Author Talks and Lectures with Nate Hendley: Atrocity on the Atlantic

All are Welcome to the official launch of Toronto based journalist and author Nate Hendley's most recent book, Atrocity on the Atlantic: Attack on a Hospital Ship During the Great War.

The book describes the events on the evening of June 27, 1918, when an unarmed, clearly marked Canadian hospital ship called the Llandovery Castle was torpedoed off the coast of Ireland by a German U-boat, a clear violation of international treaties. The submarine commander tried to kill the survivors to conceal his war crime. The sinking was condemned by the public, press, and politicians, from around the world. In 1921, the attack was prosecuted at the Leipzig War Crimes Trials (the little-known attempt to bring German war criminals to justice after the Great War). The German Supreme Court ruling about the attack forever changed war crime prosecutions.

Principles established by the Leipzig court helped form the legal foundation of the International Criminal Court (ICC), established in 2002 to bring war criminals from around the world to justice. Yet, despite this fact, the tragedy soon faded from collective memory in Canada. The presentation will discuss the attack, the survivors and the deceased, why the attack was forgotten, and the long aftermath of an atrocity that continues to impact military conduct and international law today. 

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If you identify as a person with a disability and require an accessibility accommodation to participate in this program, please contact Accessibility Services by email, accessibleservices@tpl.ca, or voicemail, 416-393-7099, to make a request. Please contact us at least three weeks in advance.