"Sinking of the RMS Lusitania The sinking of the Cunard ocean liner RMS ""Lusitania"" occurred on Friday, 7 May 1915 during the First World War, as Germany waged submarine warfare against the United Kingdom which had implemented a naval blockade of Germany. The ship was identified and torpedoed by the German U-boat and sank in 18 minutes. The vessel went down off the Old Head of Kinsale, Ireland, killing 1,198 and leaving 761 survivors. The sinking turned public opinion in many countries against Germany, contributed to the American entry into World War I and became an iconic symbol in military"
"commercial British steamship ""Falaba"" was sunk by a German submarine with the loss of 111 lives, including one American. In the spring of 1915 a German bomb struck an American ship, the ""Cushing"" and a German submarine torpedoed an American tanker, the ""Gulflight"". Wilson took the view, based on some reasonable evidence, that both incidents were accidental, and that a settlement of claims could be postponed to the end of the war. A German submarine torpedoed and sank the British ocean liner RMS ""Lusitania"" in May 1915; over a thousand perished, including many Americans. Wilson did not call for war;"
"Sinking of the RMS Lusitania. RMS Lusitania RMS ""Lusitania"" was a British ocean liner and briefly the world's largest passenger ship. The ship was sunk on 7 May 1915 by a German U-boat off the southern coast of Ireland. The sinking presaged the United States declaration of war on Germany in 1917. The ship was a holder of the Blue Riband appellation for the fastest Atlantic crossing and was briefly the world's largest passenger ship until the completion of her sister ship . The Cunard Line launched ""Lusitania"" in 1906, at a time of fierce competition for the North Atlantic"
"Thrasher incident The Thrasher incident, as it became known in U.S. media, nearly became the start of America's involvement in World War I. On March 28, 1915, the British steamship was torpedoed and sunk by German U-boat . In the incident, 104 people were killed, including one American passenger—Leon Chester Thrasher, a 31-year-old mining engineer from Massachusetts. After the issuance of captured British orders, all merchant vessels were directed to paint over their names and ports of registry and to fly under the flag of a neutral nation. They were instructed not to stop when challenged by a submarine but"
"Underwater and Marine Agency (NUMA) located the remains of ""U-20"" in 1984, about 400 yards from shore. <ref> specs for U20 listed in the U.boat Archive web site SM U-20 (Germany) SM ""U-20"" was a German Type ""U 19"" U-boat built for service in the Imperial German Navy. She was launched on 18 December 1912, and commissioned on 5 August 1913. During World War I, she took part in operations around the British Isles. ""U-20"" became infamous following her sinking of the British ocean liner on 7 May 1915, an act that dramatically reshaped the course of World War I."
"of finding bodies in their fishing nets for weeks afterwards. In the spring of 1915, Tom Crisp Jr. left the vessel to join the Royal Navy. A few weeks later the U–boat threat expected so many months before arrived, as submarines surfaced among the undefended fishing fleets and used dynamite to destroy dozens of them after releasing the crews in small boats. This offensive was part of a wider German strategy to denude Britain of food supplies and took a heavy toll on the fishing fleets of the North Sea. ""George Borrow"" was among the victims, sunk in August, although"
"lanes of U-boats in a short period of time. One famous U-boat that operated off Wexford's coasts was , commanded by Walther Schwieger (d. 1917). On 6 May 1915 it torpedoed and sunk SS ""Centurion"" off the south Wexford coast, but Schwieger allowed the 44-man crew to escape to safety. Later that same day he also sunk SS ""Candidate"", but its crew was rescued by a friendly ship. The next day, this same U-boat infamously torpedoed and sunk , a large passenger liner, off the Old Head of Kinsale, Co. Cork, killing 1,198 of the 1,959 people on board –"
"Action of 22 September 1914 The Action of 22 September 1914 was a German U-boat ambush that took place during the First World War, in which three obsolete Royal Navy cruisers, manned mainly by reservists and sometimes referred to as the ""livebait squadron"", were sunk by a German submarine while on patrol. About 1,450 British sailors were killed and there was a public outcry in Britain at the losses. The sinkings eroded confidence in the British government and damaged the reputation of the Royal Navy at a time when many countries were still considering which side they might support in"
"RMS Lusitania RMS ""Lusitania"" was a British ocean liner and briefly the world's largest passenger ship. The ship was sunk on 7 May 1915 by a German U-boat off the southern coast of Ireland. The sinking presaged the United States declaration of war on Germany in 1917. The ship was a holder of the Blue Riband appellation for the fastest Atlantic crossing and was briefly the world's largest passenger ship until the completion of her sister ship . The Cunard Line launched ""Lusitania"" in 1906, at a time of fierce competition for the North Atlantic trade. She sank on her"
"SS Tuscania (1914) SS ""Tuscania"" was a luxury liner of the Cunard Line subsidiary Anchor Line, named after Tuscania, Italy. In 1918 the ship was torpedoed and sunk by the German U-boat while transporting American troops to Europe with the loss of 210 lives. ""Tuscania"" carried passengers between New York City and Glasgow while in service with the Anchor Line, on a route that had previously been assigned to her sister ship ""Transylvania"". She continued to run this route even as World War I broke out in Europe in August 1914 and Germany initiated a submarine campaign against merchant shipping"
"bow, four torpedoes, and one Tk L/40 deck gun. Her complement was twenty-three crew members. SM UB-19 SM ""UB-19"" was a German Type UB II submarine or U-boat in the German Imperial Navy () during World War I. The U-boat was ordered on 30 April 1915 and launched on 2 September 1915. She was commissioned into the German Imperial Navy on 16 December 1915 as SM ""UB-19"". The submarine sank 14 ships in 15 patrols for a totel of . ""UB-19"" was sunk in the English Channel at on 30 November 1916 by British Q ship (Q 7). A German"
"Walther Schwieger Kapitänleutnant Walther Schwieger (7 April 1885 – 5 September 1917) was a U-boat commander in the Imperial German Navy (""Kaiserliche Marine"") during First World War. In 1915, he sank the passenger liner with the loss of 1,198 lives. In 1903 he joined the Imperial German Navy and from 1911 onwards he served with the U-boat Service. In 1912 he took over the command of the . After the outbreak of World War I in 1914 he was promoted to ""Kapitänleutnant"" and given command of the . On 7 May 1915, Schwieger was responsible for ""U-20's"" sinking passenger liner"
"that U-boat commanders could distinguish between enemy and neutral steamers, and thus avoid provoking the United States. The policy was short-lived, however, as on 7 May 1915, the U-boat torpedoed and sank the passenger liner , causing a diplomatic crisis with the United States. To avoid drawing America into the war, Germany reinstated restrictions on the U-boat fleet. Aboard his flagship, , Pohl conducted a series of short operations into the North Sea over the course of 1915. None of these operations ventured outside of the southern end of the North Sea, and the fleet never encountered any British forces."
"SM U-20 (Germany) SM ""U-20"" was a German Type ""U 19"" U-boat built for service in the Imperial German Navy. She was launched on 18 December 1912, and commissioned on 5 August 1913. During World War I, she took part in operations around the British Isles. ""U-20"" became infamous following her sinking of the British ocean liner on 7 May 1915, an act that dramatically reshaped the course of World War I. On 7 May 1915, ""U-20"" was patrolling off the southern coast of Ireland under the command of Kapitänleutnant Walther Schwieger. Three months earlier, on 4 February, the Germans"
"hit several times, and unable to escape by submerging sank, with six officers and 21 ratings being rescued, and one man, her commanding officer, being killed. She was sunk by gunfire on 5 June 1915 . SM U-14 (Germany) SM ""U-14"" was one of the 329 submarines serving in the Imperial German Navy in World War I. ""U-14"" was engaged in the naval warfare and took part in the First Battle of the Atlantic. ""U-14"" was damaged by an air raid on the German-occupied port of Zeebrugge, Belgium, on the night of 12 February 1915. On 5 June 1915, ""U-14"""
"HMS H5 HMS ""H5"", was a British ""H""-class submarine of the Royal Navy. She sank the U-boat ""U 51"" in July 1916, but was herself sunk after being rammed by the British merchantman ""Rutherglen"" when mistaken for a German U-boat on 2 March 1918. All on board perished; they are commemorated on Panel 29 at Royal Navy Submarine Museum. Also on board as an observer was US Navy Lieutenant Earle Wayne Freed Childs from the American submarine AL-2. He became the first US submariner to lose his life in the First World War. The wreck's site is designated as a"
"May 1915, during World War I, Lady Allan, along with daughters Anna, 16, and Gwen, 15, were aboard the when it was sunk by German U-boat . After she and her daughters jumped into the water, Lady Allan was severely injured. While she was rescued, both daughters drowned. Anna's body was never found, but Gwendolyn's was recovered the next day and returned to Montreal for burial. Rita Jolivet, the future wife of Sir Montagu's Scottish cousin, Jimmy Allan, was also a passenger on the Lusitania. Two years after this tragedy, the war claimed a third child, Hugh, who was killed"
"when submerged. Her engines enabled her to travel at when surfaced and when submerged. SM UB-123 SM ""UB-123"" was a German Type UB III submarine or U-boat in the German Imperial Navy () during World War I. She was commissioned into the German Imperial Navy on 6 April 1918 as SM ""UB-123"". She torpedoed and sunk a vessel operated by the City of Dublin Steam Packet Company on 10 October 1918, shortly after the new German Government had asked President Wilson to negotiate an armistice. ""Leinster"" went down just outside Dublin Bay. Over 500 people perished in the sinking —"
"SM UB-19 SM ""UB-19"" was a German Type UB II submarine or U-boat in the German Imperial Navy () during World War I. The U-boat was ordered on 30 April 1915 and launched on 2 September 1915. She was commissioned into the German Imperial Navy on 16 December 1915 as SM ""UB-19"". The submarine sank 14 ships in 15 patrols for a totel of . ""UB-19"" was sunk in the English Channel at on 30 November 1916 by British Q ship (Q 7). A German Type UB II submarine, ‘’UB-19’’ had a displacement of when at the surface and while"
"whose systems most likely malfunctioned after being forced to submerge in the shallow waters, upon encountering the Romanian torpedo boat. SM UC-15 SM ""UC-15"" was a German Type UC I minelayer submarine or U-boat in the German Imperial Navy () during World War I. The U-boat was ordered on 23 November 1914, laid down on 28 January 1915, and was launched on 19 May 1915. She was commissioned into the German Imperial Navy on 28 June 1915 as SM ""UC-15"". Mines laid by ""UC-15"" during her eight patrols are credited with sinking 3 ships. ""UC-15"" disappeared in November 1916. A"
"strangled by Britain's blockade, Britain, as an island nation, was heavily dependent on resources imported by sea. German submarines (U-boats) were of limited effectiveness against surface warships on their guard, but were greatly effective against merchant ships. In 1915, Germany declared a naval blockade of Britain, to be enforced by its U-boats. The U-boats sank hundreds of Allied merchant ships. However, submarines normally attack by stealth. This made it difficult to give warning before attacking a merchant ship or to rescue survivors. This resulted in many civilian deaths, especially when passenger ships were sunk. It also violated the Prize Rules"
"submarines, on a total of 34 missions. He sank 49 ships, measuring . He was the sixth most successful submarine commander of World War I. Walther Schwieger Kapitänleutnant Walther Schwieger (7 April 1885 – 5 September 1917) was a U-boat commander in the Imperial German Navy (""Kaiserliche Marine"") during First World War. In 1915, he sank the passenger liner with the loss of 1,198 lives. In 1903 he joined the Imperial German Navy and from 1911 onwards he served with the U-boat Service. In 1912 he took over the command of the . After the outbreak of World War I"
"1, 1915, Alfred Vanderbilt boarded the bound for Liverpool as a first class passenger. It was a business trip, and he traveled with only his valet, Ronald Denyer, leaving his family at home in New York. On May 7, off the coast of County Cork, Ireland, German U-boat, torpedoed the ship, triggering a secondary explosion that sank the giant ocean liner within 18 minutes. Vanderbilt and Denyer helped others into lifeboats, and then Vanderbilt gave his lifejacket to save a female passenger. Vanderbilt had promised the young mother of a small baby that he would locate an extra lifevest for"
"stalemate, because it was impossible to move large numbers of troops undetected. The Germans conducted air raids on England during 1915 and 1916 with airships, hoping to damage British morale and cause aircraft to be diverted from the front lines, and indeed the resulting panic led to the diversion of several squadrons of fighters from France. On 19 August 1915, the German submarine U-27 was sunk by the British Q-ship . All German survivors were summarily executed by ""Baralong""s crew on the orders of Lieutenant Godfrey Herbert, the captain of the ship. The shooting was reported to the media by"
"most of them children. ""Orteric"" made several voyages across the Atlantic until she was torpedoed and sunk by German U-boat SM ""U-39"" on 9 December 1915 in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea about 140 miles southeast of the island of Gavdos. The ship was hauling 10,000 tons of sodium nitrate from Antofagasta, Chile, to Alexandria, Egypt when the submarine was spotted. The captain of ""Orteric"" tried evasive maneuvers, but the U-boat was commanded by Captain Walter Forstmann, one of the most skillful and deadliest U-boat commanders of the war. When it became evident that escape was impossible, a white"
"and their allies. President Wilson aimed to broker a peace and sent his top aide, Colonel House, on repeated missions to the two sides, but each remained so confident of victory that they ignored peace proposals. When the German U-boat ""U-20"" sank the British liner on 7 May 1915 with 128 US citizens aboard, Wilson demanded an end to German attacks on passenger ships, and warned that the US would not tolerate unrestricted submarine warfare in violation of international law and of human rights. Wilson's Secretary of State, William Jennings Bryan, resigned, believing that the President's protests against the German"
"upper deck, instead she had a library, gymnasium and a lounge and smoking room. After several years service primarily in the North Atlantic, she was taken into service as a troop transport in early 1915. On 4 October 1916, while heading for Salonika, she was torpedoed and sunk by the German U-boat ""UB-47"" 195 miles east of Malta. She was not carrying any troops but out of her 314 crew members, 12 died. The others were saved by the hospital ship ""Dover Castle"". RMS Franconia (1910) The RMS ""Franconia"" was an ocean liner operated by the Cunard Line. She was"
"voyages between Britain and Australia. On 6 November 1916 she was ""en route"" from Sydney ""via"" Fremantle, Western Australia to England when the German submarine torpedoed her without warning south by west of Cape Matapan, Greece, killing 11 of her engine room crew. ""Arabia"" launched her boats within 15 minutes. Four armed trawlers and Ellerman Lines' passenger liner rescued survivors. 187 Australians were aboard ""Arabia"". Her sinking helped surge volunteer enlistment in the Australian armed forces. RMS Arabia RMS ""Arabia"" was a P&O ocean liner. She was sunk in the Mediterranean in 1916 by a German U-boat during World War"
"the world on an unprecedented scale. On 7 May 1915, a German torpedo sent the ship to the bottom of the North Atlantic Ocean in just 18 minutes—its speedy descent into the depths occurring far too fast for most of those aboard to make it to the lifeboats. Of the 1,962 passengers and crew on board, 1,200 were lost, including 94 children and, crucially, 128 US civilians, many of whom were prominent figures. President Woodrow Wilson's neutral stance started to crack. All over the country there were calls for the United States to take up arms against Germany. In many"
"51, 17 were killed: 15 crew members and two Royal Navy personnel. The rescued 34 survivors: her Master, the Commodore, three Royal Navy personnel, 20 crew members and nine passengers and landed them at Liverpool. Captain Kearon was awarded Lloyd's War Medal for Bravery at Sea and the OBE. SS Assyrian (1914) SS ""Assyrian was a cargo ship that was built in Hamburg for German owners in 1914, transferred to British owners in 1920 as war reparations and sunk by a U-boat in 1940. She was launched as MS ""Fritz, and when she changed owners in 1920 she was renamed"
"and on December 30, 1915, ""U-38"" and Valentiner sank the British passenger ship without any warning. Of the 519 aboard, 343 perished. The action was highly controversial since it broke naval international law and the Rules of Prize Warfare. The action took place under Germany’s policy of unrestricted submarine warfare, but broke the Imperial German Navy’s own restriction on attacking passenger liners, the Arabic pledge. After the attack, Valentiner was placed on the Allies list of war criminals. At home, he was awarded with the Knight's Cross with Swords of the Royal House Order of Hohenzollern on May 14, 1916."
"might be carrying guns and which were too small to rescue submarine crews. Britain armed most of its merchant ships with medium calibre guns that could sink a submarine, making above-water attacks too risky. In February 1915, the United States warned Germany about misuse of submarines. On April 22, the German Imperial Embassy warned U.S. citizens against boarding vessels to Britain, which would have to face German attack. On May 7, Germany torpedoed the British passenger liner ""RMS Lusitania"", sinking her. This act of aggression caused the loss of 1,198 civilian lives, including 128 Americans. The sinking of a large,"
"originally built for ""Das Boot"". Documentary filmmaker Christopher Spencer uncovers the truth about the sinking of the RMS ""Lusitania"" in this film that gets to the heart of the mystery by leaving no theory unexplored. 7 May 1915: The RMS ""Lusitania"", a luxury Atlantic liner, is carrying approximately 1900 passengers and crew when a German torpedo suddenly strikes just beneath the ship's bridge. In the eighteen minutes that it took the ""Lusitania"" to sink, 1200 passengers and crewmembers perished at sea. In the aftermath of the sinking, numerous conspiracy theories began to emerge: Was the British government secretly using a"