SS Ardena (1915)
| History | |
|---|---|
| Name |
|
| Operator |
|
| Port of registry |  |
| Builder | A McMillan & Son, Dumbarton |
| Yard number | 462 |
| Launched | 25 August 1915 |
| Out of service | 27 September 1943 |
| Fate | Mined and sunk |
| General characteristics | |
| Tonnage | 1,092 gross register tons (GRT) |
| Length | 250.1 feet (76.2 m) |
| Beam | 33.1 feet (10.1 m) |
SS Ardena was a minesweeper and escort vessel built as the British Royal Navy HMS Peony in 1915.[1]
History
She was built by A McMillan and Son in Dumbarton and launched on 25 August 1915. She entered services as HMS Peony as an Template:Sclass- sloop minesweeper.
She was acquired by the London and South Western Railway in 1920, reconstructed and placed on the routes to Cherbourg and Caen which re-opened in July 1921.[2] She was taken over by the Southern Railway in 1923 and remained until sold in July 1934.
She went to Navigation Constantine Toyias, Piraeus. On 18 April 1941, during a convoy escort, she collided with the Greek destroyer Leon followed by the explosion of two depth charges. As a result, the stern section of Leon was cut off and two officers were killed.
Ardena was sunk by the Luftwaffe in April 1941 and later raised by the Germans. [3]
On 28 September 1943 she was sailing from Cephalonia to Greece with 840 Italian prisoners of war when she hit a mine off Argostoli and sank. 720 Italian prisoners of war were killed.[3]
References
- ^ Duckworth, Christian Leslie Dyce; Langmuir, Graham Easton (1968). Railway and other Steamers. Prescot, Lancashire: T. Stephenson and Sons.
- ^ "Southampton-Cherbourg route re-opened". Yorkshire Post and Leeds Intelligencer. England. 8 July 1921. Retrieved 1 December 2015 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- ^ a b "Ardena". www.historisches-marinearchiv.de. Retrieved 4 January 2019.
