by StuartGill (Author)
Over 300 men died when the light cruiser Dunedin went down in the South Atlantic, victim of two torpedoes fired from the German submarine U124. For the 250 or so who managed to escape the ship, the next seventy eight hours were to be a nightmare of torture and slow death. Some men died of their injuries, some died of exhaustion, some went insane, others were drowned, some were bitten and killed by vicious fish. Only six Carley rafts were left afloat when rescue arrived in the form of an American merchantman, who lifted 72 men to safety: five died before they made it to port. This moving, intensively researched book is an account of life and death at sea, and tells also the story of how the Dunedin came to be where she was, looking for a U-boat wolf pack as a result of information received from the Enigma codebreakers in Bletchley Park. Amazingly, the story of the Dunedin has never been told before in any detail. This book has it all.
Format: Hardcover
Pages: 239
Edition: First Edition
Publisher: Weidenfeld & Nicolson
Published: 09 Oct 2003
ISBN 10: 0297846655
ISBN 13: 9780297846659
Book Overview: Absorbing account of life on board, for officers and men, in action, between patrols, and on shore. The full story of the sinking, the days on the open sea in liferafts, and the rescue - never before told. Powerfully written, unputdownable, real life history.