The Scillin tragedy
Ernest Hall writes about a little known tragedy and reflects on the futility of war
Many men who were conscientious objectors refused to join the forces in the second world war. Others signed up and, later in life, became Quakers. Their Quakerism often grew from a personal experience of conflict.
It was in the winter of 1942/43 when I first heard a rumour that a British submarine had torpedoed a vessel transporting British and Commonwealth prisoners of war from Libya to Italy with heavy casualties. I didn’t pay much attention. The rumour probably wasn’t true – most prison-camp rumours weren’t. In any case, I was much more concerned with my own survival.
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