Riddle of the Sands and what happened to Dulcibella

[castaway]

Anyone who loves small boats should read or must have read this wonderful book. It is also available as a download for MP3. The 1979 film version is sympathetically done IMHO and available on DVD.

But that is not what I set out to say!

A friend just sent me this link which fills in some of the blanks and provides much of the real life background to Childers and the man he was.

http://www.yalumba.co.uk/Framesets/Dulcibella.htm


Hope this is of interest.

Regards Nick

 

[Wansworth]

Thanks for that.I always assumed the ducibelle had been a double ended ships lifeboat.

 

[oldvarnish]

I don't know what happened to the original, but the year after the film was made the boat used for filming was in Lymington Yacht Haven. I think Laurent Giles had some part in the design.
It was immaculate looking, but little of it appeared worked. But that didn't matter because it was only required to look good from the camera's point of view.
Below there was no fitting out - it was a shell containing only a huge Mercedes engine to get it quickly to the right place at the right time.
All the cabin interiors were shot in a studio.

 

[Twister_Ken]

Pasted in, a note about the man who was believed to be the inspiration for Carruthers...

Gordon Strachey Shephard was born in Madras in July, 1885, the second son of Sir Horatio and Lady Shephard. He was educated at Summerfields, Eton and the R.M.C, Sandhurst, and was commissioned into the Royal Fusiliers in January, 1905. Before the Great War he did a great deal of yachting and became a member of the Royal Cruising Club. In 1912 he joined the Royal Flying Corps and flew to France with the first five squadrons on 13 August, 1914. He received the Legion of Honour from General Joffre for good reconnaissance work during the retreat from Mons, and in January, 1915, he won the M.C. He was later awarded the D.S.O. for distinguished service in the field. Sholto Douglas [Lord Douglas of Kirtleside] wrote of him: 'There was one other man under whom we came to serve at that time who was also to provide me with a lesson in this matter of leadership. We were in the 1st Brigade of the Royal Flying Corps, which was commanded by Gordon Shephard, a Brigadier who, for all his exalted rank, was only about 35 years of age. One of the earliest of the pilots in the Flying Corps, he was somewhat vacuous in appearance with a receding chin and afflicted with a slight lisp - physically a colourless personality - but that was the only thing about him that was lacking in colour. Although he was not a good pilot, Gordon Shephard's mind was of a brilliance that would undoubtedly have led to his becoming one of the great leaders in the Air Force; but that poor flying of his brought about his death in an accident before the end of the war, and so his name came only to play a minor role in the history of flying. In fact, it has come to be much better known for the part it is said to have played in the creation of the novel The Riddle of the Sands, by Erskine Childers, who used him, young though he must have been, as a model for Carruthers, the hero of that well known story.'

The diary of the 1st Brigade R.F.C. records: 'Bruay, January 19th, 1918. Casualties. Personnel: Brigadier-General G. S. Shephard, D.S.O., M.C. Commanding 1st Brigade R.F.C., killed in flying accident. Machines: Nieuport Scout No. B3160, wrecked.'

The Casualty Report for January includes the following: 'No. 40 Squadron. No. 10 Wing. Left Aerodrome [Bruay] to visit Auchel at 11.5 am. on 19/1/18. Spun into ground at about 11.15 am. on edge of Auchel aerodrome. Pilot admitted to hospital and died from injuries.'

The A & Q.M.G. diary of the 1st Canadian Division recorded his death: 'Auchel. 21st January, 1918. Brigadier-General Sheppard (sic), D.S.O. M.C., Commanding the Royal Flying Corps of the 1st Army, was buried at Lozinghem, death resulted from a flying accident. The firing party with bugles and pipes was furnished by the 16th Battalion Canadian Scottish and turned out very smart. The whole funeral rites were very impressive. General Sheppard (sic) was very popular in the Canadian Corps and it was understood by those who read The Riddle of the Sands that he was the hero of this tale.' Brigadier-General Shephard is buried in Lapugnoy Military Cemetery, France.

 

[pragmatist]

Castaway - wonderful ! Always been fascinated by Childers. Oddly enough I was travelling across Belgium by train many years ago and got chatting to an Irish sailor who had been involved with Asgard when she was a sail training ship.

Many thanks

P

 

[castaway]

Pasted in, a note about the man who was believed to be the inspiration for Carruthers...

Gordon Strachey Shephard was born in Madras in July, 1885, the second son of Sir Horatio and Lady Shephard. He was educated at Summerfields, Eton and the R.M.C, Sandhurst, and was commissioned into the Royal Fusiliers in January, 1905. Before the Great War he did a great deal of yachting and became a member of the Royal Cruising Club. In 1912 he joined the Royal Flying Corps and flew to France with the first five squadrons on 13 August, 1914. He received the Legion of Honour from General Joffre for good reconnaissance work during the retreat from Mons, and in January, 1915, he won the M.C. He was later awarded the D.S.O. for distinguished service in the field. Sholto Douglas [Lord Douglas of Kirtleside] wrote of him: 'There was one other man under whom we came to serve at that time who was also to provide me with a lesson in this matter of leadership. We were in the 1st Brigade of the Royal Flying Corps, which was commanded by Gordon Shephard, a Brigadier who, for all his exalted rank, was only about 35 years of age. One of the earliest of the pilots in the Flying Corps, he was somewhat vacuous in appearance with a receding chin and afflicted with a slight lisp - physically a colourless personality - but that was the only thing about him that was lacking in colour. Although he was not a good pilot, Gordon Shephard's mind was of a brilliance that would undoubtedly have led to his becoming one of the great leaders in the Air Force; but that poor flying of his brought about his death in an accident before the end of the war, and so his name came only to play a minor role in the history of flying. In fact, it has come to be much better known for the part it is said to have played in the creation of the novel The Riddle of the Sands, by Erskine Childers, who used him, young though he must have been, as a model for Carruthers, the hero of that well known story.'

The diary of the 1st Brigade R.F.C. records: 'Bruay, January 19th, 1918. Casualties. Personnel: Brigadier-General G. S. Shephard, D.S.O., M.C. Commanding 1st Brigade R.F.C., killed in flying accident. Machines: Nieuport Scout No. B3160, wrecked.'

The Casualty Report for January includes the following: 'No. 40 Squadron. No. 10 Wing. Left Aerodrome [Bruay] to visit Auchel at 11.5 am. on 19/1/18. Spun into ground at about 11.15 am. on edge of Auchel aerodrome. Pilot admitted to hospital and died from injuries.'

The A & Q.M.G. diary of the 1st Canadian Division recorded his death: 'Auchel. 21st January, 1918. Brigadier-General Sheppard (sic), D.S.O. M.C., Commanding the Royal Flying Corps of the 1st Army, was buried at Lozinghem, death resulted from a flying accident. The firing party with bugles and pipes was furnished by the 16th Battalion Canadian Scottish and turned out very smart. The whole funeral rites were very impressive. General Sheppard (sic) was very popular in the Canadian Corps and it was understood by those who read The Riddle of the Sands that he was the hero of this tale.' Brigadier-General Shephard is buried in Lapugnoy Military Cemetery, France.

Just taking a quick look at the Nieuport Scout on Wikipedia and see it had a radial engine. I remember hearing that the torque effects produced by this sort of power plant on such light airframes produced a lethal result sometimes in the hands of less than experienced hands. I see from Ken's artical that Sheppard 'spun in'.

Very odd the effect of engines mounted fore and aft along the center line of other vehicles. My BMW K100RS (bike) was a nightmare at lowspeed as the torque or gyroscopic action or something would steer the machine away from its intended path when slowing down and filtering thro traffic. Very disconcerting, but a lot worse whilst coming over the fence in a biplane !

Regards Nick

 

[BobPrell]

Thanks for that.I always assumed the ducibelle had been a double ended ships lifeboat.

Yes it was. If you look closely at the second smaller picture you can see the typical shape of a lifeboat stern. The counter has been very neatly built onto the existing hull as part of the conversion. This was pointed out in a biography of Childers published about 1995.

 

[Tintin]

Thanks for posting that - very interesting. Another book on the growing wish list

 

[Woodlouse]

Thanks for that.I always assumed the ducibelle had been a double ended ships lifeboat.

It's been a long time since i've read the book, but I recall that Dulcibella was supposed to have been a double ended lifeboat that had a counter added when she was converted to a yacht.

 

[Redwing228]

Vixen

Anyone who loves small boats should read or must have read this wonderful book. It is also available as a download for MP3. The 1979 film version is sympathetically done IMHO and available on DVD.

But that is not what I set out to say!

A friend just sent me this link which fills in some of the blanks and provides much of the real life background to Childers and the man he was.

http://www.yalumba.co.uk/Framesets/Dulcibella.htm


Hope this is of interest.

Regards Nick

There is a bit of information in an old issue of Classic Boat (Issue 3 Summer 1987):- The Dulcibella in The Riddle was based on Childers' own boat Vixen that was a conversion of a 28 foot lifeboat called Thomas Chapman, originally based near Margate between 1880 and 1889.

The boat used for the 1979 film was a conversion by Tim Bungay of another lifeboat, the Susan Ashley a 35 foot lifeboat based on the Isle of Wight from 1907 to 1937. The article in CB details the conversion and finishes with the boat in the hands of two Germans intent on taking her to Hamburg (mid 1980s.)

 

[MarkGaff]

John Atkins, a Lymington local, delivery skipper and lover of wooden boats was responsible for managing the conversion of Dulcibella for Laurent Giles and the film producers. His deal was that he would get the boat in payment after the film.
I knew him as a teenager In Lymington and delivered the Itchen Ferry “Tom Tit” from Cornwall with him after he bought her.

I chartered her in the summer of 1979 to cruise the Solent pubs with my future wife and four Stanford University friends.

Despite what has been suggested here she was well enough fitted out for 6 young adventurers to have a ball, though I will say that the hemp lines were hell!

I have wonderful photos of the trip, and that young student and I are still married, and still sailing!

 

[Sybarite]

Anyone who loves small boats should read or must have read this wonderful book. It is also available as a download for MP3. The 1979 film version is sympathetically done IMHO and available on DVD.

But that is not what I set out to say!

A friend just sent me this link which fills in some of the blanks and provides much of the real life background to Childers and the man he was.

Dulcibella


Hope this is of interest.

Regards Nick

My eldest sister was at school with his son: Erskine Childers II.

 

[Wansworth]

I liked th book much better tan the film,my imagination has been fueled by years in old boats and low headroom........and primes stoves?

 

[Fossil]

Anyone who is interested in the wealth of factual detail contained in Riddle of the Sands should take a look at the website put up by Tim Wright some years back (it is still available) - The 3rd Adventure Club Podcast: On Compasses & Timetables

The original idea was for the protagonists to follow the progress of Wilson and Carruthers through their adventures in Denmark and Germany, staying as close to the original timetable as possible. Through many podcasts and much correspondence, many aspects of the story were investigated - there WAS a Rippingill Stove, it turns out! Unfortunately, lack of finance prevented the wheeze from reaching a final conclusion, but the website remains as a useful reference source.

 

[Frogmogman]

A friend just sent me this link which fills in some of the blanks and provides much of the real life background to Childers and the man he was.

Thanks for posting that. It filled in a few blanks.

Aside from my enthusiasm for the riddle of the sands, which I first read when I was about 13, and have re-read twice since, I was always interested in Erskine Chiders involvement in Irish nationalism.

Back in 2014, with the centenary of the outbreak of WW1 I started researching the involvement of members of my own family in the conflict. In 1915 the Navy commissioned the construction of 12 fast Motor Torpedo boats. My Grandfather, aged 20 became the Captain of the first of these 40 foot CMBs (Coastal motor boat). CMB1 was lost with battle honours in an engagement with some German Destroyers off Zeebrugge on 20th June 1917, and he was taken prisoner.

In my research into CMBs, I discovered that Erskine Childers, who had been given the job of drawing up a plan for the invasion of Germany by way of the Frisian Islands, ended up joining the CMB squadron as a navigator.

I have a photo I unearthed of the original CMB crews in training. My Grandfather is the slightly swarthy looking character in the first standing row, just to the right of the commander, centre (seated), next to the man holding the dog. I've managed to identify 3 others in the photo, and would like to identify Childers (assuming he is one of those present). I think he would have been a Lieutenant a this stage, and think either the man seated (on the left of the Commander in the photo) or the man seated 2nd from the right on the ground could be him. Anyone have any theories ?

For those interested, here is a reasonably good potted history of the Coastal Motor Boats

Coastal Motor Boats - 1916 | Naval Historical Society of Australia

 

[Mark-1]

Anyone who is interested in the wealth of factual detail contained in Riddle of the Sands should take a look at the website put up by Tim Wright some years back (it is still available) - The 3rd Adventure Club Podcast: On Compasses & Timetables

The original idea was for the protagonists to follow the progress of Wilson and Carruthers through their adventures in Denmark and Germany, staying as close to the original timetable as possible. Through many podcasts and much correspondence, many aspects of the story were investigated - there WAS a Rippingill Stove, it turns out! Unfortunately, lack of finance prevented the wheeze from reaching a final conclusion, but the website remains as a useful reference source.

Thanks for sharing that, will take a look when I get a moment. I *think* this is a nicer link for the podcasts.

Riddle of the Sands Adventure Club
Podcast: Riddle of the Sands Adventure Club Podcast Republic

Podcast by Lloyd Shepherd & Tim Wright

Subscribe to this podcast:

https://soundcloud.com/users%2Fsoundcloud

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Also, this is quite good.

All Things Ransome -- A Repository of Arthur Ransome Materials

 

[IAmCharlieC]

there is a fantastic and fascinating book about the riddle of the sands - a book about the book.
The Riddle: Illuminating the Story Behind the Riddle of the Sands: Amazon.co.uk: Drummond, Maldwin, Mackrill, Martyn: 9781910500392: Books

we sailed to Borkum once on Rona2, and moored up in this harbour which was clearly created to invade england... it has these long roll on roll off pontoons which can only have one purpose... According to google there was an english spy called Trench who got busted in 1910 checking it out in the run up to the first world war - investigating exactly what Childers was warning against..

 

[ltcom]

Thanks for posting that - very interesting. Another book on the growing wish list

Yours for free (it is out of copyright)
The Project Gutenberg eBook of The Riddle Of The Sands, by Erskine Childers
It can be downloaded from that website too.

 

[st599]

Thanks for sharing that, will take a look when I get a moment. I *think* this is a nicer link for the podcasts.

Riddle of the Sands Adventure Club
Podcast: Riddle of the Sands Adventure Club Podcast Republic

Podcast by Lloyd Shepherd & Tim Wright

Wasn't their original idea to write a book which included the text from the book and modern pilotage to allow the reader to follow the trip?