BORN HULL 02/01/1859. SON OF JOE RUDGE (1811-1881) & SUSAN REBECCA COX (1831-1887). WORKED AS A TRAWLERMAN. HE MARRIED TWICE. ON 25/07/1883 TO EMMA BARMBY (1863-1897) & THEN ANNIE LAWSON, ON 29/06/1897, WHO LIVED AT 2 VINE COURT, ENGLISH STREET, HULL. HE WAS LOST AT SEA ON 01/06/1915, AGED 56.
Trawler Victoria, built by Cook Welton & Gemmell, Hull in 1890 and owned at the time of her loss by Charles Curzon (Brand. & Co), Milford Haven, was a British trawler of 155 tons.
On the 1st June, 1915, at about 4.30 p.m., the trawler Victoria endeavoured to escape from the German submarine U-34 (Claus Rücker). But after being badly damaged and losing one of her crew by shell-fire, the vessel was hove to.
The submarine was only 200 yard away, but she continued to fire, killing five men and wounding a sixth, although the trawler had surrendered. The spirit of the German submariner is here illustrated. Because a vessel, very naturally, tries to escape, she is submitted to shell-fire after giving in, and unnecessary loss of life is inflicted. The German commander apparently derived satisfaction from this shelling of an unarmed crew while stationary.
1. COLES (36), First Engineer, FV Victoria, Mercantile Marine, †01/06/1915, Husband of Agnes M. Coles, of 16, Trafalgar Rd., Milford. Born at Cardiff, Memorial: Tower Hill Memorial 2. MCCARTHY (41), Mate, FV Victoria, Mercantile Marine, †01/06/1915, Born at Brixham, Memorial: Tower Hill Memorial 3. RUDGE (56), Cook, FV Victoria, Mercantile Marine, †01/06/1915, Born at Hull, Memorial: Tower Hill Memorial 4. SLATE (48), Trimmer, FV Victoria, Mercantile Marine, †01/06/1915, Husband of Ellen Slate, of 28, Church St., Haverfordwest. Born at Haverfordwest, Memorial: Tower Hill Memorial 5. STEVENSON , Skipper, FV Victoria, Mercantile Marine, †01/06/1915, Memorial: Tower Hill Memorial
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