Cap Arcona - Revision history

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	[[File:German liner SS Cap Ancona.~~jpg~~\|400px\|thumb\|right\|SS ''Cap Arcona'']]		[[File:German liner SS Cap Ancona.png\|400px\|thumb\|right\|SS ''Cap Arcona'']]
	The SS '''''Cap Arcona''''', named after Cape Arkona on the island of [[Rügen]], was a large (27561 tons) [[Weimar Germany\|German]] luxury ocean liner (''Luxusdampfer'') and the flagship (''Flaggschiff'') of the ''Hamburg-Südamerikanische Dampfschifffahrts-Gesellschaft'' (Hamburg-South America Line). On 3 May 1945, she was sunk in Lübeck Bay off Neustadt (killing c. 5,000 people, only 350 were rescued) by the same British air raid that sunk hospital ship [[SS Deutschland (1923)\|"Deutschland"]] (all 2,000 prisoners on the "Deutschland" were safely taken off onto the "Athen", before the ship capsized) and [[SS Thielbek (1940)\|"Thielbek"]] (killing 2,750 people, only 50 survived).<ref>Gilbert, Martin (1989). ''The Second World War; a complete history''. Weidenfeld & Nicolson. p. 684</ref> A total of 23 ships were sunk and 115 damaged in the attacks by the [[Royal Air Force]] on this day, although they posed no threat of war, mostly only used as rescue ships for the [[Operation Hannibal]].		The SS '''''Cap Arcona''''', named after Cape Arkona on the island of [[Rügen]], was a large (27561 tons) [[Weimar Germany\|German]] luxury ocean liner (''Luxusdampfer'') and the flagship (''Flaggschiff'') of the ''Hamburg-Südamerikanische Dampfschifffahrts-Gesellschaft'' (Hamburg-South America Line). On 3 May 1945, she was sunk in Lübeck Bay off Neustadt (killing c. 5,000 people, only 350 were rescued) by the same British air raid that sunk hospital ship [[SS Deutschland (1923)\|"Deutschland"]] (all 2,000 prisoners on the "Deutschland" were safely taken off onto the "Athen", before the ship capsized) and [[SS Thielbek (1940)\|"Thielbek"]] (killing 2,750 people, only 50 survived).<ref>Gilbert, Martin (1989). ''The Second World War; a complete history''. Weidenfeld & Nicolson. p. 684</ref> A total of 23 ships were sunk and 115 damaged in the attacks by the [[Royal Air Force]] on this day, although they posed no threat of war, mostly only used as rescue ships for the [[Operation Hannibal]].

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	==References==		==References==
	{{reflist}}		{{reflist\|2}}

	[[Category:World War II]]		[[Category:World War II]]

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{{italic title}}
[[File:German liner SS Cap Ancona.jpg|400px|thumb|right|SS ''Cap Arcona'']]
The SS '''''Cap Arcona''''', named after Cape Arkona on the island of [[Rügen]], was a large (27561 tons) [[Weimar Germany|German]] luxury ocean liner (''Luxusdampfer'') and the flagship (''Flaggschiff'') of the ''Hamburg-Südamerikanische Dampfschifffahrts-Gesellschaft'' (Hamburg-South America Line). On 3 May 1945, she was sunk in Lübeck Bay off Neustadt (killing c. 5,000 people, only 350 were rescued) by the same British air raid that sunk hospital ship [[SS Deutschland (1923)|"Deutschland"]] (all 2,000 prisoners on the "Deutschland" were safely taken off onto the "Athen", before the ship capsized) and [[SS Thielbek (1940)|"Thielbek"]] (killing 2,750 people, only 50 survived).<ref>Gilbert, Martin (1989). ''The Second World War; a complete history''. Weidenfeld & Nicolson. p. 684</ref> A total of 23 ships were sunk and 115 damaged in the attacks by the [[Royal Air Force]] on this day, although they posed no threat of war, mostly only used as rescue ships for the [[Operation Hannibal]].

==History==
Blohm+Voss in Hamburg built Cap Arcona, launching and completing her in 1927. She was 27,561 GRT, 205.90 m (675 ft 6 in) overall and a beam of 25.78 m (84 ft 7 in). She made her maiden voyage on 29 October 1927, carrying passengers and cargo between Germany and the east coast of [[South America]], and in her time was the largest and fastest ship on the route. She was driven by eight steam turbines, single-reduction geared to two propeller shafts. She had three funnels, and her passenger comforts included a full-size tennis court abaft her third funnel. The ship had at least 26 lifeboats, most of which were mounted in two tiers. Cap Arcona had modern navigation and communication equipment. She was equipped for submarine signalling which allowed a ship to hear acoustic signals from aids to navigation. She also had wireless direction finding equipment, and from 1934 she had an echo sounding device and a gyrocompass.

She had a passenger capacity from 1927 of 575 1st class, 275 2nd class, 465 in dormitories; total 1,315 and from 1937 a total of 850 with a crew of 475. In 1940, the ''[[Kriegsmarine]]'' requisitioned her as an accommodation ship. In 1942 she served as the set for the making of the German feature film ''[[Titanic (film)|Titanic]]''. In 1945 she evacuated almost 26,000 German civilian refugees from [[East Prussia]] before the advance of the [[Red Army]].

''Cap Arcona'''s final use was as a prison ship anchored in Lübeck Bay. In May 1945 she was heavily laden with prisoners transferred from POW and concentration camps in the east which had been over-run by the Red Army when the [[Royal Air Force]] deliberately bombed her, killing about 5,000 people; with more than 3,000 further casualties in the sinkings of the accompanying vessels of the prison fleet, including SS ''Thielbek''. This was one of the largest single-incident maritime losses of life in the [[Second World War]]. Swedish and Swiss Red Cross officials had already informed British intelligence on 2 May 1945 of the presence of large numbers of prisoners on ships at anchor in Lübeck Bay.

The prisoners aboard the ships were of at least 30 nationalities: American, Belarusian, Belgian, Canadian, Czechoslovakian, Danish, Dutch, Estonian, Finnish, French, German, Greek, Hungarian, Italian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Luxembourger, Norwegian, Polish, Romanian, Russian, Serbian, Spanish, Swiss, Ukrainian, and possibly others. RAF Pilot Allan Wyse of No. 193 Squadron recalled:

: ''"We used our cannon fire at the chaps in the water... we shot them up with 20 mm cannons in the water. Horrible thing, but we were told to do it and we did it."''<ref>{{Cite news |url=http://app1.chinadaily.com.cn/star/history/00-03-07/f02-uk.html |work=Shanghai Star |date=7 March 2000 |title=British error killed WW2 camp inmates |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151107011021/http://app1.chinadaily.com.cn/star/history/00-03-07/f02-uk.html |archive-date=7 November 2015 |df=dmy-all }}</ref>

From the Till report of June 1945:<ref>{{cite news |url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210505163203/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/raf-pilots-tricked-into-killing-10-000-camp-survivors-at-end-of-war-634445.html |title=RAF pilots tricked into killing 10,000 camp survivors at end of war – Home News, UK |work=[[The Independent]] |date=16 October 2000 |access-date=25 February 2009 |place=London |first=Max |last=Arthur}}</ref>

: ''"The Intelligence Officer with 83 Group RAF has admitted on two occasions; first to Lt H. F. Ansell of this Team (when it was confirmed by a [[Wing commander (rank)|Wing Commander]] present), and on a second occasion to the Investigating Officer when he was accompanied by Lt. H. F. Ansell, that a message was received on 2 May 1945 that these ships were loaded with prisoners but that, although there was ample time to warn the pilots of the planes who attacked these ships on the following day, by some oversight the message was never passed on... From the facts and from the statement volunteered by the RAF Intelligence Officer, it appears that the primary responsibility for this great loss of life must fall on the British RAF personnel who are said to have failed to pass to the pilots the message they received concerning the presence of prisoners being held on board these ships."''

==Further reading==

*{{cite book |last1=Jacobs |first1=Benjamin |last2=Pool |first2=Eugene |year=2004 |title=The 100-Year Secret: Britain's Hidden World War II Massacre |place=Guildford, CT |publisher=The Lyons Press |isbn=1-59228-532-5 |url=https://archive.org/details/100yearsecretbri00jaco }}
*{{cite book |last=Talbot-Booth |first=E.C. |year=1936 |title=Ships and the Sea |edition=Third |place=London |publisher=Sampson Low, Marston & Co. |page=410 }}
*{{cite book |last=Till |first=Major Noel O | date=September 1945 |title=Report on Investigations, WO 309/1592 |series=No. 2 War Crimes Investigation Team }}
*{{cite book |last=Watson |first=Robert P. |year=2016 |title=The Nazi Titanic: The Incredible Untold Story of a Doomed Ship in World War II |place=Cambridge, Mass. |publisher=Da Capo Press |isbn= 978-0306824890}}

==References==
{{reflist}}

[[Category:World War II]]
[[Category:War crimes]]
[[Category:Allied atrocities]]
[[Category:Allied bombings]]
[[Category:German ships]]
[[Category:Germany]]

← Older revision		Revision as of 15:18, 28 April 2024
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	{{italic title}}		{{italic title}}
	[[File:German liner SS Cap Ancona.png\|400px\|thumb\|right\|SS ''Cap Arcona'']]		[[File:German liner SS Cap Ancona.png\|400px\|thumb\|right\|SS ''Cap Arcona'']]
	The SS '''''Cap Arcona''''', named after Cape Arkona on ~~tbe~~ island of [[Rügen]], was a large (27561 tons) [[Weimar Germany\|German]] luxury ocean liner (''Luxusdampfer'') and ~~tbe~~ flagship (''Flaggschiff'') of ~~tbe~~ ''Hamburg-Südamerikanische Dampfschifffahrts-Gesellschaft'' (Hamburg-South America Line). On 3 May 1945, she was sunk in Lübeck Bay off Neustadt (killing c. 5,000 people, only 350 were rescued) by ~~tbe~~ same British air raid that sunk hospital ship [[SS Deutschland (1923)\|"Deutschland"]] (all 2,000 prisoners on ~~tbe~~ "Deutschland" were safely taken off onto ~~tbe~~ "Athen", before ~~tbe~~ ship capsized) and [[SS Thielbek (1940)\|"Thielbek"]] (killing 2,750 people, only 50 survived).<ref>Gilbert, Martin (1989). ''The Second World War; a complete history''. Weidenfeld & Nicolson. p. 684</ref> A total of 23 ships were sunk and 115 damaged in ~~tbe~~ attacks by ~~tbe~~ [[Royal Air Force]] on this day, although they posed no threat of war, mostly only used as rescue ships for ~~tbe~~ [[Operation Hannibal]].		The SS '''''Cap Arcona''''', named after Cape Arkona on the island of [[Rügen]], was a large (27561 tons) [[Weimar Germany\|German]] luxury ocean liner (''Luxusdampfer'') and the flagship (''Flaggschiff'') of the ''Hamburg-Südamerikanische Dampfschifffahrts-Gesellschaft'' (Hamburg-South America Line). On 3 May 1945, she was sunk in Lübeck Bay off Neustadt (killing c. 5,000 people, only 350 were rescued) by the same British air raid that sunk hospital ship [[SS Deutschland (1923)\|"Deutschland"]] (all 2,000 prisoners on the "Deutschland" were safely taken off onto the "Athen", before the ship capsized) and [[SS Thielbek (1940)\|"Thielbek"]] (killing 2,750 people, only 50 survived).<ref>Gilbert, Martin (1989). ''The Second World War; a complete history''. Weidenfeld & Nicolson. p. 684</ref> A total of 23 ships were sunk and 115 damaged in the attacks by the [[Royal Air Force]] on this day, although they posed no threat of war, mostly only used as rescue ships for the [[Operation Hannibal]].

	==History==		==History==
	Blohm+Voss in Hamburg built Cap Arcona, launching and completing her in 1927. She was 27,561 GRT, 205.90 m (675 ft 6 in) overall and a beam of 25.78 m (84 ft 7 in). She made her maiden voyage on 29 October 1927, carrying passengers and cargo between Germany and ~~tbe~~ east coast of [[South America]], and in her time was ~~tbe~~ largest and fastest ship on ~~tbe~~ route. She was driven by eight steam turbines, single-reduction geared to two propeller shafts. She had three funnels, and her passenger comforts included a full-size tennis court abaft her third funnel. The ship had at least 26 lifeboats, most of which were mounted in two tiers. Cap Arcona had modern navigation and communication equipment. She was equipped for submarine signalling which allowed a ship to hear acoustic signals from aids to navigation. She also had wireless direction finding equipment, and from 1934 she had an echo sounding device and a gyrocompass.		Blohm+Voss in Hamburg built Cap Arcona, launching and completing her in 1927. She was 27,561 GRT, 205.90 m (675 ft 6 in) overall and a beam of 25.78 m (84 ft 7 in). She made her maiden voyage on 29 October 1927, carrying passengers and cargo between Germany and the east coast of [[South America]], and in her time was the largest and fastest ship on the route. She was driven by eight steam turbines, single-reduction geared to two propeller shafts. She had three funnels, and her passenger comforts included a full-size tennis court abaft her third funnel. The ship had at least 26 lifeboats, most of which were mounted in two tiers. Cap Arcona had modern navigation and communication equipment. She was equipped for submarine signalling which allowed a ship to hear acoustic signals from aids to navigation. She also had wireless direction finding equipment, and from 1934 she had an echo sounding device and a gyrocompass.

	She had a passenger capacity from 1927 of 575 1st class, 275 2nd class, 465 in dormitories; total 1,315 and from 1937 a total of 850 with a crew of 475. In 1940, ~~tbe~~ ''[[Kriegsmarine]]'' requisitioned her as an accommodation ship. In 1942 she served as ~~tbe~~ set for ~~tbe~~ making of ~~tbe~~ German feature film ''[[Titanic (film)\|Titanic]]''. In 1945 she evacuated almost 26,000 German civilian refugees from [[East Prussia]] before ~~tbe~~ advance of ~~tbe~~ [[Red Army]].		She had a passenger capacity from 1927 of 575 1st class, 275 2nd class, 465 in dormitories; total 1,315 and from 1937 a total of 850 with a crew of 475. In 1940, the ''[[Kriegsmarine]]'' requisitioned her as an accommodation ship. In 1942 she served as the set for the making of the German feature film ''[[Titanic (film)\|Titanic]]''. In 1945 she evacuated almost 26,000 German civilian refugees from [[East Prussia]] before the advance of the [[Red Army]].

	''Cap Arcona'''s final use was as a prison ship anchored in Lübeck Bay. In May 1945 she was heavily laden with prisoners transferred from POW and concentration camps in ~~tbe~~ east which had been over-run by ~~tbe~~ Red Army when ~~tbe~~ [[Royal Air Force]] deliberately bombed her, killing about 5,000 people; with more than 3,000 further casualties in ~~tbe~~ sinkings of ~~tbe~~ accompanying vessels of ~~tbe~~ prison fleet, including SS ''Thielbek''. This was one of ~~tbe~~ largest single-incident maritime losses of life in ~~tbe~~ [[Second World War]]. Swedish and Swiss Red Cross officials had already informed British intelligence on 2 May 1945 of ~~tbe~~ presence of large numbers of prisoners on ships at anchor in Lübeck Bay.		''Cap Arcona'''s final use was as a prison ship anchored in Lübeck Bay. In May 1945 she was heavily laden with prisoners transferred from POW and concentration camps in the east which had been over-run by the Red Army when the [[Royal Air Force]] deliberately bombed her, killing about 5,000 people; with more than 3,000 further casualties in the sinkings of the accompanying vessels of the prison fleet, including SS ''Thielbek''. This was one of the largest single-incident maritime losses of life in the [[Second World War]]. Swedish and Swiss Red Cross officials had already informed British intelligence on 2 May 1945 of the presence of large numbers of prisoners on ships at anchor in Lübeck Bay.

	The prisoners aboard ~~tbe~~ ships were of at least 30 nationalities: American, Belarusian, Belgian, Canadian, Czechoslovakian, Danish, Dutch, Estonian, Finnish, French, German, Greek, Hungarian, Italian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Luxembourger, Norwegian, Polish, Romanian, Russian, Serbian, Spanish, Swiss, Ukrainian, and possibly others. RAF Pilot Allan Wyse of No. 193 Squadron recalled:		The prisoners aboard the ships were of at least 30 nationalities: American, Belarusian, Belgian, Canadian, Czechoslovakian, Danish, Dutch, Estonian, Finnish, French, German, Greek, Hungarian, Italian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Luxembourger, Norwegian, Polish, Romanian, Russian, Serbian, Spanish, Swiss, Ukrainian, and possibly others. RAF Pilot Allan Wyse of No. 193 Squadron recalled:

	: ''"We used our cannon fire at ~~tbe~~ chaps in ~~tbe~~ water... we shot them up with 20 mm cannons in ~~tbe~~ water. Horrible thing, but we were told to do it and we did it."''<ref>{{Cite news \|url=http://app1.chinadaily.com.cn/star/history/00-03-07/f02-uk.html \|work=Shanghai Star \|date=7 March 2000 \|title=British error killed WW2 camp inmates \|url-status=dead \|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151107011021/http://app1.chinadaily.com.cn/star/history/00-03-07/f02-uk.html \|archive-date=7 November 2015 \|df=dmy-all }}</ref>		: ''"We used our cannon fire at the chaps in the water... we shot them up with 20 mm cannons in the water. Horrible thing, but we were told to do it and we did it."''<ref>{{Cite news \|url=http://app1.chinadaily.com.cn/star/history/00-03-07/f02-uk.html \|work=Shanghai Star \|date=7 March 2000 \|title=British error killed WW2 camp inmates \|url-status=dead \|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151107011021/http://app1.chinadaily.com.cn/star/history/00-03-07/f02-uk.html \|archive-date=7 November 2015 \|df=dmy-all }}</ref>

	From ~~tbe~~ Till report of June 1945:<ref>{{cite news \|url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210505163203/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/raf-pilots-tricked-into-killing-10-000-camp-survivors-at-end-of-war-634445.html \|title=RAF pilots tricked into killing 10,000 camp survivors at end of war – Home News, UK \|work=[[The Independent]] \|date=16 October 2000 \|access-date=25 February 2009 \|place=London \|first=Max \|last=Arthur}}</ref>		From the Till report of June 1945:<ref>{{cite news \|url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210505163203/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/raf-pilots-tricked-into-killing-10-000-camp-survivors-at-end-of-war-634445.html \|title=RAF pilots tricked into killing 10,000 camp survivors at end of war – Home News, UK \|work=[[The Independent]] \|date=16 October 2000 \|access-date=25 February 2009 \|place=London \|first=Max \|last=Arthur}}</ref>

	: ''"The Intelligence Officer with 83 Group RAF has admitted on two occasions; first to Lt H. F. Ansell of this Team (when it was confirmed by a [[Wing commander (rank)\|Wing Commander]] present), and on a second occasion to ~~tbe~~ Investigating Officer when he was accompanied by Lt. H. F. Ansell, that a message was received on 2 May 1945 that these ships were loaded with prisoners but that, although there was ample time to warn ~~tbe~~ pilots of ~~tbe~~ planes who attacked these ships on ~~tbe~~ following day, by some oversight ~~tbe~~ message was never passed on... From ~~tbe~~ facts and from ~~tbe~~ statement volunteered by ~~tbe~~ RAF Intelligence Officer, it appears that ~~tbe~~ primary responsibility for this great loss of life must fall on ~~tbe~~ British RAF personnel who are said to have failed to pass to ~~tbe~~ pilots ~~tbe~~ message they received concerning ~~tbe~~ presence of prisoners being held on board these ships."''		: ''"The Intelligence Officer with 83 Group RAF has admitted on two occasions; first to Lt H. F. Ansell of this Team (when it was confirmed by a [[Wing commander (rank)\|Wing Commander]] present), and on a second occasion to the Investigating Officer when he was accompanied by Lt. H. F. Ansell, that a message was received on 2 May 1945 that these ships were loaded with prisoners but that, although there was ample time to warn the pilots of the planes who attacked these ships on the following day, by some oversight the message was never passed on... From the facts and from the statement volunteered by the RAF Intelligence Officer, it appears that the primary responsibility for this great loss of life must fall on the British RAF personnel who are said to have failed to pass to the pilots the message they received concerning the presence of prisoners being held on board these ships."''

	==Further reading==		==Further reading==

	*{{cite book \|last1=Jacobs \|first1=Benjamin \|last2=Pool \|first2=Eugene \|year=2004 \|title=The 100-Year Secret: Britain's Hidden World War II Massacre \|place=Guildford, CT \|publisher=The Lyons Press \|isbn=1-59228-532-5 \|url=https://archive.org/details/100yearsecretbri00jaco }}		*{{cite book \|last1=Jacobs \|first1=Benjamin \|last2=Pool \|first2=Eugene \|year=2004 \|title=The 100-Year Secret: Britain's Hidden World War II Massacre \|place=Guildford, CT \|publisher=The Lyons Press \|isbn=1-59228-532-5 \|url=https://archive.org/details/100yearsecretbri00jaco }}
	*{{cite book \|last=Talbot-Booth \|first=E.C. \|year=1936 \|title=Ships and ~~tbe~~ Sea \|edition=Third \|place=London \|publisher=Sampson Low, Marston & Co. \|page=410 }}		*{{cite book \|last=Talbot-Booth \|first=E.C. \|year=1936 \|title=Ships and the Sea \|edition=Third \|place=London \|publisher=Sampson Low, Marston & Co. \|page=410 }}
	*{{cite book \|last=Till \|first=Major Noel O \| date=September 1945 \|title=Report on Investigations, WO 309/1592 \|series=No. 2 War Crimes Investigation Team }}		*{{cite book \|last=Till \|first=Major Noel O \| date=September 1945 \|title=Report on Investigations, WO 309/1592 \|series=No. 2 War Crimes Investigation Team }}
	*{{cite book \|last=Watson \|first=Robert P. \|year=2016 \|title=The Nazi Titanic: The Incredible Untold Story of a Doomed Ship in World War II \|place=Cambridge, Mass. \|publisher=Da Capo Press \|isbn= 978-0306824890}}		*{{cite book \|last=Watson \|first=Robert P. \|year=2016 \|title=The Nazi Titanic: The Incredible Untold Story of a Doomed Ship in World War II \|place=Cambridge, Mass. \|publisher=Da Capo Press \|isbn= 978-0306824890}}

← Older revision		Revision as of 08:06, 26 April 2024
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	[[File:German liner SS Cap Ancona.png\|400px\|thumb\|right\|SS ''Cap Arcona'']]		[[File:German liner SS Cap Ancona.png\|400px\|thumb\|right\|SS ''Cap Arcona'']]
	The SS '''''Cap Arcona''''', named after Cape Arkona on ~~the~~ island of [[Rügen]], was a large (27561 tons) [[Weimar Germany\|German]] luxury ocean liner (''Luxusdampfer'') and ~~the~~ flagship (''Flaggschiff'') of ~~the~~ ''Hamburg-Südamerikanische Dampfschifffahrts-Gesellschaft'' (Hamburg-South America Line). On 3 May 1945, she was sunk in Lübeck Bay off Neustadt (killing c. 5,000 people, only 350 were rescued) by ~~the~~ same British air raid that sunk hospital ship [[SS Deutschland (1923)\|"Deutschland"]] (all 2,000 prisoners on ~~the~~ "Deutschland" were safely taken off onto ~~the~~ "Athen", before ~~the~~ ship capsized) and [[SS Thielbek (1940)\|"Thielbek"]] (killing 2,750 people, only 50 survived).<ref>Gilbert, Martin (1989). ''The Second World War; a complete history''. Weidenfeld & Nicolson. p. 684</ref> A total of 23 ships were sunk and 115 damaged in ~~the~~ attacks by ~~the~~ [[Royal Air Force]] on this day, although they posed no threat of war, mostly only used as rescue ships for ~~the~~ [[Operation Hannibal]].		The SS '''''Cap Arcona''''', named after Cape Arkona on tbe island of [[Rügen]], was a large (27561 tons) [[Weimar Germany\|German]] luxury ocean liner (''Luxusdampfer'') and tbe flagship (''Flaggschiff'') of tbe ''Hamburg-Südamerikanische Dampfschifffahrts-Gesellschaft'' (Hamburg-South America Line). On 3 May 1945, she was sunk in Lübeck Bay off Neustadt (killing c. 5,000 people, only 350 were rescued) by tbe same British air raid that sunk hospital ship [[SS Deutschland (1923)\|"Deutschland"]] (all 2,000 prisoners on tbe "Deutschland" were safely taken off onto tbe "Athen", before tbe ship capsized) and [[SS Thielbek (1940)\|"Thielbek"]] (killing 2,750 people, only 50 survived).<ref>Gilbert, Martin (1989). ''The Second World War; a complete history''. Weidenfeld & Nicolson. p. 684</ref> A total of 23 ships were sunk and 115 damaged in tbe attacks by tbe [[Royal Air Force]] on this day, although they posed no threat of war, mostly only used as rescue ships for tbe [[Operation Hannibal]].

	==History==		==History==
	Blohm+Voss in Hamburg built Cap Arcona, launching and completing her in 1927. She was 27,561 GRT, 205.90 m (675 ft 6 in) overall and a beam of 25.78 m (84 ft 7 in). She made her maiden voyage on 29 October 1927, carrying passengers and cargo between Germany and ~~the~~ east coast of [[South America]], and in her time was ~~the~~ largest and fastest ship on ~~the~~ route. She was driven by eight steam turbines, single-reduction geared to two propeller shafts. She had three funnels, and her passenger comforts included a full-size tennis court abaft her third funnel. The ship had at least 26 lifeboats, most of which were mounted in two tiers. Cap Arcona had modern navigation and communication equipment. She was equipped for submarine signalling which allowed a ship to hear acoustic signals from aids to navigation. She also had wireless direction finding equipment, and from 1934 she had an echo sounding device and a gyrocompass.		Blohm+Voss in Hamburg built Cap Arcona, launching and completing her in 1927. She was 27,561 GRT, 205.90 m (675 ft 6 in) overall and a beam of 25.78 m (84 ft 7 in). She made her maiden voyage on 29 October 1927, carrying passengers and cargo between Germany and tbe east coast of [[South America]], and in her time was tbe largest and fastest ship on tbe route. She was driven by eight steam turbines, single-reduction geared to two propeller shafts. She had three funnels, and her passenger comforts included a full-size tennis court abaft her third funnel. The ship had at least 26 lifeboats, most of which were mounted in two tiers. Cap Arcona had modern navigation and communication equipment. She was equipped for submarine signalling which allowed a ship to hear acoustic signals from aids to navigation. She also had wireless direction finding equipment, and from 1934 she had an echo sounding device and a gyrocompass.

	She had a passenger capacity from 1927 of 575 1st class, 275 2nd class, 465 in dormitories; total 1,315 and from 1937 a total of 850 with a crew of 475. In 1940, ~~the~~ ''[[Kriegsmarine]]'' requisitioned her as an accommodation ship. In 1942 she served as ~~the~~ set for ~~the~~ making of ~~the~~ German feature film ''[[Titanic (film)\|Titanic]]''. In 1945 she evacuated almost 26,000 German civilian refugees from [[East Prussia]] before ~~the~~ advance of ~~the~~ [[Red Army]].		She had a passenger capacity from 1927 of 575 1st class, 275 2nd class, 465 in dormitories; total 1,315 and from 1937 a total of 850 with a crew of 475. In 1940, tbe ''[[Kriegsmarine]]'' requisitioned her as an accommodation ship. In 1942 she served as tbe set for tbe making of tbe German feature film ''[[Titanic (film)\|Titanic]]''. In 1945 she evacuated almost 26,000 German civilian refugees from [[East Prussia]] before tbe advance of tbe [[Red Army]].

	''Cap Arcona'''s final use was as a prison ship anchored in Lübeck Bay. In May 1945 she was heavily laden with prisoners transferred from POW and concentration camps in ~~the~~ east which had been over-run by ~~the~~ Red Army when ~~the~~ [[Royal Air Force]] deliberately bombed her, killing about 5,000 people; with more than 3,000 further casualties in ~~the~~ sinkings of ~~the~~ accompanying vessels of ~~the~~ prison fleet, including SS ''Thielbek''. This was one of ~~the~~ largest single-incident maritime losses of life in ~~the~~ [[Second World War]]. Swedish and Swiss Red Cross officials had already informed British intelligence on 2 May 1945 of ~~the~~ presence of large numbers of prisoners on ships at anchor in Lübeck Bay.		''Cap Arcona'''s final use was as a prison ship anchored in Lübeck Bay. In May 1945 she was heavily laden with prisoners transferred from POW and concentration camps in tbe east which had been over-run by tbe Red Army when tbe [[Royal Air Force]] deliberately bombed her, killing about 5,000 people; with more than 3,000 further casualties in tbe sinkings of tbe accompanying vessels of tbe prison fleet, including SS ''Thielbek''. This was one of tbe largest single-incident maritime losses of life in tbe [[Second World War]]. Swedish and Swiss Red Cross officials had already informed British intelligence on 2 May 1945 of tbe presence of large numbers of prisoners on ships at anchor in Lübeck Bay.

	The prisoners aboard ~~the~~ ships were of at least 30 nationalities: American, Belarusian, Belgian, Canadian, Czechoslovakian, Danish, Dutch, Estonian, Finnish, French, German, Greek, Hungarian, Italian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Luxembourger, Norwegian, Polish, Romanian, Russian, Serbian, Spanish, Swiss, Ukrainian, and possibly others. RAF Pilot Allan Wyse of No. 193 Squadron recalled:		The prisoners aboard tbe ships were of at least 30 nationalities: American, Belarusian, Belgian, Canadian, Czechoslovakian, Danish, Dutch, Estonian, Finnish, French, German, Greek, Hungarian, Italian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Luxembourger, Norwegian, Polish, Romanian, Russian, Serbian, Spanish, Swiss, Ukrainian, and possibly others. RAF Pilot Allan Wyse of No. 193 Squadron recalled:

	: ''"We used our cannon fire at ~~the~~ chaps in ~~the~~ water... we shot them up with 20 mm cannons in ~~the~~ water. Horrible thing, but we were told to do it and we did it."''<ref>{{Cite news \|url=http://app1.chinadaily.com.cn/star/history/00-03-07/f02-uk.html \|work=Shanghai Star \|date=7 March 2000 \|title=British error killed WW2 camp inmates \|url-status=dead \|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151107011021/http://app1.chinadaily.com.cn/star/history/00-03-07/f02-uk.html \|archive-date=7 November 2015 \|df=dmy-all }}</ref>		: ''"We used our cannon fire at tbe chaps in tbe water... we shot them up with 20 mm cannons in tbe water. Horrible thing, but we were told to do it and we did it."''<ref>{{Cite news \|url=http://app1.chinadaily.com.cn/star/history/00-03-07/f02-uk.html \|work=Shanghai Star \|date=7 March 2000 \|title=British error killed WW2 camp inmates \|url-status=dead \|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151107011021/http://app1.chinadaily.com.cn/star/history/00-03-07/f02-uk.html \|archive-date=7 November 2015 \|df=dmy-all }}</ref>

	From ~~the~~ Till report of June 1945:<ref>{{cite news \|url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210505163203/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/raf-pilots-tricked-into-killing-10-000-camp-survivors-at-end-of-war-634445.html \|title=RAF pilots tricked into killing 10,000 camp survivors at end of war – Home News, UK \|work=[[The Independent]] \|date=16 October 2000 \|access-date=25 February 2009 \|place=London \|first=Max \|last=Arthur}}</ref>		From tbe Till report of June 1945:<ref>{{cite news \|url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210505163203/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/raf-pilots-tricked-into-killing-10-000-camp-survivors-at-end-of-war-634445.html \|title=RAF pilots tricked into killing 10,000 camp survivors at end of war – Home News, UK \|work=[[The Independent]] \|date=16 October 2000 \|access-date=25 February 2009 \|place=London \|first=Max \|last=Arthur}}</ref>

	: ''"The Intelligence Officer with 83 Group RAF has admitted on two occasions; first to Lt H. F. Ansell of this Team (when it was confirmed by a [[Wing commander (rank)\|Wing Commander]] present), and on a second occasion to ~~the~~ Investigating Officer when he was accompanied by Lt. H. F. Ansell, that a message was received on 2 May 1945 that these ships were loaded with prisoners but that, although there was ample time to warn ~~the~~ pilots of ~~the~~ planes who attacked these ships on ~~the~~ following day, by some oversight ~~the~~ message was never passed on... From ~~the~~ facts and from ~~the~~ statement volunteered by ~~the~~ RAF Intelligence Officer, it appears that ~~the~~ primary responsibility for this great loss of life must fall on ~~the~~ British RAF personnel who are said to have failed to pass to ~~the~~ pilots ~~the~~ message they received concerning ~~the~~ presence of prisoners being held on board these ships."''		: ''"The Intelligence Officer with 83 Group RAF has admitted on two occasions; first to Lt H. F. Ansell of this Team (when it was confirmed by a [[Wing commander (rank)\|Wing Commander]] present), and on a second occasion to tbe Investigating Officer when he was accompanied by Lt. H. F. Ansell, that a message was received on 2 May 1945 that these ships were loaded with prisoners but that, although there was ample time to warn tbe pilots of tbe planes who attacked these ships on tbe following day, by some oversight tbe message was never passed on... From tbe facts and from tbe statement volunteered by tbe RAF Intelligence Officer, it appears that tbe primary responsibility for this great loss of life must fall on tbe British RAF personnel who are said to have failed to pass to tbe pilots tbe message they received concerning tbe presence of prisoners being held on board these ships."''

	==Further reading==		==Further reading==

	*{{cite book \|last1=Jacobs \|first1=Benjamin \|last2=Pool \|first2=Eugene \|year=2004 \|title=The 100-Year Secret: Britain's Hidden World War II Massacre \|place=Guildford, CT \|publisher=The Lyons Press \|isbn=1-59228-532-5 \|url=https://archive.org/details/100yearsecretbri00jaco }}		*{{cite book \|last1=Jacobs \|first1=Benjamin \|last2=Pool \|first2=Eugene \|year=2004 \|title=The 100-Year Secret: Britain's Hidden World War II Massacre \|place=Guildford, CT \|publisher=The Lyons Press \|isbn=1-59228-532-5 \|url=https://archive.org/details/100yearsecretbri00jaco }}
	*{{cite book \|last=Talbot-Booth \|first=E.C. \|year=1936 \|title=Ships and ~~the~~ Sea \|edition=Third \|place=London \|publisher=Sampson Low, Marston & Co. \|page=410 }}		*{{cite book \|last=Talbot-Booth \|first=E.C. \|year=1936 \|title=Ships and tbe Sea \|edition=Third \|place=London \|publisher=Sampson Low, Marston & Co. \|page=410 }}
	*{{cite book \|last=Till \|first=Major Noel O \| date=September 1945 \|title=Report on Investigations, WO 309/1592 \|series=No. 2 War Crimes Investigation Team }}		*{{cite book \|last=Till \|first=Major Noel O \| date=September 1945 \|title=Report on Investigations, WO 309/1592 \|series=No. 2 War Crimes Investigation Team }}
	*{{cite book \|last=Watson \|first=Robert P. \|year=2016 \|title=The Nazi Titanic: The Incredible Untold Story of a Doomed Ship in World War II \|place=Cambridge, Mass. \|publisher=Da Capo Press \|isbn= 978-0306824890}}		*{{cite book \|last=Watson \|first=Robert P. \|year=2016 \|title=The Nazi Titanic: The Incredible Untold Story of a Doomed Ship in World War II \|place=Cambridge, Mass. \|publisher=Da Capo Press \|isbn= 978-0306824890}}