On 2nd October 1942 about 60 km north of the coast of Ireland HMS Curacoa (D41) was escorting the ocean liner RMS The incident occurred as the result of several factors. Boutwood said the “Curacoa” steamed at some 3 knots slower than the larger vessel which had been in the process of overtaking at the time of the collision. The “Queen Mary”, 20 times larger than the cruiser, had been travelling at top revs giving her a speed of 28.5 knots. They were about 20 nautical miles off the Irish coast which, had boats or rafts been launched, would have meant they were within easy reach of safety.The survivors believed the “Queen Mary” would turn back to pick them up; it was with obvious despair that they watched her disappear over the horizon. When the collision occurred he, and all others on the bridge, had clung to whatever was nearest.Naval Historical Society of Australia Inc. As a luxury vessel, the 81,000 tonne Cunard Star liner had sailed on her maiden transatlantic crossing on 4th June, 1936.With the outbreak of war in 1939 she was converted into a troopship. The impact swung the “Curacoa” broadside on and the troopship sliced through her 10 cm armour plating. A little-known fact about the mighty luxury vessel the “Queen Mary” is that she was involved in an horrendous accident in WW II which claimed nearly 330 lives.For reasons of war-time security, the facts of the tragedy were hushed until the war in Europe ended. Boutwood said the “Curacoa” steamed at some 3 knots slower than the larger vessel which had been in the process of overtaking at the time of the collision.
The HMS Curacoa, under the command of Captain John W. Boutwood, was charged with protecting the liner as she made her way to Gourock, Scotland. The “Queen Mary” had caught up with her 4,290 tonne escort vessel, the RN’s “Curacoa”, and was set to overtake her.Aboard the “Curacoa”, seaman Ernest Watson, was admiring the “Queen Mary’s” majestic lines when he noticed the bow was swinging toward the cruiser. Then, in June 1945, only a few weeks after VE Day, the Admiralty Commissioners sued Cunard White Star Line claiming the “Queen Mary” had been responsible.It appeared to be a clear-cut case. Copyright © 2020This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.HMAS Sydney II and the HSK Kormoran Shipwreck Sites Message 4 - HMS Curacoa Tragedy Posted on: 06 June 2005 by irisnuttgens. Because of war-time security the official inquiry was delayed until the war in Europe was over. There is a book on the sinking written by the only officer survivor Patrick Holmes and a former naval officer David A Thomas called QUEEN MARY AND THE CRUISER 1997 by Lee Cooper, Barnsley. The Curacoa was manned with a crew of 338 as she sailed with the Queen Mary, the Queen making a zig-zag course to foil U-Boat torpedo attacks. The “Curacoa’s” captain, John Boutwood, had given evidence to a RN inquiry and was acquitted without a reprimand. The “Curacoa’s” captain, John Boutwood, had given evidence to a RN inquiry and was acquitted without a reprimand. The for’d section followed soon after, leaving the men in the murky water surrounded by debris, oil and drowned or mutilated bodies. He took up a position about five miles ahead of Queen Mary at around 10:00 am as she made her way to disembark the over 10,000 soldiers aboard. The Cunard White Star liner was commanded by Captain C. Gordon Illingworth, who had his … He was obeying orders that under no circumstances was he to stop until the “Queen Mary” had safely delivered the troops to Britain. The “Queen Mary” continued as a troopship until I I th August, 1945.The vessel is now a floating attraction at Long Beach, California. Even as they surfaced they watched in horror as the stern quickly sank taking with it the men trapped behind the water-tight doors. Info found on the HMS CURACOA can be found in the WAR AND PEACE EXHIBITION North PIER, OBAN (curator Bill Grant). But when asked at the first hearing if he felt Illingworth had made the right decision, the captain of the “Curacoa” said, “I would say, yes”. The WW I veteran had many years of experience by the time he had risen to become Cunard White Star’s senior commander and master of the “Queen Mary”.
To his horror, she continued to swing and was soon on a collision course. HMS Curacoa was a C-class light cruiser built for the Royal Navy during the First World War.She was one of the five ships of the Ceres sub-class and spent much of her career as a flagship.The ship was assigned to the Harwich Force during the war, but saw little action as she was completed less than a year before the war ended. It was every man for himself as survivors clung to floating wreckage.
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