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#1
23-05-05, 10:13
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The Shipping News
Recently in a discussion with immigrants to Australia in the 60's, they mentioned that they came out from Britain in the New Australia. This ship had been rebuilt as a Shaw -Saville ship in 1949 from the fire damaged Empress of Bermuda. The Empress of Bermuda had been built in 1931 and was used as a British troopship during WW2, including carrying invasion forces to Norway. I recalled that other "Empresses" were used to carry the First Echelon NZEF and AIF troops to Egypt on Jan 1940. A 13 troopship convoy consisted of the Empress of Canada, Empress of Japan and the Empress of Britain, as well as the P&O ships Orcades, Otranto, Orion, and Orford and the ships Aquitania, Dunera, Strathaird, Strathnaver, Sobieski and Rangitata. The Convoy was protected by the Cruisers HMS Leander, HMS Ramilles, HMAS Australia, HMAS Canberra and HMAS Sydney.
Were the "Empress" ships all Shaw-Saville liners or was this only the case after the Bermuda was rebuilt in 1949? What other Empresses were there and what other troop convoys did they take part in? 
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#2
23-05-05, 14:46
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Re: The Shipping News
Quote:
The Empress of Ireland was sunk in a collision in the St Lawerence River in Canada..Here are some other Empresses.. And other great ocean liners... http://www.greatoceanliners.net/index2.html
__________________
Alex Blair :remember :support :drunk:
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#3
23-05-05, 21:24
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Re: The Shipping News
Quote:
THERE ARE WARNINGS OF GALES IN PLYMOUTH FITZROY SOLE LUNDY FASTNET IRISH SEA AND SHANNON THE GENERAL SYNOPSIS AT 1300 LOW NORTHERN IRELAND 999 MOVING SLOWLY EAST AND LOSING ITS IDENTITY. LOW CROMARTY 1002 EXPECTED NORTHEAST FAEROES 1004 BY 1300 TOMORROW. LOW 300 MILES WEST OF SOLE 988 EXPECTED SOUTHWEST SCOTLAND 1004 BY SAME TIME THE AREA FORECASTS FOR THE NEXT 24 HOURS VIKING NORTH UTSIRE SOUTH UTSIRE SOUTH OR SOUTHEAST 4 OR 5, INCREASING 6 FOR A TIME. RAIN AT TIMES. MODERATE OR GOOD FORTIES CROMARTY FORTH SOUTH 4 OR 5, OCCASIONALLY 6 IN FORTIES AND FORTH, BECOMING CYCLONIC LATER. RAIN AT TIMES. MODERATE OR GOOD TYNE DOGGER FISHER GERMAN BIGHT HUMBER THAMES DOVER WIGHT PORTLAND SOUTH OR SOUTHWEST 5 TO 7, OCCASIONALLY 4 AT FIRST IN FISHER AND GERMAN BIGHT. RAIN AT TIMES. MODERATE OR GOOD, OCCASIONALLY POOR LATER IN PORTLAND PLYMOUTH SOUTH OR SOUTHWEST 5 TO 7, INCREASING GALE 8 FOR A TIME. RAIN AT TIMES. MODERATE OR GOOD, OCCASIONALLY POOR LATER NORTH BISCAY SOUTHWEST 4 OR 5, INCREASING 6 OR 7 FOR A TIME. OCCASIONAL RAIN. MODERATE OR GOOD SOUTH BISCAY SOUTHEAST FITZROY VARIABLE 3 OR 4. FAIR. MAINLY GOOD NORTHWEST FITZROY SOLE LUNDY FASTNET IRISH SEA SOUTHWEST 5 TO 7, OCCASIONALLY GALE 8 AT FIRST. RAIN OR SHOWERS. MODERATE OR GOOD SHANNON CYCLONIC 5 TO 7, OCCASIONALLY GALE 8 AT FIRST. RAIN AT TIMES. MODERATE OR GOOD ROCKALL MALIN NORTHEAST 4 OR 5, BUT VARIABLE 3 OR 4 AT FIRST IN SOUTH. SHOWERS. MODERATE OR GOOD HEBRIDES BAILEY NORTH OR NORTHWEST 4 OR 5, OCCASIONALLY 6 AT FIRST IN BAILEY. SHOWERS. MAINLY GOOD FAIR ISLE EAST FAEROES CYCLONIC BECOMING WEST 4 OR 5. RAIN AT TIMES. MODERATE OR GOOD, OCCASIONALLY POOR AT FIRST WEST FAEROES NORTH 5 OR 6. RAIN OR SHOWERS. MODERATE OR GOOD SOUTHEAST ICELAND NORTH 5 TO 7, BUT 3 OR 4 IN WEST. SHOWERS. MODERATE OR GOOD  R.
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#4
24-05-05, 00:02
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Re: Re: The Shipping News
Quote:
Curiously, the "Commonwealth" Empresses were all regal titles of Queen Victoria, but how did Empress of Japan slip in there? And yet another question, wasn't the correct company name for that rail company the Canadian Pacific RAILROAD, or is that a later version?
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#5
25-05-05, 04:09
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Shipping News
As a sidebar to the above posts, were you aware that all Cunard liners' names ended in -ia (Lusitania, Maurentia, Aquitania, etc) whilst all White Star liners' names ended in -ic (Titanic, Olympic, etc).
As a further sidebar, I arrived in Canada aboard Aquitania (ship's name mentioned above) 7 Feb 1947 at Pier 21, Halifax, from Southampton. It was an austerity trip, the ship was still rigged out for troopship conveyance. Third class immigration passage...four sittings per meal...sometimes interrupted by lifeboat drills. Not much fun for a little kid! Trip took 6 days.
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PRONTO SENDS
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#6
27-07-12, 17:09
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Photo of Empress of Bermuda as a troopship in 1946 Suez canal. Original photo from my collection.
Keith
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Keith
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#7
28-07-12, 23:16
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Tony,
Try finding a copy of 'The Winston Specials' about the WS class convoys. It has excellent shipping information, and provides reasons why certain ships were used, trooping levels, and so on. A most useful reference. Also, if you are into wartime merchant shipping, Jordan's 'Merchant Fleets 1939' is a must, and for wartime shipping losses 'Lloyds War Losses' Volumes 1 & 2, though hard to find, are invaluable. I think you'll find that the first convoy from Australia, coded US1 was actually 11 ships - it did not contain either Aquitania or Empress of Britain, both of which were first used for ANZAC trooping as part of convoy US3 in May. In January, both Empress of Britain and Aquitania were busy with convoying Canadian troops in convoy TC3 from Halifax, Canada, to the Clyde (they had also participated in TC1 in December). The first ANZAC troops to leave for overseas were the Advance Party, which left in mid-December aboard Strathallan. Jordan lists the following for the Canadian Pacific Railway Company (owners), shipping managed by Canadian Pacific Steamships Ltd out of their London, UK, office: Passenger vessels North Atlantic: various 'Duchess' and 'Mont' prefix names plus Empresses of: Australia, Britain Passenger vessels, North Pacific: Empresses of Asia, Canada, Japan, Russia. Empress of Japan was renamed Empress of Scotland in late 1942, for obvious reasons! Empress of Ireland was sunk in May 1914 Empress of Australia was originally launched as the Admiral Von Tirpitz, later changed to Tirpitz, and then the Empress of China before becoming the Empress of Australia. The company also operated cargo vessels, all with names beginning with 'Beaver', eg 'Beaverbrae', 'Beaverburn', etc I cannot find any wartime reference to Empress of Bermuda at all: it is not listed under that name in Jordan, so maybe it was renamed in the same way that the Empress of Japan was? Do you know if it had a different name at time of launch? Regards Mike C Last edited by Mike Cecil; 28-07-12 at 23:36.
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#8
29-07-12, 02:14
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OK, a bit of hunting and I located that it is the 'Monarch of Bermuda' you are referring to, not the 'Empress of Bermuda'.
Monarch of Bermuda was indeed launched in 1931, became the New Australia in 1949, then the Arkadia in 1958, before being broken up in 1966. Built by Vickers Armstrong. Originally owned by Furness Withy & Co., then to the British Govt (1949), as an immigrant ship and operated by Shaw Saville Line, then sold to Ormos Sg Co (1959). Monarch of Bermuda was also one of the transports for TC1 and TC3 from Canada, as well as the Norway force convoy. It went on trooping in a number of WS convoys around the Cape, as well KMF22 from the UK to Gibralter and Algiers. Prewar, it was one of the two 'Millionaires' ships operated by the company, the other being the Queen of Bermuda, on the run from New York to Hamilton, Bermuda. Mike C
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#9
29-07-12, 03:46
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Quote:
Empress of Bermuda took the first Canadian troops to Britain, to smite the Hun,in WW 2 http://www.iwm.org.uk/collections/item/object/205125990
__________________
Alex Blair :remember :support :drunk:
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#10
16-10-12, 09:15
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WW2 Atlantic Convoys
My father and his 2 brothers crossed the Atlantic to the UK on convoys TC3 (Feb 1940) TC9 (Feb 41) and HX194 (June 42). I have a lot of info off convoyweb about the boats making up the convoys but wondered if anyone has records of first hand experiences on these or any other Atlantic convoys.
Best regards Alan Mills
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