[Stronsaylimpet] History of SS Athenia lifeboat on Stronsay

[Limpet editor]

/From Brian Crowe on Facebook:/

A very brief introduction to the history of the restored lifeboat 
originally from SS Athenia, and now on the fore-shore at Seafield, Stronsay.
'On 3rd September 1939 war was declared between Great Britain and 
Germany. When the official announcement was made to the nation, the 
13,500 ton passenger ship the SS Athenia (Donaldson Line) was en route 
from Liverpool to Canada with 1147 passengers and crew on board. The 
majority of the passengers were women and children, and included many 
refugees from Europe fleeing the imminent bloodbath of war and 
oppression in Europe, as well as tourists mostly from the USA and 
Canada, whose main aim was to return home safely. At 11a.m. the news was 
broken to the passengers that a state of war now existed between Great 
Britain and Germany. The route taken by the SS Athenia was westward 
along the north coast of Ireland and thence to Montreal and Quebec. The 
declaration of war was not entirely unexpected and the possible 
existence of German submarines in the area was known to Captain Cook of 
the SS Athenia. By 1p.m. the ship’s 26 lifeboats had been prepared and 
were ready to be launched should the need arise. The Athenia was now 
about 300 miles from Liverpool, well out into the Atlantic and bound for 
a neutral port (Canada did not declare war for five more days). She was 
an unarmed passenger ship which had set sail before the declaration of 
war, and although alarmed by the turn of events, none of the passengers 
could imagine anything really happening to them.
At 7.39p.m disaster struck. The SS Athenia was torpedoed by a German U 
boat - U30, captained by Oberleutnant Fritz-Julius Lemp. Although under 
strict orders from Hitler to avoid any confrontation with civil shipping 
it was later stated in Lemp’s defence that he thought the SS Athenia was 
an armed and converted merchant ship as it was sailing without lights in 
a zig-zag formation. A second torpedo misfired, forcing the U boat to 
submerge to avoid being struck by it’s own torpedo, and on resurfacing a 
third torpedo was fired which also missed. Lemp then, realising his 
mistake and being aware of the potential international repercussions of 
his actions, rapidly left the scene, failing to report the incident to 
his superiors until September 14th.
The SS Athenia took several hours to finally go down. Most if not all 
the lifeboats were launched, although of the Athenia’s passengers and 
crew, 112 were killed (93 of them passengers) in the initial explosion 
or died later as a result of the sinking. There are many stories of 
individual heroism and tragedy told by survivors and recounted in the 
book ‘A Night of Terror’ by Max Caulfield published by Frederick Muller 
Ltd, London, 1958. Three British destroyers Electra, Escort, and Fame, 
together with two merchant ships City of Flint and Southern Cross, and 
the Norwegian vessel the Knut Nelson, all attended the scene over the 
ensuing hours rescuing the more than 1000 survivors from the lifeboats 
and the sea.
The German High Command initially denied any responsibility or 
involvement in the incident even going so far as to accuse the British 
of deliberately sinking the ship which carried many USA citizens on 
board, in order to encourage the USA to enter the war against Germany. 
The spectre of the sinking of the passenger ship Lusitania in the 1st 
World War haunted the German military command, and they feared that the 
sinking of the Athenia could have grave consequences on world opinion. 
As it happened this did not materialise although it did effect German 
naval tactics particularly in the early part of the war. Hitler issued 
an order that under no circumstances were attacks to be made on 
passenger ships, even those in convoy, regardless of nation, thus 
causing confusion to U boat commanders as to the vessels they were 
permitted to attack- for passenger ships sometimes carried troops, and 
freighters, passengers.
Of the lifeboats from the stricken SS Athenia, all did the job for which 
they were designed, ensuring the survival of more than 1000 passengers 
and crew. Several days after the sinking, the captain of a passing ship 
the SS Transylvania, noticed in the area ‘an empty and abandoned 
lifeboat’ floating on the waves.
Some months later an empty lifeboat found it’s way to Shapinsay one of 
the northern isles in Orkney, having apparently drifted on the currents 
from the north Atlantic to the waters off Deerness where, it is 
believed, it was seen and towed into Shapinsay by a father and son 
fishing-boat team both of whom have since died. What is certain is that 
at some time during the early 1940’s this lifeboat was acquired by a 
Captain Dennison of Shapinsay and used by him for carrying egg-boxes and 
the like, around and between the islands. There are those alive today 
who have verified that this lifeboat at that time had the name ATHENIA 
thereon and it was generally accepted and acknowledged then and up to 
the present day that this lifeboat was in fact from the SS Athenia.
During the late 1940’s the boat was regularly used for the collection 
and transportation of seaweed – a thriving industry after the war when 
seaweed was used in the manufacture of iodine, soap, and fertiliser. 
Again there are those around today who can remember this boat – commonly 
known as ‘Desperate Dan’ in view of it’s substantial weight and 
clumsiness in handling, for it had no engine and had to be towed.
In 1949, J.M.Davidson of Glasgow shut down his sea-weed processing 
factory on Stronsay and the boat became redundant. It was then acquired 
by Mr J Chalmers (Pye) of Seafield, Stronsay, who moved it from the 
foreshore at Lower Station to the foreshore at Seafield and converted it 
into a ‘houseboat’, where it has remained to this day.
In 2004 the Stronsay Development Trust decided with the agreement of the 
current owner of the lifeboat, Mr Clive Martin, to investigate and 
confirm beyond reasonable doubt the history and identity of the lifeboat 
as being from the SS Athenia, with a view to obtaining funding for it’s 
restoration and preservation. This step is thought by many to be long 
overdue particularly bearing in mind the deterioration in the condition 
of the lifeboat over the years. The sinking of the SS Athenia was a tiny 
but nevertheless significant event in the overall maritime annals of the 
2nd World War, and as custodians of almost certainly the only surviving 
lifeboat from this ship, we feel it a duty to preserve this unique 
vessel to serve both as a memorial and a reminder of those who died and 
indeed of those who survived.'
It is exciting and very pleasing to see the SS Athenia lifeboat now 
beautifully restored on the foreshore at Seafield, Stronsay. Huge thanks 
are due to the Stronsay Development Trust and to Clive and Madeleine 
Martin for persevering and supporting this project over a period of some 
16 years or so, not forgetting the vital help and financial support of 
sympathetic Trusts and official bodies/(details will be added when 
verified/).
For those who would like fuller details, you will find these in the 
Stronsay Heritage Centre, or if you have an hour or so to spare in 
Kirkwall, visit the Archives in Kirkwall Library. Thank you.
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