Sinking of the Lusitania
Witness History7 Touko 2025

Sinking of the Lusitania

On 7 May 1915, the British ocean liner, the Lusitania, was sunk by a German submarine off the Irish coast, as it sailed from New York to Liverpool.

Thousands of passengers were onboard and 1,200 people died.

The attack helped turn American opinion against Germany.

In 2015, Alex Last used BBC archives to tell the story.

Eye-witness accounts brought to life by archive. Witness History is for those fascinated by the past. We take you to the events that have shaped our world through the eyes of the people who were there. For nine minutes every day, we take you back in time and all over the world, to examine wars, coups, scientific discoveries, cultural moments and much more.

Recent episodes explore everything from football in Brazil, the history of the ‘Indian Titanic’ and the invention of air fryers, to Public Enemy’s Fight The Power, subway art and the political crisis in Georgia. We look at the lives of some of the most famous leaders, artists, scientists and personalities in history, including: visionary architect Antoni Gaudi and the design of the Sagrada Familia; Michael Jordan and his bespoke Nike trainers; Princess Diana at the Taj Mahal; and Görel Hanser, manager of legendary Swedish pop band Abba on the influence they’ve had on the music industry. You can learn all about fascinating and surprising stories, such as the time an Iraqi journalist hurled his shoes at the President of the United States in protest of America’s occupation of Iraq; the creation of the Hollywood commercial that changed advertising forever; and the ascent of the first Aboriginal MP.

(Photo: Sinking of the Lusitania. Credit: Universal History Archive/Getty Images)

Jaksot(2000)

Founder of the Cuban National Ballet

Founder of the Cuban National Ballet

We go back to 1959 when Cuba’s most famous ballet dancer Alicia Alonso turned her back on a successful career on the world stage and returned home to form Cuba’s National Ballet Company. She spoke to ...

21 Loka 202210min

Cuba's boxing ban

Cuba's boxing ban

Earlier this year, Cuba lifted a 60-year ban on professional boxing, which Fidel Castro imposed in 1962. Before then, amateur boxers who wanted to turn pro, had to risk everything in order to defect. ...

20 Loka 20229min

The ‘army’ that taught Cuba to read and write

The ‘army’ that taught Cuba to read and write

In 1961, Fidel Castro launched a nationwide campaign aimed to eradicate illiteracy in Cuba. An ‘army’ of volunteers known as brigadistas equipped with books and pencils travelled across the country t...

19 Loka 20228min

Cuban Missile Crisis: The showdown

Cuban Missile Crisis: The showdown

Jo Fidgen hears what was happening in the Pentagon and the Kremlin in the final days of the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis. The Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev finally offered to withdraw the missiles as t...

18 Loka 202210min

Cuban Missile Crisis: The photos

Cuban Missile Crisis: The photos

In 1962, the Cuban missile crisis brought the world to the brink of nuclear war. Jo Fidgen spoke to American Intelligence officer Dino Brugioni who played a crucial role as the crisis unfolded. Dino ...

17 Loka 202210min

Cesar Chavez’s campaign for farm workers

Cesar Chavez’s campaign for farm workers

In the 1960s, a wave of strikes and protest marches by Mexican-American farm workers inspired Latinos across the US. The movement was led by Cesar Chavez - a man now regarded by his community as a civ...

14 Loka 202210min

Torturing strikers in South Korea

Torturing strikers in South Korea

Park Heongjun takes us back to May 1980, when a strike in the city of Gwangju became one of the most divisive moments in South Korea’s history and led to the imprisonment of activist Bae Ok Byoung. Sh...

12 Loka 20229min

Disney animators' strike

Disney animators' strike

Walt Disney cartoonists went on strike for nine weeks in 1941. They were led by Art Babbitt, Disney’s top animator who created Goofy.The picket line was remarkable for its colourful artwork and suppor...

11 Loka 20229min

Suosittua kategoriassa Yhteiskunta

olipa-kerran-otsikko
siita-on-vaikea-puhua
gogin-ja-janin-maailmanhistoria
i-dont-like-mondays
poks
kolme-kaannekohtaa
aikalisa
kaksi-aitia
antin-palautepalvelu
sita
yopuolen-tarinoita-2
mamma-mia
rss-murhan-anatomia
meidan-pitais-puhua
rss-nikotellen
loukussa
rss-palmujen-varjoissa
ootsa-kuullut-tasta-2
rss-ootsa-kuullut-tasta
lahko