Poem ~ Lusitania: Survivors Stories - Monday , 10 May 1915

Impression sketch of sinking of the Lusitania - by Jamie. The original can be seen at: http://www.illustratedfirstworldwar.com/timeline/1915-2/rms-lusitania-sunk/

Source: File: Lady Margaret Mackworth.jpg, 2015. From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. [online] Available at: <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Margaret_Mackworth,_2nd_Viscountess_Rhondda> [Accessed: 10 May 2015].

i 

Among those aboard the RMS Lusitania,

A survivor stated sinking of the ocean liner,

Deserved the condemnation of the world.

Sailing 15 miles off the coast of Ireland,

When either one or two torpedoes struck.

Within a time of 15 minutes the boat sank.

Mr Thomas travelling with his secretary,

Mr Rhys Evans, who along with young

Lady Mackworth, was to survive ordeal.

There was hardly any notice of the blast,

As the decks became suddenly a wash -

Both men had taken to the same boat.

Where they joined many other passengers,

To total up to sixty - while Lady Mackworth

Had travelled with her father Mr Thomas.

By the time Lady Mackworth had reached

Deck, the boats angle made difficulty

To move about as the ship went down.

Pulled under for a depth, she surfaced

To swim to a piece of board to provide

A corner to a man who held on for a time.

The man must have moved away, when

Lady Mackworth then fell unconscious,

To wake floating above a deck chair.

For a while longer she drifted there,

To be unconscious once more -

For a long time she lay immersed.

For three hours the survivors waited

When up to twelve steamers arrived.

Captain Turner and Lady Mackworth

Found rescue on the same boat, while

Mr Thomas and Mr Evans gained

Safety on a nearby Manx fishing boat.

Such was the rapidity of the sinking,

There was a question of port side boats,

Unable to have been launched properly.

Captain Turner had remained on bridge

As the ship went down, to be rescued

Some hours later - saved by a lifebelt.

Not knowing how it happened Lady

Mackworth found herself on a trawler,

The Bluebird taking her to Queenstown.

ii 

A Lusitania Survivor to find himself in cork,

Told how he had been at lunch, as sound of

Torpedoes struck with loudness of a boom.

Doctor Foss of Montana was one of a party

Of Physicians, travelling to join the Red

Cross In the field - when all heard the noise.

Everyone in the luncheon saloon paused,

Knowing they must have struck a mine

Or hit by a torpedo-the Doctor went to deck.

Without waiting, he took a lifebelt and leapt

Over the port side – he hit the water close

To a propeller, as a released boat crashed

Close , it broke as it hit water - among

Some people one man clung to wreckage;

The boat moved, as the propeller lifted.

The man suffered cut legs from spinning

Metal and clung to a rope as ship lurched.

A good swimmer the Doctor 'struck out.'

The broken boat was dragged, as he saw

Now people were jumping over the side,

Women and children falling over 60 feet.

They struck water in a sheer drop - Foss

Went to assist a woman and child - nearby

A boat on its keel - he helped them aboard.

They struck water in a sheer drop - Foss

Went to assist a woman and child - to help

Aboard a nearby boat - safely on its keel.

Within the boat were five male members

Of the crew  - Dr Foss turned about to swim

Some 300 feet to another boat of women.

They were highly distressed - despite trying

To pacify them, the boat capsized - he held

One woman to the keel, then between them

They righted to boat - with some back aboard

Others remained in the sea – at a quarter  

Of a mile away was shape of a canvas craft.

 To move the waterlogged boat he took

An oar and the woman the other, to drive

Them towards the canvas shaped raft.

Together they watched the startling site,

As they saw the Lusitania’s stern rise,

She filled with water to be pulled down.

On moment of finally plunging Doctor Foss

Saw men make a final leap of 70 feet, falling,

Twisting into the sea - during those moments

The Doctor saw a number of lifeboats still

Attached to their blocks, across the angled

Decks, without time given to release them.

With the Lusitania now gone, survivors

Were all scattered about - the Doctor

Sought to keep those with him occupied. 

Manning a raft were a group of men - one

Woman was in weak condition - The doctor

Worked to revive her within forty minutes.

Time elapsed in the calm flat sea - finally

A steamer approached - gathering people

To be taken on board the Indian Empire.

 by Jamie Mann.

Anon.,1915. Mr D. A. Thomas’s Story – Launching the Boats. Doctor's Narrative- Women Jump Overboard. The Daily Telegraph, [online] 10 May. P.10. Col. 3-4. Available at http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/ww1-archive/11587055/Daily-Telegraph-May-10-1915.html [Accessed: 10 May 2015].

Mann, J., 2015. 100 years Ago - Poems by Jamie Mann. [letter] (Personal communication, 10 May 2015). 

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/ww1-archive/11587055/Daily-Telegraph-May-10-1915.html

http://worldwaroneblogger.blogspot.co.uk/

#WW1 #WW1centenary #GreatWar #WW1poem #GreatWar #WW1centenary #worldwarone #worldwaroneremembered #WW1Lusitania

Poem ~Loss of the Lusitania - Saturday, 8 May 1915

Impression sketch of U20 attacking Lusitania - by Jamie. The original can be seen at: http://marelle.org/cdi/h-histoire/images/6%20-%20XX%C3%A8me%20si%C3%A8cle%20et%20monde%20actuel/1914-1918/slides/1915-Lusitania%20torpill%C3%A9%20par%20les%20allemands.html

  

Despite knowing dangers about the seas,

British ships, schooners and boats

Still sailed - against declaration of war zone

By Germany's submarine war class,

Lurking in depths, often not far from shore.

Trade and movement of people took chances;

As in ocean liners from neutral America -

Leaving New York for Liverpool destination

Left the Lusitania on new month of May,

In a time of growing Atlantic enemy warfare.

The luxury of the Lusitania disembarked  

From harbour, with the usual pomp,

In passengers goodbyes and by those

On shore, waving squares of white -

That on a battlefield symbolised surrender.

Excitement may have mixed in trepidation,

But Lusitania in her eighth year, had

Crossed safe waters on countless times.

With spring there were no icebergs

Or over-confidence of any Titanic voyage.

A launch of June 1906 saw drag chains,

In a slow water entry -thousands

Watched and 600 guests brought release

Of third, second and first class

Luxury - with popular space for emigrants.

In that peaceful British Edwardian period,

Lusitania was driven by state of art

Turbine engines - giving more passenger

Space supplied with electricity and

Gilded dinning rooms with state of art lifts.

The route to America had been coveted;

Fought for by German Shipping lines.

Yet Cunard’s tactic was to lead in luxurious

Speed and capacity - giving veranda

Cafes, regal suites and promenade decks.

With regular voyages and posters to state

Next crossing 1 May 1915 voyage,

For this 202 time were other warnings made

By American German embassy;

Unsafe Atlantic and war zone of British sea.

For six days a pleasant normal crossing

Driven by Parsons Turbines.

RMS Lusitania carried passengers by

Power of a 192 separate

Furnaces - oblivious to all but comforts.

An even number four funnels vented steam

As equally four propellers

Carried her into the sixth day - as outboard

Propellers rotated outwards,

Two inboard propellers rotated inwards.

An easy day aboard saw lunch served.

As wine glasses clinked,

A clear day deserved a walk on deck;

Passing by fixed lifeboats

As the Lusitania sailed into a war zone.

Even with economic needs to shut

Down boiler no. 4, her speed

Dropped from 25 to 21 knots still made

Lusitania, fastest first class

Passenger liner in commercial use.

Even at the conception of the Lusitania

There had been rule for her

Conversion into an armed merchant cruiser.

Even kept a secret container

To carry ammunition, as she did that time.

With lunch winding down it was only

Hours until they reached

Liverpool - earlier that morning at 6 a.m.

Fog had caused delays,

Her speed reduced and foghorns hailed.

Some opinion thought the act not good,

Liable to advertise to any close

Submarines and with a 11 a.m. admiralty

Warnings of U boats about

Captain felt this less likely near the coast.

A zig zag route led to another message -

1 p.m. to suggest they had safely

Passed one submarine by Cape Clear.

One puzzle for officers on watch,

Was lack of patrols to escort Lusitania.

The Old head of Kinsale passed 1.40 p.m.

With warning to pass ports at full

Speed, the Captain changed course East,

To put Lusitania in direct danger.

U 20's Kapitan Schwieger spotted the liner.

Underwater by Periscope it seemed any

Attack was impossible when the

Liner turned - then in a range of 700 meters

Orders to fire a gyroscopic torpedo.

The Kapitan observed as the mark was hit.

Passengers felt a shudder as tableware

Juddered  - the torpedo

Had struck below the wheelhouse,

On the starboard bow -

Then another explosion rocked the hull.

Kaptain Schwieger watched as the boat

Took a severe list to starboard,

A scramble to lifeboats was hampered

By the angling Lusitania

With many boats breaking or overturned.

In eighteen minutes the stern was still

Above the water, as the bow

Hit the seabed - finally Lusitania sank

To leave people in bitter waters

With survivors count 764 out of 1,962.

by Jamie Mann.

Source: File: The Lusitania Resource History, Passenger & Crew Biographies, and Lusitania Facts . [online] Available at: <http://www.rmslusitania.info/lusitania/final-crossing/> [Accessed: 8 May 2015].

Source: File: RMS Lusitania. From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. [online] Available at: <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RMS_Lusitania> [Accessed: 8 May 2015].

Mann, J., 2015. 100 years Ago - Poems by Jamie Mann. [letter] (Personal communication, 8 May 2015). 

http://worldwaroneblogger.blogspot.co.uk/

#WW1 #WW1centenary #GreatWar #WW1poem #GreatWar #WW1centenary #worldwarone #worldwaroneremembered #WW1Lusitania