High Seas Fleet Surrender 36 – Spanish Flu

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During 1918, Britain was hit with three successive waves of influenza. “Spanish Flu” affected about one third of the world’s population in 1918 and killed possibly 100 million people.

It didn’t come from Spain, but details of the death rate were censored in the US, UK, France and Germany to maintain morale. The only news came from neutral Spain – hence the name.


This chart was compiled from the entries in Cardiff’s log for October 1918. It shows the alarming spread of illness through the crew.

As a counter measure, the sailors’ throats were sprayed each evening – possibly with salt water.

Local Impact

The illness affected local schoolchildren, who missed the Armistice celebrations and the surrender pageant.
Here are the relevant entries from the North Queensferry school log book.

The entry on November 1st refers to disinfecting the school with “Cyllin”

“This useful and popular disinfectant is produced from a new series of oxidized hydrocarbons which combines great germicidal power with no causticity or poison towards the higher forms of life. It is an aromatic preparation which is so saponified as to yield a perfect emulsion on the addition of water, and is guaranteed to be permanently homogenous. It is also a very inexpensive fluid. It can be used in suitable dilution with any form of spraying apparatus, and is non-volatile. It causes no irritating fumes.

For internal disinfection it may be bought either in capsules (palatinoids) or in the form of a syrup.”

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