The Bismarck's cat

[Jeff]

SMNers,

Given the thread about pets at sea a while back, I thought some of you
might enjoy the following which I gleaned from...

From _Sea War 1939-1945_ by Janusz Piekalkiewicz ÕISBN 0-918678-17-xå

It concerns the fate of the Bismarck's mascot when the batteleship was
sunk.

"Some hours later, the destroyer Cossack (Captain Vian) crossed these
waters on its homeward voyage Õ27 May 1941å. One of the seamen spotted
amid wreckage and bodies a black cat floating on a board. The destroyer
stopped and picked up the soaking-wet animal, which was shivering with
cold. The cat was given the name Oscar, and so the Bismarck's mascot
joined the Royal Navy." Õpg. 142å

"....The night of 24 October 1941, U563 (Lt. Bargsten) torpedoed the
destroyer Cossack (Captain Berthen) in the North Atlantic. The
destroyer went down on 26 October 1941. The cat, Oscar, ... was once
again one of those to be saved. One of the British destroyers took
Oscar to Gibraltar where he was taken over by the crew of the Ark
Royal." Õpg. 170å

".... ÕWhen the Ark Royal was sunk on 14 November 1941 å the crew of
the carrier (including Oscar...) remained for some time in Gibraltar.
Oscar was said to bring bad luck; in the space of only five months, the
battleship Bismarck, the destroyer Cossack, and the aircraft carrier Ark
Royal-- and he was on all three ships--went down. Oscar now remained in
the office of the harbor master in Gibraltar. The entry in the archives
of the Royal Navy states, 'Oscar, the Bismarck's cat, finished his days
at the Home for Sailor's in Belfast,' around 1955." Õpg. 173å

On page 173, their is a small black and white photograph of "Oscar, the
Bismarck's Cat," a pastel portrait by Mrs. Georgina Shaw-Baker (National
Maritime Museum, Greenwich, 1980). The photo is rather dark. but the
cat appears to have a white (light) muzzle and bib. A person in naval
uniform with a cane appears next to the cat.

FWIW...Jeff
======================================================
Jeff Dixon "From generation to generation,
Grad Student the test of what you produce
Penn State University is the care it inspires."
jh...@psu.edu -Erik H. Erikson-

[Keith (no, not that Keith)]

Jeff wrote in message

. The entry in the archives
>of the Royal Navy states, 'Oscar, the Bismarck's cat, finished his days
>at the Home for Sailor's in Belfast,' around 1955." Õpg. 173å

The home later burned down....

--
K.B.

If they _are_ out to get you, are you still paranoid?

[Ronald Skinner]

The message <nF_X3.1576$n3.7...@news0.telusplanet.net>
from "Keith (no, not that Keith)"
<kbetty@!Nospam!.telusplanet.net> contains these words:

> Jeff wrote in message

> --
> K.B.

I fancy that all this is a fairy story - I joined "Ark Royal" in the
builder's (Cammell Lairds) yard in November, 1938, and I remained
aboard until she was torpedoed in November, 1941. I never heard of
or saw Oscar, nor have I met any ex-Ark Royal who has. Sorry to put
paid to a delightful story. Ron Skinner, Chairman, Wartime Ark
Royals Association.