The Lusitania Memorial

The Lusitania Memorial is a tribute monument located in the heart of Cobh, Ireland. It commemorates the 1,200 victims of the Lusitania, a ship torpedoed by a submarine in 1915. A solemn monument, once again demonstrating Cobh’s commitment to maritime history…

See the Lusitania Memorial

A monument to the sinking of the Lusitania

The monument is located in Casement Square, opposite Cobh Harbour. It takes the form of a large metal sculpture, with a woman with angel wings towering over 2 young men.

The monument bears a plaque commemorating the terrible sinking of the Lusitania. The liner was torpedoed on May 7, 1915 in Irish waters, not far from Fastnet Rock. It was targeted by a German U-20 submarine, killing nearly 12,000 of the 2,000 passengers on board.

The liner was allegedly targeted by the Germans on suspicion of smuggling weapons. Investigations later revealed this theory to be true. The liner was secretly carrying many weapons:

5,248 crates of shells,
4,927 boxes of 1,000 cartridges each,
2,000 boxes of handgun ammunition,
5,468 cases of shrapnel shells and cartridges.

Nevertheless, the torpedoing of the Lusitania resulted in the death of 128 Americans on board. These deaths heightened American hostility to Germany, culminating in their involvement in the First World War from April 6, 1917.