Confidential
WAR INSTRUCTIONS
FOR BRITISH MERCHANT SHIPS
C.B. No. 415
TRADE DIVISION, NAVAL STAFF, ADMIRALTY, London, 1917
A very rare 1917 edition of War Instructions for British Merchant Ships, a WW1 Admiralty manual. Issued to Masters and Captains of merchant ships, each copy was marked ‘Confidential’ and individually numbered. This is Copy No. 1093, issued to the Master of the S.S. Tanfield, a British Steamer which was torpedoed by the German U-Boat UB-74 in the English Channel in April 1918. This book is an extremely rare survivor of such an attack - all War Instructions manuals were lead weighted and intended to be thrown overboard when the ship came under enemy attack. Along with other secret documents, they were kept in a special weighted bag, and as stated on page 16 of War Instructions: ‘In the event of the vessel being attacked, all confidential and secret papers are to be completely destroyed. Weighted papers may be thrown overboard in deep water’. No doubt in the confusion and chaos of the torpedoing of the Tanfield, there simply wasn’t time to carry out these instructions.
War Instructions for British Merchant Ships includes a wide range of advice that would have been of vital importance to the crews of merchant vessels operating in wartime conditions - particularly the actions to be taken to avoid submarine attack. Subjects covered include precautions to be taken in submarine areas, typical convoy Zig-Zag movements, submarines, raiders, mines, defensive armament, signalling and telegraphy, aircraft, lists of shipping intelligence officers, use of the Zig-Zag clock, etc. There are also silhouettes and photographs of German sumarines, recognition silhouettes of British vessels, and photographs of torpedoes and mines. The second section of the manual, Addendum No.1, includes numerous detailed diagrams of Zig Zag movements and anti-submarine evasion tactics.
The manual was considered to be of great value to the enemy if captured. Heavily weighted with lead inside the rear board, in the event of imminent capture it was to be thrown overboard. A note on the front endpapers states: ‘This book is weighted with lead, and if thrown overboard will sink’.
There is an official Admiralty pasted-in label on the front endpapers which states that the book was ‘Presented by the Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty to Captain Pottinger, Master of S.S. Tanfield for his retention as a memento of War Service’ The label is stamped and dated 20th October 1919.
A further Oficial C.B. 415 ‘Addenda’ label dated January 1918 is pasted onto the front board, with the ship’s name ’Tanfield’ written on it in red ink.
There is also an original handwritten letter dated October 1917 in a pocket at the rear of the book, from Lt Bennet RNR on behalf of the Malta Patrol Commander, acknowledging receipt of several items from the Master of the S.S. Tanfield.
S.S. Tanfield: was a 4,538 ton British steamer, built in Newcastle by the Northumberland Ship Building Company Ltd in 1916. Originally named Corsham, the ship was purchased by the British India Steam Navigation Co. Ltd of Glasgow in 1916 and renamed Tanfield. It was intended to a be a temporary wartime acquisition by the British India company to replace wartime losses. Described as a ‘Dry Cargo Vessel’, Tanfield undertook several hazardous journeys during WW1. In September 1917 Tanfield was transporting coal from Newcastle to Port Said, via Gibraltar and various ports on the North African coast. Nearing the end of the voyage, Tanfield collided with SS Kaiping north of Alexandria, sustaining serious damage and only just making it to Alexandria. The ship remained in Alexandria for four months for repairs. The Tanfield’s 3rd Engineer, John Henry Colley, later wrote about the incident: ‘We quite expected our ship to sink, so we spent the night in the lifeboats in a very rough sea. Fortunately our ship did not sink, so we went back to her and got her here after a struggle. I shall never forget it I assure you.’ The Tanfield’s (and Colley’s) next voyage also nearly ended in disaster. On 15 April 1918, whilst sailing from Hull to India with a cargo of armoured cars, ammunition, and aircraft parts, the Tanfield was torpedoed in the English Channel by a German U-boat, UB-74. Colley and the other engine room officers, along with the W/T operator and two gunners, courageously stayed on board what they thought was a sinking ship in an effort to save it. In the event, the ship did not sink, and made it back to Plymouth for repairs. Although clearly not a lucky ship, Tanfield survived until the end of the war. It continued to sail until the 1950’s, having been sold to an Italian shipping line in 1948 and renamed as the Stabia, before finally being scrapped in 1958.
UB 74: was a German Type UB III submarine or U-boat in the German Imperial Navy during WW1. She was commissioned on 24 October 1917 as SM UB-74 under the command of Kpt Lt. Karl Neureuther. In May 1918 she was sunk by HMS Lorna with depth charges in the English Channel. UB-74 was built by AG Vulcan of Hamburg and launched on 12 September 1917. UB-74 carried 10 torpedoes, was armed with an 8.8 cm (3.46 in) deck gun, had a crew of up to 3 officers and 31 men, and a cruising range of 8,420 nautical miles. Between February 1918 and May 1918 UB-74 had considerable success, destroying seven merchant ships and damaging another three, one of which was the Tanfield. UB-74 was sunk with the loss of all her crew in Lyme Bay on 26 May 1918.
Condition:
In good condition. The boards are in good condition, with general signs of wear and use, and some marks. The rear board is weighted with lead. The text, diagrams, illustrations and plates are in very good condition, with some marks and wear to the page edges in the 'Addendum No.1’ section. The binding and hinges are good and secure.
Published: 1917
Blue boards, rear board lead-lined, with white titling
Illustrated with diagrams, plates and photographs
Dimensions: 160mm x 245mm
Pages: 150
Weight: 1kg (before packing)
