SS Hertford
| History | |
|---|---|
| Germany | |
| Name | Friesland, originally Rheinland |
| Owner | Hamburg-Amerika Linie (HAPAG), Hamburg |
| Builder | Bremer Vulkan, Bremen-Vegesack, Germany |
| Launched | 13 October 1917 |
| Completed | June 1920 |
| Fate | Ceded as war reparations |
 Great Britain | |
| Name | Hertford |
| Owner | Federal Steam Navigation Co Ltd |
| Acquired | 1922 |
| Fate | torpedoed by U-571 on 29 March 1942 |
| Status | shipwreck |
| General characteristics | |
| Type | Freighter[1] |
| Tonnage | 10923 gross tons[1] |
| Length | 162.5 m (533 ft)[1] |
| Beam | 19.6 m (64 ft)[1] |
| Draft | 11.64 m (38.2 ft)[1] |
| Installed power | 1,300 hp (970 kW)[1] |
| Speed | 14 knots[1] |
| Complement | 62 (including captain & gunnery complement)[1] |
| Armament | armed (details not known)[1] |
Hertford (formerly Rheinland and Friesland) was a freighter which was built in Germany in 1917 and served with both the Hamburg-Amerika Linie and Federal Steam Navigation Co Ltd before being lost after torpedoing by the German submarine U-571 off the coast of Massachusetts in 1942. She was also extensively damaged after striking a German mine off the Australian coast in 1940.
Origins
She was built by Bremer Vulkan at Bremen-Vegesack in Free Hanseatic City of Bremen, Germany. She was launched in October 1917 under the name Rheinland and completed in June 1920 as Friesland for the Hamburg-Amerika Linie (HAPAG), Hamburg. In 1922, she transferred to Great Britain as war reparations and sold to the Federal Steam Navigation Co Ltd who renamed her as Hertford.[2]
Incident in Australian waters during 1940
On 7 December 1940, Hertford struck a mine approximately 25 nautical miles (46 kilometres; 29 miles) west-south west of the Neptune Islands off the South Australian coast in a mine field placed by the German auxiliary cruiser Pinguin during November 1940.[3][4] She was towed to Port Lincoln for temporary repairs, then to Port Adelaide where further repairs were carried out and then she sailed to Sydney where she was dry-docked to complete repairs.[5] The mine field was the subject of a mine sweeping operation in 1946 using German naval records to ensure that all mines had been accounted for.[6][7]
Loss
Hertford was sunk by the German submarine U-571 on 29 March 1942 about 350 nautical miles (650 kilometres; 400 miles) east of Nantucket, Massachusetts with the loss of four of her 62 crew.[8] The wreck site is reportedly to be located in the vicinity of 40°30′0.0″N 63°18′36″W / 40.500000°N 63.31000°W.[2]
See also
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i "HERTFORD CARGO SHIP 1917-1942". www.wrecksite.eu. Retrieved 19 October 2013.
- ^ a b "Ships hit by U-boats; Hertford, British Steam merchant". uboat.net. Retrieved 1 November 2013.
- ^ "FAMOUS WARSHIP'S BRIEF SA VISIT; Warspite Off Willunga In 1942". The Advertiser. 23 August 1945. p. 4. Retrieved 1 November 2013.
- ^ Waters, Sidney David (1949). German Raiders in the Pacific. Wellington, New Zealand: War History Branch, Department of Internal Affairs. p. 25. Retrieved 1 November 2013.
- ^ "Death Of A Fine Ship; Ulysses' Last Days Were Full of Thrills". The Mail. 12 August 1944. p. 5. Retrieved 1 November 2013.
- ^ "MINE WARNING TO SMALL CRAFT; Naval Flotilla To Sweep Dangerous Waters". The Recorder. 18 February 1946. p. 1. Retrieved 1 November 2013.
- ^ "MINESWEEPERS HERE THIS WEEK, No Mines Found in Five Months' Search, From A Staff Representative ABOARD HMAS SWAN". The Advertiser. 8 April 1946. p. 6. Retrieved 1 November 2013.
- ^ "World War II Day-By-Day: Day 941 March 29, 1942". worldwar2daybyday.blogspot.com.au. Retrieved 19 October 2013.
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