The Sinking of the Laconia: Survivors Stories
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- Опубликовано: 11 ноя 2022
- BBC Interviews with survivors of the Laconia sinking.
Following the story of the sinking of the Cunard Liner Laconia in World War II through the personal testimonies of six survivors. After being torpedoed by Germans and bombed by Americans, these survivors endured five days in a lifeboat with dwindling rations until they were rescued.
69 other survivors not interviewed in this documentary, survived the Laconia incident and spent 27 days adrift in Lifeboat Nine, only 16 still alive when finally coming ashore on the coast of Liberia. 
Животные
Ruhen Sie in Frieden Kapitän Werner Hartenstein.
Am besten comment.
@@BrettonFerguson Danke!
@@benadam7753 Gerne geschehen.
Rest in peace Captain ...
What a story! It illuminates the craziness of war, and how ordinary people are pitted against each other, although there is absolutely no reason for them to hate each other. And once in a while they acted accordingly.
This story reminds me of the highly accomplished German fighter pilot Franz Stigler who went out of his way in order to escort and protect the crew of a badly damaged British bomber out of the air space which was under the control of the German air force. The pilot of the British plane - Charlie Brown - managed to fly his limping plane home without getting shot down. He needed to think about this incident for a while until he fully understood what had actually happened and what the German fighter pilot had done for his crew. Many decades after the end of WWII the two pilots managed to find each other. Both pilots had survived the war, and they had led a good post-war life. Stigler was full of joy when he learned that the surviving crew of the badly damaged British plane had indeed managed to get home. Both former pilots and their families became good friends until they died.
Just like Franz Stigler who had shot down many planes during the war without feeling especially guilty about his success rate, the captain of the German submarine had done what he had been told to do. But when he realized how many people needed to be rescued he tried to do the right thing. It’s too bad that a chain of misunderstandings and a certain amount of thoughtlessness increased the body count considerably.
Question: what about the US fighter pilots? Didn't they see the life boats full of people which were attached to the submarine??
Yes. They saw the red cross, the lifeboats full of people, and the deck of the uboat covered with people. They radioed this information back to base. Their superior officer back at the base replied ordering them to attack.
There were actually two attacks on uboats. Another uboat, u-506, towing more lifeboats and deck covered in survivors. It had become separated from u-156 during the night. An American plane spotted it the next day and attacked. The bombs did not drop on the first run. It missed entirely the second run. The u-boat crash dived and escaped with no damage and to my knowledge no survivors were killed. I suspect it is possible the air crew the attack on second day may have intentionally missed. I think they were trying to obey orders but didn't want to hit a uboat covered with hundreds of British civilians.
Thanks for the detailed information about the aftermath of the Laconia's destruction. I also started to do some research, and apparently many persons who were involved in this incident and had to make important decisions, cannot be pidgeon-holed and sorted neatly into good-or-bad categories.
I am German and my father, who 18 years old when the war ended, was a sailor and an engineer who designed ships. In this capacity he joined the West-German Navy in the 1960s. I think he would've done the same as Captain Hartenstein: as a soldier he would've followed orders, and he probably would not have worked actively against Hitler - but he would've also tried so save as many people as possible. He was lucky that he was too young for having to pursue his naval career during the Third Reich.
Btw, I remember now that he has told me about the Laconia incident many years ago. As an avid sailor and a member of the West-German navy he would've been aware of the incident. He probably thought that Captain Hartenstein was a hero. I am not so sure. He didn't hesitate to torpedo the Laconia, and he torpedoed a few more ships before he died with his crew in his own submarine. But when he realized how many lives needed to be saved, he tried to do the right thing. That makes him very interesting indeed.
The actress Lindsay Duncan who narrated this documentary also appeared in a movie of the sinking of the Laconia. Thank you for uploading these videos to your channel.
In the movie, she says to Hartenstein, "This is very kind of you, Captain. If you were English, you would be a gentleman", and Ken Duken, playing Hartenstein, replies, "Germany has gentlemen too, Madam". I like that scene very much.
@@mcz4909 I remember that scene and I also enjoyed it very much!
Is her name Hilda in the movie?
The Captain and crew should be awarded posthumous medals for honour
well, he got the ritterkreuz during his lifetime. what would be the point in awarding him (or them) a meaningless peace of metal from the colonies?
@@montanus777 no, what they should have done is charged the American airforce with war crimes
@@lisa-azrabroad4137 but charged where? the colonies don't care about international courts.
May the capt.& U boat creaw Rest in peace & this shows the world of true Heros.
The lady in the black and white cardigan is my late nana. ❤
An office and a gentleman.
Thank you for making this documentary.
I didn't make it. But it took me years to find a complete copy to upload.
El ataque a los submarinos fué un crimen de guerra, cuyos perpetradores quedaron impunes, hasta es posible que hayan sido condecorados.
Consiguieron medallas. Dijeron que hundieron el submarino y recibieron medallas.
@@BrettonFerguson u es of A... what would you expect? Seria interesante investigar la posicion de los gringos responsables del orden para atacar el submarino y algunas consequencias a ellos mismos [ah, si- medallas] o cambios en la procedura necesaria para identificar el objectivo antes de decidir atacar [aun cuando tiene la cruz roja muestrada]
Danke für dass Video
Gern geschehen.
My second cousin, three times removed (Cyril I. Pryor) was a RN stoker on board the Laconia. He died from exposure in lifeboat 2.
Do you know if he had the stroke before it was torpedoed, while it was sinking, or in the lifeboat? I'm just curious if maybe the stress of the situation, or lack of fresh water caused the stroke, or if it had happened before they were torpedoed.
I don't remember the exact numbers, but lifeboat number 9 spent 4 weeks at sea. Started out with around 65 people onboard, and when it washed ashore in Liberia only had around 15.
@@BrettonFergusonSTOKER _a person who tends the furnace on a steamship or steam locomotive._
*Not stroke* a serious medical condition
amazing storey ty for sharing
Not to be confused with the Greek owned ship called the Lakonia (spelled with a k) which also went down in a tragedy.
Eddie Johnson, survivor, who of course went on to be Lily Savage.
Thank you so much for taking your own valuable time and sharing this with us, God bless you!🙂👍