Partial model of Cap Arcona (before 1940).
Career Germany
Builder:	Blohm and Voss shipyard, Hamburg for Hamburg-Südamerikanische Dampfschiffahrtsgesellschaft (HSDG)
Laid down:	1926
Launched:	May 14, 1927
In service:	October 29, 1927 (maiden voyage)
Status:	Sunk on May 3, 1945. Wreck dismantled in 1950.
Homeport:	Hamburg, Germany
General characteristics
Displacement:	11,500 Long Tons (12,880 US tons) Gross tonnage: 27,561 BRT, 15,011 NRT
Length:	205.9 meters (675.52 ft) 196.2 m (floating)
Beam:	25.8 m (84.6 ft)
Draught:	12.8 m (8.7 m)
Propulsion:	Two steam turbines, two propellers. 17,500 kW
Speed:	Service: 20 knots, Hamburg-Buenos Aires in 15 days
Capacity:	1,315 (1927)
Complement:	475

The Cap Arcona was a large German luxury ocean liner, formerly of the Hamburg-South America line, that was sunk in 1945 with the loss of many lives while laden with prisoners from concentration camps. Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links War_Ensign_of_Germany_1938-1945. ... The title given to this article is incorrect due to technical limitations. ... This article is about the city in Germany. ... Hamburg Süd is one of the key carriers on the North-South trade routes by ocean transportation, founded in 1871. ... May 14 is the 134th day of the year (135th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1927 (MCMXXVII) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 302nd day of the year (303rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1927 (MCMXXVII) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 123rd day of the year (124th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1945 (MCMXLV) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar). ... A vessels home port, or hailing port, is its port of origin as shown on its registration documents[1] and lettered on the stern of the ships hull. ... This article is about the city in Germany. ... A long ton is the name used in the US for the unit called the ton in the avoirdupois or Imperial system of measurements, as used (alongside the metric system) in the United Kingdom and to some extent in other Commonwealth countries. ... Tonnage is a measure of the size or cargo capacity of a ship. ... The beam of a ship is its width at the widest point, or a point alongside the ship at the mid-point of its length. ... The draft of a ships hull is the vertical distance from the bottom of the hull to the waterline. ... For other uses, see Propeller (disambiguation). ... KNOT is a commercial Classic Country music radio station in Prescott, Arizona, broadcasting to the Flagstaff-Prescott, Arizona area on 1450 AM. Query the FCCs AM station database for KNOT Radio Locator Information on KNOT AM radio stations in the Flagstaff-Prescott, Arizona market (Arbitron #151) By frequency: By... This article is about the city in Germany. ... For other uses, see Buenos Aires (disambiguation). ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... This article is about the city in Germany. ... South America South America is a continent crossed by the equator, with most of its area in the Southern Hemisphere. ...

History

The 27,500 gross ton Cap Arcona, named after Cape Arkona on the island of Rügen in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, was launched in 1927. It was considered one of the most beautiful of the time. It carried upper-class travelers and steerage-class emigrants, mostly to South America.^[1] Look up ton in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... View on Cape Arkona Cape Arkona is a cape on the island of Rügen in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Germany. ... Map of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania highlighting the district Rügen Rügen (Polish: Rugia) is an island located off the coast of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania in the Baltic Sea. ... Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania (German: Mecklenburg-Vorpommern) is a state in northern Germany. ... The steerage was one of the lowest decks of a ship. ... South America South America is a continent crossed by the equator, with most of its area in the Southern Hemisphere. ...

In 1940, it was taken over by the Kriegsmarine, the German navy, and used in the Baltic Sea. In 1942, it was used as a stand-in for the doomed Titanic in the German film version of the disaster. At the end of 1944, the Kriegsmarine transferred it back to transport use and it was used to transport German refugees from East Prussia to western Germany. The Kriegsmarine (or War Navy) was the name of the German Navy between 1935 and 1945, during the Nazi regime, superseding the Reichsmarine. ... For other uses, see Baltic (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Titanic (disambiguation). ... Titanic was a 1943 Nazi propaganda film made during World War II in Berlin by Tobis Productions for Ufa Films. ... East Prussia (German: Ostpreu en; Polish: Prusy Wschodnie; Russian: Восточная Пруссия — Vostochnaya Prussiya) was a province of Kingdom of Prussia, situated on the territory of former Ducal Prussia. ...

Before the British air-raids

In the last few weeks of the war in Europe, the Swedish diplomat Count Folke Bernadotte, vice-president of the Red Cross, was organising the removal of Danish and Norwegian prisoners from German concentration camps to neutral Sweden — a scheme known as the White Buses. In practice the scheme also included other nationalities. Count Folke Bernadotte of Wisborg (January 2, 1895 - September 17, 1948), or simply Count Bernadotte, was a Swedish diplomat noted for his negotiation of the release of 15,000 mostly Scandinavian prisoners [1] from the German concentration camps in World War II and for his assassination by members of a... The Anarchist Black Cross was originally called the Anarchist Red Cross. The band Redd Kross was originally called Red Cross. This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ... Swedish Red Cross buses, possibly near their field headquarters Friedrichsruh White Buses was the term used for a humanitarian effort spearheaded by the Swedish count Folke Bernadotte under the auspices of the Red Cross that by the end of World War II saved thousands of Norwegian and Danish political prisoners...

Aerial shot of the Neuengamme concentration camp taken by British aviation on April 16, 1945.

On April 26, 1945, the Cap Arcona was loaded with prisoners from the Neuengamme concentration camp near Hamburg and was brought into the Bay of Lübeck along with two smaller ships, Athen and Thielbek. Image File history File links Metadata No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links Metadata No higher resolution available. ... is the 106th day of the year (107th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1945 (MCMXLV) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar). ... is the 116th day of the year (117th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1945 (MCMXLV) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar). ... Neuengamme was a concentration camp near Hamburg, Germany during World War 2 [1]. The site is one of the few concentration camps in Germany where most of the buildings have been conserved and serves as a memorial today. ... It has been suggested that Internment be merged into this article or section. ... This article is about the city in Germany. ... The Bay of Lübeck (German: Lübecker Bucht) is a basin in the southwestern Baltic Sea, off the shores of German lands of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and Schleswig-Holstein. ... Athen is the spelling used for Athens, Greece in several languages, including German, Norwegian and Danish. ... The Thielbek was a 2,815 register ton freighter sunk with the Cap Arcona and the Deutschland on May 3, 1945 in the Bay of Lubeck with the loss of 2,750 lives. ...

On April 30, 1945, two Swedish ships Magdalena and Lillie Matthiessen started from Lübeck, the first with 223 western European prisoners, for the most part French-speaking, were transferred from the Thielbek to the Magdalena and the second with 225 from Ravensbrück on board for transportation to hospitals in Sweden. This first rescue operation was actioned using information from British Intelligence, indicating their knowledge of the deportees on board. is the 120th day of the year (121st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1945 (MCMXLV) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar). ... For other uses, see Europe (disambiguation). ... View of the barracks at Ravensbrück Ravensbrück was a German concentration camp located 90 km north of Berlin. ... The Secret Intelligence Service (SIS), more commonly known as MI6 (originally Military Intelligence [section] 6), or Her Majestys Secret Service or just the Secret Service, is the British external security agency. ... Deportee (1976) is a dramatic short film written, produced and directed by Sharron Miller. ...

On May 2, 1945, Second Army reached the towns of Lübeck and Wismar. 11th Armoured Division commanded by Major-General George P. B. Roberts enter Lübeck without resistance. The International Red Cross informed him that seven to eight thousand prisoners were on board ships in Bay of Lübeck.^[2] May 2 is the 122nd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (123rd in leap years). ... Year 1945 (MCMXLV) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar). ... The British Second Army existed in both the First and Second World Wars. ... Wismar is a small port and Hanseatic League town in northern Germany on the Baltic Sea, in the state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, about 45 km due east of Lübeck, and 30 km due north of Schwerin. ... British 11th Armoured Division: The Black Bull. ... Major-General George Philip Bradley Roberts CB, DSO, MC (1906-1997), better known as Pip Roberts, was a British commander of an armoured division during World War II. Roberts is considered to be possibly the best British armoured commander in the Second World War and achieved the distinction of being... The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is the worlds largest group of humanitarian non-governmental organizations, often known simply as the Red Cross, after its original symbol. ...

Bay of Lübeck, three kilometers from Neustadt (left at the top): Position of the sinking of Cap Arcona.^[3]

Image File history File links Size of this preview: 800 × 597 pixelsFull resolution (1278 × 954 pixel, file size: 186 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Lübecker Bucht, NASA World Wind Daten mit der ungefähren Untergangsposition der Cap Arcona File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 800 × 597 pixelsFull resolution (1278 × 954 pixel, file size: 186 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Lübecker Bucht, NASA World Wind Daten mit der ungefähren Untergangsposition der Cap Arcona File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to...

Sinking

On May 3, 1945, four days after Hitler's suicide but four days before the unconditional surrender of Germany, the Cap Arcona, the Thielbek, and the passenger liner SS Deutschland, converted to a hospital ship but not marked as such, were sunk in four separate, but synchronized, attacks by RAF Typhoons of 83 Group of the 2nd Tactical Air Force as part of general attacks on shipping in the Baltic. is the 123rd day of the year (124th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1945 (MCMXLV) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar). ... Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (April 20, 1889 – April 30, 1945, standard German pronunciation in the IPA) was the Führer (leader) of the National Socialist German Workers Party (Nazi Party) and of Nazi Germany from 1933 to 1945. ... The Thielbek was a 2,815 register ton freighter sunk with the Cap Arcona and the Deutschland on May 3, 1945 in the Bay of Lubeck with the loss of 2,750 lives. ... The SS Deutschland of 1923, sometimes seen as Deutschland IV to distinguish from others of the name, was a HAPAG ocean liner sunk in a British air attack in 1945, with great loss of life. ... USNS Comfort takes on supplies at Mayport, FL enroute to Gulf Coast. ... RAF redirects here. ... No. ... The RAFs Second Tactical Air Force was one of three tactical air forces within the Royal Air Force during and after World War II. // It was formed in June 1943 in connection with preparations then in train to invade Europe a year later. ...

Typhoon 1 B with four 20 mm cannons.

The attacks were by No. 184 Squadron, based at RAF Hustedt, by No. 263 Squadron, based in Ahlhorn, Großenkneten and led by Squadron Leader Martin Trevor Scott Rumbold by No. 197 Squadron RAF, led by Squadron Leader K. J. Harding also at Ahlhorn, and by No. 198 Squadron based at Plantlünne led by Group Captain Johnny Baldwin. These Hawker Typhoon Mark 1B fighter-bombers used incendiary 60 lb rocket projectiles, bombs, and 20 mm cannon. Image File history File links Size of this preview: 800 × 535 pixelsFull resolution‎ (846 × 566 pixels, file size: 41 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Better image of Spud Murphys Hawker Typhoon SA-K No. ... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 800 × 535 pixelsFull resolution‎ (846 × 566 pixels, file size: 41 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Better image of Spud Murphys Hawker Typhoon SA-K No. ... No 263 Squadron was an RAF fighter squadron formed in Italy towards the end of World War I. After being disbanded in 1919 it reformed in 1939 flying mainly strike and heavy fighter aircraft until becoming No 1 Squadron in 1958. ... Großenkneten is one of the largest municipalities in Germany, in terms of its area, and lies between the rivers Hunte and Lethe in the district Oldenburg. ... The Typhoon was a British single-seat fighter-bomber, produced by Hawker Aircraft starting in 1941. ... White phosphorus is a flare / smoke producing incendiary weapon,[1] or smoke-screening agent, made from a common allotrope of the chemical element phosphorus. ... The RP-3 (for Rocket Projectile 3), was a British air to ground rocket used in the Second World War. ... For other uses, see Bomb (disambiguation). ... The Hispano-Suiza HS.404 20 mm autocannon was one of the most widely used aircraft weapons of the 20th century, used by British, American, French, and many other military services. ...

Unknown to the RAF the ships were carrying between 7,000 and 8,000 prisoners from the German concentration camps in Neuengamme, Stutthof and Mittelbau-Dora, half of whom were Russian and Polish prisoners-of-war, with the others from 24 nationalities, including French, Danish, and Dutch.^[4] Stutthof (Sztutowo) was the first concentration camp built by the Nazi Germany regime outside of Germany. ... Categories: Stub | Nazi concentration camps ... Geneva Convention definition A prisoner of war (POW) is a soldier, sailor, airman, or marine who is imprisoned by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict. ...

The survivors from the sinking who reached the shore were shot by SS troops, although 350 prisoners managed to escape from the massacre. Allan Wyse, formerly of 193 Fighter Squadron, said "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. That's war."^[5] Among the survivors was Erwin Geschonneck, who later became a notable German actor, and whose story was made into a film in 1982. SS redirects here. ... Photographs of the My Lai massacre provoked world outrage and made it an international scandal. ... Erwin Geschonneck (born December 27, 1906) is a German actor. ...

About 490 of the various guards, SS and crew were rescued by German boats.

Photos of the burning ships, listed as Deutschland, Thielbek, and Cap Arcona, and survivors swimming in the Baltic Sea (seven degrees Celsius), were taken on a reconnaissance mission over the Bay of Lübeck by F-6 aircraft of the USAAF's 161st Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron around 5:00 PM, shortly after the attack.^[6] For other uses, see Baltic (disambiguation). ... Celsius is, or relates to, the Celsius temperature scale (previously known as the centigrade scale). ... The Bay of Lübeck (German: Lübecker Bucht) is a basin in the southwestern Baltic Sea, off the shores of German lands of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and Schleswig-Holstein. ... The North American Aviation P-51 Mustang was an American long-range single-seat fighter aircraft that entered service with Allied air forces in the middle years of World War II. The P-51 became one of the conflicts most successful and recognizable aircraft. ... USAAF recruitment poster. ... F-16CJ Fighting Falcon taking off from Shaw AFB as part of enforcing the northern no fly zone in Iraq. ...

For weeks after the sinking, bodies of the victims washed ashore, where they were collected and buried in a single mass grave at Neustadt in Holstein. For nearly thirty years, parts of skeletons washed ashore, until the last find, by a twelve-year-old boy, in 1971.^[7] Neustadt in Holstein is a town in the district of Ostholstein, in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. ...

According to documents at the Dutch Institute of War Documentation (NIOD), the government of Sweden had warned the British government that prisoners were brought aboard the ships. The British government will keep its archives about the bombardment of the three ships closed until 2045.^[8]

Memorial to Cap Arcona victims at Neustadt in Holstein.

The deportees were of 28 different nationalities: American, Belgian, Canadian, Czechoslovakian, Danish, Dutch, Estonian, Finnish, French, German, Greek, Hungarian, Italian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Luxembourger, Norwegian, Polish, Romanian, Russian, Spanish, Swiss, Ukrainian, Yugoslavian and others. Image File history File links Neustad_Holstein_Cap_Arcona. ... Image File history File links Neustad_Holstein_Cap_Arcona. ... Neustadt in Holstein is a town in the district of Ostholstein, in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. ... Deportee (1976) is a dramatic short film written, produced and directed by Sharron Miller. ... Motto Czech: Pravda vítÄ›zí (Truth prevails; 1918-1989) Latin: Veritas Vincit (Truth prevails; 1989-1992) Anthem Kde domov můj and Nad Tatrou sa blýska Capital Prague Language(s) Czech, Slovak Government Republic President  - 1918-1935 Tomáš G. Masaryk  - 1935-1938, 1945-1948 Edvard BeneÅ¡  - 1948-1953... Yugoslavia (Jugoslavija in the Latin alphabet, Југославија in Cyrillic; English: South Slavia, or literary The Land of South Slavs) describes three political entities that existed one at a time on the Balkan Peninsula in Europe, during most of the 20th century. ...

Losses of life in the Cap Arcona and in the Soviet sinkings of the Wilhelm Gustloff and the Goya in the Baltic Sea in 1945 were among the highest in maritime history (between 7,500 and over 8,000 victims each). The Wilhelm Gustloff slides into the water during launch ceremonies. ... The Goya was a German refugee ship which was originally built as the freighter Akers in Oslo in 1940 with a length of 131 m and width of 17 m. ... For other uses, see Baltic (disambiguation). ...

See also

• Junyō Maru - Japanese "hell ship" torpedoed while transporting about 6,000 prisoners of war and forced labourers.
• Ukishima Maru - Imperial Japanese Navy vessel sunk while transporting 4,000 to 5,000 Korean forced labourers.

The Junyō Maru was a Japanese cargo ship (one of the so-called Hell Ships) that was sunk by the British submarine HMS Tradewind, resulting in the loss of over five thousand lives. ... The term Hell Ship refers to any of the ships used by the Imperial Japanese Navy to transport prisoners of war out of the Philippines, Hong Kong and Singapore during World War II. The POWs would be taken to Japan, Taiwan, Manchuria, or Korea to be used as forced labor. ... Ukishima Maru was a Japanese naval transport vessel. ... For Combined Fleet, please see that article. ...

References

Sources

• Roy Nesbit, "Cap Arcona: atrocity or accident?". Aeroplane Monthly, June 1984
• Benjamin Jacobs and Eugene Pool, The 100-Year Secret: Britain's Hidden World War II Massacre. The Lyons Press, October 2004. ISBN 1-59228-532-5.
• Benjamin Jacobs, "The Dentist of Auschwitz", University Press of Kentucky, Reprinted April 2001, ISBN 0813190126, chapters 17, 18.
• Günther Schwarberg: Angriffsziel "Cap Arcona", Steidl Verlag, 1998 Göttingen, ISBN 3-88243-590-9
• Lawrence Bond, "Typhoons' Last Storm" documentary film 2000
• Drawing

External links

• History of the tragedy
• Disaster on the Baltic Sea
• Inferno
• Appendix A
• Photo-montage with sound
• Photo of the Cap Arcona (1938)
• Photos of the Cap Arcona
• [2]
• Scuba diving around the wreck
• Lucien Revert (French language)