From the horrors of war at sea comes the legend of an unsinkable cat, who dodged both Nazi and British guns.
'Unsinkable Sam' is a story from World War 2 in which a black and white cat named Sam is supposed to have survived three dreadful sinkings, including that of the Nazi ship the Bismarck.
For history scholars, his story appears to be no more than the stuff of legend, but whispers of his tale have lingered.
Bismarck became embroiled in a fierce battle with the Royal Navy in May 1941, aiming to play a key part in the naval blockade of Britain which could starve Britain of vital wartime supplies like food and ammunition.
Only 115 of Bismarck's 2,200 strong crew survived the battle as the huge 41,700-ton German ship sunk to the depths of the Atlantic some 470 miles west of France.
In the remnants of the wreckage, it is said Sam was found floating among the debris and picked up by the British destroyer HMS Cossack.
The mysterious cat was supposedly named 'Oscar' by the Brits onboard the Cossack as in the International Code of Signals the letter 'O' stands for 'man overboard'.
In October of the same year, Oscar was sunk once again as Cossack was targeted by a U-boat torpedo off the coast of Gibraltar. It is said that here Oscar, by now known by the nickname of Unsinkable Sam, was transferred to the British aircraft carrier the HMS Ark Royal.
In November, the Ark Royal was torpedoed and there were attempts made to tow her to safety, but they had to be abandoned. All but one of the crew survived the sinking as the ship went down 30 miles away from Gibraltar. Sam is believed to have been found clinging to a plank while "angry but quite unharmed".
Thankfully, the thrice-sunk feline spent the rest of his duty on dry land, assigned to the Governor of Gibraltar Field Marshal John Standish Surtees Prendergast Vereker, 6th Viscount Gort.
He is believed to have eventually passed away in Belfast in 1955.
Whether the story of Sam was made up and came from legend or is completely true remains up for debate.
Photos claiming to be him appear to show two different cats and there is no mention in the detailed account of the sinking of the Bismarck published in 2001. The National Maritime Museum in Greenwich is in possession of a pastel portrait of him, however.
