The Lusitania – Cape Clear Island Connections

On Tuesday 4 May 1915, days before the ill-fated Lusitania sailed past Cape Clear Island German Submarine U20 surfaced 1.5 miles South West of the Fastnet and approached Big Jer. O’Driscolls fishing boat St Patrick and crew members purchased some fish. The surfacing of the U Boat was witnessed from the Fastnet Lighthouse and a signal was sent to the Royal Navy Station at Brow Head, near Crookhaven. Whatever may have happened after that, it is  known that the signal was not passed to London, leaving one to surmise that politicians and Navy alike may have conspired to bring the Unites States into the war and that the Lusitania was used as bait. Photo shows a number of UBoats including U20.