rms lancastria survivors list rms lancastria survivors list

Yes,it was a long time ago but tokeep football supporters stillinterested perhaps there are parallels between the 1939-40 season and this years 2019-20 competition for both were abandoned early. 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,. [citation needed], In June 2010 to mark the 70th anniversary of the sinking, special ceremonies and services of remembrance were held in Edinburgh and St. Nazaire. 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. The Germans ordered their submarines to dive, abandoning many survivors. The Lancastria troopship was carrying between 6,000 and 9,000 people when it was sunk by German dive bombers on 17 June 1940. Two other bombs landed in No. The site of the sinking is not an official War Grave safeguarded by The Protection of Military Remains Act of 1986 because the British have no jurisdiction over the French territorial waters where Lancastrias wreck lies, but the French government has provided an appropriate level of protection to the site, prohibiting diving on the wreck, for example. Eyewitness Emile Boutin (whose stories are included in the online Lancastria archive) wrote, Sometimes one body arrived, sometimes 16 arrived at once other times there were four days, five days without anything. The citizens of Moutiers buried the victims behind a sea dike, where they stayeduntil the end of the war. At the same time, many soldiers fought a fierce rear-guard. [citation needed], The MoD stated in 2015 that "as the French Government has provided an appropriate level of protection to Lancastria through French law and it is formally considered a military maritime grave by the MoD, we believe that the wreck has the formal status and protection it deserves. They had no chance because the ship went down in 15 minutes. The sinking of the RMS Lancastria, as seen from a rescue ship. When the British troop ship 'Lancastria' was sunk in June 1940, some 5,000 people died - but news of the disaster was kept from the British public. There is no reliable count of how many people were crammed onto the liner. 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. Both the 20,000 ton liner Oronsay and the Franconia were damaged by bombs and strafing, the former had her bridge devastated while the damaged Franconia was able to limp back to England for repairs. 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). However, themovetowardswar went initially quite slowly. The evacuation of more than 300,000 Allied soldiers from the beaches of Dunkirk, between May 26th and June 4th 1940, After the Dunkirk evacuation, pockets of military personnel were left behind in France who had to make their way to the French ports for evacuation as best they could. To the glory of God, in proud memory of more than 4,000 who died and in commemoration of the people of Saint Nazaire and surrounding districts who saved many lives, tended wounded and gave a Christian burial to victims. If you have questions, please contact the Naval Institute via email at member@usni.org or by phone at 800-233-8764. 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. No one can be sure of just how many lives were lost in the attack; she had spent all the morning embarking as many people as she could and estimates range from there being 5,000 to 9,000 people on board, of which less than 2,500 survived. She was bombed at 15:48 by Junkers 88 aircraft from II. Estimates of total survivors were hard to quantify though. You. Walter was attacked by a man who wanted his life jacket. 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 Lancastria, a pre-war Cunard cruise liner, was requisitioned by the Admiralty and turned in to a war-time troop ship. [43] The campaign received support from all parties, but the MoD said that such a move would be "purely symbolic" and have no effect. There were 2,477 survivors. useful bibliography and discussion. 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. Many men jumped into the sea wearing life jackets and broke their necks when they hit the water, others were killed as they hit the hull of the ship. 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. Churchill even admitted he forgot to lift the D-Notice because events crowded upon us so black and so quickly. That D-Notice is not set to expire for another twenty years. It also organises the largest memorial service for the victims in the UK. 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. [2] The Lancastria Tragedy comprises an introduction, eleven numbered chapters, and a concluding chapter titled In Closing, as well as endmatter including an About the Author section, Sources, and a three-page Index of proper nouns. Nonetheless, on June 17 lets enjoy the footiebutalsospare a thought for the heroes of theLancastria.They gave us our freedom. people who designed and built them. She was refitted for just two classes and renamed Lancastria in 1924, after passengers complained that they could not properly pronounce Tyrrhenia. RMS Lancastria and Operation Chariot memorials, St Nazaire. Moutiers people never talk, never talked about the Lancastria, but about the cemetery of the British. It was not until 2006 that the French government afforded the site official legal protection as a war grave. 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. 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". She was bombed at 15:48 by Junkers 88 aircraft from II. 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). Due to the imposition of the D-Notice, survivors and the crews of the ships that had gone to the aid of Lancastria did not discuss the disaster at the time due to the fear of court martial. At the end of the day, some 2,477 survivors were picked up from the sea. 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. Memorials in statue, plaques, and stained glass can be found in Staffordshire, Liverpool, and London. 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. 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. Harrois went on to say that when history looks at the retreat in 1940, the evacuation of Dunkirk is the undertaking that most remember. It petitioned the British Government to have the wreck site designated an official maritime war grave. [27] According to Jonathan Fenby in his book The Sinking of the Lancastria, the German aircraft strafed survivors in the water. However, some information about the Lancastrias sinking was made public within a matter of days, particularly six individual death notices in local newspapers. Launched on the Clyde, Scotland, in 1920 by William Beardmore and Co as the Tyrrhenia for the Anchor Line, a subsidiary of Cunard, the 16,243 ton, 578 foot long liner could carry 2,200 passengers in three classes. The RMS Lancastria was a British Cunard liner sunk by enemy action on 17 June 1940 with the loss of an estimated 4,000 plus lives. NHF has decommissioned and is no longer accepting new members or donations. RMS Lancastria was a British ocean liner requisitioned by the UK Government during the Second World War. He passed away four years ago, the last Scottish survivor to die. She was first used to ferry men and supplies between Canada and the United Kingdom. The rest were rescued under continued air attack by the devotion of the small craft.. [45][46], After the war, the Lancastria Survivors Association was founded by Major Peter Petit, but this lapsed on his death in 1969. 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. Lancastria was sunk on 17 June 1940 off the French port of St. Nazaire while taking part in Operation Aerial, the evacuation of British nationals and troops from France, two weeks after the Dunkirk evacuation. The Lancastria Tragedy: Sinking and Cover-Up, June 1940. She sank around 5 nautical miles south of Chmoulin Point in the Charpentier roads and around 9 nautical miles out of St. Nazaire. Three direct hits caused the ship to list first to starboard then to port and she rolled over and sank within twenty minutes. It is likely that the bodies of these men were recovered from the Bay of Biscay by French fishermen and brought back to their home ports to be interred. [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. Many others died from hypothermia, inhaling fuel oil on the surface or drowning. My late uncle Richard Gleasure, an aircraft technician, was due to be on the SS Lancastria, rescue ship , but as his air force colleges were leaving with a full aircraft, several yelled to him to RUN, Quick,, as they then pulled him onto an already taxing plane through the floor door, he was saved. text of this web site is available under the Creative A fresh air raid began before 4 pm. Within hours of berthing at Liverpool, Lancastria was urgently recalled to sea; loud-speaker announcements at the main railway station successfully recalled nearly all the crew members;[16] she arrived in Plymouth on 15 June to await orders. Ian Harvey is one of the authors writing for WAR HISTORY ONLINE. But with wearisome slowness theU.K. government stillhasntacknowledgedthe sacrifice, although to its credit the Scottish parliament commissioned aLancastriasurvivors medal, plus a memorial in Glasgow where the ship was built. We place some essential cookies on your device to make this website work. It highlighted claims from the New York Sun newspaper on the sinking, with 500 feared dead. Wynn does not clarify what materials he utilized from these sources and there are no footnotes, in-text citations, or endnotes. The people living in the area, found bodies washed up on the beaches for weeks after the disaster. 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. Kate Murphy Schaefer is an undergraduate history instructor who studies the human impact of wars and revolutions. 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. The British Government has requisitioned the RMS Lancastria to assist with evacuation of troops from the European mainland. Launched on the Clyde, Scotland, in 1920 by William Beardmore and Co as the Tyrrhenia for the Anchor Line, a subsidiary of Cunard, the 16,243 ton, 578 foot long liner could carry 2,200 passengers in three classes. Many thanks. But it is a largely forgotten chapter in British history, a fact that leaves survivors and relatives aggrieved. 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. She was sunk on 17 June 1940 during Operation Aerial. After the incident, Admiral Karl Dnitz issued the Laconia Order, henceforth ordering his commanders not to rescue survivors after attacks. A spokesman added: "The sinking of the HMT Lancastria remains the United Kingdom's greatest maritime disaster and, although it occurred over 70 years ago, the sacrifice of many thousands of servicemen and civilians, and the endurance of those who were saved that day, must never be forgotten. We don't know.". 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. She made her maiden voyage, GlasgowQuebec CityMontreal, on 19 June 1922.[6]. The initial cover up at the time of the war is perhaps understandable, because it could be used as propaganda by the Germans. When this news came to me in the quiet Cabinet Room during the afternoon, continued Churchill, I forbade its publication, saying The newspapers have got quite enough disaster for today at least.. 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. 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". He believes Walter and Charlie found some life jackets on the Lancastria to use as pillows on the way home. [31], There were 2,477 survivors, of whom about 100 were still alive in 2011. When sent to newspapers or other publications it prevented particular information from being made public for reasons of state security. 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. Nevertheless, within hours of disembarking troops at Liverpool on June 14th, Lancastria was reassigned, along with the 20,341 gross tons liner Franconia, to Operation Aerial, the evacuation of British civilians, embassy staff, and support troops from France. The liner sank within 20 minutes of being bombed by the Luftwaffe. Around lunchtime, on the 17th, there was an air raid. 2 held about 800 RAF personnel. And what do those touched by the catastrophe want now? [34], The sinking was announced that evening during the English-language Nazi propaganda radio programme, Germany Calling by its presenter William Joyce, better known as "Lord Haw-Haw"; however his claims were notoriously unreliable and had little public credence. 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. In 1924 she was refitted for two classes and renamed Lancastria after passengers complained that they could not properly pronounce Tyrrhenia; (viz: RP /tjurini/ as per the crew's nickname of the ship: the "Old Soup Tureen". This list of sources is concerning as there are at least a dozen sources that would have provided additional information to flesh-out his brief narrative, namely Winston Churchills 1949 The Second World War, Vol. RMS Lancastria In the article there is this paragraph: When German aircraft began strafing survivors in the water [citation needed], the fuel oil which had leaked into the sea ignited, and was quickly transformed into a flaming inferno [citation needed]. Jun 17 1940 Sinking of the RMS Lancastria A fresh air raid began before 4 pm. 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. Much of this proved heart-breaking as one family were told weeks laterthat their son, previously reported as a survivor, had instead been listed as one of the missing. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. 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. casualties and survivors with related correspondence, and other nominal lists of R.A.F. [42] Early in the 21st century the French Government placed an exclusion zone around the wreck site. Stephen Wynn, a retired police constable with 30 years service in Essex, began writing prior to his retirement. ; had they seen them perish or had they seen them escape?. People were ferried from the mainland all day. I can't think, after all of these years, it can still be a secret. Rudolf Sharpe survived the sinking and went on to command the Laconia, losing his life along with many Italian prisoners-of-war on 12 September 1942 when the ship was torpedoed off West Africa, rolling over, and sinking stern first. Initiated in 1889and then revised in 1911, 1920, and 1939it sets out offences related to spying, sabotage, and related crimes. 1912-05-28 RMS Laconia Passenger List Steamship Line: Cunard Line Class of Passengers: Second Cabin Date of Departure: 28 May 1912 An estimated 400 Scots were amongst the 4,000 killed with the Lancastria was attacked and sunk. [22], A fresh air raid began at 15:50 by Junkers Ju 88 bomber aircraft from Kampfgeschwader 30. [3][4], The ship was launched in 1920 as Tyrrhenia by William Beardmore and Company of Dalmuir on the River Clyde for the Anchor Line, a subsidiary of Cunard. "But the lack of recognition and acknowledgement in the subsequent years that has left many survivors and relatives of victims feeling their sacrifice was worth less than the big heroic events of the Second World War.". Video, On board the worlds last surviving turntable ferry, and despite a special Scottish government medal for Lancastria survivors and their families, Serena Williams announces pregnancy at Met Gala, Shooting suspect was deported four times - US media, New record as 4.56m Indians take flights in a day, Japan to ban upskirting in stronger sex crime laws, Met Gala 2023: Stars celebrate Karl Lagerfeld, BP profits of 4bn in three months spark criticism. Under the British Official Secrets Act, the report on the Lancastria cannot be published until the year 2040. [23] As the ship began to list to starboard, orders were given for the men on deck to move to the port side in an effort to counteract it, but this caused a list to port which could not be corrected. [33], However, there were earlier reports of the sinking and the scale of the disaster from survivors in local British newspapers. You will need a reader's ticket to do this. 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. Survivors were taken aboard other evacuation vessels, the trawler Cambridgeshire rescuing 900. The Lancastria Association Victim registers 1,738 deaths. Grace's Guide To British Industrial History, https://www.gracesguide.co.uk/index.php?title=RMS_Lancastria&oldid=1038523, Creative Read about our approach to external linking. 1,816 burials are recorded, over 400 of them in France. 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? She was the sister ship of RMS Cameronia that Beardmore's had built for the same customer the previous year. Most populous nation: Should India rejoice or panic? 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. Winston Churchill issued a D-Notice on the day of the sinking of the RMS Lancastria. Hold No. About 4,000 men, women and children lost their lives when the Lancastria sank 20 minutes after it was bombed by the Germans near the French port of Saint-Nazaire on 17 June 1940. Walter was in the water for around four hours before he was picked up. There were multiple air raids and, in addition, the British feared possible U-boat attacks, so Captain Sharp decided to wait for a Royal Navy and/or RAF escort. She was 578 ft. in length and 16,000 gross tons, designed to accommodate 2,200 passengers in three classes. Others told of retrieving the corpses that washed up on the beaches a few days later. [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. RMS Lancastria was a British ocean liner requisitioned by the UK Government during the Second World War. "[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. Copyright Historic UK Ltd. Company Registered in England No. 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. We have not forgotten. Approximately four thousand men, women, and children were buried beneath the waves. Some survivors claimed that a bomb had gone straight down a funnel, others thought bombs hit No, 4, 2, and 3 holds. There were 2,477 survivors, of whom about 100 were still alive in 2011. The survivors crowded on the submarines' decks and the towed lifeboats, as the B-24 made several deadly attack runs on U-156. NHF members are being converted to members of the Naval Institute. The British Government has refused to make the site a war grave under the Protection of Military Remains Act 1986 although documents obtained under the Freedom of Information show that it could be done. As the families reflect on their loss, it appears their frustrations will remain. 2 and No. On the other hand,somewhatcynically,anMOD spokeswoman inWestminster said there is no formal event being organised adding that the government did not commemorate events willy-nilly. (6). The numbers of passengers aboard, survivors, and casualties are unreported or vary wildly. Or, you can request a quotation for a copy to be sent to you. After the war the 'Lancastria Survivors Association' was set up by Major Peter Petit, but this lapsed on his death in 1969. . Quite enough disaster for today. In an anecdote somewhat buried in his Memoirs of the Second World War, Prime Minister Winston Churchill recounts a frightful incident that occurred on June 17, 1940. 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. When they reached the water, Jacqueline was kept alive on a floating plank of wood. The captain said that he would be able to take 3,000 at a pinch. RMS Lancastria (later HMT Lancastria[ Note 1]) was a British Cunard [ 2] liner commandeered by the government for war, sunk on 17 June 1940 during World War II with the loss of over 4,000 lives, possibly many more [ 3]. I think he was embarrassed. (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. 5621230. "[40], All service personnel killed during the Second World War are recorded by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission, and were known that they lost their lives on Lancastria; 1,816 burials are recorded, over 400 of them in France. "The trouble with the story of the Lancastria is it doesn't fit with the grand narrative of that period - the miraculous evacuation of Dunkirk, and the Battle of Britain," reflects Mark Hirst. Lancastria Association names 1,738 people known to have been killed. 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. Another liner, the SS Oronsay, was damaged, so Captain Sharp was advised to depart. However, he was told to embark as many as possible. 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. Listing Includes Date Voyage Began, Steamship Line, Vessel, Passenger Class and Route. [4] She sank around 5nmi (9.3km) south of Chmoulin Point in the Charpentier roads, around 9nmi (17km) from St. Nazaire. 2023 BBC. The loss of the LANCASTRIA was also the most . 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. RMS Lancastria was a British ocean liner requisitioned by the UK Government during the Second World War. Dunkirk is well-documented to most;butalthoughmost troops in early June had been safely evacuated to English ports, the rest of the army were fighting a desperate rearguard action in north-western France around Brittany, a situation which Churchill recognised as an evacuation area to which many merchant and naval ships were dulydespatched.Subsequently,on the 17 June theLancastriahad arrived off St Nazaire in an operation codenamedAerialwith orders to evacuate as asmany aspossible a task the ship carried out continuously until there were an estimated 9,000 troops, RAF personnel, staff and dependants from Allied embassies and some French refugees including women and children. 1)www.bbc.co.uk(2017)Dunkirk a few facts. When Nazi planes dropped their bombs, Walter and Charlie were separated in the chaos. Read tagging guidelines. Many of those in the water drowned because there were insufficient life jackets, or died from hypothermia, or were choked by fuel oil. 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. Walter ended up in the water and saw a dog swimming away from the wreckage. Anchored 11 miles south-west of St Nazaire. The RMS Lancastria was a British Cunard liner sunk by enemy action on 17 June 1940 with the loss of an estimated 4,000 plus lives. We'd like to use additional cookies to remember your settings and understand how you use our services.