Source: Erik Larson. Dead Wake - The Last Crossing of the Lusitania (2015)
Reporters covering the departure of the Lusitania on 1 May 1915 discovered that very few of the prominent passengers knew anything about the German warning published in the NYC newspapers that morning. Actually, that made some sense, since the bustle of getting ready to embark on the Lusitania left little time for a normal perusal of the newspapers. Those that did read the warning paid scant attention, with only two passengers canceling their trip at the last moment due to the warning, while a few others decided it wasn’t very smart after all to travel through the war zone, even on the Lusitania. Cunard offered comfort to the passengers, asserting that the Lusitania was too fast, and it could also easily ram the threatening U-Boat with no damage to the hull of the large ship. For most passengers, it was simply assumed that once the Lusitania reached the war zone, it would be escorted to Liverpool by the Royal Navy.
R40 also dealt with counterintelligence, doing a very good job convincing Germany that Britain was going to invade Schleswig-Holstein, which led to the six U-Boats being deployed on 30 April 1915. Other intelligence services in Britain had also engaged in that subterfuge, which to Germany was seen as confirmation. A final touch was a false order that indicated that Britain was going to stop merchant shipping between Britain and Holland in the North Sea. Germany believed that Britain was massing ships for troop transports on its west and south coasts, which led to the six U-Boats receiving orders to sind any ship that looked like it was transporting troops. R40 knew that Germany was latched on to the Lusitania with those six U-Boats, and the U-20, the “killer sub”, was among them. None of this information was transmitted to Turner, and no effort was made to escort the Lusitania or to divert it from Liverpool; the Admiralty was focused on another ship that it valued far more.
R40 also dealt with counterintelligence, doing a very good job convincing Germany that Britain was going to invade Schleswig-Holstein, which led to the six U-Boats being deployed on 30 April 1915. Other intelligence services in Britain had also engaged in that subterfuge, which to Germany was seen as confirmation. A final touch was a false order that indicated that Britain was going to stop merchant shipping between Britain and Holland in the North Sea. Germany believed that Britain was massing ships for troop transports on its west and south coasts, which led to the six U-Boats receiving orders to sind any ship that looked like it was transporting troops. R40 knew that Germany was latched on to the Lusitania with those six U-Boats, and the U-20, the “killer sub”, was among them. None of this information was transmitted to Turner, and no effort was made to escort the Lusitania or to divert it from Liverpool; the Admiralty was focused on another ship that it valued far more.
1 May 1915: The 2nd Battle of Ypres started, and again Germany used poison gas, and this time, Germany pushed the Allies back near the actual town of Ypres. Churchill was about to open a new front against Turkey in the Dardanelles, hoping to link up with Russia in the Black Sea and isolate the Ottoman Empire, while also diverting German strength. Churchill’s aim was to also, perhaps, force Turkey to surrender, and to open up a major offensive up the Danube into Austria-Hungary. By 1 May 1915, the Ottoman Empire that ruled Turkey had killed over 50,000 Armenians, whom the Ottomans blamed for enabling Russia to make great advances to the homeland (at least 1 million Armenians
would be killed during the Great War, a holocaust before the Holocaust).
The Lusitania’s departure was delayed since the Royal Navy had commandeered the Cameronia, which meant that about 40 passengers needed to be crammed on the Lusitania. The two hour delay was irritating, but would later prove to be absolutely lethal. A shade past noon, the Lusitania started to reverse its way out of the dock, backing into the Hudson River, with two tugboats nursing the leviathan downriver as it started to move under its own power. The Hudson was a shallow river, barely deep enough for the Lusitania’s 36 foot draft. Where the Hudson and East Rivers joined, New York Bay is formed, which is much deeper (and also where Liberty Island and Ellis Island are located). While Turner was slowly working his way through heavy river/bay traffic, the pursers and stewards searched for stowaways, since the fear of sabotage existed due to the war. Soon, three German men were discovered and taken into custody. It was eventually determined that all three were on board to try and prove that the Lusitania carried munitions to Liverpool.
would be killed during the Great War, a holocaust before the Holocaust).
The Lusitania’s departure was delayed since the Royal Navy had commandeered the Cameronia, which meant that about 40 passengers needed to be crammed on the Lusitania. The two hour delay was irritating, but would later prove to be absolutely lethal. A shade past noon, the Lusitania started to reverse its way out of the dock, backing into the Hudson River, with two tugboats nursing the leviathan downriver as it started to move under its own power. The Hudson was a shallow river, barely deep enough for the Lusitania’s 36 foot draft. Where the Hudson and East Rivers joined, New York Bay is formed, which is much deeper (and also where Liberty Island and Ellis Island are located). While Turner was slowly working his way through heavy river/bay traffic, the pursers and stewards searched for stowaways, since the fear of sabotage existed due to the war. Soon, three German men were discovered and taken into custody. It was eventually determined that all three were on board to try and prove that the Lusitania carried munitions to Liverpool.
U-Boats were very sensitive in terms of balance and weight, so much so that when a torpedo was fired, crew members had to temporarily relocate to stabilize the sub until ballast was achieved. In an emergency dive, crew members had to race to the front of the sub to help it dive faster. When under water, 72 feet was the preferred depth when not on attack, since the draft of large ships could damage the U-Boat.
After picking up mail from an arranged rendezvous outside of NY Harbor, Turner ordered the Lusitania to maximum speed, but not to it true maximum of 25 knots. To reach true maximum speed, Turner needed to use all four of his boilers, and therefore all four of the funnels. However, coal shortages meant that he could only use three boilers and therefore three funnels. That meant that the Lusitania’s maximum speed was cut to 21 knots, a decrease of 16%. Cunard didn’t publicize the reduction of power, and Turner didn’t tell any of the passengers.
R40 received updates of the movements of U-20, which was heading to the Irish Sea. On U-20, as with all submarines during the Great War, diving was a complex task that left the sub vulnerable to attack. U-20 was able to dive gto a safe depth in about 75 seconds, able to stay clear of the hulls of even the largest warships. But during a real emergency dive, those seconds seemed like minutes to the crew. U-Boats could be rammed or hit by artillery (from long distance), and penetration mean that the U-Boat wasn’t able to dive.
After picking up mail from an arranged rendezvous outside of NY Harbor, Turner ordered the Lusitania to maximum speed, but not to it true maximum of 25 knots. To reach true maximum speed, Turner needed to use all four of his boilers, and therefore all four of the funnels. However, coal shortages meant that he could only use three boilers and therefore three funnels. That meant that the Lusitania’s maximum speed was cut to 21 knots, a decrease of 16%. Cunard didn’t publicize the reduction of power, and Turner didn’t tell any of the passengers.
R40 received updates of the movements of U-20, which was heading to the Irish Sea. On U-20, as with all submarines during the Great War, diving was a complex task that left the sub vulnerable to attack. U-20 was able to dive gto a safe depth in about 75 seconds, able to stay clear of the hulls of even the largest warships. But during a real emergency dive, those seconds seemed like minutes to the crew. U-Boats could be rammed or hit by artillery (from long distance), and penetration mean that the U-Boat wasn’t able to dive.
For U-Boats, the two horizontal rudders served the same purpose under water as wings in the air, with water added to the ballast tanks to achieve a specific depth. All that changed if the U-Boat weighed differently, such as after firing a torpedo, which made the sub 3000 lbs. lighter. The buoyancy of seawater changed, based on the temperature and salinity, and less salt in the water was better for quick diving. Bad weather affected the eive as well, in that often in bad conditions the horizontal rudders were exposed to air instead of being under water.
To dive, a U-Boat had to stop running its diesel engines and use battery power, and all vents and exhaust ports had to be closed. Then water was added to the dive tanks until the descent needed to be stopped, in which case air was pumped into the tanks. To ascend to periscope depth, the horizontal rudders were used, not adding air to the dive tanks, in order to make sure the ascent was slow-and-controlled.
Moving underwater meant that Schwieger had no vision to see ahead, and he had to completely trust his sea charts. When reaching periscope depth, Schwieger was blind until the periscope cleared the water, and only then would he see if he was safe or in danger. Schwieger was near Scapa Flow, and when he surfaced, he saw that six British patrol ships were ahead of him, and two destroyers were behind him . . . and at least one of the patrol boats turned towards U-20, and Schwieger ordered a quick dive.
To dive, a U-Boat had to stop running its diesel engines and use battery power, and all vents and exhaust ports had to be closed. Then water was added to the dive tanks until the descent needed to be stopped, in which case air was pumped into the tanks. To ascend to periscope depth, the horizontal rudders were used, not adding air to the dive tanks, in order to make sure the ascent was slow-and-controlled.
Moving underwater meant that Schwieger had no vision to see ahead, and he had to completely trust his sea charts. When reaching periscope depth, Schwieger was blind until the periscope cleared the water, and only then would he see if he was safe or in danger. Schwieger was near Scapa Flow, and when he surfaced, he saw that six British patrol ships were ahead of him, and two destroyers were behind him . . . and at least one of the patrol boats turned towards U-20, and Schwieger ordered a quick dive.
Turner ordered the Lusitania to its three boiler maximum speed of 21 knots, choosing the “long course” to reach Liverpool, since icebergs were calving in May; he planned to reach Liverpool just before dawn on 8 May 1915. To reach the port of Liverpool, ships had to clear the Mersey Bar, which ships the size of the Lusitania could do only at high tide. Before the Great War, ships just waited for the next high tide, bugt with the war, ships that did so were sitting ducks for U-Boats. All captains needed to time their arrival at the Mersey Bar so they didn’t have to stop.
1st Class dining had two levels and could serve 470 passengers. On the first full day at sea, some of the passengers calculated that the Lusitania had traveled 501 miles, which surprised them since at 25 knots, the distance should have been 700 miles. While Turner didn’t think the Lusitania was at serious risk of being attacked in the war zone, Cunard officials had started to think differently. That being said, Cunard officials still believed that Germany wouldn’t touch a passenger ship, thinking that Germany would keep targeting merchant ships. Turner was told to keep sending telegraph messages at an absolute minimum; specifically, Turner was told he could receive messages, but he wasn’t to send.
Among the other directives sent to passenger ship captains by the Admiralty was that of zig-zagging to avoid U-Boats. The Admiralty assumed that Turner had the paperwork telling him to do so in his possession on the Lusitania, which became a matter of debate after the disaster. Even so, that memo didn’t order zig-zagging, merely suggesting it as an option. Merchant ship captains ridiculed zig-zagging, and the odds of Turner intentionally zig-zagging the Lusitania to avoid U-Boats were practically nil. Turner knew that 21 knots was still faster than the 15 knots a U-Boat could muster on the service, and twice as fast when the U-Boat was submerged. Also, Turner knew that 21 knots was still faster than any other large civilian ship in service.
Addendum: Captain Schwieger, Room 40, and Winston Churchill . . .
1st Class dining had two levels and could serve 470 passengers. On the first full day at sea, some of the passengers calculated that the Lusitania had traveled 501 miles, which surprised them since at 25 knots, the distance should have been 700 miles. While Turner didn’t think the Lusitania was at serious risk of being attacked in the war zone, Cunard officials had started to think differently. That being said, Cunard officials still believed that Germany wouldn’t touch a passenger ship, thinking that Germany would keep targeting merchant ships. Turner was told to keep sending telegraph messages at an absolute minimum; specifically, Turner was told he could receive messages, but he wasn’t to send.
Among the other directives sent to passenger ship captains by the Admiralty was that of zig-zagging to avoid U-Boats. The Admiralty assumed that Turner had the paperwork telling him to do so in his possession on the Lusitania, which became a matter of debate after the disaster. Even so, that memo didn’t order zig-zagging, merely suggesting it as an option. Merchant ship captains ridiculed zig-zagging, and the odds of Turner intentionally zig-zagging the Lusitania to avoid U-Boats were practically nil. Turner knew that 21 knots was still faster than the 15 knots a U-Boat could muster on the service, and twice as fast when the U-Boat was submerged. Also, Turner knew that 21 knots was still faster than any other large civilian ship in service.
Addendum: Captain Schwieger, Room 40, and Winston Churchill . . .