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The SS ''Berlin'' was a steel ship, which was owned by the Great Eastern Railway and built for use on their ferry service from Harwich and Hook of Holland, which the company had initiated in 1893. The Great Eastern Railway ordered three steamships to operate the service. The ships were named ''Amsterdam, Berlin'' and ''Vienna'' to publicise some of the rail connections from the Hook of Holland. The ''Berlin'' was built in 1894 by Earles Shipbuilding and Engineering Company of Hull.〔(Wreck of the G.E.R. S.S. Berlin 1907 )〕 She had berths for 218 first- and 120 second-class passengers. ==Sinking== At 0500 on Thursday, 21 February 1907 the Hook Lighthouse-Keeper recorded that ''Berlin'' was navigating the channel, when she suddenly veered off course northwards after being struck on her port quarter by a huge wave. Captain Precious and Pilot Bronders managed to return the ship to her original course, but the ''Berlin'' was struck by another wave and was swung northwards, causing her to become impaled on the tip of the granite breakwater at the entrance to the New Waterway. The waves were sweeping over the vessel and both Captain Precious and Pilot Bronders were soon swept overboard. The Dutch steam life-boat ''President van Heel'' attempted to offer aid, but the rough seas prevented her from being able to approach the stricken vessel, and the ''Berlin'' broke in two amidships at 0600. The majority of those on board had fled to the bow which sank when the ship broke in half.〔(TERRIBLE DISASTER TO THE S.S. BERLIN AT THE HOOK OF HOLLAND: THE DOOMED VESSEL BREAKING IN HALF AMIDSHIPS, FEBRUARY. 1907. )〕 The lifeboat could not close with the survivors on the stern of the vessel due to the weather. Only one man, a Captain Parkinson who was travelling as a passenger, was able to swim to the safety of the lifeboat. Prince Henry made a visit the following day and went out on the pilot boat ''Helvoetsluis'', along with the Dutch steam life-boat ''President van Heel'', to recover the deceased from the sea and rescue the fifteen people remaining on the stern. The rescue of the people required a great deal of effort. An important role in this rescue was played by lifeboat Captain Martijn Sperling〔(Postcard of Captain Sperling's rescue efforts )〕 who used a small boat to reach the North Pier and ascend its iron beacon, from where he was able to throw ropes to the deck of the wreck to rescue 11 of the survivors. Captain Sperling then took a yawl from the salvage vessel ''Van der Tak'' alongside the wreck to rescue the remaining three female survivors.〔(SS Berlin Disaster )〕 Both Alberts Frères and the English firm ''The Warwick Trading Company'' filmed these events; they are considered to be the only Dutch film of a current event that attracted international attention in the early years of cinema.〔(The SS Berlin Disaster at Hoek van Holland )〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「SS Berlin (1894)」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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