Irish Lighthouse in World War I-- Part 1: Old Head of Kinsale Lighthouse and the Lusitania

From  Lighthouses of Ireland by Kevin M. McCarthy.

I have been writing about the lighthouses of Ireland and their role in World War II in my Tattooed On Your Soul World War II bloh.

The captain of the Lusitania maneuvered his Cunard liner close to Ireland's Old Head of Kinsale peninsula in order to take his bearings, although being that close to the Irish coast was not safe in May of 1915.

On May 7, 1915, the Lusitania, on her way from the United States to England, sailed nearer to the Irish coast than was safe, but the captain was determined to find out exactly where where he was by taking a bearing on the Old Head of Kinsale Lighthouse.

When the officers sighted the three-mile-long peninsula and reassuring lighthouse, they knew that the port of Quenstown (now Cobh) was only thirty miles away.  They felt much safer, but lurking beneath the water was a German U-boat.

--Cooter