World War II Merchant Marine losses

[Neeves]

And also 'The Wager Mutiny' by SWC Pack.

Good stuff can also be found here Patagonia - Books - Libros - Historia - History
Click on 'Shipwrecks'.
The voyage of the 'Speedwell' makes Bligh look like a fair weather sailor.
Spending time around the area Cheap covered getting north from the site of the wreck around the eastern shore of Golfo de Penas is my last project in the south. That includes visiting von Spee's 1914 anchorage at Bahia San Quintin.

Sorry about the thread drift.

Airing the voyage of the Wager is healthy (I suspect few know of it). Its part of UK history. It makes most things we address as completely unremarkable. Personally I don't think there is any need to apologise.

Jonathan

 

[Sandy]

met by another "special force" of Desert Truckers

Do you mean the Long Range Desert Group?

I had a geography teacher in secondary school who was a member; a fascinating character.

 

[Richard10002]

Do you mean the Long Range Desert Group?

I had a geography teacher in secondary school who was a member; a fascinating character.

Yes........ I think in the documentary, the LRDG met them after they had completed the mission. In the drama, the LRDG met them, (the survivors), after they had parachuted in, and took them to a deserted enclave where they set up for the mission.

As I say, whichever the case, if the LRDG could get in to pick them up, why did they have to fly and parachute in the first place?

 

[LittleSister]

My father was in the MN during WW2. I believe he was on Atlantic convoys among other things (he had an Atlantic medal) . He was invalided out of the MN after his ship (which I've forgotten the name of) was sunk off N Africa. (The first British ship, or first merchant ship, sunk by being bombed by German aircraft, ISTR.)

(His father had been in the Royal Navy during WW1, and was by the 1930s in the MN, but I'm not sure whether he had come ashore before WW2 started.)

It must indeed have been grim.

 

[penberth3]

The Government paid - but they never paid for the loss of life. Wives lost husbands, children lost fathers. The men lost had taken a career at sea in the 30's and became embroiled in a conflict they had not chosen (The War to end all Wars had put that one to bed) - they stuck to their chosen career. Thousands drowned lonely deaths, their names are not recorded on war memorials not easily found in the PRO records. Many of the merchant ships were not in a convoy but sailed solo ..... down the Atlantic to SA, back from SA to join convoy at Halifax, etc etc. Many of the ships were 'foreign' with foreign crew - Dutch etc etc.......

Good point Neeves. You must have seen this cartoon, "The price of petrol has been increased by one penny..."

 

[mobeydick]

My dad (stoker, Merchant Navy) got £12 for helping nurse the El Ciervo back to port after it had been torpedoed!

 

[fisherman]

At sea survival we were reminded that 35000 Seamen lost their lives in WW2, and that most died of exposure not having closed rafts.

 

[Frogmogman]

Good point Neeves. You must have seen this cartoon, "The price of petrol has been increased by one penny..."

View attachment 146453

Very powerful cartoon indeed, though it was highly controversial at the time.

The point that cartoonist Philip Zek was trying to make, was that people should conserve fuel preciously, in view of the high cost in human lives paid to get it to Britain.

Both Churchill and Herbert Morrison got the wrong end of the stick, taking umbrage that they thought it was a disloyal attack on the war effort.

 

[Bilgediver]

If you are still following this rambling post, here is a question for you knowledgable merchant marine guys:
Who owned the merchant ships on these convoys, who was paid for successful deliveries, who lost when ships were sunk or damaged? Was there any insurance market still operating?

Long time ago we all heard the story of Faith Hope and Charity.
Forgotten Fights: Malta's Faith, Hope, and Charity, 1940 | The National WWII Museum | New Orleans

The ships delivering to Malta were just some of the Merchant Navy ships running the gauntlet to various places around the the world . Many of the cargo ships were owned and operated by private companies however the government built and owned many ships which were then operated by private companies who also provided the crews. These were known as empire boats and were all named Empire ******* Back in the 60's I sailed on the Ex Empire Tavoy and named Great City . The shipping company bought her from the government anbd I sailed on her final two voyages before she was delivered to her final owners in Hong Kong

In my early days at rea I sailed with many people who had sailed through the war and there were some amazing stories. Some torpedoed a number of times. One of our chief engineers and others from Poland stole a submarine and brought it to the UK.
There are many books describing those times in the Atlantic.