Sinking of the Lusitania
Witness History7 Maj 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)

Avsnitt(2000)

Camp David Summit: How Middle East peace talks failed

Camp David Summit: How Middle East peace talks failed

In 2000, President Bill Clinton led a major effort to end the Israel-Palestinian conflict. The two sides were brought together at the leafy presidential retreat in Maryland. The Israeli leader, Ehud B...

12 Sep 20239min

Oslo Peace Accords: The secret talks behind Middle East deal

Oslo Peace Accords: The secret talks behind Middle East deal

In September 1993, a peace agreement was signed between Israel and the Palestinians after months of secret negotiations.The historic handshake between Chairman of the Palestinian Liberation Organisati...

11 Sep 20239min

Victor Jara: killed in Chile's coup

Victor Jara: killed in Chile's coup

On 11 September 1973, General Augusto Pinochet deposed Chile's President Salvador Allende in a military coup.Thousands of people were tortured and killed in the months after the coup, including the fo...

8 Sep 20239min

Organising Chile's 1973 military coup

Organising Chile's 1973 military coup

On 11 September 1973, General Augusto Pinochet deposed Chile's democratically elected president, Salvador Allende, in a violent military coup.Hermógenes Pérez de Arce was a politician and helped organ...

7 Sep 202310min

Murder of Swedish politician Anna Lindh

Murder of Swedish politician Anna Lindh

In 2003, Swedish Foreign Minister Anna Lindh was stabbed to death in a department store in the middle of Stockholm. The 46-year-old member of the ruling Social Democratic party, was tipped as successo...

6 Sep 20239min

Bi Kidude: Zanzibar's 'golden grandmother of music'

Bi Kidude: Zanzibar's 'golden grandmother of music'

In the 1980s, Bi Kidude burst onto the international music scene, when she was in her 70s. She was one of the first women from Zanzibar to sing in public without wearing the veil, in the traditional M...

5 Sep 202310min

Arctic 30: Russian arrest of Greenpeace campaigners

Arctic 30: Russian arrest of Greenpeace campaigners

On 14 September 2013, the Arctic Sunrise - a ship belonging to the environmental group Greenpeace - embarked on an Arctic expedition.Its aim was to disrupt the first day of drilling on a newly built o...

4 Sep 20239min

Leaving China to study after the Cultural Revolution

Leaving China to study after the Cultural Revolution

Launched in 1966 by Communist leader Mao Zedong, the Cultural Revolution plunged China into a decade of chaos. The education of millions of young people was disrupted and China was cut off from the re...

1 Sep 202310min

Populärt inom Samhälle & Kultur

podme-dokumentar
p3-dokumentar
badfluence
en-mork-historia
mardromsgasten
gynning-berg
nemo-moter-en-van
aftonbladet-krim
creepypodden-med-jack-werner
skaringer-nessvold
killradet
p3-historia
hor-har
flashback-forever
p1-dokumentar
spar
svenska-fall
historiska-brott
vad-blir-det-for-mord
kod-katastrof