During World War II, the need to transport large numbers of Allied troops across the globe saw the world’s ocean liners being pressed into military service. Mighty ships like Queen Mary, Queen Elizabeth, Île de France, and Aquitania were pressed into service. So were smaller liners like Laconia, Empress of Japan (renamed Empress of Scotland in 1942), Borinquen, and Evangeline. These ships collectively transported millions of Allied servicemen and women to all theaters of the war.
But the Cunard Queens stood out above all the others in terms of their speed and capacity. They were vital to the Allied war effort. By 1944, each ship was carrying more than 15,000 people to Europe on each voyage. Adolf Hitler promised a $25,000 bounty and the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves to any of his U-boat skippers who could sink them. But none ever caught the Queen Mary or the Queen Elizabeth.
Winston Churchill later said of the two ships: “Built for the arts of peace and to link the old world with the new, the Queens challenged the fury of Hitlerism in the battle of the Atlantic. Without their aid, the day of final victory must unquestionably have been postponed.”
Of the over 800,000 troops that Queen Mary (nicknamed the “Grey Ghost”) carried during the war, most were Americans. This included African American soldiers too. Over 1.2 million Black men and women served in the segregated United States armed forces during World War II. Of these, an estimated 125,000 saw combat overseas. Units like the 332nd Fighter Group (the “Red Tails”), 761st Tank Battalion, 320th Barrage Battalion, and 92nd Infantry Division have become famous for their brave and courageous service.
But it isn’t widely known that some of these Black troops sailed aboard the Queen Mary. References seem scare on this topic. But I think we can infer from other sources what it might’ve been like for them to sail on the mighty liner in wartime.
Victory Abroad and Victory at Home
African Americans have served in every American conflict going back to the War of Independence. So when the United States entered World War II, large numbers of Black men and women signed up. In addition, 2.5 million men registered for the draft. African Americans were segregated into separate units due to the racist belief that they weren’t capable or fit for leadership or combat roles. A lot of these service men and women ended up serving in non-combat support roles throughout the war, such as supply, transportation, and maintenance. But some did end up seeing combat in both Europe and the Pacific.
In February 1942, the Pittsburgh Courier started the Double V campaign (“Victory Abroad and Victory at Home”). One of its aims was to have Black troops demand liberty and citizenship through their military service. Journalist Edgar T. Rouzeau noted in the newspaper:
Where white America must fight on foreign soil for the salvation of the United States and for the preservation of “democracy,” Black Americans must fight and die on these same battlefields, not merely for the salvation of America, not merely to secure the same degree of democracy for Black Americans that white Americans have long enjoyed, but to establish precedent for a world-wide principle of free association among men of all races, creeds and colors. That’s the black man’s stake.
African newspapers (like the Pittsburgh Courier) and journalists highlighted the roles and contributions of Black troops throughout the war. They also exposed the racism and discrimination the soldiers endured as well. Dartmouth College professor Matthew Delmont noted: “The Black press was quite successful in terms of advocating for Black soldiers in World War II. They point out the hypocrisy of fighting a war that was theoretically about democracy, at the same time having a racially segregated army.”
Despite this support of the Black press, African American troops still battled racism and discrimination on a regular basis. Jim Crow existed on U.S. military bases. Black troops found themselves segregated and had separate facilities, medical staff, and barracks. Harassment from white soldiers and civilians was all too common. Professor Delmont notes:
The experience was very dispiriting for a lot of Black soldiers. The kind of treatment they received by white officers in army bases in the United States was horrendous. They described being in slave-like conditions and being treated like animals. They were called racial epithets quite regularly and just not afforded respect either as soldiers or human beings.
Given what was happening on U.S. military bases on land, it’s all but certain that this kind of harassment was taking place aboard troopships like the Queen Mary too.
Going to War
Troops serving abroad, regardless of race, got there by sea. Most troops embarking on either Queen Mary, Queen Elizabeth, or any other ship leaving New York, arrived at Camp Shanks a few days beforehand. This included Private John J. Mills of the 969th Field Artillery Battalion in early 1944. At Camp Shanks, soldiers received briefings on the upcoming voyage. They drilled on how to board their ships quickly and efficiently: this would greatly expedite the boarding process.
Troops boarding the Queen Mary were given a red, white, or blue button that corresponded to their assigned area on the ship. The Red section extended from the bow to number three stairway (excluding the Sun Deck). The White section ran between number three and number four stairways (and included the Sun Deck). Blue stretched out from number four stairway to the ship’s stern. No one could visit the other sections. Each section, though, had its own medical facilities, dispensaries, and canteens for troop use.
Soldiers crammed into every inch of available space. Standee bunks lined the Queen Mary’s luxurious cabins, lounges, and swimming pools. There was no wasted space. With 15,000 troops aboard, there was no choice but to sleep in shifts and rotate in and out. One-third of the soldiers onboard the “Grey Ghost” would be out on deck at any given time.
Each crossing on the Queen Mary took five days. Black soldiers experienced the same discomforts as their white counterparts. Seasickness was a common malady, which lead many to have a miserable time. Rough seas and the ship’s notorious rolling could also lead to accidents and injuries too. Illness could also spread quickly in tight quarters.
Then there was the U-boat threat. Everyone aboard the Queen Mary knew that German submarines were prowling the Atlantic. What a prize the “Grey Ghost” would make! A torpedo strike on the overcrowded ship would be totally disastrous. Because of this, many soldiers actually preferred to sleep outside since they felt it gave them better odds of survival.
“What the hell is this war all about, sergeant?”
One of the millions of Americans to see service in World War II was New York-born Howard Zinn. The son of Jewish immigrants, he joined the U.S. Army Air Corps and became a bombardier in the Eighth Air Force’s 490th Bombardment Group. Zinn would later go on to write A People’s History of the United States and become a noted historian and social activist. So far, he’s provided the only first person account of Black troops on the Queen Mary that I’ve been able to find (but I’m sure there are others…I just haven’t found them yet).
In an essay entitled “Just and Unjust War,” Zinn wrote:
My air crew sailed to England on the Queen Mary. That elegant passenger liner had been converted into a troop ship. There were 16,000 men aboard, and 4,000 of them were black. The whites had quarters on deck and just below deck. The blacks were housed separately, deep in the hold of the ship, around the engine room, in the darkest, dirtiest sections. Meals were taken in four shifts (except for the officers, who ate in prewar Queen Mary style in a chandeliered ballroom–the war was not being fought to disturb class privilege), and the blacks had to wait until three shifts of whites had finished eating.
Zinn elaborated on his experience aboard the Queen Mary in his autobiography, You Can’t Be Neutral on a Moving Train. He explains how one of his duties aboard was to serve as a mess officer and to keep order while hundreds of soldiers ate their meals. Aboard Queen Mary, meals were served twice a day in the prewar First Class Restaurant.
Serving as mess officer one day, Zinn recounted:
On the fifth day at sea, there was a mix-up, and the last shift was sent into the mess hall before the previous one was finished eating – four thousand black men pouring into the hall, filling in wherever other men had finished and left. It was now, accidentally, a racially integrated dining hall.
“Lieutenant!” A white sergeant, sitting next to a black man, was calling to me. “Get him out of here until I finish.” This angered me, and for the first time in my military career I pulled rank. I shook my head. “If you don’t want to finish your food, you can leave. What the hell is this war all about, sergeant?” It was a long way to the next meal, and the sergeant stayed and ate. I learned something from that little incident, later reinforced in my years in the South: that most racists have something they care about more than racial segregation, and the problem is to locate what that is.
Coming Home
At war’s end, the Queen Mary brought thousands of American servicemen and women back home. African American soldiers likely found themselves aboard during these voyages. They bravely fought the Axis powers in Europe and earned the respect of many who fought alongside them. They’d proven themselves — just as they had in every prior American war.
But these Black veterans would face more struggles at home. Violent mobs attacked them, and they often found themselves denied benefits guaranteed under the G.I. Bill. This served to fuel the Civil Rights Movement, which brought an end to Jim Crow and facilitated change across the United States.
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