Hartlepool Mail Tuesday 01/05/1941
William Kirby and Brenda McMahon have submitted the following:-
John George Shanks Litherland the son of James and Margaret (nee Walton) was born on November 28th 1919 at Houghton le Spring. He was named after his uncle, John who was a boy soldier and died from his wounds in April 1916.
His father James died in 1923 from wounds received during the First War. His mother, Margaret later married George Storey. In the 1940s they lived at Hetton-le-Hole.
John joined the Royal Navy and was posted to the H-class destroyer HMS Hereward, named after Hereward the Wake, which was built for the Royal Navy in the mid 1930’s.
The ship participated in the Battle of Cape Matapan in early March 1941 and the evacuation of Greece in April 1941. She sank a number of fishing boats transporting German troops to Crete on the 21st May and helped evacuate the Allied garrison of Heraklion, Crete on the 29th May carrying 450 troops on board. Later that day she was attacked by German Junkers JU 87 'Stuka' dive bombers and hit by one bomb just in front of her forward funnel. She turned towards the nearby coast of Crete, but was sunk by further airstrikes off Cape Sideros. Four officers and 72 crewmen were killed, but the 89 survivors, along with the majority of the evacuees were rescued and taken prisoner by Italian MAS torpedo boats and the destroyer Crispi. John was amongst the crew who was killed in the attack.
John George Shanks Litherland is remembered at Hetton le Hole in H125.14 and on our List of Ships’ crews
