Kenneth Cummins
Encyclopedia
Captain Kenneth Alfred Hugo Cummins (6th March 1900-10th December 2006) was, at age 106, one of the last surviving British
veterans of the First World War
. He served in the Royal Naval Reserve
in the First World War,as a (Temporary) Midshipman,(15th July 1918- 18th January 1919) and then in the Merchant Navy in the Second World War
.
Kenneth Cummins was born in Richmond, London. His father was an officer in the Merchant Navy. He was educated at Merchant Taylors' School, Crosby
, and was a member of the school OTC
when the Great War broke out. He joined P&O
as a naval cadet aged 15. He trained at HMS Worcester for 2 years, then joined HMS Morea, an armed merchant cruiser on convoy
duty from England to Sierra Leone
, as a midshipman
. On his first voyage, his ship encountered the wreckage of the Canadian
hospital ship
HMHS Llandovery Castle
to the southwest of Fastnet Rock
. Against standing orders, the ship had been torpedo
ed and sunk by U-86
off the coast of Ireland
, after which the submarine rammed and shelled the survivors in lifeboats, with only 24 of the 258 on board surviving. The corpses of many nurses were still floating in the water as Cummins passed by. The commander of the submarine, Lieutenant Helmut Patzig, and two other Germany
officers were later tried in Germany for their actions.
Kenneth Cummins became an officer for P&O after the war. He sailed to Australia
, carrying troops home, but the ship was quarantine
d in Sydney harbour
after Spanish flu
broke out on board. He later served on the steamship SS Macedonia, which brought Lord Carnarvon
's body home from Egypt
in 1923.
In the Second World War
, he served as chief officer aboard RMS Viceroy of India, a 20,000-ton luxury liner
requisitioned as a troopship
, and used to land 2,000 men in North Africa
during Operation Torch
. The ship was torpedoed by U-407 at 4:30am on 11 November 1942, some 40 miles off the coast of Algeria
, on its return journey to the UK. The ship sank so slowly that Cummins was able to change into his dress uniform before the order was given to abandon ship
at 7am. Four member of the crew were killed in the initial explosion, but the remainder escaped. Cummins was rescued from a lifeboat some hours later by the destroyer HMS Boadicea
. He then served as chief officer on the commandeered French liner SS Ile de France
, which was converted into a troopship. Its high speed enabled it to repeatedly ferry American troops across the Atlantic outside the convoy system.
Kenneth Cummins returned to P&O after the Second World War, taking command of the liner RMS Maloja
, which took Italian
troops home to Italy, and soldiers of the King's African Rifles
back to Africa
. He then commanded the Liberty ship
SS Samettrick and the SS Devanha
on routes to Australia, the SS Somali to the Far East
, and the SS Singapore and SS Socotra to Northern Europe
. After commanding the SS Stratheden, he retired in 1960.
He became a Younger Brother of Trinity House
in 1947, and was the Senior Younger Brother at his death. In retirement, he worked as a nautical assessor for the Wreck Commission of the Home Office
. He also served as chairman of the planning committee of Marlborough Rural District Council from 1962 until 1974.
Until his death on Sunday December 10th 2006 at the age of 106, he lived in Great Bedwyn
, Wiltshire
.
He was survived by his wife Rosemary Cummins,(nee Byers) whom he married in Sydney
in 1955 after meeting her on an earlier voyage from Sydney Australia and their two sons, two daughters and six grandchildren.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
veterans of the First World War
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
. He served in the Royal Naval Reserve
Royal Naval Reserve
The Royal Naval Reserve is the volunteer reserve force of the Royal Navy in the United Kingdom. The present Royal Naval Reserve was formed in 1958 by merging the original Royal Naval Reserve and the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve , a reserve of civilian volunteers founded in 1903...
in the First World War,as a (Temporary) Midshipman,(15th July 1918- 18th January 1919) and then in the Merchant Navy in the Second World War
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
.
Kenneth Cummins was born in Richmond, London. His father was an officer in the Merchant Navy. He was educated at Merchant Taylors' School, Crosby
Merchant Taylors' School, Crosby
Merchant Taylors' School, Crosby is a British independent school for day pupils, located in Great Crosby on Merseyside....
, and was a member of the school OTC
Officers Training Corps
The Officer Training Corps is a part of the British Army which provides military leadership training to students at UK universities...
when the Great War broke out. He joined P&O
Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company
The Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company, which is usually known as P&O, is a British shipping and logistics company which dated from the early 19th century. Following its sale in March 2006 to Dubai Ports World for £3.9 billion, it became a subsidiary of DP World; however, the P&O...
as a naval cadet aged 15. He trained at HMS Worcester for 2 years, then joined HMS Morea, an armed merchant cruiser on convoy
Convoy
A convoy is a group of vehicles, typically motor vehicles or ships, traveling together for mutual support and protection. Often, a convoy is organized with armed defensive support, though it may also be used in a non-military sense, for example when driving through remote areas.-Age of Sail:Naval...
duty from England to Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone , officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Guinea to the north and east, Liberia to the southeast, and the Atlantic Ocean to the west and southwest. Sierra Leone covers a total area of and has an estimated population between 5.4 and 6.4...
, as a midshipman
Midshipman
A midshipman is an officer cadet, or a commissioned officer of the lowest rank, in the Royal Navy, United States Navy, and many Commonwealth navies. Commonwealth countries which use the rank include Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, India, Pakistan, Singapore, Sri Lanka and Kenya...
. On his first voyage, his ship encountered the wreckage of the Canadian
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
hospital ship
Hospital ship
A hospital ship is a ship designated for primary function as a floating medical treatment facility or hospital; most are operated by the military forces of various countries, as they are intended to be used in or near war zones....
HMHS Llandovery Castle
HMHS Llandovery Castle
The Llandovery Castle, built in 1914 in Glasgow as RMS Llandovery Castle for Union Castle Line, was a Canadian hospital ship torpedoed off southern Ireland on 27 June 1918 with the loss of 234 lives....
to the southwest of Fastnet Rock
Fastnet Rock
Fastnet Rock is a small island in the Atlantic Ocean and the most southerly point of Ireland. It lies southwest of Cape Clear Island and from County Cork on the Irish mainland...
. Against standing orders, the ship had been torpedo
Torpedo
The modern torpedo is a self-propelled missile weapon with an explosive warhead, launched above or below the water surface, propelled underwater towards a target, and designed to detonate either on contact with it or in proximity to it.The term torpedo was originally employed for...
ed and sunk by U-86
Unterseeboot 86 (1916)
SM U-86 was a Type Mittel U style submarine manufactured in the Germaniawerft, Kiel shipyard for the German Empire during World War I.On 27 June 1918, under the command of Lieutenant Helmut Patzig, U-86 sank the Canadian hospital ship HMHS Llandovery Castle off the coast of Ireland in violation of...
off the coast of Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
, after which the submarine rammed and shelled the survivors in lifeboats, with only 24 of the 258 on board surviving. The corpses of many nurses were still floating in the water as Cummins passed by. The commander of the submarine, Lieutenant Helmut Patzig, and two other Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
officers were later tried in Germany for their actions.
Kenneth Cummins became an officer for P&O after the war. He sailed to Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, carrying troops home, but the ship was quarantine
Quarantine
Quarantine is compulsory isolation, typically to contain the spread of something considered dangerous, often but not always disease. The word comes from the Italian quarantena, meaning forty-day period....
d in Sydney harbour
Port Jackson
Port Jackson, containing Sydney Harbour, is the natural harbour of Sydney, Australia. It is known for its beauty, and in particular, as the location of the Sydney Opera House and Sydney Harbour Bridge...
after Spanish flu
Spanish flu
The 1918 flu pandemic was an influenza pandemic, and the first of the two pandemics involving H1N1 influenza virus . It was an unusually severe and deadly pandemic that spread across the world. Historical and epidemiological data are inadequate to identify the geographic origin...
broke out on board. He later served on the steamship SS Macedonia, which brought Lord Carnarvon
George Herbert, 5th Earl of Carnarvon
George Edward Stanhope Molyneux Herbert, 5th Earl of Carnarvon was an English aristocrat best known as the financial backer of the search for and the excavation of Tutankhamun's tomb in the Valley of the Kings.-Biography:...
's body home from Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
in 1923.
In the Second World War
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, he served as chief officer aboard RMS Viceroy of India, a 20,000-ton luxury liner
Ocean liner
An ocean liner is a ship designed to transport people from one seaport to another along regular long-distance maritime routes according to a schedule. Liners may also carry cargo or mail, and may sometimes be used for other purposes .Cargo vessels running to a schedule are sometimes referred to as...
requisitioned as a troopship
Troopship
A troopship is a ship used to carry soldiers, either in peacetime or wartime...
, and used to land 2,000 men in North Africa
North Africa
North Africa or Northern Africa is the northernmost region of the African continent, linked by the Sahara to Sub-Saharan Africa. Geopolitically, the United Nations definition of Northern Africa includes eight countries or territories; Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Morocco, South Sudan, Sudan, Tunisia, and...
during Operation Torch
Operation Torch
Operation Torch was the British-American invasion of French North Africa in World War II during the North African Campaign, started on 8 November 1942....
. The ship was torpedoed by U-407 at 4:30am on 11 November 1942, some 40 miles off the coast of Algeria
Algeria
Algeria , officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria , also formally referred to as the Democratic and Popular Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of Northwest Africa with Algiers as its capital.In terms of land area, it is the largest country in Africa and the Arab...
, on its return journey to the UK. The ship sank so slowly that Cummins was able to change into his dress uniform before the order was given to abandon ship
Abandon Ship
"Abandon Ship" is the first single from Gallows' debut Orchestra of Wolves. It was released on 4 June 2007. It was released on CD and 2 different 7 inch records.-Digital version:#Abandon Ship#Abandon Ship #Abandon Ship...
at 7am. Four member of the crew were killed in the initial explosion, but the remainder escaped. Cummins was rescued from a lifeboat some hours later by the destroyer HMS Boadicea
HMS Boadicea (H65)
HMS Boadicea was a built for the Royal Navy that saw service during World War II until sunk on 13 June 1944 while supporting the invasion of Normandy.-Construction:...
. He then served as chief officer on the commandeered French liner SS Ile de France
SS Ile de France
The SS Ile de France was a French ocean liner built in Saint-Nazaire, France for the Compagnie Générale Transatlantique. The ship was the first major ocean liner built after the conclusion of World War I and was the first liner ever to be decorated entirely with designs associated with the Art Deco...
, which was converted into a troopship. Its high speed enabled it to repeatedly ferry American troops across the Atlantic outside the convoy system.
Kenneth Cummins returned to P&O after the Second World War, taking command of the liner RMS Maloja
RMS Maloja
RMS Maloja was an English steam-powered ocean liner that saw service during the first part of the twentieth century.The Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company placed the order for RMS Maloja with Harland and Wolff Ltd on 29 November 1918. Yard No. 588 was assigned to the project and work...
, which took Italian
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
troops home to Italy, and soldiers of the King's African Rifles
King's African Rifles
The King's African Rifles was a multi-battalion British colonial regiment raised from the various British possessions in East Africa from 1902 until independence in the 1960s. It performed both military and internal security functions within the East African colonies as well as external service as...
back to Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
. He then commanded the Liberty ship
Liberty ship
Liberty ships were cargo ships built in the United States during World War II. Though British in conception, they were adapted by the U.S. as they were cheap and quick to build, and came to symbolize U.S. wartime industrial output. Based on vessels ordered by Britain to replace ships torpedoed by...
SS Samettrick and the SS Devanha
SS Devanha
SS Devanha was a passenger liner and cargo vessel operated by the Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company.-History:SS Devanha was launched in 1905 and entered service for the Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company in 1906. The ship was built at a cost of £159,249. She made her...
on routes to Australia, the SS Somali to the Far East
Far East
The Far East is an English term mostly describing East Asia and Southeast Asia, with South Asia sometimes also included for economic and cultural reasons.The term came into use in European geopolitical discourse in the 19th century,...
, and the SS Singapore and SS Socotra to Northern Europe
Northern Europe
Northern Europe is the northern part or region of Europe. Northern Europe typically refers to the seven countries in the northern part of the European subcontinent which includes Denmark, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, Finland and Sweden...
. After commanding the SS Stratheden, he retired in 1960.
He became a Younger Brother of Trinity House
Trinity House
The Corporation of Trinity House of Deptford Strond is the official General Lighthouse Authority for England, Wales and other British territorial waters...
in 1947, and was the Senior Younger Brother at his death. In retirement, he worked as a nautical assessor for the Wreck Commission of the Home Office
Home Office
The Home Office is the United Kingdom government department responsible for immigration control, security, and order. As such it is responsible for the police, UK Border Agency, and the Security Service . It is also in charge of government policy on security-related issues such as drugs,...
. He also served as chairman of the planning committee of Marlborough Rural District Council from 1962 until 1974.
Until his death on Sunday December 10th 2006 at the age of 106, he lived in Great Bedwyn
Great Bedwyn
Great Bedwyn is a village and civil parish in the east of the English county of Wiltshire.-Location:Great Bedwyn is on the River Dun about south-west of Hungerford and south-east of Marlborough, Wiltshire. The Kennet and Avon Canal and the West of England Main Line railway follow the Dun and pass...
, Wiltshire
Wiltshire
Wiltshire is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset, Somerset, Hampshire, Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire. It contains the unitary authority of Swindon and covers...
.
He was survived by his wife Rosemary Cummins,(nee Byers) whom he married in Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
in 1955 after meeting her on an earlier voyage from Sydney Australia and their two sons, two daughters and six grandchildren.
External links
- Obituary, The Daily TelegraphThe Daily TelegraphThe Daily Telegraph is a daily morning broadsheet newspaper distributed throughout the United Kingdom and internationally. The newspaper was founded by Arthur B...
, 12 December 2006 - Obituary, The TimesThe TimesThe Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
, 13 December 2006 - Obituary, The GuardianThe GuardianThe Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
, 18 December 2006 - Obituary, The IndependentThe IndependentThe Independent is a British national morning newspaper published in London by Independent Print Limited, owned by Alexander Lebedev since 2010. It is nicknamed the Indy, while the Sunday edition, The Independent on Sunday, is the Sindy. Launched in 1986, it is one of the youngest UK national daily...
, 18 December 2006