The bravery of our Merchant Navy forebears

Maritime author Bernard Edwards has done a great service both to the Merchant Navy and to Second World War historians in compiling this book; many of the accounts he has included were related to him first-hand by the survivors themselves, and we are very lucky that Mr Edwards has collected stories that might otherwise have been lost.

As many Telegraph readers will already be aware, the Merchant Navy suffered a terrible toll of losses from 1939-1945. U-boats, commerce raiders, warships, mines and aircraft sank more than 2,500 ships, killing more than 36,000 seafarers during the war years – a higher casualty rate than any branch of the British armed forces except for Bomber Command.

Death could strike at any vessel, whether armed or not. Perhaps the first account in the book best expresses the lottery of war for those at sea: ‘She was very heavily armed for a ship of her type, but not fast enough of strong enough. She had four 4.7 inch guns, torpedo tubes and depth charge throwers. We were fated not to use any of them.’

For those that survived an initial attack, the result was often incredible hardship – and a chance to display fortitude in the face of terrible odds. Many who were left to fend for themselves on the open sea died from exposure, drowning, thirst or starvation, with only a brave and lucky few surviving to tell the tale.

Despite the hardships described, the stories of these survivors are universally riveting to read, from tales of life as a prisoner of war, to lucky escapes, unexpected disasters and clever ruses (like that of the radio officer who saved his ship by sending confusing messages to a German raider that was pounding his convoy),

There is, however, a lingering sadness to some of the stories: that so many of those who survived went unrewarded and unrecognised. ‘When Con Blake told me his story, he was living alone, an ageing chain-smoking pensioner thoroughly disillusioned with life and with nothing to show for the great sacrifices he had made for his country,’ Edwards writes. By telling the stories of men like Blake, the author has gone some way towards redressing the balance.

Survivors of Enemy Action: Experiences of Merchant Seamen 1939-1945
By Bernard Edwards
Pen & Sword, £20
ISBN: 978 13990 42208