End
Departure
On May 1, 1915, the Lusitania left Pier 54 in New York City on her way to Liverpool carrying 1,265 passengers and 694 crew members. On the same page that the New York Tribune advertised the Lusitania's departure for Liverpool, the Imperial German Embassy posted an advertisement warning that all ships entering the war zone, including waters around Britain, would be subject to attack and sinking. On April 30th, a German U-boat, piloted by 30-year-old Lieutenant Walther Schweiger, left the port of Emden on Germany's north coast, heading northwest toward Britain.
Arrival
As the Lusitania approached Ireland's south coast on May 6th, all outboard lights were extinguished, skylights were covered, and life boats were swung out as a precaution based on warnings of submarines in the area. On the morning of May 7th, fog arose. As the fog lifted later in the day, water tight compartments were ordered closed, although passenger portholes remained open.
Events prior to sinking
- At 1:20 pm, Schweiger spotted a large merchant ship and submerged his submarine. The Lusitania was traveling about 20 knots while the U-20 was going 9 knots. Captain Turner steered 30 degrees to starboard just in the right position for attack; if the Lusitania had veered to port, the U-20 would have lost her.
- At 2 pm, a torpedo containing 300 lbs of TNT was fired from about 1,600 feet away going 22 knots. Crewman Leslie Morton initially spotted the torpedo and alerted the bridge, followed by Thomas Quinn who did the same. The torpedo struck the Lusitania with a thud, below the bridge on the starboard side. A few seconds later another explosion occurred; many passengers and crew believed a second torpedo had struck. The ship started listing starboard. Turner tried to steer the ship to port, hoping to reach the Irish coast in time to ground the ship. The ship's hydraulic and electrical power failed, plunging the ship into darkness, although the boiler rooms still produced power. As the ship listed, the port side life boats became unusable, while the starboard side boats were far away from the upper deck, making them difficult to board.
- By 2:19 pm, Turner noted that the Lusitania was listing by 30 degrees. Many crew members and passengers jumped over board, while some waited for Captain Turner's orders that life boats be lowered. Some of the boats crashed to the sea under the poor maneuverings of the untrained crewmen. The Lusitania sank quickly due to the double explosion and the severe listing.
The first rescue boats arrived at the Irish shore several hours later with both survivors and dead, although Queenstown Harbor officials would not allow unscheduled landings. Most of the rescue boats were fishing vessels, the naval boats, the Narragansett, Etonian, and Exeter, were all too far away to be of any aid when disaster struck. Because the Irish waters were quite cold even in May, many people died of hypothermia as they floated in the sea; others probably drowned because their life belts were either absent or worn incorrectly. Sixty-one percent of the 1,959 people aboard the Lusitania died. Mass burials were performed in Queenstown cemeteries, while the official memorial service was performed in Westminster Abbey London.
The Lusitania was only 11 miles from the Old Head of Kinsale, Ireland, when she was hit. The torpedo struck just below the bridge and the Lusitania sank in less than 20 minutes. She now lies at the bottom of the Irish Sea at a depth of 295 feet.
Reaction
On May 8th, an inquiry into the sinking was held in Kinsale, Ireland by coroner John J. Horgan. Captain Turner was called to
stand testimony, but wasn't held accountable for any of his actions that, changed, could have avoided the tragedy, such as
ill-preparing the crew and passengers for an evacuation, or not following Admiralty's orders to stay far from the headlands
and to follow a weaving course. The jury charged the officers of the U-20, the Kaiser, and the German government with the crime of wholesale
murder. The British Board of Trade held their own inquiry in London in June 1915, with Lord Mersey presiding (he also presided
over the investigation into the Titanic's sinking). The proceedings were conducted so that Turner was not criticized for his
handling of the Lusitania and so that the right findings were reached, that is, that Germany was found to be the guilty party.
Cunard and the Royal Navy were absolved of any of their actions.
In 1917, after the U.S. had already entered the war, a trial was held in New York involving claims by individuals and groups
for compensatory damages against Cunard. Judge Julius M. Mayer decided in August 1918 that neither Cunard nor Captain Turner
were to blame, and that the blame for one of the most indefensible acts of modern times
lay with Imperial Germany, that the
attack was deliberate and planned, conducted with the purpose of destroying lives and property, and served no tactical purpose.
Even though the Germans had given warning that no ship was safe entering the war zone, most Allies were appalled that Germany
would attack an unarmed ship with civilians aboard without giving them the chance to escape.
German stores in Britain were looted or set afire while German citizens were refused service. Former President
Theodore Roosevelt declared the event piracy on a vaster scale than any old-time pirate
ever practiced.
While prior to the sinking President Wilson had informed Germany that they would be held strictly accountable
if any
Americans or American ships were lost, the U.S. took no military action against Germany. Wilson, a pacifist, was reluctant to go to
war—the U.S. wouldn't enter the war for another 2 years. A series of letters, known as the Wilson notes
, were sent to Kaiser Wilhelm demanding that
Germany provide guarantee of neutral rights for the U.S.
Berlin apologized to the U.S. but held Britain responsible because Britain was starving Germany by cutting off supplies and had listed the
Lusitania as an auxiliary war cruiser. Germany felt she had no choice but to retaliate by
attacking the shipping lanes. Germany advertised the sinking of the 40,000 ton Lusitania as evidence of its supreme naval power.
German editorials expressed amazement that civilians would continue to travel on Cunard's liners considering the advance
newspaper warning that Germany had given.
On January 31, 1917 Germany announced a policy of unrestricted submarine warfare. Wilson decided to arm American merchant vessels. On March 17, 1917, three American freighters, the City of Memphis, the Vigilancia, and the Illinois, were torpedoed in the war zone, with the loss of 24 American lives. Wilson resorted to declaring a state of war with Germany on April 2, 1917. World War I lasted until November 11, 1918. After the Allies won the war, Germany was forced to yield her premier liner, the Imperator, as a replacement for the Lusitania; Britain renamed her the Berengaria.