Birkenhead Drill

Q.1         When and where did the Birkenhead sink?

Ans.       The Birkenhead sank on 25th February 1851 and about 64 kilometers away from
Cape Town in South Africa.
Q2. What kind of people were carried as passengers on the Birkenhead?
Ans.       Soldiers and their families were being carried as passengers on the
Birkenhead.
Q3.  How did the Birkenhead come to be wrecked? Was any member of her
crew to blame?
Ans. The Birkenhead came to be wrecked because of its collision against a hidden
undiscovered rock I in the sea. Not any members of her crew was blamed.
Q4.Why was there lifeboat accommodation for only 180 people after the
collision with the rock?
Ans. There was lifeboat accommodation for only 180 people after the collision with the rock
because most of the life boats had been damaged. Only three lifeboats were in a useful
condition and each of them were having room for only 60 people.
Q5. Was there enough room in the lifeboats for all the women and children on
board?
Ans.   There was enough room in the lifeboats for all the women and children on board. The
total
number of women and children was 170 while the lifeboats could carry 180 people.
Q6.What would probably have happened had there been a panic?
Ans. If there had been a panic on the board, not a single person would have survived. The
boats
might have been overloaded and sunk into the sea.
Q7.Describe the behavior of the soldiers while the women and children
escaped in
the boats.
Ans. The soldiers showed great discipline and heroism while the women and children
escaped in the boats.
Q8. Were many of the men rescued who remained on the sinking ship? How
did the
survivors among those left on the ship managed to save themselves?
Ans. No, many of the men were not rescued, who remained on the ship struggled a lot on
the
surface of the sea and held on to pieces of the wreckage until a rescue ship arrived on the
spot and
picked them up.
Q9.Describe one great heroic action that took place after the Birkenhead went
down.
Ans.  The great heroic action that took place after the Birkenhead went down was that the
commander of the troops was hanging on to some wreckage where he saw two young
sailors struggling in the water. Seeing them, he pushed the wreckage towards them
and all three held on to it. At once the commander realized that the wreckage was
not strong enough to support them so he voluntarily gave up his grip and chose to
sacrifice his life.
Q10.Were the troops on board the Birkenhead were experienced and used to
facing danger? How do we know that they behaved with gallantry and
discipline up to the very last?
Ans.       No, The troops on board the Birkenhead were inexperienced and were not used to
facing danger, for most of them had joined army lately. We come to know about
gallantry and discipline through the report by one of the officer who was rescued.