{"product_id":"9781849954044-they-were-just-skulls","title":"They Were Just Skulls","description":"\u003cmeta content=\"text\/html; charset=utf-8\" http-equiv=\"Content-Type\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThe Naval Career of Fred Henley, Last Survivor of HM Submarine Truculent\u003cbr\u003e\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eAn incident-filled naval life during WWII seen through the eyes of a young man\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eFeatures the tragic loss of HMS \u003cem\u003eTruculent \u003c\/em\u003eand includes eye-witness accounts from survivors\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003eForeword by \u003cstrong\u003eAdmiral Lord West of Spithead\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e \u003cem\u003eFew people, even in the Navy, are even aware of this dreadful incident \u003c\/em\u003e[the loss of submarine HMS \u003cem\u003eTruculent \u003c\/em\u003ein the Thames]\u003cem\u003e and certainly not the details of human error that led to this huge loss of life. The account is gripping, and explains the strange title of the book. John Johnson-Allen has put Fred Henley’s personal accounts in the context of world-changing events, and in particular provides a wonderful snapshot of the Royal Navy of that era.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003e------------------------------------------\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis compelling story is the result of many hours spent recording the memories of Fred Henley. His life at sea is at the centre of his being and his own words are at the heart of the book. At the age of 14 Fred worked on a Thames sailing barge, then after his training at HMS \u003cem\u003eGanges\u003c\/em\u003e, he joined his first ship which took him from the icy Arctic Ocean to the heat of West Africa where the \u003cem\u003eBismarck\u003c\/em\u003e and her support ships were hunted.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e                His experiences included visiting Archangel, sailing on Arctic convoys, capturing German supply ships, the failed attack on Oran, landings in Piraeus, Salonika and the French Riviera and operating with special forces in the Greek Islands. There is inevitably some humour when Fred recounts his encounters with girls.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e                The book then explores the tragic loss of his last submarine, HMS \u003cem\u003eTruculent. \u003c\/em\u003eIn the cold January waters of the Thames Estuary, within sight of Southend, over 60 men were lost in a major disaster, just five years after the end of the war. The voices of the survivors are heard telling how they stood in complete blackness in a sunken submarine, waiting for the water to come in so that they could escape to the surface, only for all but a few to drift away and die in the darkness.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e                The story concludes with happier times with Fred visiting ports in the Mediterranean during peacetime as a married man.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Rarewaves","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56450729017718,"sku":"9781849954044","price":14.25,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0092\/7504\/8033\/files\/stand_37475285_38019922-04e5-486c-b0e8-cc0715cd214c.jpg?v=1762074421","url":"https:\/\/www.rarewaves.com\/products\/9781849954044-they-were-just-skulls","provider":"Rarewaves.com","version":"1.0","type":"link"}