Warrant Officers and Sergeants who were all shouting for drinks andcomplaining that it difficult to find enough change.(3). Surely, after all of these years now, it can come out. Thefirst due to the declaration of war against Germany and the 2020 season scrapped because of the pandemic; in 1939 Blackpool were in first place whilst Liverpool and Everton were fourth and fifth respectively. Read about our approach to external linking. 1912-05-28 RMS Laconia Passenger List Steamship Line: Cunard Line Class of Passengers: Second Cabin Date of Departure: 28 May 1912 [39][a] In the face of continued campaigning by relatives, the MoD stated in 2015 that all known documents had long since been released through the National Archives. The Lancastria Tragedy: Sinking and Cover-Up, June 1940 May 1936. These were dangerous journeys, along roads blocked with refugees and under bombardment by enemy aircraft. Lancastria: The forgotten tragedy of World War Two - BBC News In 2005, Fenby wrote that estimates of the death toll vary from fewer than 3,000 to 5,800 people although it is also estimated that as many as 6,500 people perished, the largest loss of life in British maritime history. Those who survived the incident were instructed not to speak about their experience. Mr Napier is also wearing the Lancastria commemorative medal which was awarded by the Scottish Government in June 2008 in recognition of those who were aboard the vessel that day. There were 2,477 survivors, of whom about 100 were still alive in 2011. Other British newspapers then covered the story, including the Daily Herald (also on 26 July), which carried the story on its front page, and Sunday Express on 4 August; the latter included a photograph of the capsized ship with her upturned hull lined with men under the headline "Last Moments of the Greatest Sea Tragedy of All Time". [28], Survivors were taken aboard other British and Allied evacuation vessels, the trawler HMTCambridgeshire rescuing 900. She sank around 5 nautical miles south of Chmoulin Point in the Charpentier roads and around 9 nautical miles out of St. Nazaire. This year the ceremony was considerably toned down due to the coronavirus pandemic. Lancastria was hit by three or possibly four bombs. The Lancastria Tragedy: Sinking and Cover-Up, June 1940. I of course ,read it before giving it to my father. Walter was attacked by a man who wanted his life jacket. This page was last edited on 18 June 2018, at 16:21. The British Government has requisitioned the RMS Lancastria to assist with evacuation of troops from the European mainland. The RMS Lancastria was a British Cunard liner sunk on June 17, 1940 during World War II with the loss of an estimated 4,000 plus lives. A senior lecturer in British politics at the Sorbonne Nouvelle University in Paris, Thibaud Harrois, said that the German advances in 1940 caught almost everyone by surprise and led to the Battle of Dunkirk. Many drowned, were choked by the oil, or were shot by the strafing German aircraft. [17] Troops were ferried out to Lancastria and the other larger ships by destroyers, tugs, fishing boats and other small craft,[18] a round trip of three or four hours, sometimes being machine-gunned by German aircraft, although apparently without casualties. Hold No. However, he was told to embark as many as possible. [7][9] In May 1936, she undertook a specially commissioned cruise to visit war memorials at Malta, Salonika, Gallipoli and Istanbul. [47] The Lancastria Association of Scotland was formed in 2005 and holds its annual service at St George's West Church in Edinburgh. In his memoirs, Churchill stated 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". NHF has decommissioned and is no longer accepting new members or donations. [56][57] The site of Lancastria wreck lies in French territorial waters and is therefore ineligible for protection under the Protection of Military Remains Act 1986; however, at the request of the British Government, in 2006 the French authorities gave the site legal protection as a war grave. Chapter 5 focuses on the actual sinking of the Lancastria while Chapter 11 focuses on its aftermath. This of course would mean ignoring virtually all safety rules and regulations. Four chapters are personal accounts from survivors or their close relatives. We don't know.". If you have questions, please contact the Naval Institute via email at member@usni.org or by phone at 800-233-8764. [13][14], At the outbreak of the Second World War in September 1939, Lancastria was in the Bahamas. Under the Official Secrets Act, the report on the Lancastria cannot be published until the year 2040. Walter assumed, to his dying day in 1989, that Charlie was killed in the sinking. [33], However, there were earlier reports of the sinking and the scale of the disaster from survivors in local British newspapers. [21], At 13:50, during an air-raid, the nearby Oronsay, a 20,000-ton Orient Liner, was hit on the bridge by a German bomb. [54] Scouting Ireland's national campsite Larch Hill has an anchor memorial to Lancastria, commemorating the legacy of the Catholic Boy Scouts of Ireland's pilgrimage in 1932. [51] The medal was designed by Mark Hirst, grandson of Lancastria survivor Walter Hirst. We place some essential cookies on your device to make this website work. Many lifeboats could not be launched as they had been damaged, and there were only 2,500 life jackets on board. He states that The time taken to record everybodys name, rank, service number and regiment or corps would have been time consuming and served no purpose (vii). It petitioned the British Government to have the wreck site designated an official maritime war grave. Lancastria Association of Scotland made a further request in 2009. RMS Lancastria (later HMT Lancastria) was a British Cunard liner commandeered by the UK Government for war, sunk on 17 June 1940 during World War II sending 4,000 people to their deaths, possibly many more. [44], The missing British military dead from the sinking of Lancastria (those whose bodies were not recovered or were unable to be identified) are commemorated on a number of Commonwealth War Graves Commission memorials (those identified were buried in cemeteries and are marked with Commission headstones). As were news reports on the sinking. After a short overhaul, she left Liverpool on 14 June under Captain Rudolph Sharp (born 27 October 1885) and arrived in the mouth of the Loire river estuary on 16 June. (5). However, some information about the Lancastrias sinking was made public within a matter of days, particularly six individual death notices in local newspapers. Captain Sharp estimated he had loaded 5,500 people, but his officers put the count at nearer 7,200. Interestingly, 2040 or 2041 should also be when restricted British documents on the Pearl Harbor attack are made public. Three direct hits caused the ship to list first to starboard then to port and she rolled over and sank within twenty minutes. [58], After a postponement because of the COVID-19 pandemic, a commemorative service was held at Church of Our Lady and Saint Nicholas, Liverpool on 27 June 2020. Heres how to join! Three direct hits caused the ship to list first to starboard then to port and she rolled over and sank within twenty minutes. About 124,000 troops were assembling and the Admiralty had dispatched some 30 merchant vessels of all sizes to the rescue. Nonetheless, on June 17 lets enjoy the footiebutalsospare a thought for the heroes of theLancastria.They gave us our freedom. "[30] Rudolph Sharp survived the sinking and went on to command the RMSLaconia, losing his life on 12 September 1942 in the Laconia incident off West Africa. HMT Lancastria remembered 75 years on - National Museums Liverpool You will need a reader's ticket to do this. people who designed and built them. However, an exact number of Lancastrias casualties may never be known. Grace's Guide is the leading source of historical information on industry and Some survivors claimed that a bomb had gone straight down a funnel, others thought bombs hit No, 4, 2, and 3 holds. The RMS Lancastria was hit by three or four bombs dropped from a Junkers JU 88 bomber; 15 to 20 minutes later, she lay a the bottom of the sea. Many of those in the water drowned because there were insufficient life jackets, or died from hypothermia, or were choked by fuel oil. "We want recognition that this was the biggest sea disaster ever," she said. Two other bombs landed in No. (accessed 30.05.2020), 5)www.lancastria.org.uk(2019)We will remember them(accessed 02.06.2020), 6) The Independent (p.4 16.06.2015)Families still refused memorial. The MoD has said it does not plan to send a representative to France. She was originally sent to Quiberon Bay as part of Operation Aerial, which was the evacuation of the remainder of the British Expeditionary Force which had been cut-off to the south of the German advance through France, amounting to some 124,000 men, mostly logistic support troops, from various ports in western France. Butas we all look forward to life nearing normality again, some folks will be mulling over normalquestions such aswho will win the Premier League orthe Scottish Premiership, whilst somethoughts may be of a moreexistential nature, i.e, what is life?and where are we going?, etc. NHF members are being converted to members of the Naval Institute. In April 1940, she was one of twenty troopships in Operation Alphabet, the evacuation of troops from Norway, and was bombed on the return journey although she escaped damage. For other uses, see, Section 36; prejudice to the effective conduct of public affairs; Section 40(2); contains personal information; Section 40(3); Release would contravene section 10 of the, According to CWGC Records of identified Burials in France as of 17 June 1940 of "Lancastria" total 1486 (British Army 1449; RAF 33, Location of the sinking of the troopship RMS Lancastria, Church of Our Lady and Saint Nicholas, Liverpool, "BBC - History - World Wars: The 'Lancastria' - a Secret Sacrifice in World War Two", "About Us: History of Scouting in Ireland", "The West Australian (Perth, WA: 1879 - 1954) - 27 May 1936 - p16", "At sea. Finding that she was not required for the evacuation from Lorient, the captain of Lancastria, Rudolph Sharp, was sent on towards the port of St. Nazaire, where many more troops were waiting to be lifted, On the way, an air raid damaged Franconia which returned to England for repairs, leaving Lancastria to continue alone. The D-Notice blacked-out details of the incident for 100 years, so it will not be released before 2040. German bombing raids shifted the focus away from the sea and onto the mainland, and the nations attention also shifted to fresh challenges and atrocities. The numbers of passengers aboard, survivors, and casualties are unreported or vary wildly. Another liner, the SS Oronsay, was damaged, so Captain Sharp was advised to depart. There were 2,477 survivors. [4] Many families of the dead knew only that they died with the British Expeditionary Force (BEF); the death toll accounted for roughly a third of the total losses of the BEF in France. All Digitized Passenger Lists For the RMS Laconia Available at the GG Archives. Churchills D-Notice asked all media outlets not to publish any information on the Lancastria sinking. Some survivors claimed that a bomb had gone straight down a funnel, others thought bombs hit No, 4, 2, and 3 holds. The ship was among twenty others that participated in the evacuation of 2,653 British, French, and Polish troops from Norway when Operation Alphabet began on May 24,1940. View the catalogue description for. Fewer than 2,500 people survived. Listing Includes Date Voyage Began, Steamship Line, Vessel, Passenger Class and Route. Even then, the British newspapers toed the patriotic line. According to some accounts, these were heard to be singing 'Roll Out the Barrel' and 'There'll Always Be an England', though some survivors strongly deny this. [48], The Lancastria Association of Scotland has members throughout the UK, France and the rest of Europe as well as members in North America, Australia, South Africa and New Zealand. Retreat to Victory. Wynn does not clarify what materials he utilized from these sources and there are no footnotes, in-text citations, or endnotes. Around 700 missing from the British Expeditionary Force are commemorated on the Dunkirk Memorial. I've briefly mentioned the experience of four survivors during this talk: Major Plunkett, Wing Commander MacFayden and Captain Rudolph Sharp, Master, as well as his Steward. In the following day's paper, again on page five, there was a more detailed article. Were RMS Lancastria survivors strafed? - History Stack Exchange Ian Harvey is one of the authors writing for WAR HISTORY ONLINE. He passed away four years ago, the last Scottish survivor to die. Almost 50 years later, a memorial was erected in St. Nazaire, reading: Opposite this place lies the wreck of the troopship Lancastria sunk by enemy action on 17 June 1940 whilst embarking British troops and civilians during the evacuation of France. Though more people died on the Lancastria than on Titanic and Lusitania combined, the story is little more than a footnote in the history of WWII. "It was a bad time - the evacuation from France. Many other survivors were machine-gunned in the water by the German planes. Unnecessary fittings were removed, she was repainted in battleship grey, the portholes were blacked out, and a 4-inch gun was installed. RMS Lancastria, Death Toll: 4,000-6,500. And it is this sparsity of records, together withChurchills newsblackout whichhas taken years for the facts to materialise, even though pressure from a post-war survivors association the HMT Lancastria Association has continued to ask questions such as: which survivors saw who on board? They had no chance because the ship went down in 15 minutes. The RMS Lancastria was a British ocean liner, owned by the Cunard Line. Remembrance St Nazaire: the HMT Lancastria Memorial on the left and the Operation Chariot Memorial on the right. It also organises the largest memorial service for the victims in the UK. Help us improve catalogue descriptions by adding tags. There are no actual transcripts of these speeches, but they have been reconstructed from Churchills notes given to Charles Eade. text of this web site is available under the Creative Lancastria 17th June 1940 & Operation Aerial", "NMC Lay a wreath at the Memorial for The Lancastria", "The 75th anniversary of the sinking of HMT Lancastria", "Lancastria: Service for Britain's worst maritime disaster", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=RMS_Lancastria&oldid=1152389814, Sunk by German Bombers on 17 June 1940 off, This page was last edited on 29 April 2023, at 23:38. The Lancastria Association names 1,738 people known to have been killed. Harrois went on to say that when history looks at the retreat in 1940, the evacuation of Dunkirk is the undertaking that most remember. Grace's Guide To British Industrial History, https://www.gracesguide.co.uk/index.php?title=RMS_Lancastria&oldid=1038523, Creative [24] The ship was equipped with sixteen lifeboats and 2,500 life jackets;[19] but many of the boats could not be launched because they had been damaged in the bombing or because of the angle of the hull. With the sea thick with oil, German planes strafed survivors trying to keep afloat. 13 Maritime Disasters More Tragic Than the Titanic

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