<P> The formal Board of Trade investigation into the sinking was presided over by Wreck Commissioner Lord Mersey and took place in the Westminster Central Hall from 15--18 June 1915 with further sessions at the Westminster Palace Hotel on 1 July and Caxton Hall on 17 July . Lord Mersey had a background in commercial rather than maritime law but had presided over a number of important maritime investigations, including that into the loss of Titanic . He was assisted by four assessors, Admiral Sir Frederick Samuel Inglefield, Lieutenant Commander Hearn and two merchant navy captains, D. Davies and J. Spedding . The Attorney General, Sir Edward Carson, represented the Board of Trade, assisted by the Solicitor General, F.E. Smith . Butler Aspinall, who had previously represented the Board of Trade at the Titanic inquiry, was retained to represent Cunard . A total of 36 witnesses were called, Lord Mersey querying why more of the survivors would not be giving evidence . Most of the sessions were public but two on 15 and 18 June were held in camera when evidence regarding navigation of the ship was presented . </P> <P> Statements were collected from all the crew . These were all written out for presentation to the inquiry on standard forms in identical handwriting with similar phrasing . Quartermaster Johnston later described that pressure had been placed upon him to be loyal to the company, and that it had been suggested to him it would help the case if two torpedoes had struck the ship, rather than the one which he described . Giving evidence to the tribunal he was not asked about torpedoes . Other witnesses who claimed that only one torpedo had been involved were refused permission to testify . In contrast to his statement at the inquest, Captain Turner stated that two torpedoes had struck the ship, not one . In an interview in 1933, Turner reverted to his original statement that there had been only one torpedo . Most witnesses said there had been two, but a couple said three, possibly involving a second submarine . Clem Edwards, representing the seamen's union, attempted to introduce evidence about which watertight compartments had been involved but was prevented from doing so by Lord Mersey . </P> <P> It was during the closed hearings that the Admiralty tried to lay the blame on Captain Turner, their intended line being that Turner had been negligent . The roots of this view began in the first reports about the sinking from Vice-Admiral Coke commanding the navy at Queenstown . He reported that "ship was especially warned that submarines were active on south coast and to keep mid-channel course avoiding headlands also position of submarine off Cape Clear at 10: 00 was communicated by W / T to her". Captain Webb, Director of the Trade Division, began to prepare a dossier of signals sent to Lusitania which Turner may have failed to observe . First Sea Lord Fisher noted on one document submitted by Webb for review: "As the Cunard company would not have employed an incompetent man its a certainty that Captain Turner is not a fool but a knave . I hope that Turner will be arrested immediately after the enquiry whatever the verdict". First Lord Winston Churchill noted: "I consider the Admiralty's case against Turner should be pressed by a skilful counsel and that Captain Webb should attend as a witness, if not employed as an assessor . We will pursue the captain without check". In the event, both Churchill and Fisher were replaced in their positions before the enquiry because of the failures of the Gallipoli campaign . </P> <P> Part of the proceedings turned on the question of proper evasive tactics against submarines . It was put to Captain Turner that he had failed to comply with Admiralty instructions to travel at high speed, maintain a zig - zag course and keep away from shore . Naval instructions about zig - zag were read to the captain, who confirmed that he had received them, though later added that they did not appear to be as he recollected . This was unsurprising, since the regulations quoted had only been approved on 25 April, after Lusitania's last arrival in New York, and started distribution on 13 May, after she sank . Lusitania had slowed to 15 knots at one point because of fog, but had otherwise maintained 18 knots passing Ireland . 18 knots was faster than all but nine other ships in the British merchant fleet could achieve and was comfortably faster than the submarine . Although he might have achieved 21 knots and had given orders to raise steam ready to do so, he was also under orders to time his arrival at Liverpool for high tide so that the ship would not have to wait to enter port . Thus, he chose to travel more slowly . At the time, no ship had been torpedoed travelling at more than 15 knots . Although the Admiralty instructed ships to keep well offshore and it was claimed that Turner had only been 8 miles (13 km) away, his actual distance when hit was thirteen miles (21 km). As a matter of established procedure, only ships travelling closer than five miles (8.0 km) from shore were ordinarily being censured for being too close . </P>

Who was the first lord of the admiralty at the time of the lusitania's sinking