- My name's Dan Snow and I want to tell you
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offer. Go and check it out. In the meantime, enjoy this video. (dramatic music) (bright music) (submersible whirring) - [Richie] During World
War II many submarines disappeared without a
trace, their fate unknown. One of those was the
British submarine, Perseus, who in 1941 disappeared
somewhere in the Mediterranean, taking to the bottom her entire crew. (siren blaring)
(sailors shouting) - Rudders midships, hull depth. - [Richie] Only one
man knew the true story of what had happened to
the submarine and her crew. And that man was John Capes. - Welcome aboard, passenger Capes. - John was lucky not have
been burned or suffocated, and his escape from the submarine is nothing short of a miracle. (explosion booming)
(men shouting) Surviving the destruction
of the submarine, it would take all of his
wits to evade capture and survive on the enemy occupied island. (dramatic music) (dramatic music)
(engines roaring) (waves crashing)
(gentle music) (man whistles) (man speaking in foreign language) During World War II, in the
evening of December 6, 1941, the British submarine
Perseus struck a mine while patrolling off the
Greek island of Kefalonia. The following morning, a
sole survivor, John Capes, washed ashore with an incredible claim of escaping from a sunken submarine, ascending to the surface, an miraculously making it to shore. (soldiers speaking in foreign language) (cart rattling) (woman speaking in foreign language) - [John] Water. (coughing) I need water. (man speaking in foreign language) (woman speaking in foreign language) (man speaking in foreign language) - Exhausted and hurt,
Capes is at the mercy of the Kefalonian people if he expects to evade captured
by the Italian soldiers. (John coughing) Capes is suffering from
decompression illness, a sickness divers get when they come to the surface too quickly. (suspenseful music) For some time it was touch and go. It appeared that John
was more dead than alive. (ominous music) (John sputtering) To the end of his life, no
one would believe John Capes when he told the story of his
amazing escape and survival. (birds chirping) It's been 77 years since
the loss of the Perseus and nowadays dozens of
vessels pass by here every day with no idea of the events that took place here back in 1941. (ship's horn blaring) Before we really get in
to diving operations, I think it's gonna be in our best interest to go all the way around, 'cause it's a highly fished area, so I anticipate we're gonna see a lot of fishing nets and lines. We've only got about an hour of daylight, so I suggest that we obviously use the current to our advantage, and work our way around the submarine, looking for those entanglements. So that you're not gonna
have a problem with the ROV. We wouldn't want Bob getting
hung up on the wreck. - Okay, we'll do it. - No problem? Dima, what's the best way to move? - We should start with the bow, where the current is now that direction, and proceed around this
direction and come back. It should take us less
than one hour, for sure. - So we'll use the
current to our advantage, go around the wreck, and then by that time it might be dark and we may as well just focus on some of the close ups that we'll need to tell
the story of the Perseus. (people chattering) I have been exploring submarine wrecks around the world for over 25 years. Nearly every one of these ship wrecks has taken their crew and
their stories to the bottom. By exploring these grave sites, I have found answers to mysteries and provided closure to families. But this is a dangerous endeavor, and over the years I've lost
friends diving on shipwrecks. It's a terrible and tragic
price to pay for these answers. Today's new technology,
like these submersibles, have expanded my abilities in exploration and made it safer to go even deeper. - [Dima] Triton to Navigator,
starting to descend. (water gurgling) - [Bob] Copy that, good luck. - [Dima] Triton to Navigator,
all readings in green. - [Bob] Copy that, Triton. - So the ROV's now on the conning tower. - [Richie] I'm starting to see something. - Yeah, there is it.
- Yeah, all right. - [Bob] Triton, I see you. Okay, Bob, stop above the conning tower. - [Dima] Roger, Triton. (dramatic music) - Look at the size of it,
this is a huge submarine. It was intended to operate in the Pacific, not the shallow waters
of the Mediterranean. - [Bob] Triton, QU, I'm listening. I'm right above you, observing you. Get some light on the
conning tower, if you can. - This is the area of the control room, brain, or nerve center of the submarine. This is where, obviously, all
the commands from the captain, whether to dive the submarine,
to go on to the surface, whether to use the diesel
motors or the electric motors. - [Dima] Charge. - Everything. - Get the fresh air. - [Bob] Be careful,
there's a large fishing net on the port side. - [Dima] Copy that. - See, that's not the position
that the gun would be in. Obviously that fishing
net has pulled it over. - [Dima] And it's moved
once or twice a year, so you can see, by the
same, by the fishermen. They're pulling it in
different directions. - When the explosion sank Perseus, onboard, right here on the conning tower, was the bridge watch. And none of them survived. I can only think that during the explosion probably broke their arms,
their legs, terrible. I mean, they were on the surface. They could have made the
same swim that Capes did, but the explosion debilitated
them, they couldn't do it. - Dima, I want to check
inside the conning tower. - [Dima] Okay, Bob, I'm coming. - [Bob] Okay, thank you. Dima, I'm entering. - [Dima] Bob, be careful, there
is a fishing line below you. - [Bob] Copy that, Triton. (suspenseful music) - [Richie] As John Capes
dropped down that hatch and headed inside the Perseus, he had no idea that the
mission would end so tragically and his journey would
go on for so many years. (gentle music) (sailors chattering) - [Man] Quickly now lads, grab
your stuff, we're taking off. - Permission to enter, sir. - Leading stoker John Hawtrey Capes, sir, arrived and at your disposal. - Welcome aboard, passenger Capes. Your suite is located at
the stern of the vessel. - [John] Thank you. (door clanging) - [Richie] John Capes was a stoker with a long history on
His Majesty's submarines, serving on the L-34, the Thrasher, and the sister ship to
the Perseus, the Olympus. He was only onboard the
Perseus as a passenger, hitching a ride to get back
to his own boat, the Olympus. - Home sweet home. I'm John, but my friends call me Choppa. - I'm Pete. - In 1940, while the submarine
was stationed in Malta, Capes rented a car to tour
the island with some friends. While he was driving, he hit a bus. (upbeat jazz music) - Hey, let's go to dance. Please. - I'll watch you, go. - [Richie] A few months
after the incident, the Maltese courts began proceedings, and Capes' presence was
required at the hearing. The worsening situation on Malta was protracting John's case for too long. Finally the admiralty, tired of waiting for the court proceedings to end, decided to send him to Alexandria to continue his service. He was to travel there aboard
the submarine HMS Perseus, with whose crew John had
been spending time with at that moment. (people chattering)
(upbeat jazz music) - There you are. - Steve, at last, I was beginning to think you weren't gonna arrive. - Yeah, got put up at the base. I'll have one of those. By the way, Lieutenant
Cartwright's been looking for you. - Cartwright, the shrimp? I wonder what he wants all of a sudden. - Well, the order's just come in. You, my friend, are going to Alexandria. - Alexandria? - When? - Tomorrow, I'm afraid. But I still have tonight. (Steve laughs) ♪ My only sunshine ♪ ♪ You make me happy ♪
- Come on, let's sing a song. ♪ When skies are gray ♪ (footsteps thudding) - Lieutenant Nicholas Merlin. Sir, I would like to speak
to Commander George Simpson. - What is the purpose of your visit? - [Nicholas] It's personal. - Please, speak to his secretary. - Capes was heading to
Alexandria to join his crew, but he was not the only
passenger aboard the Perseus. Captain Nicholas Merlin was also aboard, gaining additional experience before getting a submarine of his own. This patrol to intercept enemy convoys was the exact type of
training Nicholas would need. Merchant shipping was the lifeblood of Rommel's Afrika Korps. Food and fuel was just as
important as bombs and bullets. Without the supply line, Rommel's troops would be
stopped in their tracks. (ship creaking) (man speaking in foreign language) - [Richie] Naval convoys had
been in use for centuries. The idea is a simple one. Group all of your merchant ships together under military protections of
both aircraft and destroyers. (ship creaking) (man speaking in foreign language) (man speaking in foreign language) (man speaking in foreign language) (man speaking in foreign language) (man speaking in foreign language) - [Richie] Despite the bad weather, the paths of Perseus and
the Axis convoy had crossed. (wind howling) - Submerge to periscope
depth, heading 80 degrees, half speed ahead. - [Officer] Both diesel engines to stop, electric motors to half speed ahead. - Solomon Green, 100 degrees. (siren blaring)
(dramatic music) - Rudders midships, hull depth. Close the main ballast valve. (dramatic music) - Bloody hell, First Mate,
I said periscope depth. Are you capable of
following my orders, or not? - Periscope depth, 32 feet. - [Richie] Once contact
is made it would depend on the captain's experience
and a bit of luck to get the submarine into
good firing position. If the merchant vessel
didn't change its course, their destiny is sealed. (man speaking in foreign language) (captain speaking in foreign language) (man speaking in foreign language) (captain speaking in foreign language) (man speaking in foreign language) (suspenseful music) (thunder rumbling) - Bearing 150, sound of the propellers. High revs, maybe a destroyer. There's a second hit, bearing 330. - That's better. Mr.
Robertson, battle stations. Flood torpedo tubes one to six. - Bearing marked, open
outer doors one to six. - Open the outer doors. (doors clanging) (ominous music) - That's not even fair. First Mate, track angle. - Five right, sir. (dramatic suspenseful music) (periscope clicking) - Fire tubes one and two. - Fire tubes one and two. - Fire torpedoes one and two. (torpedoes whooshing)
(dramatic music) - Reverse cells on 80 green. High revs, directly on us. - [Richie] Merchant vessels
themselves may be a soft target, but they can come at a price when being escorted by a destroyer. - Electric motors 1/3
ahead, abort torpedo attack. - Abort torpedo attack.
- Set depth to 200 feet, emergency deep. Shut off countermeasures attack. - Maximum immersion angles, electric motors full speed
ahead, depth 200 feet. No movement in the
compartments, silent running. - The sound of the
propellor to the starboard, passing over us. I hear splashes. (dramatic music)
(water splashing) - [Richie] The destroyer
is the natural enemy of a submarine. All they have to do is get
close with a depth charge, and that would be enough
to rip open the hull and send the sub to the bottom. (explosions booming) - Not too close. (explosions booming)
(suspenseful music) - [Man] Turn off the bloody valve. - [Richie] Each explosion
pushes the submarine deeper and deeper into the water. With the increasing water pressure, it crushes the submarines and
starts to break the pipes. - These bloody Italians,
they can't hit right. (explosion booming)
(tense music) - Regardless of whether the destroyers find and sink Perseus or not, once she lets go of her torpedoes, the intended target is doomed. (explosion booming)
(ship creaking) (dramatic music) (sailors shouting in foreign language) (suspenseful music)
(men shouting) (birds chirping)
(waves crashing) All right, we've got a
fantastic sonar image and we're moving back to get in position to start dive operations. This really looks to be
like all of the targets that the British submarines
like Perseus were hunting. An Italian merchant vessel
carrying cargo destined for Rommel in North Africa. If we are lucky we can get
inside these open hatches, with Bob, with the ROV, and see some of that cargo. Bombs, aviation fuel, who
knows maybe even armor, tanks, Jeeps, that kind of stuff. It's really gonna be on your
shoulders to get in there. We'll be outside with the Triton, making sure you don't
get caught on the masts or any of that, but,
you're gonna be the guy to bring home the image. (people chattering)
(suspenseful music) Along these ancient convoy routes are the reminders of battles
fought over the centuries. Ships lost along the way. Traces of war, fought long
ago, that the sea hides. As underwater explorers we
reveal this lost history. - I'm at the bow. - [Bob] Copy that Triton,
reading your position. - Okay, well that confirms that this is one of the many vessels
that were being used, possibly by the Italians, that was carrying munitions.
- Yeah. - That's a pretty dramatic bow shot. No damage here up at
the front of the ship. Both anchors are right
up in the hawsepipes. Doesn't look like there was
anything that happened up here. It must have settled stern first. At this point there's no damage. Visibility looks pretty good. You can see the sea floor. - [Bob] Triton. - [Dima] Navigator, go ahead. - [Bob] ROV is deployed
and ready to submerge. - [Dima] Copy that. (ethereal music) - Many of these shipwrecks
are far beyond the limit of where divers can go. It is here in the great depths that our advanced technology
allows us to explore. Look at that accommodation area. That's four decks, four decks tall, in amazing condition. The top layer, that's
where the bridge was, where they obviously controlled the ship and then the second,
third, and fourth would be where the crew would live, eat, and sleep. Yeah, like that, now we can actually see from one side all the way to the other. (mysterious music) - Triton, QU. Where are you? - [Bob] Triton, we're by the propeller. - [Dima] Okay, moving your direction. Moving along port side
and leaving Bob to you. (gentle music) - You know, between the British
submarines and the aircraft, that was the only way
they could stop the flow of material going to North Africa. Every ship like this that they sank was fuel, bombs, and bullets that was deprived to Rommel
and the Afrika Korps. The top of the stern looks
like it's in pretty good shape. Let's go see down below. It's things like that that
help us identify the ship. Did it have one engine, two engines. Did it have a deck gun, the
cargo that it's carrying. The starboard propellor
is missing one blade. - [Dima] Look how the rudder is pushed in. Like upwards into the hull. - I guess that happened when it came down. It must have come down stern first. (gentle music) - [Man] Triton, come by when you're done. I want to enter the cargo hatch. - Don't go in without me. - It's in really good condition. I guess the water depth here, the fact that fishing nets can't get at it has protected the wreck. Wow, look at that. That's pretty impressive. You know, these ventilators, you never see them on
wrecks shallower than this. - I see you approaching the hatch. - [Man] Got it, I'm entering. Try not to dazzle me. - [Dima] Sure. But don't
get inside too deep. - [Man] Don't worry, I'm
not going in without Bob. - It's very dangerous, too. 'Cause we can't help
him if he has a problem. He's got to figure it out by himself. - Still depth, depth allowance. - [Bob] Follow me down here. (majestic music) There are several decks of cargo. Oh wow, there's a whole parking lot here. - [Dima] Bob, you're doing a
good job with the light there. - [Bob] Turn a little to your left. - Every ship sunk would deprive the enemy of desperately needed food, fuel, ammunition, and vehicles. But the most tragic cost
was in the thousands of soldiers and sailors who
were sent to the bottom. These successes against Axis shipping took their toll on British submarines. But fortunately, Perseus
escaped undamaged. (water whooshing) Two days later, while
patrolling in Greek waters, Perseus was ordered near
the island of Kefalonia to intercept a convoy that would be coming out of the Corinth Channel. - Sir? The First Mate
is waiting in the mess. - Mr. Merlin, please, join us. - Thanks, but I don't
think I'm hungry now. (First Mate chuckles) - It's not much fun when it pitches. Or is it different on Greek boats? - Well, not really no, it
pitches exactly the same way. It's just we normally submerge
in this kind of weather. - About an hour ago we
made contact with a convoy, so we're trying our best not to lose it. So we can't dive right now. Excuse me, it's my shift. - Some brew, of course not terribly fresh. At least it was warm not long ago. (horn blaring) Oh well, so it begins. Now we definitely won't
be getting any sleep. - For Nicholas Merlin
today was no ordinary day. Today was the Feast of St. Nicholas, for whom he had been named. As fate would have it, he was passing right by
the island of Kefalonia, where his mother and family had come from. But what Nicholas Merlin didn't know was today would be his last day. (explosion booming) (sailors shouting) - Bombs ahead.
- Put out the fire, put out the fire. (suspenseful music) (men shouting) (explosion booming)
(sailors shouting) (ship creaking) - [Man] Stand by to operate submarine. - [Richie] On the prior dive we located one of the mine anchors, and now we're going to survey it. Mines could be laid
offensively or defensively, to either protect the harbor or limit an enemy's access to the area. Once laid, the mines can be activated either by hitting them,
by sound, or magnetism. And a mine doesn't know the difference between a friend or a foe. - [Sergei] Diver standing still. Starting the diving operation. (water sloshing) (people chattering) (gentle music) (people chattering) - [Sergei] The diver has almost
reached the preset depth. - [Andrew] Copy that, on my way. - Hey Sergei, is he on the bottom? - Yeah, on the bottom. - Okay. - [Andrew] I'm here, all is quiet. (people chattering) - Now he's looking at us. How long has Andrew
been down on the bottom? - About 15 minutes. You need a lift down there? - [Andrew] No. (indistinct) I am by the object. - That looks like that might
be an anchor for a mine. Can't be that far if he's
as far as his umbilical. So it's gotta be relatively close. - [Andrew] I am by the anchor. Judging by its size, the
mine was quite large. It looks like one that belonged to a World War II minefield. - That could actually be the mine anchor for the mine that sank Perseus. - [Andrew] It is less than 20 meters between the wreck and the anchor. Must be from that exact mine. QU, I'm approaching the propellers, give me some light. - [QU] I see you, careful. Don't get tangled, it's
covered in fishing lines. (bubbles gurgling)
(mysterious music) - [Andrew] Both propellers are intact. It seems that this compartment,
it belongs to deck one. (dramatic music) - [Man] Are you there, coming to help. - [Man] What? - Are you all in one piece? - I can hardly hear you. - Shine that on my leg. - What have we hit? The shore? - That wouldn't have been too bad. It appears we've hit the bottom. - While submerging? - Well, you could call it that. - I can't hear you. - The pressure, it's
pricked your ear drums. Dan, I'm gonna go check
the next compartment. Maybe it's dry. You wait here, try to keep quiet. - [Richie] After the
explosion and sinking, Perseus was slowly killing
the few men left alive. Smoke and poison gas
filled every compartment. And with each breath the men were using up what little oxygen remained. The only thing that the Perseus survivors had going for them was
that the stern section had stayed intact and not yet flooded. These men had a way out. (siren blaring) - What the bloody hell? Look, just go out to the left. (indistinct) Come on, get this off! (sailors grunting) - It's not opening!
- Open it! (explosion booming) - [Man] Get out of here, let's go, go, go. Come on, go. Get this door shut. (door banging) (mysterious music) - Look at the twist on the bow from where Perseus slammed
into the sea floor. Kind of just took a nose and twisted it over like that. (people chattering) - [Man] Or maybe that does just go. - Gone, probably very thin steel. And it just rotted away. It you were semi-conscious
after the explosion and you're in this compartment, when you hit the sea floor
everything's gonna move forward. Everything's gonna slide at the same time. Water's coming from behind you. - Water came through everywhere. - I don't think the guys in the forward compartments had a chance. - Not at all. Navigator, go ahead. - The current got stronger. We are leaving the bow. Headed towards the conning tower. - [Dima] Copy, Bob. - Move a little more forward,
towards the torpedo room, because that's where the crew, obviously the majority of
the crew, were sleeping, amongst the torpedoes. I mean they lived, ate, and slept right next to these huge weapons. (ethereal music) Yeah, so none of the hatches up here, the conning tower hatch is open, but that would have
been open on the surface when the mine went off. But nobody tried to get out of the bow. - Because I imagine the
explosion, sank very, very fast. - [Bob] We are approaching the bridge. We will attempt to send mini-ROV inside. - [Dima] Understood, do
you need any assistance? - [Bob] We could use some
additional light from above. - So right here, this is
pretty substantial damage. What I'm looking at here
is obviously right adjacent to what would have been
the battery compartment. Can you go that, yeah, yeah,
perfect, perfect, perfect. Good, good, good, right there, awesome. (mysterious music) Inside the stern compartment, time has stopped at that horrible moment. And a large depth gauge
with its glass face, which at the time it sank would have shown the incorrect depth of 270 feet, which at that time was believed impossible to escape from this depth,
and yet Capes did it. And there's the torpedo
tubes, right there. (suspenseful music) Many warships have a
crest or ship's emblem, and on Perseus it was a dragon with a sword driven into its mouth. We can see one of them right here on a torpedo tube door. In some instances the torpedo tubes could be used in an emergency
as a point of escape. They were of no help to
the crew of the Perseus. (ship's horn blaring) (sailor grunting) - Listen lads, the hatch is open. Then we surface in a couple of minutes. Let's go, one at a time. - Capes was a stoker, or
an engineer on the Olympus, the sister ship to the Perseus, so he knew this type
of submarine very well. He gathered as many of
the survivors as he could, but the odds were against them. Between the cold, the
pressure, and the bad air. - Let's go, let's go.
- They didn't stand a chance. - Good men. (dramatic music) - Makes me wonder, when he
took a few sips of that rum, if it not only steeled his spirits, but kept his core warm for that
rapid ascent to the surface. Whatever it was, escaping
the submarine was a miracle. (dramatic music) All World War II submarines were equipped with emergency hatches and
the crew given escape lungs in the case that the
submarine was to sink. The problem is Perseus
is three times deeper than this equipment was ever designed. Not only that, no one would
be expected to survive an ascent from a submarine this deep. (ROV whirring) You know, I have mixed emotions. I mean I'm happy to be here, but I realize that this is a war grave. That the crew is still on board. I can't wait to get to the back, see if we can peek into the hatch where John Capes made
that miraculous escape from this submarine. (submersible whirring) - [Bob] Triton, (indistinct). - [Dima] Just set. - [Bob] Now where did it go? - [Dima] Maybe it's been
removed by the trawl nets. - Some of the outer
structure's been ripped away or rotted away over the years, though. It's not 100% intact. But the pressure hull is right there. - [Bob] Top hatch is completely open. Everything just like Capes said. - You know, when you think about Capes organizing the escape, giving aid to the injured sailors and then getting the escape lungs, flooding the compartment. I mean he really orchestrated
the entire escape. And then three men ducked underneath and then punched out, I
mean, just consider that. Here we are, 190 feet from the surface. And only one of the three
guys made it to the surface. Only Capes survived. This submarine did everything it could to kill every one of its crew. (bells tolling) (birds chirping) (soldier speaking in foreign language) (Giuseppe speaking in foreign language) - [Richie] The explosion of the mine was soon discovered by the Axis. They knew the submarine had sunk, and over the next few days had been looking for the survivors. (Nico speaking in foreign language) (woman speaking in foreign language) (Nico speaking in foreign language) - I'm sorry, I didn't meant to wake you. - (groans) It's these drugs. They make me do nothing but sleep. - Here, you also have to eat. - Thank you. - Nico said you're feeling better. - I'm capable of breathing normally now. (Nico speaking in foreign language) - What did he say?
- The Germans are here, we have to leave now. (dogs barking)
(bells tolling) (motorcycle engine revving) (soldiers speaking in foreign language) - [Richie] On the island rumors began that the local people had buried sailors whose bodies they had
found on the shoreline. For harboring an enemy, the Germans could shoot a person dead. But despite that terrible threat, the Greeks still helped John Capes. In the event that Capes had gotten caught he simply would have gone to jail as a prisoner of war. But the people that helped him? They would have been criminals and subject to the death penalty. (man singing in foreign language) (soldiers speaking in foreign language) - [Richie] After the
occupation of Greece in 1941, the island of Kefalonia
came under Italian control. Besides the 12,000 Italian soldiers there, about 2,000 troops from Nazi
Germany were also present. They opened camps for disobedient Greeks in Paxos, Athone, and Lazaretto. (solder speaking in foreign language) - [Richie] Where approximately
3,500 Greeks were jailed, tortured, and executed
under horrible conditions. (soldier speaking in foreign language) (John coughing) (soldiers speaking in foreign language) - Don't worry. When we were young, my brother
and I, we used to hide here. Nico would never find us. - John's luck holds. By moving to the center of the island he evades capture by the soldiers
that are looking for him. (bright music) (soldier speaking in foreign language) (Nico speaking in foreign language) (soldier speaking in foreign language) - [Richie] Time has changed Capes. He's lost weight, grew a beard, and dressed like the local people. It's nearly impossible to
see that he's a foreigner. (airplane engines revving) (sheep bleating) Feeling a little safer
in his surroundings, John sends a postcard to his mother, who at this point believes that he is dead along with the rest of the Perseus crew. Mailed to his mother's home number, the card eludes the Nazi censors. Strangely, its delivered
and the cryptic message, "All is well, Hawtrey," lets his mother know that he has survived. Time goes by, and more and
more people are helping Capes. He was given a donkey so
that he could blend in, he just had to promise
that he wouldn't eat it. (gentle music) (soldier speaking in foreign language) (John speaking in foreign language) - [Richie] With this donkey, John starts scouting his surroundings, studying check points,
locations of the soldiers, and their vehicles. (soldier speaking in foreign language) (engine rumbling) - Capes' mother, after
reading his postcard, informs the Admiralty he's still alive. The Admiralty, although skeptical, wants to verify the information and the suspicious way
in which it arrived. So they forward the
information on to MI-9. (crowd chattering) (man singing in foreign language) Located in Alexandria, Egypt, the MI-9 branch handled
resistance operations in enemy occupied Greece. There is a unit which is engaged in pulling out sailors and pilots from behind the enemy lines. The man who formed MI-9, Michael Parish, using his contacts in Greece, confirmed that there really was a British sailor in Kefalonia. Michael Parish, through
his agents in Kefalonia, swore to John Capes that
there's a plan to get him out. With the assistance of the MI-9 agents and his new papers, John will have to pass
through several check points in order to get to the rendezvous point. After receiving the fake documents, Capes' status changes from
prisoner of war to spy. He is no longer protected
under the Geneva Convention and if caught, is subject
to the death penalty. (engine puttering) (soldier speaking in foreign language) (soldier speaking in foreign language) (driver speaking in foreign language) (soldier speaking in foreign language) (driver speaking in foreign language) (gentle music) - [Richie] Capes was very grateful to the Greeks for his rescue, and never hid his feelings towards them. For 18 months they risked
their own lives to hide him and nurse him back to health. (majestic music) Having left Kefalonia, in three days time he
reaches neutral Turkey, from where he'll go on
directly to England. In a way, John Capes
came back from the dead. And although Perseus was still lost, she was no longer missing. And having told his story he
receives a medal for bravery, as the only man to have
survived the Perseus. (birds squawking) Throughout his life, many doubted his story as unbelievable. It was only after his death, and thanks to the divers who discovered the wreck of the Perseus, could his incredible story
of survival be proven true. (engine droning) As an underwater explorer, I find myself in awe of John Capes' luck, stamina, and single-minded
will to survive, despite every obstacle thrown at him, both the forces of war or the ocean that held him captive, he rose to the occasion, showing us that no matter the odds, the human spirit can not be defeated. (boat engine revving)
(gentle music) (dramatic music)
