WAR CRIMES AND ATROCITIES (True Crime) by Anne Williams, Vivian Head, Janice Anderson Page B
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government service at the onset of war. As the rumours of war started to spread in 1913, the Lusitania was secretly taken into the dry docks at Liverpool and was fitted out to be ready for service. This included the fitting of ammunition magazines and gun mounts, which were concealed under her polished teak deck, ready for when they were required.
The Lusitania had crossed the Atlantic many times over the years without any problems, but as World War I intensified and German submarines took a threatening role in the seas, her situation became far more precarious. Due to her speed, the Lusitania was considered to be unsinkable, believing that she would simply be able to flee if she came under attack. Because of this confidence in her construction and power, the Lusitania was allowed to set sail from New York on
1 May, 1915, with the sole purpose of delivering goods and passengers to England.
When she left for Liverpool, England, the Lusitania carried a large number of US passengers, despite the fact that the German authorities had published a warning in US newspapers on the morning of her departure. The notice read:
Many of the 1,257 passsengers believed that the luxury liner was unlikely to be a target to the Germans as it had no military value. However, unknown to her passengers, apart from her normal cargo of meat, medical supplies, copper, cheese, oil and machinery, the Lusitania also carrying a large quantity of munitions for the British to use during the war.
The Lusitania was captained by William Turner who, with his experience and a crew of 702, should certainly have been on alert for any Germany activity. As the giant liner left the shores of New York, a German U-boat was leaving, captained by Captain Walter Schwieger. He had been ordered to sail to the northern tip of Great Britain, join the Irish Channel and destroy any ships travelling from and to Liverpool, England. Schwieger was known to have frequently attacked ships without giving any warning, firing at any he suspected of being British.
Before the Lusitania set out on its voyage, it was decided to only light 19 of the 25 boilers on board to save on the enormous consumption of coal. This meant that the Lusitania was now limited to a speed of 21 knots, still much faster than a U-boat submarine, with a top speed of 13 knots.
The first few days of the luxury liner’s voyage were uneventful, unlike those of the German submarine. As Schwieger rounded the south-west tip of Ireland, he attempted to destroy several ships, but was unsuccessful. The same day he spotted a small schooner, the Earl of Lathom , and first surfacing to warn crew, opened fire and destroyed the boat. The following day Schwieger continued his journey to the Irish Sea, firing torpedoes at the steamer Candidate, and about two hours later he destroyed another ship, the Centurion . For some reason, even though the captain of the Lusitania received several warnings that a German U-boat had destroyed three British ships in the waters he was about to cross, he failed to take any action to avoid being attacked.
Schwieger was running low on fuel by this point and instead of travelling past Liverpool, he decided to turn back. This meant that the Lusitania and the U-boat were about to cross paths.
THE FATAL ENCOUNTER
On 7 May, the Lusitania entered the most dangerous part of her journey and, apparently concerned about poor weather conditions, Captain Turner actually slowed the boat down. On top of that, Turner was ignoring all the rules for avoiding attack, sailing too close to the shore, where the U-boats usually sat in waiting. However, Turner trusted his own instincts and experience and ordered extra lookouts and ordered that the lifeboats be swung out ready for evacuation.
Shortly before the U-boat and the Lusitania met, Schwieger had spotted an old war cruiser, the Juno . However, he was unable to hit his target because the captain was using the zigzagging tactic, which
The Lusitania had crossed the Atlantic many times over the years without any problems, but as World War I intensified and German submarines took a threatening role in the seas, her situation became far more precarious. Due to her speed, the Lusitania was considered to be unsinkable, believing that she would simply be able to flee if she came under attack. Because of this confidence in her construction and power, the Lusitania was allowed to set sail from New York on
1 May, 1915, with the sole purpose of delivering goods and passengers to England.
When she left for Liverpool, England, the Lusitania carried a large number of US passengers, despite the fact that the German authorities had published a warning in US newspapers on the morning of her departure. The notice read:
Many of the 1,257 passsengers believed that the luxury liner was unlikely to be a target to the Germans as it had no military value. However, unknown to her passengers, apart from her normal cargo of meat, medical supplies, copper, cheese, oil and machinery, the Lusitania also carrying a large quantity of munitions for the British to use during the war.
The Lusitania was captained by William Turner who, with his experience and a crew of 702, should certainly have been on alert for any Germany activity. As the giant liner left the shores of New York, a German U-boat was leaving, captained by Captain Walter Schwieger. He had been ordered to sail to the northern tip of Great Britain, join the Irish Channel and destroy any ships travelling from and to Liverpool, England. Schwieger was known to have frequently attacked ships without giving any warning, firing at any he suspected of being British.
Before the Lusitania set out on its voyage, it was decided to only light 19 of the 25 boilers on board to save on the enormous consumption of coal. This meant that the Lusitania was now limited to a speed of 21 knots, still much faster than a U-boat submarine, with a top speed of 13 knots.
The first few days of the luxury liner’s voyage were uneventful, unlike those of the German submarine. As Schwieger rounded the south-west tip of Ireland, he attempted to destroy several ships, but was unsuccessful. The same day he spotted a small schooner, the Earl of Lathom , and first surfacing to warn crew, opened fire and destroyed the boat. The following day Schwieger continued his journey to the Irish Sea, firing torpedoes at the steamer Candidate, and about two hours later he destroyed another ship, the Centurion . For some reason, even though the captain of the Lusitania received several warnings that a German U-boat had destroyed three British ships in the waters he was about to cross, he failed to take any action to avoid being attacked.
Schwieger was running low on fuel by this point and instead of travelling past Liverpool, he decided to turn back. This meant that the Lusitania and the U-boat were about to cross paths.
THE FATAL ENCOUNTER
On 7 May, the Lusitania entered the most dangerous part of her journey and, apparently concerned about poor weather conditions, Captain Turner actually slowed the boat down. On top of that, Turner was ignoring all the rules for avoiding attack, sailing too close to the shore, where the U-boats usually sat in waiting. However, Turner trusted his own instincts and experience and ordered extra lookouts and ordered that the lifeboats be swung out ready for evacuation.
Shortly before the U-boat and the Lusitania met, Schwieger had spotted an old war cruiser, the Juno . However, he was unable to hit his target because the captain was using the zigzagging tactic, which
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