07/05/2026
On this day, 7th May, the Lusitania was sunk roughly 12 miles off the coast from Kinsale.
Few events of the Great War shocked the world as profoundly as the sinking of the Lusitania.
Shortly after 2pm, May 7th, 1915, without warning, the pride of the Cunard Line, the Lusitania was struck by a German torpedo fired from U-boat U-20 captained by Lt Walther Schwieger. It slammed into the liner’s starboard side. Within seconds another, larger, explosion staggered the ship as she continued to list. Hundreds of passengers and much debris was cast into the Atlantic. It took just eighteen minutes for the sea to claim the ship. Few of the lifeboats had been launched in the meantime and survivors were left clinging to whatever could help keep them afloat. Of the 1,959 people on board only 764 survived the ordeal. Ever since, controversy has surrounded this faithful event.
To find out more about the Lusitania see our dedicated display in the courtroom where the inquest into the sinking was held.
Kinsale Museum is open Tues-Sat 10am to 5pm.
