Birkenhead survivors
Benjamin Turner
BENJAMIN TURNER was
a second class boy on board the Birkenhead
and servant to Mr Archbold the gunner.
After the wreck he served in the Baltic during the
Russian War receiving the Baltic medal,and he also possessed the China
medal for the bombardment of the Taku Forts in 1859-60.
Subsequently he served in various ships until finally he left the service with
the rank of ship’s corporal on a well-earned pension settling in Landport
Hants Landport, Hants. His
recollection of the events included the following….
“I was a second-class boy on board the Birkenhead
at the time she was wrecked and was servant to Mr. Archbold the gunner of
the ship. When the ship struck the
rock I was in my hammock asleep forward in the eyes of the ship under the
topgallant forecastle and was thrown out on to the deck by the concussion of the
ship striking the rock, at the same time the boatswain’s mate rushing under
the forecastle piping ‘Hands save ship!’ I then made my way aft to the
quarter-deck, where I saw my master Mr. Archbold in the act of sending up
rockets and burning blue lights as signals of distress and I held the staffs for
him while he fixed them on. Shortly after this the ship broke in halves in
midships taking all the men down with her that were in the act of getting the
paddle box boats out. I was on the poop at that time with several others
expecting every moment to be our last and when the poop was only about two feet
above water the order was given to try and save ourselves. Seeing there was no
other escape I took off my flannel and trousers and threw them overboard and
jumped into the sea and made for the shore as best I could. It was very dark at
the time you could not see one another in the water….
…..I saw many poor
fellows hanging with their arms over a spar and their legs in the water taken
down by the sharks. At last I
managed to get on shore along with
two others - W Neal carpenter’s mate of the ship and a soldier whose name I
forgot. They were completely
exhausted after being about fourteen hours in the water. I was so burnt with the
sun and salt water that it was quite three weeks before I could lay on my back.
We had some distance to travel before we could get any relief - my
shipmates carrying me in turns on their backs.
At last we came to a
farm belonging to Captain Smales where we were treated very kindly and on the
following Sunday were taken on board HMS Rhadamanthus to Simon’s Bay from
which we sailed a week late in HMS Amazon for dear old England
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