Patrick Joseph Brennan was born in Youghal, County Cork to Michael and Mary Brennan (née Flavin). His parents married in Youghal on the 27th of May 1894. Patrick’s service record says he was born 16th October 1895 but his birth certificate tells us he was actually born on the 19th October 1896. Young men often lied about their age if they were too young to sign up.
In the 1901 census Mary Brennan age 29 is living at 72 Cork Lane with her son’s Paddy age 4 and John age 2. Mary was born in Waterford.
When the census was taken in 1911 Patrick’s family were living at House 11, The Mall, Youghal. Michael. Mary and Michael had been married for 17 years and had nine children but only four survived. Patrick was working as a Butcher’s Boy. His father Michael was a fisherman. His siblings John, Michael and Christina were also at home when the census was taken.
Patrick signed up to join the Royal Naval Reserve on the 20th of July 1914 and joined the crew of the Laurentic in November that same year. He remained with Laurentic till the ship was sunk in January 1917.
On the 3rd of December 1914 Patrick and his crewmates set sail for Sierra Leone and then Lagos to assist with the Cameroon Campaign, transporting troops and carrying out general patrols. On January 30th they returned to Liverpool and disembarked German prisoners brought back from Lagos. Laurentic then returned to Sierra Leone, arriving on in March 1915.
By early August the Laurentic was on route to Singapore and spent the next 10 months on patrol around Rangoon and Hong Kong. In July 1916 the ship sailed back to South Africa, loading a quantity of gold bullion on board for transport to Canada to pay for munitions. There followed two months general patrol in the area, sailing for Bermuda, then returning to Halifax, Nova Scotia, with more bullion. The Laurentic returned to Liverpool, arriving in early December 1916. The crew were given a short period of shore leave, returning to the ship on the 22nd of December. On the 29th of December the Laurentic was again bound for Halifax.
We do not know when exactly the Laurentic returned to Liverpool but we do know that the ship sailed out of the port of Liverpool again on 24th January, 1917 on her last voyage.
Patrick Joseph Brennan’s body was recovered and is buried in a mass grave in St Mura’s Churchyard, Fahan, County Donegal.
Sources:-
Ancestry
https://www.ancestry.com/
The National Archives of the UK
https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk
The Legacy of the Laurentic 