Rupert Lonsdale Rupert Philip Lonsdale ( 5 May 1905 – 25 April 1999 ) was a British submarine commander , prisoner of war and Anglican clergyman . He was forced to surrender his boat in World War II after he had succeeded in rescuing her and her crew from the sea bed after she struck a mine . He was honourably acquitted at the inevitable court - martial after spending five years as a prisoner of war . After the war he took holy orders serving in several Anglican parishes and in 1952 volunteered to go as a District Chaplain to Kenya to help find a peaceful solution to the Mau Mau Uprising . Early life . Lonsdale was born in Dublin and educated at St . Cyprian ' s School , Eastbourne and RNC Osborne . He began in the submarine branch of the service in 1927 and within four years was first lieutenant of " XI " , a large experimental submersible . With four 5 . 2 - inch guns and displacing 2 , 780 tons this was by far the biggest craft before the advent of nuclear vessels . In 1934 he passed the demanding submarine command qualifying course , and his first command was " H44 " , a legacy of World War I , of 440 tons , with four torpedo tubes and a machine - gun . Lonsdale was promoted lieutenant - commander in May 1936 and in 1937 he took over the newer " Swordfish " for a year . HMS " Seal " . Lonsdale ' s next command on 1 November 1938 was " Seal " , which he commissioned in May 1939 . The ship ' s company " one of the biggest collections of scallywags that the Submarine Service ever put together " were confronted by a slight quiet man who was considered " Too much of a gentleman to be a good submarine captain " . However in a very short time , by no perceptible means , Lonsdale had gained the complete respect , faith and confidence of his crew . After missions in the China Sea , at Aden , on the North Atlantic and North Sea Patrol , the submarine ’ s last mission was to cross the Skagerrak and lay a minefield in the Kattegat - an almost impossible task for a submarine as large as " Seal " . Lonsdale ' s superior , Captain Bethall , failed to persuade Admiral Horton to reconsider his orders and the ship sailed on 29 April . She was held in check by German anti - submarine trawlers in the area , but managed to lay her mines . She was hunted by two German search flotillas and took evasive action to escape the area when she went into an uncharted minefield . A German mine exploded while she was on the sea bed , damaging her stern and filling her hull . The attempt to resurface had to wait several hours until it was dark . However , in spite of three attempts , the damaged submarine failed to lift from the seabed and air quality deteriorated significantly . Throughout the incident the crew were impressed by the quiet resolution and faith of their captain . As a devout Christian , Lonsdale summoned his ship ' s company to prayer , and led them in the Lord ' s Prayer . After taking several last desperate measures , he made another attempt and the submarine finally lifted . Once on the surface he tried to make for the nearby Swedish coast and the crew destroyed the secret Asdic equipment and confidential papers . The stricken submarine was spotted and attacked by enemy aircraft . Lonsdale sent his crew below , and under intense fire tried to hold the aircraft off with Lewis gun s until these jammed . The submarine was without motive power , unable to dive and without any defences and there was no realistic alternative but to surrender . Various action were taken towards scuttling the boat but it managed to stay afloat . Prisoner of War . Early on 5 May 1940 , his 35th birthday , Lonsdale swam to a seaplane and into captivity . He had done all that could be done but he never forgave himself . Later it was revealed that Horton had sent two signal in response to his surfacing signal giving his intention to make for Sweden - " " Understood and agreed with . Best of luck . Well done " " , followed by " " Safety of personnel should be your first consideration after destruction of Asdics " " . These were not received because the ciphers were destroyed , but they would have helped him justify his actions to himself . He was mentioned in despatches four days later for his previous patrol work . During his five long years of imprisonment , Lonsdale enjoyed the respect of his captors and found increasing comfort in his Christianity . He maintained contact with the village of Seal who had adopted the crew . Once he wrote " Within the last few days I have had a talk with each one of my crew who are in this camp . Despite a hard winter , enforced idleness , and the unnatural life led by any prisoner they all look fit ; I cannot emphasis this too much ; they really do look well . which is great credit to them and I would be grateful if you could let their next of kin know as you kindly did before . " He worked hard to maintain morale and used his limited ration of mail on behalf of his crew members . After the war , Lonsdale was mentioned in despatches in June 1945 for his services as a POW , promoted to commander and placed on the retired list at his own request . His last command was the new " Pyrrhus " , which he brought up from Glanton before joining an operational flotilla at Portsmouth in January 1946 . However he had to face the court - martial for the loss of his ship during the war and " his modesty was such that he had not begun to realise that there was even the slightest possibility of his being considered not as a coward but as a hero " . Lonsdale was tried at Portsmouth , on 10 April 1946 , and it took the court just over half an hour to acquit him with an honourable discharge . Kenya . Lonsdale went to Ridley Hall in Cambridge in 1946 to prepare for his ordination and became a priest in 1949 . His first curacy was with a mission church at Rowner , near HMS " Dolphin " , the submarine base at Gosport , followed by becoming vicar of Morden - with - Almer in Dorset in 1951 . In 1953 he started a five year tour in the White Highlands of Kenya as a district chaplain . He volunteered for this mission because he thought that his five years as a prisoner of war should help him to befriend the Mau Mau rebels , and at one point he offered to live in the bush as a hostage , to demonstrate Britain ' s benevolent intentions . England . In 1958 he returned to England to be vicar of Bentworth - with - Shaldon in Hampshire but then in 1960 returned out of affection to Kenya for another tour of duty . He became a canon emeritus , and his last full - time incumbency was from 1965 to 1970 as vicar of Thornham - with - Titchwell on the north Norfolk coast . Lonsdale retired to Hampshire , but held several part - time chaplaincies for the Anglican Church ' s European diocese based on Gibraltar . This led to a three - year stay in Tenerife ( 1970 – 73 ) before he returned to England for some time in the clergy hospice at College of St Mark at Audley End . Lonsdale died at Bournemouth , Dorset . Personal life . Lonsdale ’ s personal life was riven with tragedy . His first wife Christina Lyall whom he married in 1935 died in 1937 in childbirth . After the war he married Kathleen Deal , whom he took out to Kenya , but she died in 1961 . Next he married Ursula Sansum , a former WRNS officer , who also supported him in Kenya but she died in 1986 . Finally he married Ethne Irwin in Malta in 1989 . She survived him as did his son John Lonsdale , Fellow of Trinity College , Cambridge , who has specialised in East African history . In 1960 C . E . T . Warren and James Benson asked Rupert Lonsdale for his help with their book about the loss of " Seal " , " Will Not We Fear : The Story of His Majesty ' s Submarine " Seal " and of Lieutenant - Commander Rupert Lonsdale " ( 1961 ) . He eventually agreed , provided that he was allowed to write a foreword making it clear that he would never have suggested that the book be written , that he was a reluctant contributor , and then only in the trust that it might help some readers to find faith in God . Afterwards he said " Now that the tale is written I recoil all the more from any publicity , but the one reason for my co - operation remains . " The book includes a simple but eloquent tribute from him to his ship ' s company and the authors prefaced his foreword with the first seven verses of Psalm XLVI from which they drew their title . As Sainsbury wrote ,