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The Sinking of the "Lancastria": Britain's Greatest Maritime Disaster and Churchill's Cover-up Hardcover – May 3, 2005

by Jonathan Fenby (Author)

7 customer reviews

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A fortnight after the evacuation at Dunkirk some 150,000 British troops were still stuck in France. As the German advance thundered west these Allied soldiers and airmen were faced with a mad dash to the coast in the hope that a troop-ship awaited them there. One such vessel was the 'Lancastria', a 16,000-ton liner pressed into service and now anchored off the port of St-Nazaire. On 17 June 1940, ready to head for home, the ship was bombed by the Luftwaffe. As she sank, between 3,500 and 4,000 of those on board lost their lives. Re-creating this extraordinary episode with great narrative flair, Jonathan Fenby shows us not just the human stories behind the disaster but the cover-up that followed -- as Churchill ordered a blanket ban on news stories for the sake of the country's morale. Gripping and moving, LANCASTRIA tells one of the great forgotten stories of the Second World War.

The Sinking of the "Lancastria": Britain's Greatest Maritime Disaster and Churchill's Cover-up

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On June 17, 1940, the Lancastria, a former Cunard liner turned into a troopship, sank in the harbor at St-Nazaire, France, after being hit by four bombs dropped from a German plane. On board were more than 6,000 people, mostly soldiers, although some were civilian women and children. At least 3,500 on board were killed. Eight hundred Royal Air Force men died when a bomb hit one of the holds, and another ripped through the ship's hospital. Some of the people in the water went mad. Many choked on the 1,400 tons of oil that poured out of the liner's tanks. Fenby reveals that Prime Minister Winston Churchill ordered the sinking not to be reported in the press for the time being, but in the rush of events, "he forgot to lift the ban." It was the greatest loss of life in any British maritime disaster, a tragedy that Churchill tried to conceal. The book, based on accounts by survivors and other documents and diaries, is a gripping chronicle of this catastrophe. George Cohen
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

About the Author

Jonathan Fenby is a former editor of the OBSERVER and of the SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST. He is the author of several books including the acclaimed ON THE BRINK: THE TROUBLE WITH FRANCE and GENERALISSIMO: CHIANG KAI-SHEK AND THE CHINA HE LOST.

Hardcover: 288 pages
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Ltd (May 3, 2005)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0743259300
ISBN-13: 978-0743259309
Product Dimensions: 1.2 x 5.5 x 8.5 inches
Shipping Weight: 14.1 ounces
Average Customer Review: 7 customer reviews
Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,637,083 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #10667 in Books > History > Military > Naval
- #41436 in Books > History > Military > World War II
- #42446 in Books > History > Europe > Great Britain

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History hidden facts

BySusan Hadgkisson May 14, 2013

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

This is the first book i have found on the sinking of the lancastria. My dad was on the ship when it got bombed and sank, survived of cause. Bought one for my sister too.

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Well written account of a sad event

ByBruce M. Carpenteron February 1, 2006

Format: HardcoverVerified Purchase

A well researched account of this unfortunately little known incident. Much of it heart-wrenching.

One slight problem - to follow what happened to a particular person entails a bit of page-turning, back and forth, to follow an individual's story..

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Riviting story

Bymatthew hylandon September 13, 2014

Format: HardcoverVerified Purchase

Fine story of a little known incident in WWII.

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A forgotten tragedy brought back to life

ByNed Middletonon May 12, 2007

Format: Paperback

In June 1940 Britain's war efforts against Germany were truly on the back foot and the Dunkirk evacuations were in full swing. Only by recovering our troops could we hope to regroup, rearm and then rejoin the fight. Off Normandy, an armada of small boats did an amazing job of work ferrying as many troops as possible safely home to England. Further away, off St. Nazaire a few large ships were also working to that same common cause.

Then, on 17 June 1940, more people died - as one particular troopship was bombed, sunk and then strafed, than on the more famous losses of the Titanic and Lusitania combined. Sadly, apart from the survivors, the relatives of those who perished plus a few divers who visit the wreck, few people have ever heard the name of that ship.

She was the Cunard passenger liner "Lancastria" and in this book the author brings her back to life in a most vivid and poignant fashion.

Nowadays, more and more people are asking questions about what "really" did happen with regard to specific incidents during both world wars - and quite right too. Furthermore, divers have begun to ask all the right questions about the shipwrecks they are visiting. It is accounts, such as this that go a long way towards answering those questions and filling in the gaps created by the historical events which followed the sinking of this once great ship.

Altogether, this is more than just a book about a ship that was lost in dreadful circumstances. With the skills of a consummate wordsmith, author Jonathan Fenby has carefully brought this tragedy back to back to life because people had forgotten it had happened. In so doing, he has created an historical document of great importance - a document which is of great interest to divers and historians alike.

If you really want to know how the Lancastria met her end, this book is possibly the only document you will ever need.

NM

0Comment 6 people found this helpful. Was this review helpful to you?YesNo

Fenby honors memory with details but sacrifices drama

ByBKNJon October 28, 2014

Format: Kindle Edition

This book is important. The sinking of the Lancastria was a tragedy. Those who died and those who survived deserve to have the facts gathered and memorialized.

Jonathan Fenby's research is thorough and worthy. Dedicated to honoring the memory of the Lancastria Fenby is forced into a tradeoff between detail and drama. Fenby chose detail. Details bring readers close to the survivors. However when Fenby describes the shape, size and color of replacement clothing for not one - but for every one - of the survivors, it doesn't work.

Perhaps his reluctance to shed a single detail explains the flatness of the sub-subtitle "And Chruchill's Plot to Make it Disappear". Fenby identifies no "plot" only a order given by Churchill to quarantine the news, an order which Fenby admits lasted for one month.

Fenby created an important reference source but he did not tell a good story.

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Lest We Forget

ByRita MayberryVINE VOICEon June 17, 2007

Format: Paperback

As British soliders and noncombatants fled the Nazi overthrow of France, the horror was compounded by the sinking of the sturdy Cunard liner where they thought they had found sanctuary. Thousands died, and a well-intentioned and much beloved Prime Minister misled his people about the gravity of this particular aspect of the event. The pride that the British felt in the rescue of some troops from Dunkirk was a valuable commodity in the grim days that followed, Would the truth have prevented the British people's standing firm and protecting their island until a concerted effort by the civilized world could defeat the evil that had enslaved some of Europe and annihilated the rest? I suspect knowing the truth would only have hardened their resolve. For us today, there is a realization that we should never forget the sacrifices made to rid the world of the Nazi madness. Denby has illuminated this dark moment in history for all to see, exposing the fact that cover-up is never a good thing, no matter how bitter the truth may be. A great job by a very thorough writer.

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Dead in the water...

ByRankbajinon August 13, 2006

Format: Hardcover

An excellent and fast moving account if you want an informative read on a little known event in British WW2 history. The loss of the Lancastria, the straffing of defenceless people and the stories of the survivors in this nightmare sinking highlights war at it worst and amply illustrates how everything can change in the blink of an eye.

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The Sinking of the "Lancastria": Britain's Greatest Maritime Disaster and Churchill's Cover-up Hardcover – May 3, 2005

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