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Lusitania
578 paged hardcover "Lusitania" by David Butler.
578 pages, Hardcover
First published June 12, 1974
3 people are currently reading
120 people want to read
About the author
David Butler
11 books5 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.
Born in Lanarkshire, in 1927, the son of teachers, David Butler studied English at St Andrews University but left without a degree after immersing himself in acting with the university drama society. He then trained at Rada, before appearing in West End revues and playing a young prison officer in a 1956 Joan Littlewood Theatre Workshop production of the Brendan Behan play The Quare Fellow.
Butler's face became well known on television as Dr Nick Williams, an anaesthetist, in ITV's first twice-weekly serial, Emergency - Ward 10 (1960-62), which was also Britain's first medical soap, set in the fictitious Oxbridge General Hospital. He seized the chance to write episodes of the programme (1963-64) and subsequently contributed scripts to the children's adventure series Orlando (1965-68) and The Adventures of Black Beauty (1972-74), as well as the police dramas Special Branch (1969-74) and Van Der Valk (1972-73)
After acting in episodes of Softly, Softly (1968), Sherlock Holmes (1968), Paul Temple (1971) and The Regiment (1972), and playing Christopher Mont in The Six Wives of Henry VIII (1970), Butler devoted most of his time to writing historical dramas.
First was The Strauss Family (1972), about the 19th-century composers, with music performed by the London Symphony Orchestra. In 1978 came his four-part mini-series Disraeli, starring Ian McShane as the flamboyant Tory prime minister, another success in the United States. Butler also contributed to the popular Edwardian period drama The Duchess of Duke Street (1976-77). His last notable solo success, Lord Mountbatten: the last Viceroy (1985), won him an Emmy award, at a time when the last days of the Raj became popular on screen.
Butler's Within These Walls (1973-78) originally starred Googie Withers as governor of the fictitious women's prison Stone Park, with Butler himself playing the prison chaplain, the Rev Henry Prentice, in some episodes. He also created the wartime drama series We'll Meet Again (1982) and wrote The Further Adventures of Oliver Twist (1980), The Scarlet and the Black (1983, another Second World War drama) and Blood Royal: William the Conqueror (1990).
Although his excursions into cinema were rare, Butler was nominated for an Oscar for his screenplay of Voyage of the Damned (1976), the true story of Jews leaving Nazi Germany on a ship bound for Havana - with Max von Sydow as the captain - but denied permission to land anywhere. Butler also adapted Alistair MacLean's thriller Bear Island into a 1979 film.
Anthony Hayward
Born in Lanarkshire, in 1927, the son of teachers, David Butler studied English at St Andrews University but left without a degree after immersing himself in acting with the university drama society. He then trained at Rada, before appearing in West End revues and playing a young prison officer in a 1956 Joan Littlewood Theatre Workshop production of the Brendan Behan play The Quare Fellow.
Butler's face became well known on television as Dr Nick Williams, an anaesthetist, in ITV's first twice-weekly serial, Emergency - Ward 10 (1960-62), which was also Britain's first medical soap, set in the fictitious Oxbridge General Hospital. He seized the chance to write episodes of the programme (1963-64) and subsequently contributed scripts to the children's adventure series Orlando (1965-68) and The Adventures of Black Beauty (1972-74), as well as the police dramas Special Branch (1969-74) and Van Der Valk (1972-73)
After acting in episodes of Softly, Softly (1968), Sherlock Holmes (1968), Paul Temple (1971) and The Regiment (1972), and playing Christopher Mont in The Six Wives of Henry VIII (1970), Butler devoted most of his time to writing historical dramas.
First was The Strauss Family (1972), about the 19th-century composers, with music performed by the London Symphony Orchestra. In 1978 came his four-part mini-series Disraeli, starring Ian McShane as the flamboyant Tory prime minister, another success in the United States. Butler also contributed to the popular Edwardian period drama The Duchess of Duke Street (1976-77). His last notable solo success, Lord Mountbatten: the last Viceroy (1985), won him an Emmy award, at a time when the last days of the Raj became popular on screen.
Butler's Within These Walls (1973-78) originally starred Googie Withers as governor of the fictitious women's prison Stone Park, with Butler himself playing the prison chaplain, the Rev Henry Prentice, in some episodes. He also created the wartime drama series We'll Meet Again (1982) and wrote The Further Adventures of Oliver Twist (1980), The Scarlet and the Black (1983, another Second World War drama) and Blood Royal: William the Conqueror (1990).
Although his excursions into cinema were rare, Butler was nominated for an Oscar for his screenplay of Voyage of the Damned (1976), the true story of Jews leaving Nazi Germany on a ship bound for Havana - with Max von Sydow as the captain - but denied permission to land anywhere. Butler also adapted Alistair MacLean's thriller Bear Island into a 1979 film.
Anthony Hayward
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
August 30, 2015
4.5 stars
Wonderful tale of the time leading up to the sailing of the Lusitania, including the torpedoing and aftermath. Butler did a great job with his research, really top-notch. He did add in a fictional family from Canada who were supposed to sail on the Cameronia but unfortunately were transferred at the last minute to the Lusitania, as were all the Cameronia's passengers. A lot of the story is told through the eyes of U-boat Captain Schwieger.
Wonderful tale of the time leading up to the sailing of the Lusitania, including the torpedoing and aftermath. Butler did a great job with his research, really top-notch. He did add in a fictional family from Canada who were supposed to sail on the Cameronia but unfortunately were transferred at the last minute to the Lusitania, as were all the Cameronia's passengers. A lot of the story is told through the eyes of U-boat Captain Schwieger.
August 1, 2023
I didn't intend to read another Lusitania book so soon after Seven Days in May. There aren't enough of them out there and I like to spread them out, plus I always feel a bit like I'm cheating on Titanic.
But then I happened to stumble across this at the Strand and since it's out of print and my library system doesn't have it, I took the opportunity.
And ah, yes, this is the book Lusi deserved.
I have, since reading Seven Days in May, become a little bit more familiar with this particular sinking, but I expect I would have enjoyed this anyway. Unlike her more famous predecessor, Lusitania isn't a one-night only tragedy. It's understood best in the context of the wider war, and the political considerations of the time. This book worked very well in that respect, as everyone from President Wilson to Kaiser Wilhelm show up alongside the fictional Lusitania passengers, and to my knowledge, are extremely well characterized. The historical detail is very in depth and accurate to my knowledge - you will actually feel as if you're in a U-Boat, or in WWI-era New York.
The feeling is captured very well - to a modern audience far more used to discussing Germany's history of wartime atrocities in the context of the Second World War, I think it can seem a little distant how much that reputation already existed based on the actions taken by the German military during the First. But the sheer disbelief and horror that the Germans would dare to torpedo a passenger ship is conveyed excellently. Most modern readers will find it hopelessly naive that a government can print a headline essentially saying "we will torpedo passenger ships" and no one will believe them, because who would do such a thing? We've been destroyed by decades of knowing that if someone is going to shoot down a plane, or fly one into buildings, you're not getting a warning. But that was the world they lived in.
I will point out that for the first half of this book, it might as well be called U-20, because you spend most of the time with that commander and crew, which serves to humanize them very well (the scene where they rescue a dog from a previous sinking they caused actually happened).
But you spend the second half on Lusitania, and from my (again, not in depth) knowledge, she's accurately portrayed. You will enjoy the first class setting, though third class is not portrayed as in depth (perhaps because in a post-Titanic world, there isn't as much need to point out the disparities? Lusitania's third class passengers were not kept down below and prevented from coming to the boat deck, except by how fast the ship sank).
Knowing a little better now how Lusitania actually sank, I could appreciate the in depth research to get a truly minute by minute account of the sinking from as many perspectives as possible. I said in my review of Seven Days in May that Lusitania books must be hard to write, because you can't squeeze a 400+ page book out of the twenty minutes she took to sink.
And this is where this book succeeds because I don't think I realized how completely horrific this sinking was. Twenty minutes of sheer panic, lifeboats becoming more of a danger as they capsized one after another, landed on top of each other, and swung back into the crowds still onboard. It makes Titanic's disorganized and class-ridden evacuation look stately by comparison. This was not a two hour sinking where the band played until the end. This ship listed until those stuck inside couldn't walk upright to escape. The boilers exploded so the watertight door could not be closed, and the power was lost, plunging the ship into darkness. I felt like I was there.
And of course, you have the kicker, which is that Lusitania was not strictly a passenger ship, but was carrying munitions she shouldn't have been, and this fact was covered up by the British Admiralty for decades. Lusitania was supposed to have an escort during the final leg of the voyage, where U-boats were known to be patrolling, and was denied one at the last minute.
It's almost *gasp* as if the Admiralty knew how strong a symbol Lusitania would be as a tragedy, and how much more likely her loss made America's entry into the war.
The only quibble I had, really, is that the book is slightly dated, which stands to reason since it was written in the 70s. I laughed out loud when Titanic came up (as she does, because she hangs over every ship that has ever sailed the North Atlantic, and certainly every one that has ever sunk) and the damage was described as the three hundred foot gash. It was a bit like seeing an artifact, since this book predates the discovery of the wreck, where of course, there is no three hundred foot gash.
The only real inaccuracy I noticed was the author continually stated that Lusitania won the Blue Ribbon for the fastest Atlantic crossing. It seemed a strange mistake to make since the sinking was so accurately portrayed, but the award for the fastest crossing of the Atlantic was called the Blue Riband (pronounced "ribboned").
Overall, this reminded me of nothing so much as A Night to Remember, even though one is fictional and one isn't. As that has been a favorite since I was eight years old (really a little too young to be reading an account of a tragedy of that magnitude), this ticked a lot of boxes for me.
But then I happened to stumble across this at the Strand and since it's out of print and my library system doesn't have it, I took the opportunity.
And ah, yes, this is the book Lusi deserved.
I have, since reading Seven Days in May, become a little bit more familiar with this particular sinking, but I expect I would have enjoyed this anyway. Unlike her more famous predecessor, Lusitania isn't a one-night only tragedy. It's understood best in the context of the wider war, and the political considerations of the time. This book worked very well in that respect, as everyone from President Wilson to Kaiser Wilhelm show up alongside the fictional Lusitania passengers, and to my knowledge, are extremely well characterized. The historical detail is very in depth and accurate to my knowledge - you will actually feel as if you're in a U-Boat, or in WWI-era New York.
The feeling is captured very well - to a modern audience far more used to discussing Germany's history of wartime atrocities in the context of the Second World War, I think it can seem a little distant how much that reputation already existed based on the actions taken by the German military during the First. But the sheer disbelief and horror that the Germans would dare to torpedo a passenger ship is conveyed excellently. Most modern readers will find it hopelessly naive that a government can print a headline essentially saying "we will torpedo passenger ships" and no one will believe them, because who would do such a thing? We've been destroyed by decades of knowing that if someone is going to shoot down a plane, or fly one into buildings, you're not getting a warning. But that was the world they lived in.
I will point out that for the first half of this book, it might as well be called U-20, because you spend most of the time with that commander and crew, which serves to humanize them very well (the scene where they rescue a dog from a previous sinking they caused actually happened).
But you spend the second half on Lusitania, and from my (again, not in depth) knowledge, she's accurately portrayed. You will enjoy the first class setting, though third class is not portrayed as in depth (perhaps because in a post-Titanic world, there isn't as much need to point out the disparities? Lusitania's third class passengers were not kept down below and prevented from coming to the boat deck, except by how fast the ship sank).
Knowing a little better now how Lusitania actually sank, I could appreciate the in depth research to get a truly minute by minute account of the sinking from as many perspectives as possible. I said in my review of Seven Days in May that Lusitania books must be hard to write, because you can't squeeze a 400+ page book out of the twenty minutes she took to sink.
And this is where this book succeeds because I don't think I realized how completely horrific this sinking was. Twenty minutes of sheer panic, lifeboats becoming more of a danger as they capsized one after another, landed on top of each other, and swung back into the crowds still onboard. It makes Titanic's disorganized and class-ridden evacuation look stately by comparison. This was not a two hour sinking where the band played until the end. This ship listed until those stuck inside couldn't walk upright to escape. The boilers exploded so the watertight door could not be closed, and the power was lost, plunging the ship into darkness. I felt like I was there.
And of course, you have the kicker, which is that Lusitania was not strictly a passenger ship, but was carrying munitions she shouldn't have been, and this fact was covered up by the British Admiralty for decades. Lusitania was supposed to have an escort during the final leg of the voyage, where U-boats were known to be patrolling, and was denied one at the last minute.
It's almost *gasp* as if the Admiralty knew how strong a symbol Lusitania would be as a tragedy, and how much more likely her loss made America's entry into the war.
The only quibble I had, really, is that the book is slightly dated, which stands to reason since it was written in the 70s. I laughed out loud when Titanic came up (as she does, because she hangs over every ship that has ever sailed the North Atlantic, and certainly every one that has ever sunk) and the damage was described as the three hundred foot gash. It was a bit like seeing an artifact, since this book predates the discovery of the wreck, where of course, there is no three hundred foot gash.
The only real inaccuracy I noticed was the author continually stated that Lusitania won the Blue Ribbon for the fastest Atlantic crossing. It seemed a strange mistake to make since the sinking was so accurately portrayed, but the award for the fastest crossing of the Atlantic was called the Blue Riband (pronounced "ribboned").
Overall, this reminded me of nothing so much as A Night to Remember, even though one is fictional and one isn't. As that has been a favorite since I was eight years old (really a little too young to be reading an account of a tragedy of that magnitude), this ticked a lot of boxes for me.
August 1, 2010
The horrible tragedy of the Lusitania is told through the eyes of the U-boat commander that sank her and tells a story of a fictional Canadian family that sailed on her fateful vogage. It is detailed in regards to the actual sinking and the lost of life. The blame for the act is laid on every country's government involved.
September 8, 2025
“They found a house a few miles outside Calgary in the new province of Alberta. It had been built as a small ranch house. It was wooden-framed, painted cream and green, with a dark green roof. It had three bedrooms, a study den for Matt, a summer and winter kitchen and a long, wide livingroom and was their first real married home. Livvy adored every stick and stone.”
Novel around the sinking of the Lusitania. The ‘Cruiser Rules’ stated that a submarine should surface & allow the crew to disembark before sinking a merchant ship. The British government arms merchantmen and requires them to immediately fire on or ram any submarine seen. It advises them to fly neutral countries’ flags. The German government requires submariners to sink ships thought to be British even if flying neutral flags. To avoid being shelled or rammed they may torpedo ships without warning.
This 700-page novel gives the back stories of all the participants. All. I got tired of this after 170 pages and quit. There are no illustrations or notes – it is, after all a novel.
Novel around the sinking of the Lusitania. The ‘Cruiser Rules’ stated that a submarine should surface & allow the crew to disembark before sinking a merchant ship. The British government arms merchantmen and requires them to immediately fire on or ram any submarine seen. It advises them to fly neutral countries’ flags. The German government requires submariners to sink ships thought to be British even if flying neutral flags. To avoid being shelled or rammed they may torpedo ships without warning.
This 700-page novel gives the back stories of all the participants. All. I got tired of this after 170 pages and quit. There are no illustrations or notes – it is, after all a novel.
June 17, 2018
Ok, but much of the first half of the book could have likely been left out, and wish there had been more intention devoted to Livy, Matt & family.
April 23, 2020
A dramatisation of the last trip of the Lusitania and the parallel life on board the German submarine and its crew. Also examines the political situation that led to the command to sink such ships.
July 27, 2019
A decent reconstruction of the last days of the SS Lusitania.
November 1, 2015
Read this book almost twenty years ago and I still think about its characters and the incident.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews