Maritime artefacts in war and peace
Shipwrecks in 100 Objects, by Simon Wills
Historian and genealogist Dr Simon Wills brilliantly tells the stories associated with 100 objects recovered from shipwrecks spanning half a millennium. Many Merchant Navy objects surface, including a souvenir badge for passengers from the first British ship sunk in the Second World War − the passenger liner TSS Athenia, controversially torpedoed.
Wills also shows how Merchant Navy crew who escaped U-boat attacks were issued with a Merchant Navy gold-coloured torpedo cuff badge to be sewn into their jackets. A bar was added for each subsequent attack survived. Three remarkable escapes by seafarer Walter Thorp and his rescued singing canary personalise that tale, and there are other fascinating stories from shipwreck survivors alongside the excellent illustrations.
Shipwrecks in 100 Objects
By Simon Wills
Frontline Books, £25
ISBN: 978 15267 92211
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