Bertram Hayes was born in Birkenhead in Cheshire, but his family moved to Goole in Yorkshire when he was four years of age. He began his service in the Merchant Navy as a Junior Clerk at the age of 14 in the Goole Shipping Company. He went to sea in 1880 and gained his Master's Certificate in 1889 and his Extra Master's in 1897. In 1898 he joined the firm of Ismay, Imrie & Company (parent company of the White Star Line), sailing as Mate aboard the Coptic. He was promoted to Master and commanded the SS Britannic, and during the Boer War he took troops to South Africa, carrying 37,000 troops in three years, for which he was awarded the Transport Medal.
Hayes was called as a witness to the British Board of Trade inquiry held after the Titanic disaster, which he attended on 11 June 1912. In his testimony, Hayes was questioned mainly on the subject on routines regarding spotting ice. Hayes described the circumstances on the night of the sinking of the Titanic as "abnormal, which nobody had experienced before".[1]
During the First World War he was appointed Captain of the RMS Olympic when the ship was employed as a troop carrier across the Atlantic and the Mediterranean. In 1917 he was awarded a CMG for his services. On 12 May 1918, en route from New York to Southampton and while in the English Channel, the Olympic, sighted the U-boat SM U-103. After opening fire, the Olympic turned to ram and sank the submarine. For this service, he was awarded the DSO.[2]
He was knighted in 1919 for "valuable services in connection with the transport of troops".[3] Between 1922 and 1924 he captained the RMS Majestic, which was then the world's largest ship, and retired as Commodore of the White Star Line in 1924 when the company reinstated the rank.
In 1925 he published his memoirs, Hull Down, Reminisces of Windjammers, Troops and Travellers, in the book Fox-Hayes makes no mention of the ill-fated RMS Titanic even though he was with the White Star Line at the time of the sinking.
He remained a bachelor and died on 15 May 1941 at his home in Liverpool.
Referencesedit
^"TIP | British Wreck Commissioner's Inquiry | Day 21 | Testimony of Bertram F. Hayes (Master, SS oceanic)".
^The London Gazette Publication date:18 June 1918 Issue:30756 Page:7302
^The London Gazette Publication date:12 September 1919 Issue:31553 Page:11575
- www.encyclopedia-titanica.org
External linksedit
Photograph of Sir Bertram Fox Hayes from the National Portrait Gallery.
February 29, 2024
bertram, hayes, kcmg, april, 1864, 1941, captain, with, white, star, line, born, 1864, april, 1864birkenhead, cheshire, englanddied15, 1941, 1941, aged, liverpool, lancashire, englandoccupationmaster, marinerlife, career, editbertram, hayes, born, birkenhead, . Sir Bertram Fox Hayes KCMG DSO RD RNR 25 April 1864 15 May 1941 was a sea captain with the White Star Line Sir Bertram Fox HayesBorn 1864 04 25 25 April 1864Birkenhead Cheshire EnglandDied15 May 1941 1941 05 15 aged 77 Liverpool Lancashire EnglandOccupationMaster MarinerLife and career editBertram Hayes was born in Birkenhead in Cheshire but his family moved to Goole in Yorkshire when he was four years of age He began his service in the Merchant Navy as a Junior Clerk at the age of 14 in the Goole Shipping Company He went to sea in 1880 and gained his Master s Certificate in 1889 and his Extra Master s in 1897 In 1898 he joined the firm of Ismay Imrie amp Company parent company of the White Star Line sailing as Mate aboard the Coptic He was promoted to Master and commanded the SS Britannic and during the Boer War he took troops to South Africa carrying 37 000 troops in three years for which he was awarded the Transport Medal He also served on the White Star Line ships Teutonic Germanic Suevic Arabic the Laurentic in which he inaugurated the company s Canadian service in 1909 and the Adriatic Hayes was called as a witness to the British Board of Trade inquiry held after the Titanic disaster which he attended on 11 June 1912 In his testimony Hayes was questioned mainly on the subject on routines regarding spotting ice Hayes described the circumstances on the night of the sinking of the Titanic as abnormal which nobody had experienced before 1 During the First World War he was appointed Captain of the RMS Olympic when the ship was employed as a troop carrier across the Atlantic and the Mediterranean In 1917 he was awarded a CMG for his services On 12 May 1918 en route from New York to Southampton and while in the English Channel the Olympic sighted the U boat SM U 103 After opening fire the Olympic turned to ram and sank the submarine For this service he was awarded the DSO 2 He was knighted in 1919 for valuable services in connection with the transport of troops 3 Between 1922 and 1924 he captained the RMS Majestic which was then the world s largest ship and retired as Commodore of the White Star Line in 1924 when the company reinstated the rank In 1925 he published his memoirs Hull Down Reminisces of Windjammers Troops and Travellers in the book Fox Hayes makes no mention of the ill fated RMS Titanic even though he was with the White Star Line at the time of the sinking He remained a bachelor and died on 15 May 1941 at his home in Liverpool References edit TIP British Wreck Commissioner s Inquiry Day 21 Testimony of Bertram F Hayes Master SS oceanic The London Gazette Publication date 18 June 1918 Issue 30756 Page 7302 The London Gazette Publication date 12 September 1919 Issue 31553 Page 11575 www angloboerwar com News from 1924 1941 Retirement Death of Commodore Hayes www encyclopedia titanica orgExternal links editPhotograph of Sir Bertram Fox Hayes from the National Portrait Gallery Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Bertram Fox Hayes amp oldid 1075164789, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
