Lifeline Across the Sea: Mercy Ships of the Second World War and their Repatriation Missions

by David L. Williams

Overview

The safe exchange of wounded or gravely ill prisoners of war, 'protected personnel' – medical staff and clergy – and diplomats, civilians and alien internees is a little known dimension of the Second World War, yet it was highly dangerous work. Here, David L. Williams tells the gripping story of some fifty mercy ships engaged in these repatriation voyages, each of the exchanges arranged individually between Allied nations and the Axis belligerents, through neutral intermediaries, and often conducted under the supervision of the International Red Cross. Sailing alone and undefended through hostile waters, and conspicuously illuminated at night, the ships were constantly in danger from submarine and aircraft, their safety depending totally on the transmission and receipt of 'safe passage' commands to the armed units in their paths. However, despite the risk of attack and severe loss of life, these exchange operations were essential for providing a lifeline to thousands of people caught up in a cruel and brutal war.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780750965514
Publisher:	The History Press
Publication date:	07/06/2015
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	160
File size:	14 MB
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Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

David L. Williams’s background is in professional industrial photography and technical publications. He was previously responsible for the entire aircraft and hovercraft in-service support operation of Westland Aerospace. He spent time working aboard lighthouse tenders and cable layers and is an Associate of the British Institute of Professional Photographers and member of the World Ship Society. He has written over 30 books on shipping and related subjects, including Great Passenger Ships that Never Were, Made on the Isle of Wight and Cabin Class Rivals for The History Press.

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Lifeline Across the Sea

Mercy Ships of the Second World War and Their Repatriation Missions

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By David L. Williams

The History Press

Copyright © 2015 David L. Williams
All rights reserved.
ISBN: 978-0-7509-6551-4

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CHAPTER 1

THE MERCY SHIPS

A total of forty-nine ships have been identified as having participated, either directly or indirectly, in the thirty or so mercy missions of the Second World War, covering both military repatriations and the exchanges of diplomats, interned civilians and Protected Personnel.

The descriptions that follow provide the technical particulars and concise details of the peacetime commercial employment of these ships, as well as of other activities undertaken by them during the war prior to their engagement for repatriation duties. Another, separate group of seven Swedish vessels were among others deployed on special humanitarian missions in the Baltic just before and after the end of the war in Europe.

There are undoubtedly other ships that, despite significant research, have not been positively revealed and which, therefore, are not included herein. In fact, certain official documents make tantalising reference to other maritime transport engaged in elements of these missions, but the vessels' names have not been disclosed. Without examining in detail every movement of every ship, if such records still exist, it is impossible now to identify those vessels. Among those whose identities remain unknown are some of the ferries used for the carriage of repatriates to and from main ports of embarkation and disembarkation. Where appropriate, however, such references to unnamed ships have been incorporated in the narrative of the individual missions concerned in order to provide the most complete account possible.

Given the nature of the duties of some of these ships, it is evident that not all vessels described here necessarily functioned under the auspices of the International Red Cross, either at all, partially or even temporarily. This applies principally to the smaller vessels that conveyed repatriates to and from ports under the control of the same belligerent, where they were then transferred onto or off bigger ships. It also pertains to certain of the larger ships whose total deployment may not have been arranged under protective cover as cartel ships or whose entire voyages did not fall within the protective provisions agreed between two belligerents. Where longer-distance sea travel was concerned, some exchange prisoners first proceeded aboard ships under 'safe-passage', as far as the point where formal protection terminated only to continue or be transferred to other vessels to complete their journey home without any agreed immunity from attack. In that regard, a ship that should be mentioned here is the Eastern Prince (1929/10,926grt) built by Napier & Miller, Glasgow (yard no. 266), for Furness Prince Line's service from New York to La Plata ports. Although, in 1944, she carried home repatriated POW, specifically men of the Eighth Army who had been held in Italian prison camps, she was not a mercy ship as such, nor was she engaged directly in a recognised repatriation mission.

The Eighth Army personnel concerned had all escaped from their camps and crossed into Switzerland where they had been interned. Their presence was something of an embarrassment for the Swiss, whose unique humanitarian status risked being compromised. To return the escapees to Italy – presumably the action that should have been taken – would have conflicted with the country's declared values, the men having suffered miserably in the camps. However, to retain them within its borders could undermine relations with Germany, something that was important to avoid for the benefit of other exchange missions then under discussion.

To overcome the dilemma, the Swiss adopted a pragmatic approach, ensuring their services were indispensable to both sides. This permitted it to invoke certain repatriations in its own right. Described as Swiss Direct Governmental Repatriation Agreements, they enabled action to be taken to safely remove the presence of compromising aliens who were also a burden on the state's limited resources, having to be fed and accommodated at its expense. Several such repatriations took place, mainly overland, but the release and return of the Eighth Army escapees was partly by sea, probably from Marseilles, after they had been taken there by train. Contemporary Pathé news film, Back to Blighty (ID: 1366.32), shows the Eastern Prince arriving with the returning soldiers at a British north-west port, probably Glasgow, in October 1944, but the commentary does not state from where they set out. The ship itself, which was unmarked and painted in accordance with the standard troopship colours of the day – the Admiralty Standard Grey Concealment Scheme for Merchant Ships, comprising the grey shades MSS (Merchant Ships Side) and MSD (Merchant Ships Deck) with white funnel top and mast tops – had sailed from Algiers in a routine convoy, MKF 35, escorted by warships. Of course, in these circumstances, without any safe-passage clearance, she constituted a legitimate target for attack.

The El Nil, used in the Lourenço Marques exchange (see Mission 11), is also believed to have delivered home repatriated servicemen in this fashion at some time in 1943 before she became a hospital ship. Another Pathé film, Wounded Returning Home (ID: 1943.02), shows her arriving at Liverpool. Although she is not named, she can be identified from her features. Of significance, it can be clearly seen that she is not carrying protective markings but is painted navy grey, her lower hull somewhat darker than her upper works, suggesting one of the Admiralty Alternative colour schemes adopted for use by troopships.

The last chapter of the book briefly summarises for each of the ships described below their post-mission fates or subsequent careers through to the end of their working lives.

Repatriation Ships

AQUILEIA ex Prins der Nederlanden (1935) Lloyd Triestino

9,448grt; 498ft LOA; 57ft beam

Nederlandsche Schps. Maats., Amsterdam (yard no. 123)

Quadruple-expansion steam reciprocating, twin screw

January 1914: completed for Nederland Royal Mail Line's Amsterdam–Dutch East Indies service via Suez; sister ship, Koningin Emma.1935: sold to Lloyd Triestino for service from Trieste to Africa and the Far East. May 1940: acquired by the Italian Government for conversion into a hospital ship. September 1943: seized at Spezia for hospital-ship service for Germany. Mercy Mission: 20

ARGENTINA Tirrenia S.A. di Navigazione (Tirrenia Line)

5,526grt; 407.5ft LOA; 48ft beam

Russell, Port Glasgow (yard no. 582)

Triple-expansion steam reciprocating, twin screw

31 October 1907: maiden voyage Trieste–South America for Unione Austriaca di Navigazione S.A., Trieste, later Trieste–New York. 1919: transferred to Cosulich Line. 1925: transferred to Florio Soc. Italiana di Navigazione for trans-Mediterranean services. 1932: owners became Tirrenia Flotte Riunite Florio-Citra. December 1936: owners became Tirrenia S.A. di Navigazione. Mercy Missions: 15 and 16

ARUNDEL CASTLE Union-Castle Line

19,118grt; 686ft LOA; 73ft beam

Harland & Wolff, Belfast (yard no. 455)

Steam turbine, twin screw

22 April 1921: maiden voyage Southampton–Cape Town; sister ship Windsor Castle.1937: taken in hand for modernisation with her sister – four original stick funnels replaced with two of broader, more modern style and bow raked, increasing overall length by 25ft. 1939: considered for auxiliary employment as an Armed Merchant Cruiser but instead became a troopship. Mercy Missions: 25 and 26

ASAMA MARU Nippon Yusen Kaisha

16,947grt; 583ft LOA; 72ft beam

Mitsubishi, Nagasaki (yard no. 450)

Motorship, quadruple screw

10 October 1929: maiden voyage Yokohama–San Francisco; sister ship Tatsuta Maru.1941: taken up by the Japanese Government for conversion into an armed troop transport. Mercy Mission: 10

ATLANTIS ex Andes (1930) Royal Mail Line

15,135grt; 589ft LOA; 67ft beam

Harland & Wolff, Belfast (yard no. 434)

Triple-expansion steam reciprocating & LP steam turbine, triple screw

26 September 1913: maiden voyage Southampton–La Plata ports. April 1914: war service as auxiliary cruiser. November 1919: resumed South America service. 1930: converted at Liverpool into white -hulled cruise ship Atlantis.September 1939: purchased by the British Government for conversion into Hospital Ship 33, managed by her former owners. Mercy Missions: 18 and 20

AWA MARU Nippon Yusen Kaisha

11,249grt; 535ft LOA; 66ft beam

Mitsubishi, Nagasaki (yard no. 770)

Motorship, twin screw

24 August 1942: launched; intended for NYK's Kobe–Sydney service. March 1943: completed as an armed troop transport. Mercy Mission: 27

CABO DE BUENA ESPERANZA ex Maria del Carmen (1940) ex President Lincoln (1940) ex Hoosier State (1922) Ybarra Compania

14,187grt; 535ft LOA; 66ft beam

New York Shipbuilding Corp., Camden, New Jersey (yard no. 256)

Steam turbine, twin screw

September 1921: entered Orient service from San Francisco for the United States Shipping Board under charter to the Pacific Mail SS Co. 1925: transferred to the Dollar Line, purchased outright. 1938: owners became American President Lines. 1940: sold to Berge & Co. 1940: sold to Ybarra Compania for Barcelona–La Plata service. Mercy Mission: 24

CALITEA Società Anonima Adriatica Navigazione (Adriatica Line)

4,013grt; 334ft LBP; 50ft beam

Cantieri Riuniti dell'Adriatico, Monfalcone (yard no. 1118)

Motorship, twin screw

October 1933: completed for Lloyd Triestino's Mediterranean service calling at Trieste, Venice, Fiume, Brindisi, Piraeus, Rhodes and Alexandria. 1936: passed to Adriatica Line ownership, same route. June 1940: arrested at Malta by British Contraband Control along with the same company's Rodi.Mercy Mission: 1

CITTÀ DI TUNISI Tirrenia S.A. di Navigazione

5,419grt; 412ft LBP; 51ft beam

Cantieri del Tirreno, Riva Trigoso (yard no. 97)

Motorship, twin screw

May 1930: completed for Naples–Tripoli services via Palermo and Tunis or Catania, Syracuse and Malta of Florio Società Italiana di Navigazione; sister ship Città di Napoli.1936: owners became Tirrenia S.A. di Navigazione. June 1940: requisitioned and converted into an armed auxiliary cruiser, also transporting troops, supplies, fuel, vehicles and military equipment. Mercy Missions: 15 and 16

CITY OF CANTERBURY Ellerman City Line

8,421grt; 448.5ft LBP; 56.5ft beam

Swan Hunter & Wigham Richardson, Wallsend (yard no. 1189)

Quadruple-expansion steam reciprocating, single screw

February 1923: completed for London–India service. 1924: transferred to Bombay–Durban–Cape Town–UK route. 1930: returned to London–India service. 1939: taken up for troopship duties. Mercy Mission: 11

CITY OF PARIS Ellerman City Line

10,902grt; 504ft LOA; 59.5ft beam

Swan Hunter & Wigham Richardson, Wallsend (yard no. 1129)

Steam turbine, single screw

February 1922: maiden voyage London–Far East ports, then entered the Ellerman City Line London–Bombay service. 1924: cruises to northern capitals, then temporarily laid up before resuming London–India service. 1936: London–Beira service via Cape Town. September 1941: requisitioned for war service as a troopship. Mercy Mission: 11

CONTE ROSSO Linee Triestine per l'Oriente – Oriens (Lloyd Triestino)

17,856grt; 591ft LOA; 74ft beam

William Beardmore, Dalmuir, Glasgow (yard no. 611)

Steam turbine, twin screw

29 March 1922: maiden voyage Genoa–Buenos Aires for Lloyd Sabaudo. 15 May 1922: Genoa–New York service. 1928: resumed Genoa–La Plata ports service. January 1932: owners became Italia Flotte Riunite; immediately chartered to Lloyd Triestino for Trieste–Shanghai route via Suez. December 1933: transferred to Lloyd Triestino, same service plus trooping voyages to East Africa. Mercy Mission: 2

CONTE VERDE Linee Triestine per l'Oriente – Oriens (Lloyd Triestino)

18,765grt; 593ft LOA; 74ft beam

William Beardmore, Glasgow (yard no. 765)

Steam turbine, twin screw

21 April 1923: maiden voyage Genoa–Buenos Aires for Lloyd Sabaudo. 13 June 1923: Genoa–New York service. January 1932: owners became Italia Flotte Riunite; Genoa–La Plata ports service. 5 October 1932: chartered to Lloyd Triestino for Trieste–Shanghai route via Suez. December 1933: transferred to Lloyd Triestino. 3 June 1940: laid up at Shanghai. Mercy Mission: 10

CUBA Compagnie Générale Transatlantique (French Line)

11,337grt; 495ft LOA; 62ft beam

Swan Hunter & Wigham Richardson, Newcastle (yard no. 1108)

Steam turbine, twin screw

5 May 1923: maiden voyage St Nazaire–West Indies–Vera Cruz; later Vera Cruz service from Le Havre. 1930: Le Havre–Colon service. 1935: West Indies and 'Firm Coast' route (ports on the Caribbean coast and Gulf of Mexico). 31 October 1940: intercepted by HMS Moreton Bay while en route from Martinique to Casablanca; confiscated by the Ministry of War Transport and transformed into a troopship under the management of Cunard White Star Line. Mercy Mission: 20

DINARD Southern Railway

2,291grt; 316ft LBP; 41ft beam

William Denny, Dumbarton (yard no. 1164)

Steam turbine, twin screw

July 1924: completed for the Southampton–Channel Islands night service. October 1939: taken over for conversion into Hospital Carrier 33. Mercy Mission: 5

DJENNÉ Cie. de Navigation Paquet (Paquet Line)

8,790grt; 443ft LOA; 58ft beam

Forges et Chantiers de la Mediterranée, La Seyne (yard no. 1204)

Steam turbine, twin screw

June 1931: completed for Marseilles–Tangier–Casablanca service. 1939: requisitioned at Toulon for conversion into an armed merchant cruiser. April 1940: supported Allied operations in Norway. September 1941: repatriated French troops from Syria and Lebanon to Marseilles. February 1943: seized and transferred to German control. Mercy Mission: 20

DROTTNINGHOLM ex Virginian (1920) Svenska Amerika Linien (Swedish America Line)

11,182grt; 538ft LOA; 60ft beam

Alexander Stephen, Glasgow (yard no. 405)

Steam turbine, triple screw

6 April 1905: maiden voyage Liverpool–St John's, Newfoundland for Allan Line, subsequently Liverpool–Montreal service; sister ship Victorian.1917: transferred to Canadian Pacific Line. 1920: sold to Svenska Amerika Linien for Gothenburg–New York service. March 1940: laid up at Gothenburg. Mercy Missions: 8, 9, 20, 23, 25 and 28

DUILIO Lloyd Triestino

23,635grt; 635ft LOA; 76ft beam

Ansaldo, Sestri Ponente (yard no. 175)

Steam turbine, quadruple screw

30 October 1923: maiden voyage Genoa–New York for Navigazione Generale Italiana, later Naples–New York service. August 1928: Genoa–La Plata ports service. January 1932: transferred to Italia Flotta Riunite. 6 March 1934: Genoa–Cape Town service via Suez and East Africa. January 1937: transferred to Lloyd Triestino; Genoa–Cape Town route via West Africa. 7 November 1939: laid up at Genoa. Mercy Missions: 7, 12 and 17

EL NIL ex Tjerimai (1933) ex Wadai (1921) ex Marie (1917) ex Marie Woermann (1917) Khedivial Mail Steamship Co.

7,775grt; 426ft LBP; 56ft beam

Reiherstieg Schiffswerft, Hamburg (yard no. 463)

Quadruple-expansion steam reciprocating, twin screw

18 February 1916: launched as the Marie Woermann for the Woermann Line; laid up on completion. 1918: acquired by the Deutsche Ost-Afrika Line for the Germany–Africa service. 28 August 1920: entered service but immediately surrendered to the British Shipping Controller as a war prize. 1921: awarded as reparation to Rotterdam Lloyd and placed on the Rotterdam–Malaya–Dutch East Indies service via Suez. 1932: sold to the Societé 'Misr' de Navigation Maritime SAE (Khedivial Mail Steamship Co.) for the Alexandria–Naples–Genoa–Marseilles service. 1940: chartered by the British Government for troopship service. Mercy Mission: 11

EMPRESS OF RUSSIA Canadian Pacific Line

16,810grt; 592ft LOA; 68ft beam

Fairfield, Govan (yard no. 484)

Steam turbine, quadruple screw

1 April 1913: maiden voyage Liverpool–Hong Kong; subsequently Vancouver–Yokohama service; sister ship, Empress of Asia.23 August 1914: naval service as auxiliary cruiser. 12 February 1916: resumed trans-Pacific service. 6 May 1918: service as a troopship. 8 March 1919: resumed trans-Pacific service. 28 November 1940: requisitioned for troopship service for a second time. Mercy Mission: 20

(Continues...)

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Table of Contents

Contents

Title,
Acknowledgements,
Introduction,
1 The Mercy Ships,
2 The Mercy Missions,
3 The Fates and Subsequent Careers of the Mercy Ships,
Bibliography and Sources,
Plates,
Copyright,

Editorial Reviews

"absorbing"—Washington Times Online 10/27/2015

From the Publisher