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One Of Five Brothers
Something about the eternal nature of the blockchain has compelled me to tell and thus record this story. Indeed much like the melting snow of spring if these words remain unspoken they will slowly disappear, obscured by the sands of time. From my perspective that would be a travesty, for it’s a story that needs to be recorded and a life/lives that deserve to be marked.
Including himself my Grandfather (Arthur) was one of five brothers whom were all conscripted to fight in WW2. They were separated and sent to various hotspots throughout the world and amazingly they all survived. Although they each have important story to tell today I’m going to focus on Arthur for he was aboard the Lancastria. Never heard of it? Well there’s a reason for that.
The Lancastria
RMS (HMT) Lancastria was a Cunard liner that was requisitioned by the UK government at the beginning of WW2. She was also sunk on the 17th of June 1940. Until this day the sinking of the Lancastria represents the largest loss of life in British maritime history. Equally, throughout WW2 it’s also the British forces largest single loss of life. Estimates are that between 4,000 - 6,000 men, women and children died in this incident, their lives scattered to the summer breeze. Certainly, there were more souls lost on the Lancastria than the Titanic & Lusitania combined. Indeed the ship was filled with both military personal and refugee men, women and children, and yet this remains a largely forgotten tragedy. Why?
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Following her sinking Prime Minister Winston Churchill imposed a media blackout. This is because the government feared the effect that this news would have upon the moral of the British public. It also didn’t fit the narrative of the time, Dunkirk, Battle of Britain and then The Lancastria? Even now there are still both missing pieces in the story and differing perspectives of how the events of that fateful day unfolded.
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The Journey Home
An exhausted Arthur boarded the Lancastria on a warm June afternoon. Two weeks prior he had been at Dunkirk and the thought of an (albeit fleeting) journey back to England filled his heart with both joy and promise. The Lancastria was taking part in Operation Ariel which was the evacuation of both troops and refugees, as such she was unarmed. For all on board the thought of heading away from danger and indeed the warzone must have been a great relief. Alas they were unaware of the events that were about to follow.
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We’re Going Down!
It was now late afternoon and the ship was just a few miles off the coast of St Nazaire. The clouds began to chase the weakening summer sun from the sky and the ship gently rocked in the open sea. It was on the deck that Arthur found himself, laughing and joking with his friend and a young French refugee family. Suddenly he felt a tug at his hand, looking down he noticed the French couple’s young (about 4- 5 years old) daughter pulling his hand and pointing in the direction of a group of children a bit further down the ship.
I imagine the prospect of a military escort must have been exciting for the little girl (Marie) and so after much hand pulling and gesturing Arthur agreed to take her. After a quick nod of approval from her father off they set, leaving her family and his fellow serviceman behind.
Within a matter of minutes all hell broke loose! The unarmed ship had been spotted and the Nazi bombers began their brutal assault. As he turned heel to walk back toward her family the bomber scored a direct hit where they had all been standing. A hit that instantly killed both the girls parents and his friend! Alas my grandfather is no longer alive and so the exact details of how he entered the water are now lost in time, but I have relayed his personal story and utilised some historical references to elucidate the broader context. Sadly from the start of the bombing campaign until her sinking was a timescale of just 25 minutes, and so you can imagine the confusion and terror that ensued.
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Eyewitness Account Of The Sinking
I have added an eyewitness account below from Albert Nadin so you can at least gain an insight into how quickly this all played out.
My mind was made up for me when she started to sink, turning slowly over on to her side and within seconds the top deck rail was almost level with the water. I was not a good swimmer but I stepped over the rail into the sea and made every effort to get away from the ship as far as I possibly could. I got about thirty yards away, looked back and saw she was sinking fast but a lot of troops were still on board and were scrambling up the bottom of the ship as she turned over.
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I managed to get hold of an oar and another chap joined me and we managed to keep afloat by kicking out and holding the oar in front of us. By this time the oil was covering the whole area and we could feel it coming up from below. We were just drifting around while the German bombers were flying low and machine-gunning the survivors in the sea. By this time I was scared stiff and was covered in oil and could not seem to be able to keep my head out of the water.Source
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Into The Water
The fatal bomb exploded on the port side and ruptured the fuel tanks. A black cloud of oil began oozing into the sea and coating all that tried to escape it’s dark embrace. As the ship went down and pandemonium erupted all around him Arthur was suddenly in the water. Luckily throughout the confusion he had managed to keep hold of Marie, and now he held her tightly. Indeed to let go would have ensured her certain death for neither of them had lifejackets.
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As the ship belched smoke and fire, the acrid plumes stung their eyes and scorched their lungs. As the thick oily sludge weighed him down, he held her close and kept her above the water. Whilst some of the soldiers sang “there will always be an England” from the upturned deck, the screams of the drowning and injured filled their ears and echoed through the evening sky. And then, in a hail of gunfire they were back!! The bullets of the bombers punched the ocean around them as they began to indiscriminately shoot at the struggling survivors. I remember him telling me of the panic that gripped them as word began to spread that the Nazi's were trying to set fire to the oil filled water.
Indeed it’s a sad fact that as they desperately tried to cling onto life many people whom survived the sinking were actually killed by enemy gunfire. For nearly four hours Arthur and Marie held onto life and each other, Arthur using anything he could find to keep them above the water and alive. And then as hope began to fade and the last rays of daylight were scattered by the darkness, they were rescued.
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Safety
They were found hypothermic and exhausted, but most importantly alive! Once their rescue ship reached the shore and in the melee that followed, the authorities took Marie and processed her as both a refugee and orphan. And that was the last he saw of her, indeed at this time and in these circumstances to retain contact was akin to impossible. He was allowed a short time for rest and respite and was then sent back to the frontline and remained on duty until the wars end in 1945.
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The End?
Well I may have stretched the truth a little when I said he never saw her again. It was a hot summer day and Arthur was busy gardening when he heard a knock on the door. Twenty years or so had passed since the events of the Lancastria and yet when he opened the door there she stood! A beautiful young woman, it was Marie! She had tracked Arthur down and was there to ask that he give her away at her wedding, to take the role of her lost father for just one day. As tears filled his eyes and ran down his face he duly obliged. The wedding would become one of the proudest days in his life, for they were profoundly connected. Two people thrown together in a random sequence of events that would go onto save both their lives.
The UK government were eventually pressured into marking the event and giving the survivors and the families of those that perished a lasting memorial. But equally certain documentary evidence remains sealed and will not be made public until 2040. Sadly to this day the individual acts of bravery remain unrecognised, at least officially.
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Conclusion
For me this is not a post to discuss the futility of war. We can have this conversation every day of the week but equally for the majority it’s a conversation that can be held from the comfort of our homes. I write these words as a way of saying thank you to my grandfather and to a whole generation that had no choice. A generation whose minds remained eternally scarred by the horrors they witnessed and the sacrifices that they made. This is Arthurs forgotten voice, spoken from the waters of the Lancastria and written so that it's heroes and it's dead will continue to speak to us.
This is also a story of the human spirit, humanity in the face of inhumanity, the spark of light that keeps burning and illuminating even the darkest of nights. A light that may at times flicker, but will never be extinguished.
Thank you for reading.
References
1)http://ww2today.com/17th-june-1940-the-lancastria-bombed-and-sunk
2)http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/worldwars/wwtwo/lancastria_01.shtml
3)http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/hmt-lancastria-families-still-refused-memorial-for-britains-worst-sea-disaster-75-years-on-10324668.html
4)http://www.lancastria.org.uk/
Written by perceptualflaws
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I'm proud to be both a member and supporter of the Minnow Support Project - brought to you by the hard work of: @aggroed, @teamsteem, @canadian-coconut and @ausbitbank,
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Mate, that is a great post and a great way to immortalise your Grandfathers story on to the Blockchain.
So many stories are being forgotten as those involved pass on.
My family has its own horror stories revolving around the warfare we've been dragged into over the past century.
Their generation understood the futility of war hopefully stories such as these can be used as guidance to those who seek to perpetuate the fighting. It's such a terrible waste.
Hey my friend, Thank you for the support and great comment! I just wanted to hold it here and then if over the years people stumble across it then it's a story that will continue to live.
Yes there are so many stories to tell my friend and much bravery in the roots of many of our families, indeed roots that run deep. They really were a special generation and the last in a dying breed, strong, self reliant and with a sense of justice a mile wide. Sadly as time moves on I fear people forget and with forgetting we become doomed to walk the perpetual cycle of war & peace. Thanks again @tremendospercy
This is an incredible tale and it is great that you have recorded it and honoured your Grandad and those that perished.
It is shocking that this has been buried in history and only reinforces the fact that most accepted history is just one presented version of truth ~ not the truth!
My Grandad flew with Lawrence of Arabia and once sat me down and shared a small tortoiseshell box of photographs of his time spent with The Royal Flying Corp in Cairo in the First World War.
So many stories lost.
xox
Thanks my friend, I really appreciate both the support and kind words!!
It's so sad that many of these stories and accounts that will never be heard, indeed the true face of war is found in the words of the people that fought it. Not the politicians that directed it or the historians and journalists that recorded it.
The sacrifices that our Grandparents generation made are truly humbling and equally give me little patience for the narcissistic direction much of our society appears to be heading in.
It sounds as though your Grandad was an amazing man! Perhaps you should also record his story and keep it alive on the blockchain? Thanks again @ldacey-laforge
What a fantastic thing to have happened, that Marie managed to track your grandfather down.
It really is a shame that politics has gotten in the way of honouring all those that were lost to this horrible incident, as they so rightly should be.
Thanks for sharing your grandfather's story. Now it is out there for everyone to know. :)
Hey, my friend thank you for the kind words and support! And yes it's a beautiful story that I really felt deserved to be both told and held for technological eternity on the blockchain.
I could in a way understand why they wouldn't have wanted it immediately brought into the public consciousness. But the survivors, their families and the families of the people that died have fought for decades to give the Lancastria a voice. Even in 2015 (the 75th anniversary) the families were still fighting, I have taken the below words from a paper of that time:
"Ahead of the 75th anniversary of the tragedy on Wednesday relatives of those who were onboard have condemned the Ministry of Defence for failing to commemorate their sacrifice.
In 2008, the Scottish Government commissioned a medal to honour survivors and descendants of those who lost their lives. But the UK Government has remained resolutely silent."
It makes people feel that the lives of those who perished are worthless and unworthy of being marked. Each of those death figures is a life and they meant something, they still do.
Thanks again @ravenruis
Yes, I can understand that at the time it was more prudent of the government to keep the incident hush-hush, but 75 years later? Horrible, unless they can truly show 'just cause'.
One could only imagine what it musthave felt like to be in that water thick with oil to be then straffed by heavy guage machine gun fire ???? Insane truly insane !! What this genearation lived @perceptualflaws, they lived so that we could know the Liberty we imagine we live today ! Ibet he would be angry to see our Country now and the slide into the same darkness he was supposeldy fighting taking over once more by stealth and not by bombs and war this time ?? Once fished out of this calamity poor Arthur, your Grandfather , " was allowed a short time for rest and respite and was then sent back to the frontline and remained on duty until the wars end in 1945. " so was packed right back to the insanity for some more !! Truly incredible story and he survived too, must have been some kind of Man no doubt ! My Grandfather on my mothers side was Chief Petty Officer on H.M.S Hood ! 3600 souls went down with her in a matter of seconds ! One of the two survivors recorder believed he was blown clear out of the propellor shaft he thinks , as he was right by the point when that Huge Bismark Shell dropped through the pretty wodden deck of that old school ship straight into her main weapon magasine !( Great Post as ever Old Chum, we must never forget these times that so many died for so many to be "possibly" free behind their bravery ))
Hey my friend, thank you for the great comment and support .. as always both are very gratefully received. It's really difficult to imagine the horror of surviving the sinking, keeping your head above the oil filled water and then to be machine gunned! It really makes me sad to see the way that the world is today, indeed if they had arrived back in the country to find that their every movement and phonecall, letter was read and monitered they would wonder what the hell they were fighting for. Indeed many aspects of our world now resemble what they were fighting against!!
This has all occured via a slow process the steady drip of our freedoms and liberties being gradually flushed away :( Thank you for sharing your story as well my friend we should never let them be forgotten, indeed that generation were a true inspiration! Imagine the men of our current society being shipped off to war, to fight and die. It reminds me of the old saying "society rises in hob nail boots and falls in silk slippers" so true!
Thank you as always for your great comments and also keep up your excellent work.
Yes indeed @perceptualflaws, why did all those men and women die back then ? For what ? One big lie and illusion is history, what it was and what more they make it ! One day they will teach in schools that Germany won the war, in some ways throgh the Nazi orgainised World Order of Europe by the Bilderbergers they more than likely did indeed win the war but with nobody seeing it happen ofcourse !!
the Bilderberg hotel, the first ever meeting in 1954 of "eilites" to discuss the creation of the EU under their control of the new rule or 4th Reich ! They went on to meet once each year ever since to steer their international agenda of world domination through centalised control of sovereign nations into one political nation !
hidden in plain veiw with articles like this http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/bilderberg-group-meeting-global-elite-summer-school-a7071096.html
P.S i found this article pretty well written on this tragedy and it does conclude very nicely !! tell me what you make to it ??
https://www.scotsman.com/lifestyle/scotsman-200-editor-defies-d-notice-as-toll-rises-1-4408235
Yes, most people are unaware that is was actually the Nazi's (well publically) that first floated the idea of a European union. And exactly for if you play both sides it's always a win win. If you have yet to read it I would recommend "The creature from Jekyll island". Thanks again my friend.
Oh you and me are on the same page, I am aware also of the Jekyll island connection to all this, with the Titanic going down with a few good men that would have resisted the signing into existance of the FederaL Reserve by JP Morgan and his friends, the beginning of our end indeed @perceptualflaws )) I do believe somebody also cited this clearly great book on this subject !! )) it gets me too angry to read in detail these stories, especially when you consider the extent and depth of human suffering incited by the clearly criminally based conspiracy against us (
Beautiful written, you’ve done your family proud and it’s stories like these that make steemit special and can start some interesting conversation. I also really really appreciate you mentioning MSP/pal at the end of your post. 💜
Thank you for the support and kind words @kubbyelizabeth I really do appreciate it and I'm so glad that my Grandfathers story resonated with you, I just didn't want it to be forgotten. With regards to MSP/pal that's absolutely no problem at all, the minnow support project has been instrumental in helping me find my voice on here. Even in the unlikely event that I grow to become a whale I never forget my roots and will always mention you guys. Thanks again!
That is beautiful and I wish more thought like you do. I have no doubt that you will one day earn enough SP to be a whale. If you are ever wanting to give more feel free to delegate some SP to the project and or vote some of our witness. Good luck to you and I hope to stumble upon your writing again in the future.
Thank you for bringing this story into the daylight again where it belongs. Your blog is a wonderful tribute to Arthur and his generation. My own father was at el alamein and was wounded on the mareth line. He and my mother did not see each other for 4 years after they married. She will be 97 next month and is still completely independent. There will never be another generation like them.
Hey @ricia thank you as always for the great support and kind words. And yes they were a generation like no other, the last of a dying breed. It makes me think that many of them would saddened at the world we've since allowed to be created. An ever more divided society of 24hr surveillance and monitoring, but you know like the old saying goes "those that don't know history are doomed to repeat it". Thanks again my friend.
Great writeup! Its very sad families will never get to hear the stories of those who did not make it, but then its a wonder the survivors can talk about these horrors at all.
Thank goodness your grandfather could, because all the readers here are the richer for it. Thanks.
Hey, @leftmessage thank you for the support and comment my friend. To be honest my grandfather only started speaking about it again when Marie came back into his life. It must have been difficult for him to have kept her alive for all that time and for then to be pulled apart and sent back to war, wondering what had happened to her and whether she had a good life. With her visit he knew and perhaps felt free to talk about it. Thanks again!
That was beautifully written about a very sad time, my father was in the royal navy and a bosons mate in ww2 at 16, he was a lot older than my mother when they met after the war, and he died in 1972 when I was 6, he never once spoke about the war (my mother said), I can only imagine what he saw as a young boy, in a mans world of bullets, missiles and bombs, I tip my hat to you sir, for yet another high quality post.
Hey @deliberator Thanks for the support and great comment my friend! And yes that is so true for this story only came to light after Marie knocked on the door all those years later. Indeed for the people that understand the reality and have lived through the attrocities of war these are not stories that are told lightly. Indeed I imagine there is so much emotion pent up in said stories that to speak those words could open floodgates that some may find difficult to close again. Respect to your Dad and yes 16!! it's difficult to comprehend the responsibilty that this would have heaped upon such young shoulders. Thanks again.
Most welcome, I always look forward to your posts, and a small number of other peoples, some within your circle, for some of us it is not about getting a little tip, in the upvote of our comments, it is purely looking for the best presented work, so we may aspire to not be the same, more present our work in a similar fashion, so in a way, you help me, by writing so eloquently, and with good graphic design. Thank you sir.
Thank my friend .. and I haven't forgotten about the next part of your post. It's at the top of my to read list :)
It is ready when you are, I posted it yesterday :-) have a great week my friend, peace and love.
Fantastic report of a dreadful incident. I totally agree - that generation went through such a lot. I never take our relative peace for granted.
Hey my friend, thank you for the support and great comment! Yes, I often wonder how the generation of today would take to being sent off to a war zone. Thanks again @natubat
What a story and one of so many that may or may not have been told. I'm glad that you put it on the blockchain @perceptualflaws. I had not heard of the Lancastria before today but thanks to you now I have.
Hmmm, I have to wonder what they are hiding by suppressing the files for 100 years? The winners write the history books and only tell us what they want us to believe.
Thank you @steemtruth and yes it's a story that I thought deserved to be held and marked and the blockchain provides the perfect medium with which to hold it.
I certainly makes you wonder, and indeed many of these survivors have fought for generations to have their story told and to give a voice and recognition to those that died. Indeed (nearly) 78 years of relative silence from the UK government certainly hints that there may be a few more elements that we (as yet) are unaware of. Thanks again my friend.