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Govan to Nuremberg - the History of Athenia (II) |
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Welcome to the Website This section of the Benjidog website is dedicated to Athenia (II) - just another liner built by Fairfield in Govan until she was sunk by a German submarine on the very same day that Britain and France declared war on Germany. She was a cause célèbre thereafter. Far worse things happened as the horrors of war overwhelmed Europe and the rest of the world, but the shock of this event reverberated throughout WW2 and was not forgotten when it was time to bring to account the Nazi leaders who were indicted in the trial of German Major War Criminals that took place in Nuremberg in 1945 - hence the title. Even John Fitzgerald Kennedy the future US President had a part to play in this story. I will cover three main topics: 1. The history of Athenia (II) up to the time of her sinking 2. How the sinking becomes public knowledge (based on contemporary press reports) 3. How the sinking of Athenia (II) was cited as evidence during the Nuremberg trails I have made extensive use of press cuttings for the first two topics and am indebted to a number of excellent sites that provide online access to transcripts of the Nuremberg hearings - these are noted in the External References page. Athenia (II) came to my attention as a result of an enquiry from Govan High School which is celebrating its centenary in 2010. A student of the school, a member of Athenia (II)’s crew, was killed when she was hit by a torpedo. I was previously unaware of the significance of Athenia (II) and had originally intended to produce a one-page history! I have noted the contributions of people who have contacted me with additional information, photographs and corrections, on the Contributors page.
Brian Watson 19 December 2009
Copyright Warning Most of the photos on this site are very old and believed to be out of copyright. However it has been impossible to confirm this in most cases. · The photographs can be used for research or educational purposes. · If anyone wants to use a photograph for commercial purposes it is entirely their responsibility to resolve any questions related to copyright before using it. For further information about the copyright position please see: |
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To contact us:
E-mail: brian@benjidog.co.uk |
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Last Update:
26 June 2010: Republished with Publisher 2007 SP2 to fix IE8 incompatibility problem.
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Other parts of the Benjidog Website:
Over five thousand nautical photographs collected by a father and son over a period of 60 years.
The history of Court Line ships including factual information, career highlights, service history (including details of service in WW1 and WW2) and ultimate fate.
Personal accounts by members of the Merchant Navy and others especially during WW2 with numerous photographs.
Histories of ships - particularly ones referred to in the Recollections section.
Govan to Nuremburg - The History of Athenia (II)
The history of the passenger ship sunk on the first day of WW2 and the aftermath through to the Nuremburg War Crime trials.
British Battleships and Battle Cruisers
New section with histories of these fighting ships written by Steve Woodward. |