Cobh Compass
    Cobh facts
    • Cobh was known as Queenstown from 1849 to 1920.
    • Over 2.5 million Irish emigrants departed from Cobh harbour.
    • RMS Titanic's final port of call was Cobh, on 11 April 1912.
    • St Colman's Cathedral carillon has 49 bells — among the largest in Europe.
    • Lusitania victims are buried in the Old Church Cemetery.
    • Cork Harbour is one of the largest natural harbours in the world.
    • Cobh was known as Queenstown from 1849 to 1920.
    • Over 2.5 million Irish emigrants departed from Cobh harbour.
    • RMS Titanic's final port of call was Cobh, on 11 April 1912.
    • St Colman's Cathedral carillon has 49 bells — among the largest in Europe.
    • Lusitania victims are buried in the Old Church Cemetery.
    • Cork Harbour is one of the largest natural harbours in the world.

    1915

    Lusitania and Cobh

    Cobh became central to the Lusitania aftermath after the liner was sunk off the Cork coast.

    When RMS Lusitania was torpedoed off the Old Head of Kinsale in 1915, Queenstown became one of the main places of landing, recovery and mourning.

    The story sits heavily in Cobh because it was not only a distant maritime disaster. Bodies were brought ashore, survivors were received, and the town became part of the public grief of the First World War. Old Church Cemetery remains one of the most reflective places to understand that aftermath.

    Source recordedVerified 10 May 2026