on may 7th 1915 rms lusitania the
fastest and most luxurious passenger
cruise ship of her time entered the war
zone around the british isles that was
intensely harassed by several german
u-boats
that spring the germans had openly
declared unrestricted submarine warfare
against british ships in response to the
allied naval blockade against them but
the united states remained neutral at
least for the time being
meanwhile commercial shipping tried to
stay afloat literally and figuratively
and many passenger cruisers kept
transporting thousands of people
disregarding the perils behind the
dangerous war and the germans intentions
against prudent advice rms lusitania
still sailed from new york on its way to
liverpool assuming and hoping that the
germans would not dare attack a civilian
transport ship
[Music]
but as the weather cleared out that
fateful day in may enemy submarine u20
spotted her under the open sky and did
not hesitate to fire
a single torpedo then hit the massive
vessel followed by a second mysterious
explosion
as it turned out the ship was not as
innocent as she appeared
times of war
rms lusitania was a uk registered ocean
liner owned by the canard shipping line
despite its civilian purpose the british
government subsidized her construction
and eventually her operating expenses
too
if needed the ship could now be pressed
into military service with the armed
merchant cruiser and for a while was
even on the official admiralty list
all great liners feared for their safety
at the outbreak of the war and lusitania
was initially painted in a drab gray
color scheme to conceal her in plain
sight
as hostilities continued the royal navy
seemed to be keeping the germans at bay
and the threat somewhat dissipated
besides liners had to justify their
maintenance expenses which required
making bookings
several large passenger ships remained
in service under the notion that the
atlantic was relatively safe
however many were laid up due to the
plummeting demand for travel across the
ocean
lusitania kept sailing from autumn
through winter in 1914
and although the bookings were not
abundant they were strong enough to keep
the cruiser in service
still many measures were taken to keep
the costs at bay like shutting down her
number four boiler room
and even as her maximum speed was
reduced from 25 to 21 knots she was
still the fastest first-class passenger
liner in commercial service at the time
in addition as the apparent danger faded
away even her disguise was dropped in
favor of characteristic civilian colors
with a white superstructure and a black
base traced by a gold band all around
however britain established a naval
blockade of germany starting in august
1914 and three months later the north
sea was declared a war zone
what's more in early 1915 the legendary
german u-boats made their first
appearance in the war
they mostly attacked naval vessels at
first with occasional and sometimes
spectacular victories
but soon they began assaulting merchant
ships too
in a desperate attempt to gain an edge
over the british the germans stepped up
to their submarine campaign and by
february germany declared the seas
around the british isle as a war zone
this meant that allied ships would be
sunk without warning
then on april 22nd the imperial german
embassy in the united states published
an announcement in no less than 50
american newspapers that read quote
notice
travelers intending to embark on the
atlantic voyage are reminded that a
state of war exists between germany and
her allies and great britain and her
allies
that the zone of war includes the waters
adjacent to the british isles
that in accordance with formal notice
given by the imperial german government
vessels flying the flag of great britain
or any of her allies are liable to
destruction in those waters and that
travelers sailing in the war zone on the
ships of great britain or her allies do
so at their own risk
for warning
because of the dire circumstances
lusitania was secretly modified for war
and remained in operation under cover of
being a passenger ship
however german naval commanders were
aware that british merchants were arming
their vessels
in truth passenger ships were also used
to transport weapons and supplies from
america to europe
consequently the germans stopped
following the so-called international
naval prize laws which demanded that
ships be warned about a submarine's
presence
still the british underestimated their
enemy and precautions were neglected
author eric larson explained quote the
prevailing view was that lusitania was
too big too fast to ever be caught by a
german submarine
also there was this other idea that no
german commander would try to sink it in
the first place because it was a
passenger liner
the most luxurious passenger cruiser of
its time then sailed from new york to
liverpool on may 1 1915.
she had 1 959 people on board including
a crew of 694
of the
1265 passengers 128 were americans and
the rest were mainly british nationals
and commanded the ship was captain
william bowler bill turner known as such
after his favorite choice of headgear
he was commodore of the canard line and
a highly experienced master mariner
before departing the captain tried to
calm the passengers arguing that
lusitania would be safe from submarine
attacks because of her speed even as one
of the boiler rooms had been shut down
u-20
on the other side of the atlantic the
british admiralty was tracking the
movements of an elusive u-boat
the u-20 under the leadership of captain
lieutenant walter schwieger was circling
the british isles and had roamed the
waters of scotland and ireland for a few
days sinking several merchant and naval
vessels
in fact the admiralty were well aware of
the submarine's departure destination
and expected arrival
but the decoding department known as
room 40 was a top secret facility too
valuable to give away
only in emergencies with the admiralty
risk disclosing such delicate matters
twice on the evening of may 6th captain
turner received warning messages and
took some precautions
then at 11 am the following day another
warning arrived it said quote u-boat's
active in southern part of irish channel
last heard of 20 miles south of
koninberg light vessel
turner then adjusted course northeast
believing the cruise would be safer
while closer to land
his confidence was only boosted after an
inaccurate message came through two
hours later it read quote submarine five
miles south of cape clear proceeding
west when cited at 10 am
consequently lusitania carried on under
the false impression that the submarine
had been safely passed
in reality u-20 was very close
low on fuel and with only three
torpedoes left sveger had decided to
return home
that morning visibility was poorer and
the u-boat had actually sighted the
cruiser juno but it was zig-zagging and
moving fast making it a complicated
target
lusitania was not nearly as lucky
snowballing
at dawn on may 7th a dense fog engulfed
lusitania while she sailed 120 miles
southwest of fastnet rock off the coast
of southern ireland
the captain had ordered the depth
soundings be made and the speed was
reduced and the foghorn sounded
disturbed the passengers complained the
ship was advertising her presence
the fog began to lift by 10 am and the
sun shone over a smooth sea just as
lusitania increased her speed to 18
knots
[Music]
meanwhile u-20 surfaced with excellent
visibility past noon and soon after the
germans sighted an enemy vessel on the
horizon
the u-boat then submerged at periscope
depth with its sights on the liner
suddenly lusitania turned and sveger
feared losing his target
however the cruiser turned again moments
later this time in an ideal position for
an attack
at 2 10 pm and with a range of 700
meters u20 fired a gyroscopic torpedo
the u-boat's log read quote torpedo hit
starboard side right behind the bridge
an unusually heavy detonation takes
place with a very strong explosive cloud
the explosion of the torpedo must have
been followed by a second one boiler or
coal or powder
the ship stops immediately and heals
over to starboard very quickly immersing
simultaneously at the bow
the name lusitania becomes visible in
golden letters
the cruiser plunged under the waters in
under 20 minutes dragging most of her
passengers with her
rescuers from queenstown in ireland
feared being targeted as well and
survivors were left on their own for
hours
only 761 people made it alive
aftermath
america was outraged after the sinking
of rms lusitania however the country did
not rush to war
despite claims that the sinking caused
the united states to enter the conflict
it was actually only one of many events
that finally compelled president woodrow
wilson to answer britain's call for help
back in britain then first lord of the
admiralty sir winston churchill stated
quote the poor babies who perished in
the ocean struck a blow at german power
more deadly than could have been
achieved by the sacrifice of a hundred
thousand men
hordes of enraged brits rushed into the
front lines seeking vengeance
meanwhile germany vehemently defended
its aggression with the attackers
claiming that lusitania concealed and
transported weapons and supplies which
made her fair game
months later another incident saw the
sinking of the british ocean liner ss
arabic which further strained the
tensions between the united states and
imperial germany
by september germany finally
acknowledged its fault and announced it
would not sink any more passenger ships
a misleading calm endured for a couple
of years until in 1917 british
intelligence intercepted an
incriminating telegram
the zimmermann telegram written by the
german foreign minister stated that
germany would return to unrestricted
submarine warfare and would sink all
ships including those with american
passengers on board if they dared
trespass the war zone
soon after the germans fulfilled their
promise and returned to their old ways
by april the united states congress
voted to declare war on the central
powers and america officially joined
world war one
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