Mr. Rolland

New York (1915)London (1915)

Allies (Triple Entente) Britain France Russia NOTICE: The United States of America is officially Neutral in the year 1915 Central Powers Germany Austria-Hungary Ottoman Empire

There is only one problem…It was spotted by a German U-boat off the coast off Ireland… The Germans torpedoed the Lusitania

Lusitania SinkingFacts 1 torpedo was fired 2 explosions occurred The gigantic ship sank in 15 minutes 1195 people Perished Of those 1195, 128 were Americans

Germany Murdered 1195 civilians Committed a war crime Changed the rules of warfare by targeting civilians Americans and most people around the world denounced the attack and public support of the WWI effort went to the allies Open and Shut Case!

The “neutral” Americans were supplying weapons to the British by using the passengers on the ship as a human shield Germans warned the British that any hostile ship in the British Isles would be targeted Germans warned the British that they would partake in “unrestricted submarine warfare” Warned the British that the Lusitania would be targeted if it disembarked Despite these warnings, the ship still sailed

German Flag, circa 1915The Germans also believed The Americans were deceptive in claiming to be neutral while supplying an enemy of war with arms The second explosion heard by many passengers was the result of the munitions onboard exploding, thus explaining why the ship sunk so quickly If the Germans let the Lusitania sail to London, the British would unload the weapons and ultimately use them against the Germans

British FlagThey claim That the sinking of the Lusitania was a barbaric crime against humanity Denied any presence of weaponry on the ship Believed that the Lusitania posed no threat to Germany Did not recognize the British Naval Blockade as justification for the sinking of the Lusitania

American FlagClaims British withheld information from America that indicated that the Lusitania would be targeted by the Germans Did not immediately acknowledge the presence of weapons on the ship Believed that Germany wanted to bring the US into the War Speculated that the British may have wanted the US to enter the war on the allies side, thus ignoring the warnings from Germany

Live rounds recovered from the site of the Lusitania wreck

The munitions found aboard the Lusitania were stamped with Bethlehem Steel Corporation Identification

Will determine which country should ultimately be held responsible for the sinking of the Lusitania

Defendants (4 member teams) Germany USA Britain Prosecution 3 person prosecution team 10 jurors 2 witnesses

Each of the defendant countries will be given a packet filled with various sources including primary sources. Each packet will be custom to the country defending itself. The packet will contain information that builds the credible of each country while indicting the other countries. The defendant countries will review all of the data and build a case that exonerates them from the sinking of the Lusitania while indicting one or both of the reaming countries.

Prosecutors will have the data packs for all three of the defendant countries. The prosecutors will try to convict one of the countries, however the prosecutor has no stake in any particular country and is just concerned with getting a conviction.

The jurors will listen to all of the evidence presented from the defense and the prosecution. The prosecution will then deliberate and vote on who they think is guilty. Once the jurors have reached a majority vote, a verdict will be reached

The witnesses have been exposed to two separate news headlines headlines regarding the sinking of the Lusitania. One is bias in favor of Germany and the other is bias in favor of Britain.

The teacher will be the judge. It will be up to the teacher to decide what kind of evidence is permissible in court. The teacher will have the ability to strike testimony from the record.

The back of the classroom will be reserved for the jury The front of the classroom will be where the defendants sit The prosecution team will sit in the middle of the room The first 30 minutes of class will be spent researching. Each country will research their data packet and/ or the internet to build their case. During this time the jury will analyze their bias newspaper articles. The prosecution will work in the hallway piecing together all of the evidence

Once the research portion of the activity is complete, the prosecution will enter the room and guide the trial. Each country will have a chance to defend themselves and refute evidence. Every 20 minutes the jury will be taken into the hallway for deliberations.

I created and implemented this lesson at Palisades High School and it was a resounding success. The students, my cooperating teacher and I were all pleased with the lesson. The class that I performed this activity with convicted Britain with the jury delivering an unanimous verdict. They believed that Britain ignored crucial warnings and acted in an irresponsible manner that directly put the lives of the people on board in Jeopardy. They believe that if the USA would have been warned about the impending attack, the ship would have never disembarked.