On October 28th, 1940 a luxury liner called Empress of Britain sank off Ireland having been hit by a torpedo from a German U-boat. She was the largest liner lost during the Second World War and the largest ship sunk by a U-boat. There is also a link in the story to Hoylake.
In a Liverpool Daily Post report (republished here). A Liverpool man and seaman named James Carroll reportedly left the burning deck of the liner to escape in a lifeboat. Among the crew of the Empress of Britain were three brothers from Hoylake named Triggs. One of the brothers was in the lifeboat. A trawler came to the aid of the lifeboat and one the crew on the trawler was, by amazing coincidence, another Triggs brother.
The three brothers pictured above are Julian, Herbert Victor and Harold Triggs. Christopher Triggs was a crew member of the trawler.
Another Hoylake man lost his life in the sinking of the liner. Seaman John Roberts, aged 19 and the 4th son of Mr & Mrs E Roberts of 2, Shaw Street, Hoylake was initially reported missing but was subsequently reported to have been killed by a falling crane as he was making for his boat station.
Meols resident H Davies of Sandfield Avenue, Meols survived and was recorded as wounded and in hospital.
Thanks to Jennifer Triggs and family for granting permission to republish the above photo.
Are these the same brothers mentioned on the Lifeboat Station memorial? (as I thought it was a different name)
What a fascinating story nonetheless. I’m ex-Globe these days John, but if you don’t pass it on to them, would you mind if I did?
Regards,
Justin
Hi Justin
I think the Lifeboat station memorial statue lists the Bird family members.
Yes, it is a fascinating story. Yes pass the story on – the old-merseytimes.co.uk site deserves credit for finding the story.
Cheers
John
For more imformation go to Wikipedia check RMS Empress of Britain 1931. This was one of many ships called
Empress of, owned by Canadian Pacific Railroad.
The three men featured in the photo relating to the sinking of the Empress of Britain were three of my uncles. Julian, the eldest of seven brothers was the bosun onf the Empress of Britain and was later torpedoed and drowned in the the Indian Ocean. Herbert went on to serve in the Algonquin, a troop carrier and was killed in a tragic accident at Circular Quay, Sydney Australia.
The third brother Harold or ‘Danny’ as he was known survived the war and went on to become the coxswain of Hoylake lifeboat winning a bronze medal for his bravery. Chris, another brother also fought in the war and was involved in the recue of Julian from the wreck of the Empressof Britain, He only recently died and the family and friends gathered for a very memorable occasion for a popular Hoylake character. Another brother Bill survived being blown up on HMS Janus during the Anzio landings, he went on to own a coal delivery business and was a well known figure around Hoylake and West kirby.
Another Brother Sid , my Dad, Served on HMS Borage a flower class corvette on escort duties in the North Atlantic and the Russian Convoys. He won the British Empire Medal for rescuing thirty three men from a wrecked tanker at the height of an Atlantic storm. He received the medal from King George V1. He carried on the family trade of being a fisherman and was the father of six children. He died eight years ago and only the youngest brother Roger survives from the brave generation of men who went from Hoylake for the cause they believed in.
I remember the Triggs family from the 1940s/50s. As a teenager I used to go with them to collect cockles. My aunt Doris (Doll) Marchbank was married to Julian as you say was killed in 1943 while serving in the Merchant Navy on board the Empire Lake. I used to go collecting cockles with Chris, Sid, Harold and Bill while Roger used to cook them in the wash house at the rear of Harolds house in Trinity Road. Mr & Mrs Triggs lived in Ferndale Road with their daughter Edna. The last time I met your Mum and Dad was in 1994 at Doll’s funeral. For a number of years your parents livd next door to me at 11 Grove Road.