I watched a fascinating do***entary on History Channel last night about the tragic loss of this ship on Christmas Eve in 1944. Spent a fair amount of time today looking her up as I hadn't heard of her or the tragedy that befell her until last night.
She was quite a handsome ship and the cir***stances surrounding her loss and the deaths of over 800 people, mainly US soldiers going to France, was really quite shocking...especially the way she was lost and the mistakes apparently made after she had been torpedoed.
Leopoldville was doing troop work from Southampton to Cherbourg and had been quite successful too by all accounts. She was built in Belgium in 1929 and had a Belgian/Congoese crew since in peacetime she used to sail tween Belgium and Congo on a regular route.
The emphasis of the programme last night was to inspect the wreck and to see if anwers could be found as to why so many died that night. It also confirmed the bravery of HMS Brilliant's captain and crew in what was an incredible and dangerous rescue bid by coming alongside Leopoldville in order to allow soldiers to jump from one ship down to the other, around 500 or so were saved in this way. However, the film also proved that things had not gone well that night, stacks of liferafts and Carley floats were still strapped to Leopoldville's decks that would have undoubtably saved other lives had they been used. Questions remain as to why those rafts and floats had not been released by the crew or the soldiers themselves.
There were so many ships lost during WW2...on all sides...yet Leopoldville's loss is not one that is widely known about, unlike Goya, Steuben, Gustloff or Cap Arcona, to name but a few.
Relatives of those who perished and a few of those who survived from Leopoldville were told many things at the time and long afterwards...not all of it entirely correct. It was good, albeit very sad, to see both the relatives of those lost and survivors being taken by launch to the site of Leopoldville's final resting place...just 5 miles outside Cherbourg...to pay their respects to the men who did not make it home that night.
Has anyone else seen the programme or done any research of the ship and her subsequent war service/loss....seems such a shame that her history doesn't appear to have been marked that much.
She was quite a handsome ship and the cir***stances surrounding her loss and the deaths of over 800 people, mainly US soldiers going to France, was really quite shocking...especially the way she was lost and the mistakes apparently made after she had been torpedoed.
Leopoldville was doing troop work from Southampton to Cherbourg and had been quite successful too by all accounts. She was built in Belgium in 1929 and had a Belgian/Congoese crew since in peacetime she used to sail tween Belgium and Congo on a regular route.
The emphasis of the programme last night was to inspect the wreck and to see if anwers could be found as to why so many died that night. It also confirmed the bravery of HMS Brilliant's captain and crew in what was an incredible and dangerous rescue bid by coming alongside Leopoldville in order to allow soldiers to jump from one ship down to the other, around 500 or so were saved in this way. However, the film also proved that things had not gone well that night, stacks of liferafts and Carley floats were still strapped to Leopoldville's decks that would have undoubtably saved other lives had they been used. Questions remain as to why those rafts and floats had not been released by the crew or the soldiers themselves.
There were so many ships lost during WW2...on all sides...yet Leopoldville's loss is not one that is widely known about, unlike Goya, Steuben, Gustloff or Cap Arcona, to name but a few.
Relatives of those who perished and a few of those who survived from Leopoldville were told many things at the time and long afterwards...not all of it entirely correct. It was good, albeit very sad, to see both the relatives of those lost and survivors being taken by launch to the site of Leopoldville's final resting place...just 5 miles outside Cherbourg...to pay their respects to the men who did not make it home that night.
Has anyone else seen the programme or done any research of the ship and her subsequent war service/loss....seems such a shame that her history doesn't appear to have been marked that much.