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1916 (22 April). A valve from the German ship, Aud, which carried guns for Roger Casement and the Irish
Volunteers.
Comprises a large solid brass ship’s fitting weighing 10kg, mounted on an oak plinth, affixed with a heavy brass
plaque with an inscription of, “Anchor Windlass Steam Valve, SMS Libau / AUD, April 8th - 22nd 1916.” Fully
restored to moving working mechanical order and polished to a brilliant shine. A museum quality memento of
a disastrous turn in the the lead up to the 1916 Rising.
Provenance: Salved from the wreck of the Aud by the present owner.
In 1915 Sir Roger Casement and Joseph Plunkett negotiated with the German Government a secret delivery of
arms and ammunition and German training officers to be delivered to Ireland for a planned nationwide upris-
ing. Pearse and other leaders requested that the German men and arms be delivered to Tralee Bay, Co. Kerry on
the night of Easter Sunday 23 April 1916.
Casement and members of his Irish Brigade - disaffected Irish soldiers serving in British forces who were
captured and incarcerated in German prisoner of war camps - were to sail on a disguised cargo ship called
Aud, carrying 20,000 rifles and 5 million rounds of ammunition for the Irish Volunteers. Twenty-eight year old
Leutnant Karl M. Spindler was placed in command. Casement further argued the need for a German U-boat
U-20 in order to avoid his possible arrest if Aud was caught penetrating the British Naval Blockade. However
U-20 broke down and had to return Casement and his companions, Monteith and Bailey, to the Heligoland
Kaiserlichmarine Naval Base for transfer onto a replacement submarine, the U-19 commanded by Kapitän-
leutnant Raimund Weisbach. This left Aud and her 22 man crew in Tralee Bay on their own for 24 hours from
20 to 21 April 1916.
Due to a communication error the Irish Volunteers were not expecting Aud to arrive before Easter Sunday 23
April and consequently nobody ventured out to bring the ship safely into port. The Aud and the U-19 missed
each other in the darkness, forcing Casement, Monteith and Bailey to row ashore in the U-boat’s dinghy onto
Banna Strand. The submarine U-19 escaped out into the Atlantic, but the Aud was captured by the Royal Navy
warship HMS Bluebell. Rather than hand the ship full of weapons over to the enemy, Leutnant Spindler blew
up his own ship and sank her outside Cork Harbour.
The crew were taken prisoner and landed on Spike Island, then taken to Scotland Yard to be interrogated along
with Sir Roger Casement. The Germans were imprisoned until 1919. Half the crew died as Prisoners of War, all
for the sake of Irish Freedom, the only German military personel ever to do so. Casement was stripped of his
knighthood, tried and convicted of High Treason and executed by hanging in Pentonville Prison on the 3rd of
August 1916.
7 x 7in. (17.78 x 17.78cm)
Estimate €2000-€3000 £1560-£2340
Large Image & Place Bid Lot 172