|
The Sinking of the Lusitania
|
Sinking of the Lusitania Facts for kids: Fast Fact Sheet
Fast, fun facts and Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ's) about
the Lusitania passenger liner.
What
happened to the Lusitania? The Lusitania
passenger liner was torpedoed and sunk by
the submerged German U-boat (submarine) SM
U-20 during World War 1 (1914-1918).
When did the Lusitania sink?
The Lusitania sank in 18 minutes on the
afternoon of Friday 7 May, 1915 (14:10 –
14:28pm)
What was the result of the attack on the
Lusitania?
The sinking of the Lusitania eroded American
neutrality in WW1 and drew the nation into
the war on the side of the Allies.
Why did Germany sink the Lusitania?
On 4 February 1915 Germany declared the seas
around Great Britain a war zone subject to
submarine warfare and that allied ships in
the area would be sunk without warning. The
Germans believed that the Lusitania was
carrying war supplies.
Sinking of the Lusitania Facts in WW1 for kids
The following fact
sheet on Sinking of the Lusitania Facts includes
interesting information
about the famous ship that was sunk by the
submerged German U-boat (submarine) SM U-20 during the Great War
WW1
Sinking of the Lusitania Facts
for kids
Lusitania Fact 1:
The Lusitania and the Mauritania were
twin sister ships commissioned by the Cunard Line to
rival the Titanic and the Olympic ocean liners
commissioned by the White Star Line.
Lusitania Fact
2: The Titanic and the Lusitania met
with disasters and were both sunk. The Titanic famously
hit an iceberg and the Lusitania was sunk by a German
U-Boat during WW1.
Lusitania Fact 3:
On May 7, 1915 the British ocean passenger liner
was sunk by a German U-Boat (submarine). A total of 1,198 people of
the 1,959 on board were killed, of which 148 were Americans. There
were only 761 survivors.
Lusitania Fact 4:
Who built the Lusitania ship? The famous
Lusitania ship was commissioned by the Cunard Line and the builder
was John Brown & Co. Ltd. of Clydebank.
Lusitania Fact 5:
On May 1, 1915, the Lusitania had left port in
New York for her return trip to Liverpool in England making her
202nd trip across the Atlantic.
Lusitania Fact 6:
Who was the Captain of the Lusitania ship? The
name of the Captain of the Lusitania was Captain William "Bowler
Bill" Turner, the commodore of the Cunard fleet.
Lusitania Fact 7:
Who was the Captain of the German
U-Boat? The name of the Captain of the German U-Boat was
Captain Lieutenant Walther Schwieger was operating off
the west and south coasts of Ireland.
Lusitania Fact 8:
World War 1 broke out on 28 July,
1914 between the Central Powers (Germany,
Austria-Hungary, the Ottoman Empire and Bulgaria) and
the Allies (France, Britain and Russia). America
adopted a neutral stance to prevent the United States
from being drawn into a foreign, European war.
Lusitania Fact
9: The British deployed their navy to
blockade Germany and keep it from obtaining supplies.
Germany deployed submarines known as U-boats to strangle
the merchant ships carrying food, equipment, and other
supplies from the United States to Britain. Both sides
wanted to starve the opposition into surrendering.
Lusitania Fact
10: The term 'U-boat' is derived from the
German word 'Unterseeboot' meaning "underwater boat" .
Lusitania Fact 11:
The Lusitania had been partially funded by a
British government subsidy scheme which called for the ship to be
converted for use as an Armed Merchant Cruiser (AMC) during wartime.
Lusitania Fact 12:
Gun mounts had been added to the
ship's bow during a 1913 overhaul. The gun mounts were
hidden from the
passengers with coils of heavy docking lines
Lusitania Fact 13:
The British Admiralty then cancelled
their decision and decided not to use the liner as an
AMC as it consumed enormous quantities of coal seriously
draining on the Admiralty's fuel reserves.
Lusitania Fact
14:
On 4 February, 1915 Germany declared the
seas around Great Britain a war zone that would be
subjected to submarine warfare and from 18 February,
1915 allied ships in the area would be sunk without
warning.
Lusitania Fact 15:
The German announcement triggered
indignation in the United States. Attacking civilian
vessels without warning violated an international treaty
that stipulated that military vessels had to reveal
their intentions to merchant ships, and make provisions
for the safety of the targeted ship’s crew and
passengers, before sinking it.
Lusitania Fact 16:
Germany claimed that many British merchant ships
were actually warships in disguise and that their U-boats would be
placed at great risk if they revealed themselves before firing.
Continued...
WW1
Sinking of the Lusitania Facts
for kids
Sinking of the Lusitania
Facts for kids
The info about the Sinking of the Lusitania provides interesting facts and
important information about this important event that occured during the presidency of the 28th President of the United States of America.
Facts
about
WW1 Sinking of the Lusitania for kids
The following fact
sheet contains interesting facts about the Sinking of the
Lusitania during WW1.
WW1
Sinking of the Lusitania Facts
for kids
Lusitania Fact 17:
The Lusitania had been partially funded by a
British government subsidy scheme which called for the ship to be
converted for use as an Armed Merchant Cruiser (AMC) during wartime.
Lusitania Fact 18:
Gun mounts had been added to the
ship's bow during a 1913 overhaul. The gun mounts were
hidden from the
passengers with coils of heavy docking lines
Lusitania Fact 19:
The British Admiralty then cancelled
their decision and decided not to use the liner as an
AMC as it consumed enormous quantities of coal seriously
draining on the Admiralty's fuel reserves. The Cunard
Line was permitted to retain the Lusitania in commercial
service. Its sister ship the Mauritania and another
member of the Cunard fleet, the Aquitania, were drafted
into military service.
Lusitania Fact 20:
The Cunard Line
had placed an advertisement for the luxury voyage, "the
fastest and largest steamer now in Atlantic Service"
that was to set sail on Saturday, May 1, 1915 at
10.00am.
Immediately
beneath the advert the German Embassy in Washington
issued the following warning:
Notice!
Travellers
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 travellers sailing
in the war zone on the ships of Great Britain or her
allies do so at their own risk.
Imperial German Embassy
Washington, D.C. 22 April 1915
Fifty of the
warning adverts were placed American newspapers on 22
April, 1915
Lusitania Fact
21: The Lusitania departed from Pier 54
in New York on 1 May 1915 on her return trip to
Liverpool.
Lusitania Fact
22: Several radio messages were received
from the British Admiralty about German submarine
activity in the war zone - see below for details.
Lusitania Fact
22: Whilst the Lusitania ocean liner was
crossing the Atlantic, the U-20, commanded by Captain
Lieutenant
Walther Schwieger, was operating off the west and south
coasts of Ireland. Between May 5 and May 6, 1915 Captain
Lieutenant Schwieger sank three merchant vessels.
Lusitania Fact
23: At 1:40pm on Friday 7 May, 1915 the
Lusitania reached the Old Head of Kinsale, County Cork,
Ireland. Captain Turner had believed that, like previous
wartime voyages, an escort ship would greet the ship at
this point and safely guide her to port. However, not a
single escort or auxiliary was in sight.
Lusitania Fact
24: As the ship set course for
Queenstown (Cobh), Ireland a message was relayed from
the crow’s nest to the Captain by Second Officer Hefford
saying "There is a torpedo coming, sir!". The captain
immediately sent out an SOS.
Lusitania Fact
25: The Lusitania was sunk by the German
U-Boat (submarine). A torpedo hit the ocean liner below
the bridge on the
starboard side.
Lusitania Fact
26: At 2:28pm, just 18 minutes after the
torpedo hit, the Lusitania slipped beneath the waves
approximately 8
miles off the Old Head of Kinsale.
Lusitania Fact
27: A total of 1158 people of the 1900 on
board were killed of which 148 were Americans. There
were 761 survivors.
Lusitania Fact
28: Turner stayed at his post throughout
the sinking and stayed with the ship until she sank from
under him. Captain Turner incorrectly believed he was
the last to disembark from the ship. He was rescued from
the water by the small steamer, the Bluebell.
Lusitania Fact
29: Outraged at the death of American
citizens, the sinking of the Lusitania turned public
opinion against Germany and
its allies. President Woodrow Wilson refused to declare
war on Germany and instead issued three diplomatic notes
in May, June, and July affirming the rights of US
citizens to travel safely at sea and warned that future
sinkings would be viewed as "deliberately unfriendly."
Lusitania Fact
30: On March 24th 1916 a German submarine
in the English Channel attacked what it thought was a
mine-laying military ship. It was actually a passenger steamer called 'The Sussex' and, although it
didn't sink fifty people were killed and several
Americans were injured.
Lusitania Fact
31: American pressure led the Germans to
offer an indemnity to the US and issued orders
prohibiting their commanders from surprise attacks on
merchant vessels and halted their campaign of
unrestricted submarine warfare.
Lusitania Fact
32: The
Sussex Pledge was a promise given
by the German Government to the United States of America
on May 4th 1916 not to sink anymore merchant ships
without warning. The Sussex Pledge was made in response
to US demands to alter their policy of unrestricted
submarine warfare and stop the indiscriminate sinking of
non-military ships.
Lusitania Fact
33: On February 1, 1917 Germany went back
on its assurances of the Sussex Pledge and resumed
unrestricted submarine warfare and German U-Boats began to attack American
ships in the North Atlantic.
Lusitania Fact
34: Breaking the Sussex Pledge led to the sinking of six American merchant
ships (including the Housatonic) by German U-boats.
Lusitania Fact
35: The
United States entered into WW1 on April 6, 1917
due to the provocative acts surrounding the sinking of
the Lusitania and breaking the Sussex Pledge together
with events such as the
Zimmermann
Telegram, which led America to break off diplomatic
relations with Germany.
Lusitania Fact 36:
In 2008, divers explored the wreck of
the Lusitania and found munitions on board consisting of
4 million U.S. Remington .303 bullets. The discovery
supported the belief that the Lusitania was being used
to transport war materials.
WW1
Sinking of the Lusitania Facts
for kids
Facts
about
WW1 Sinking of the Lusitania for kids:
Radio Messages
Several radio messages were received from the British
Admiralty about German submarine activity in the war zone.
Radio
Messages to the Lusitania via the British Admiralty
● "Submarines Active Off South Coast
Of Ireland"
● "To All British Ships 0005: Take
Liverpool Pilot At Bar And Avoid Headlands. Pass
Harbours At Full Speed. Steer Mid-Channel Course.
Submarines Off Fastnet"
● “Submarine Active In Southern Part
Of Irish Channel, Last Heard Of Twenty Miles South Of
Coningbeg Light Vessel. Make Certain Lusitania Gets
This."
● "Submarine Five Miles South Of
Cape Clear, Proceeding West When Sighted At 10:00 A.M."
WW1
Sinking of the Lusitania for kids: American entry
and US role World War I
On April 6, 1917 the United States
Senate declared war on Germany
and fought with the allies in WW1. For additional
facts and information refer to the following links: .
Sinking of the Lusitania Facts for kids - President Woodrow Wilson Video
The article on the Sinking of the Lusitania provides detailed facts and a summary of one of the important events during his presidential term in office. The following
Woodrow Wilson video will
give you additional important facts and dates about the political events experienced by the 28th American President whose presidency spanned from March 4, 1913 to March 4, 1921.
Sinking of the Lusitania
●
Interesting Facts about Sinking of the Lusitania for kids and schools
●
Key events
and Sinking of the Lusitania for kids
●
The Sinking of the Lusitania, a major
event in US history
●
Woodrow Wilson Presidency from March 4, 1913 to March 4, 1921
●
Fast, fun facts about the Sinking of the Lusitania
●
Foreign & Domestic
policies of President Woodrow Wilson
●
Woodrow Wilson Presidency and
Sinking of the Lusitania for schools,
homework, kids and children |
