sinking rms laconia 1942


Faced with the destruction of his ship if he remained on the surface, the German captain had no choice but to submerge.The lifeboats in tow were cut adrift and requested to remain in place, so that their position could be sent to rescue units. Survivors later recounted how Italians in the water were either shot or had their hands severed by axes if they tried to climb into a lifeboat.

Gladys was the wife of Chaplain to the Forces the Rev. Survivors numbered 1,113, the majority rescued by the Germans and the Vichy French.Because of the visible armament installed on Laconia the German U-boats believed the ship to be an armed transport, not a ship carrying passengers, when it was attacked.
The Sinking of the Laconia UK DVD cover GenreDrama Written byAlan Bleasdale Directed byUwe Janson StarringAndrew Buchan Brian Cox Ken Duken Lindsay Duncan Matthias Koeberlin Thomas Kretschmann Frederick Lau Morven Christie Franka Potente Ludovico Fremont Country of originUnited Kingdom Germany Original languageEnglish & German No.
The Laconia Incident 1942. In September 1942 the German submarine torpedoed and sank the Royal Mail Ship Laconia off the West African coast. Abstract. Of the 120 people on these boats, only 20 survived. The ship was bound for Freetown.

The RMS Laconia had been converted to an armed troopship and was carrying some troops, mostly Poles, to guard the Italian prisoners of war aboard. In Doris's words, "It is impossible to imagine why I should have been chosen to survive when so many did not. The RMS Laconia had been converted to an armed troopship and was carrying some troops, mostly Poles, to guard the Italian prisoners of war aboard. During World War II she was requisitioned for the war effort, and by 1942 had been converted into a troopship. I lost her. At the time of the incident she was transporting mostly Italian prisoners of war from Cape Town to Freetown, under the command of Captain Rudolph Sharp. The liner RMS Laconia, torpedoed on the 12th September 1942. The argument of the defence is that the security of the submarine is, as the first rule of the sea, paramount to rescue and that the development of aircraft made rescue impossible. The lifeboat, filled to capacity with men, women and children, was leaking badly and rapidly filling with water; at the same time it was crashing against the ship’s side. I have been reluctant to write the story of our experiences, but in answer to many requests I have done so; and if it strengthens someone’s faith, if it is an inspiration to any, if it brings home to others, hitherto untouched, all that 'The prosecution has introduced much evidence surrounding two orders of Dönitz, The evidence further shows that the rescue provisions were not carried out and that the defendant ordered that they should not be carried out. When war broke out, the ship was commandeered by the British Government for use as a troopship and fitted with eight six-inch guns.

RMS Laconia was built in 1921 as a civilian ocean liner. The ship was carrying 463 officers and crew, 87 civilians, 286 British soldiers, 1,793 Italian prisoners and 103 Polish soldiers acting as guards of the prisoners. U-156 had over 200 survivors from the Laconia both below decks and crowded on the superstructure. The German U-boat, under the command of Captain Werner Hartenstein, fired two torpedoes into RMS Laconia , one at 8.07pm, the other 30 seconds later. I never saw her again. Denis Beauchamp Lisle Foster, who was stationed in Malta. The U-Boat surfaced, broadcast radio signals in the clear that it was conducting a humanitarian rescue, and flew Red Cross flags.

Several were shot when a group of prisoners rushed a lifeboat, and a large number were bayoneted to death to prevent their boarding of one of the few lifeboats available.

There was nothing remarkable about that until they discovered who was being transported aboard her – Italian Prisoners of War. Instead, most of the casualties were bayoneted.

She was returning to Britain from Egypt in the late summer of 1942 …

The commander of the German sub, … Another U-boat, Although there were sufficient lifeboats for the entire ship's complement, including the Italian prisoners, heavy listing prevented half from being launched until the vessel had settled. It also signaled the German Navy command requesting assistance.

The RMS Laconia was a Cunard-White Star liner which had been requisitioned by the British government and converted to a troop transport in 1941.

The other was rescued by a British trawler after 40 days at sea. She was urged to write her recollection not long after landing back in London.Doris Hawkins wrote a pamphlet entitled "Atlantic Torpedo" after her eventual return to England, published by Victor Gollancz in 1943.

The prisoners were abandoned in the locked cargo holds as the ship sank, but most managed to escape by breaking down hatches or climbing up ventilation shafts. In it she writes of the moments when Sally was lost: "We found ourselves on top of the arms and legs of a panic-stricken mass of humanity.

The blood soon attracted sharks.Realising that the passengers were primarily POWs and civilians,The Vichy French, in response, sent the 7,600-ton cruiser During the night the submarines became separated. The Army neither investigated the incident nor made any changes to its procedures. During the mayhem of the sinking the two were separated and it was not until days later that Gladys discovered her daughter had survived and was on another raft.

After surfacing and picking up survivors, who were accommodated on the Rescue operations were continued by other vessels.

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sinking rms laconia 1942