{"product_id":"norddeutscher-lloyd-columbus-cruise-ship-hankie","title":"1930s Norddeutscher Lloyd Columbus Cruise Ship Hankie","description":"\u003cp\u003eVintage 1930s Norddeutscher Lloyd cruise ship hankie. Turbinen-Schnelldampfer Columbus. \u003cspan style=\"font-size: 0.875rem;\"\u003eThe handkerchief feels like silk. It is delicate, but in rather good condition. There are a few small snags\/pulls and a few spots where the materiel is wearing thin. The red writing on \"Columbus\" has a bit of color bleed.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eColumbus\u003c\/em\u003e made her maiden voyage in 1924. She was refitted in 1929 with shorter, fatter smokestacks. When WWII broke out in 1939, she was in the Caribbean and ordered to return to Germany. She was escorted by American destroyers through the American coastal neutrality zone. On Dec 19, a British destroyer spotted her abut 400 miles from the coast of Virginia. A neutral American heavy cruiser \u003cem\u003eUSS Tuscaloosa\u003c\/em\u003e observed both ships. Rather than surrender, the crew scuttled the \u003cem\u003eColumbus\u003c\/em\u003e, the 576 people onboard were picked up by the \u003cem\u003eTuscaloosa\u003c\/em\u003e. When declaring war on the US in 1941, Hitler mentioned the presence of the \u003cem\u003eTuscaloosa\u003c\/em\u003e at the scuttling of the \u003cem\u003eColumbus\u003c\/em\u003e as a hostile act against Germany, stating the Americans forced her into the hands of British warships. This was one of many similar acts which convinced Germany that America had defacto declared war on Germany well before Germany made it official after Pearl Harbor.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Other","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":45556421427398,"sku":"TAN ORG F","price":25.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0187\/4100\/files\/PXL_20260222_190345687.jpg?v=1771855804","url":"https:\/\/www.warsendshop.com\/products\/norddeutscher-lloyd-columbus-cruise-ship-hankie","provider":"War's End Shop","version":"1.0","type":"link"}