Who is Responsible for the Sinking of the Lusitania?Mr. Rolland

The Lusitania was a British cruise liner on a routinely scheduled trip between New York and London

New York (1915) London (1915)

During this same time WWI raged on…

WWI Alliance System

Allies (Triple Entente)• Britain• France• Russia• NOTICE: The United States

of America is officially Neutral in the year 1915

Central Powers• Germany• Austria-Hungary• Ottoman Empire

The German’s introduce new Submarine technology during the war and use it to defend against and attack British Ships

Back to the Lusitania… on the 7th day of May 1915 the ship was carrying nearly 2,000 passengers

There is only one problem…It was spotted by a German U-boat off the coast off Ireland… The Germans torpedoed the Lusitania

This seems logical because the Germans are at war with the British

One torpedo and two explosions later, the Lusitania was officially a victim of a German U-Boat

Lusitania Sinking Facts• 1 torpedo was fired• 2 explosions occurred• The gigantic ship sank

in 15 minutes• 1195 people Perished• Of those 1195, 128

were Americans

Aftermath… Germany is guilty in the court of public opinion

Germany• Murdered 1195

civilians• Committed a war

crime• Changed the rules of

warfare by targeting civilians

• Americans and most people around the world denounced the attack and public support of the WWI effort went to the allies

Open and Shut Case!

Or is it really an open and shut case???

The Germans claim that this was no passenger ship

• The “neutral” Americans were supplying weapons to the British by using the passengers on the ship as a human shield

• Germans warned the British that any hostile ship in the British Isles would be targeted

• Germans warned the British that they would partake in “unrestricted submarine warfare”

• Warned the British that the Lusitania would be targeted if it disembarked

• Despite these warnings, the ship still sailed

Germans (continued)German Flag, circa

1915The Germans also

believed• The Americans were deceptive

in claiming to be neutral while supplying an enemy of war with arms

• The second explosion heard by many passengers was the result of the munitions onboard exploding, thus explaining why the ship sunk so quickly

• If the Germans let the Lusitania sail to London, the British would unload the weapons and ultimately use them against the Germans

The British Believed differently

British Flag They claim• That the sinking of the

Lusitania was a barbaric crime against humanity

• Denied any presence of weaponry on the ship

• Believed that the Lusitania posed no threat to Germany

• Did not recognize the British Naval Blockade as justification for the sinking of the Lusitania

Americans had a different view

American Flag Claims• British withheld information

from America that indicated that the Lusitania would be targeted by the Germans

• Did not immediately acknowledge the presence of weapons on the ship

• Believed that Germany wanted to bring the US into the War

• Speculated that the British may have wanted the US to enter the war on the allies side, thus ignoring the warnings from Germany

So, were there really munitions on the Lusitania?

Live rounds recovered from the site of the Lusitania wreck

Direct Link to the USA• The munitions found aboard the Lusitania were

stamped with Bethlehem Steel Corporation Identification

So who really is to blame for the sinking of the Lusitania?

The ultimate trial of the 20th century, in the 21st century in a 10th grade classroom

• Will determine which country should ultimately be held responsible for the sinking of the Lusitania

The organization of the TrialDefendants (4

member teams)• Germany• USA• Britain

Prosecution• 3 person prosecution

team• 10 jurors• 2 witnesses

Defendants• Each of the defendant countries will be given a

packet filled with various sources including primary sources. Each packet will be custom to the country defending itself. The packet will contain information that builds the credible of each country while indicting the other countries. The defendant countries will review all of the data and build a case that exonerates them from the sinking of the Lusitania while indicting one or both of the reaming countries.

Prosecution• Prosecutors will have the data packs for all three

of the defendant countries. The prosecutors will try to convict one of the countries, however the prosecutor has no stake in any particular country and is just concerned with getting a conviction.

Jurors• The jurors will listen to all of the evidence

presented from the defense and the prosecution. The prosecution will then deliberate and vote on who they think is guilty. Once the jurors have reached a majority vote, a verdict will be reached

There are two witnesses implanted into the trial. One witness is pro Germany and the other is Pro-British.• The witnesses have been exposed to two separate

news headlines headlines regarding the sinking of the Lusitania. One is bias in favor of Germany and the other is bias in favor of Britain.

Judge• The teacher will be the judge. It will be up to the

teacher to decide what kind of evidence is permissible in court. The teacher will have the ability to strike testimony from the record.

Process…• The back of the classroom will be reserved for the

jury• The front of the classroom will be where the

defendants sit• The prosecution team will sit in the middle of the

room

• The first 30 minutes of class will be spent researching. Each country will research their data packet and/ or the internet to build their case. During this time the jury will analyze their bias newspaper articles. The prosecution will work in the hallway piecing together all of the evidence

Process(continued)• Once the research portion of the activity is

complete, the prosecution will enter the room and guide the trial. Each country will have a chance to defend themselves and refute evidence. Every 20 minutes the jury will be taken into the hallway for deliberations.

Summary• I created and implemented this lesson at

Palisades High School and it was a resounding success. The students, my cooperating teacher and I were all pleased with the lesson.

• The class that I performed this activity with convicted Britain with the jury delivering an unanimous verdict. They believed that Britain ignored crucial warnings and acted in an irresponsible manner that directly put the lives of the people on board in Jeopardy. They believe that if the USA would have been warned about the impending attack, the ship would have never disembarked.