Almost one hundred years ago next month, on March 11, 1917, my grandfather’s ship SS Wordsworth, was stopped and eventually sunk by a covert German surface raider in the Indian Ocean. 

Bill Keegans from Saltcoats and his shipmates were then taken and held prisoner aboard the secret German vessel throughout the rest of the raider’s remarkable world record voyage.

William Keegans was one of the nine children of quarryman James Keegans and his wife Agnes Reid and was born October 19, 1894 in 20,Green St.Saltcoats. Bill served his time in the Ardrossan shipyard as a carpenter.

After serving his apprenticeship Bill, like his elder brother Robert joined the Seaforth Highlanders, his army career was short-lived however as he was soon certified as medically unfit due to a hammer toe. Bill was honourably discharged from the army and shortly afterwards went to sea as a ship’s carpenter where he travelled widely. He became engaged to marry Stevenston girl Agnes McCann.

During the first world war in March 1917, William’s ship the SS Wordsworth was reported missing, presumed sunk. Subsequently his obituary was posted by his Mother in the Ardrossan and Saltcoats Herald.

In fact William and his crewmates had been captured at sea by the now famous German commerce raider the Wolf.

Bill’s parents had already lost a son at the battle of Loos in 1915.Their son Robert Keegans was killed in action on the first day of the battle September 25, 1915. 

THE HISTORY OF THE RAIDER WOLF

The Wolf was to set a world record for time at sea and was the most hunted German raider of the Great War. 

Her captain, August Nerger became the most highly decorated German in the Great War. This amazing story which is unique in the annals of naval history.

Disguised as an ordinary merchant vessel, the heavily armed Wolf laid over 400 mines and captured numerous commercial vessels around South Africa, Mombasa, Australia, New Zealand

and Singapore.In order to maintain her anonymity, the Wolf kept all the crews captured aboard throughout her raiding mission. The Wolf’s key mission was two-fold:- first to lay sea mines in some of the enemies overseas harbours and secondly to capture enemy vessels and their cargo. The idea was to plant fear and uncertainty and stretch enemy resources.

On the evening of the March 11, whilst east of the Seychelles Islands, the Wolf’s lookout sighted smoke on the horizon .The onboard German seaplane “Wolchen”was prepared and sent into the air to investigate, she soon returned with the news that she had sighted a merchant ship. The seaplane was hoisted back inboard, and Wolf set off in pursuit of the sighted vessel.

The sighted ship was the British SS Wordsworth which was relatively fast making the Wolf’s chase more difficult and it took nearly five hours before the Wolf was in position to force the British vessel to halt. Eventually, at 680 miles East of Mahé (Seychelles) she overtook the vessel. Skippered by Captain J.W.Shields, SS Wordsworth of 3,509 tons with 7,000 tons cargo of rice from Mombasa was overtaken and stopped. As would become routine, a German prize crew were put aboard the captured vessel. 

She was a relatively new vessel of the Shakespeare Line and her single cargo was worth over half a million pounds. The Wolf’s captain Nerger very much considered this a war cargo and would take some pleasure in inflicting such a cost on the enemy and denying them so much food.

The 30 man all British crew of the SS Wordsworth were taken aboard Wolf as prisoners of war (including my Grandfather Bill Keegans who was the ship’s carpenter.).

Like all the other captured vessels, once stripped of anything useful, the Wordsworth was scuttled with explosive charges.The Wordsworth’s crew with heavy hearts, witnessed the sinking.

Bill and his crewmates were kept prisoner aboard the Wolf for nearly a year. Under extremely harsh conditions the prisoners witnessed all of the Wolf’s daring exploits.Initially the prisoners were kept between decks right at the stern of the ship in number four hold. This was an area approximately 65feet long by 45feet wide. Access to this hold was only through one small hatchway and down a wooden ladder to the hold. This area for prisoners was adjacent to number three hold where the remaining mines were being kept. As more mines were laid this freed up space for prisoner accommodation and the storage of seized goods. Minelaying operations was a terrifying time for the prisoners held in the adjacent hold. They knew that discovery by the British or even an accident could blow them all to pieces.

During daytime, mess tables and benches were laid out but at night these had to be folded up and moved aside to make way for the hammocks. Hammocks were slung very close together in rows and the only storage available was in wooden crates stacked so as to give segregation of certain areas. An electric fan and an electric light was available in the hold but neither of these items were very reliable and maintenance given low priority by the Wolf’s officers.

The temperature in the prisoner hold was rarely comfortable. The inmates were either sweltered in tropical heat or freezing in sub zero temperatures. The lack of fresh vegetables for the last few months of the voyage had resulted in numerous cases of scurvy amongst the prisoners.

As disease took hold and the population increased the prisoners quarters stank. The putrid smell of the scurvy patients mingled with the warm air from the steam-pipes and the assorted human odours made a ripe mixture.

Outbreaks of lice of a particularly nasty type meant that every person had to suffer the indignity of being deloused and the prisoner area cleaned and fumigated.

Inoculation of anti-typhoid was also undertaken.

Most of the prisoners had become painfully thin. Yet there was no hopeless moping; on the contrary there was a morbid type of humour and a general acceptance of their fate. It was simply that many no longer cared what might happen. The new men were the only ones who appeared to remain serious and seemed more aware of their predicament. 

The psychological impact of their incarceration and constant danger was taking effect. Deep down, few thought that they could survive much longer in this way and some had secretly just given up all together.

The prisoners from the Wordsworth had been in the first stages of scurvy for some time and had been listless, pallid, and sick. 

Now their teeth began to fall out. Some bloated into physical wrecks with puffy yellow flesh that sores the irritated areas broke into huge ulcers. Some went blind - or almost blind: their eyes puffed up into bleeding, spongy masses, with the cornea lying at the bottom of a pit of fungus-like membrane. And they stank: their sores stank; their breaths stank, their quarters stank. It was just hellish.

The other disturbing part of scurvy - for those who had not yet contracted the disease - was the anguish of seeing one’s own shipmates, men in otherwise good physical condition, change into the walking dead who neither knew nor cared what happened to them.

A supply of fresh food and a few lemons or oranges to each man would have cured all this. As it was, nothing could be done aboard the vessel. What fresh food there was (including some captured wine) was reserved for the German crew.

Instead of fresh food the scurvy sufferers were still issued tinned crab and rice.Captain Nerger had hoarded for his men every scrap of fresh food aboard the last ships captured; there was none for the prisoners. And he was right. The health of his men came first; it was vital to keep the raider’s crew on their feet.

Everybody took the scurvy outbreak calmly enough after the first sensation of horror had passed. The prisoners became accustomed to it, as they had to become accustomed to all else during those months.

Next week: Voyage of the Wolf