View source for SS Kościuszko

{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2017}}
{{More citations needed|date=July 2020}}
{|{{Infobox ship begin}}
{{Infobox ship image
|Ship image=[[File:SS Kosciuszko.jpg|300px]]
|Ship caption=''Kościuszko'' entering the [[port of Gdynia]]
}}
{{Infobox ship career
|Hide header=
|Ship country=[[Russian Empire]] (1915–17)<br/>
[[United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland|United Kingdom]] (1917–21)<br/>
[[Denmark]] (1921–30)<br/>
[[Second Polish Republic|Poland]] (1930–45)<br/>
[[United Kingdom]] (1945–50)
|Ship flag=
|Ship name=*''Czaritza'' (1915–21)
*''Lituania'' (1921–30)
*''Kościuszko'' (1930–39, 1939–46)
*ORP ''Gdynia'' (1939)
*''Empire Helford'' (1946–50)
|Ship namesake=*The [[Tsarina]] of Russia (1915–21)
*[[Lithuania]] (1921–30)
*[[Tadeusz Kościuszko]] (1930–39, 1939–46)
*[[Gdynia]] (1939)
*[[Helford River|Helford]] (1946–50)
|Ship owner=*[[Russian American Line]] (1915–17)
*[[Cunard Line]] (1917–21)
*[[Baltic American Line]] (1921–30)
*PTTO (1930–34)
*[[Gdynia America Line]] (1934–45)
*[[Ministry of War Transport]] (1945–46)
*[[Lamport and Holt]] Line (1946–50)
|Ship operator=*[[Russian American Line]] (1915–17)
*[[Cunard Line]] (1917–21)
*[[Baltic American Line]] (1921–30)
*[[Gdynia America Line]] (1930–39)
*[[Polish Navy]] (1939)
*[[Lamport and Holt]] Line (1939–50)
|Ship registry=*[[Port of Gdynia|Gdynia]] (1930–45)
*[[Port of London|London]] (1945–50)
|Ship ordered=1914
|Ship awarded=
|Ship builder=[[Barclay Curle|Barclay, Curle & Co Ltd]]
|Ship yard number=512
|Ship way=
|Ship laid down=
|Ship launched=14 February 1915
|Ship sponsor=
|Ship christened=
|Ship completed=
|Ship acquired=
|Ship commissioned=10 November 1939
|Ship decommissioned=30 June 1941
|Ship in service=
|Ship out of service=
|Ship identification= *UK [[Official number]] 131432
*[[Code letters]] PBRD (1930–33)
*{{ICS|Papa}}{{ICS|Bravo}}{{ICS|Romeo}}{{ICS|Delta}}
*[[Maritime call sign|Call sign]] SPEA (1935–45)
*{{ICS|Sierra}}{{ICS|Papa}}{{ICS|Echo}}{{ICS|Alpha}}
*Call sign GLSW (1945–50)
*{{ICS|Golf}}{{ICS|Lima}}{{ICS|Sierra}}{{ICS|Whiskey}}
|Ship renamed=
|Ship reclassified=
|Ship refit=
|Ship struck=
|Ship reinstated=
|Ship motto=
|Ship nickname=
|Ship honours=
|Ship honors=
|Ship captured=
|Ship fate=Scrapped 1950
|Ship notes=
|Ship badge=
}}
{{Infobox ship characteristics
|Hide header=
|Header caption=
|Ship type=[[Ocean liner]]
|Ship tonnage=*Until 1934: {{GRT|6522}}, tonnage under deck 4,846, {{NRT|3940}}
*From 1935: {{GRT|6852}}, tonnage under deck: 4,843, {{NRT|4207}}
|Ship displacement=
|Ship length={{convert|440.0|ft|m|0|abbr=on}}
|Ship beam={{convert|53.4|ft|m|0|abbr=on}}
|Ship draught={{convert|32|ft|m|0|abbr=on}}
|Ship depth={{convert|29.3|ft|m|0|abbr=on}}
|Ship hold depth=
|Ship decks=2
|Ship ice class=
|Ship power=889 [[Horsepower#Nominal horsepower|NHP]]
|Ship propulsion=2 × 4-cylinder [[Marine steam engine#Triple or multiple expansion|quadruple-expansion engines]], twin [[propeller|screw]] propellers
|Ship speed={{convert|14|kn|km/h}}
|Ship range=
|Ship boats=
|Ship capacity=712 passengers
|Ship complement=
|Ship crew=
|Ship troops=
|Ship sensors=Wireless [[direction finding]] (by 1938)
|Ship armament=*'''1940:'''
*4 × [[Oerlikon 20 mm cannon|{{convert|20|mm|in|abbr=on}} Oerlikon]] [[Anti-aircraft warfare|anti-aircraft guns]]
|Ship armour=
|Ship notes=
}}
|}

'''''Kościuszko''''' was a [[passenger ship|passenger]] [[steamship]] that was built in [[Scotland]] in 1915, sailed as a [[troopship]] in both World Wars, was an [[ocean liner]] between the wars, carried [[Forced displacement|displaced persons]] after [[World War II]] and was scrapped in England in 1950.

In her 35-year history the ship was registered in the merchant navies of the [[Merchant Navy (United Kingdom)|United Kingdom]], [[Latvia]] and [[Second Polish Republic|Poland]]. She was built as '''''Czaritza''''' and later bore the names '''''Lituania''''', '''''Kościuszko''''', '''''Gdynia''''' and '''''Empire Helford'''''. The name ''Kościuszko'' refers to [[Tadeusz Kościuszko]] (1746 – 1817), a military leader, statesman and Polish national hero.

==Construction==
The [[Russian American Line]] ordered the ship before [[World War I]] to be an ocean liner to carry up to 1,000 passengers between [[New York City|New York]] and [[Arkhangelsk]]. [[Barclay Curle|Barclay, Curle & Co Ltd]] of [[Glasgow]] laid her keel in 1914, [[Ship naming and launching|launched]] her as ''Czaritza'' on 14 February 1915<ref name=Clydeships>{{cite web |url= http://clydeships.co.uk/view.php?year_built=&builder=22&ref=1648&vessel=CZARITZA |title=Czaritza |work=Scottish Built Ships |publisher=Caledonian Maritime Research Trust |access-date=1 July 2020}}</ref> and completed her that May.<ref name=LR33>{{cite book |url= https://plimsoll.southampton.gov.uk/shipdata/pdfs/33/33b0497.pdf |year=1933–34 |title=Lloyd's Register, Steamers & Motorships |place=London |publisher=[[Lloyd's Register]] |access-date=1 July 2020}}</ref> Her yard number was 512.<ref name=Clydeships/>

As built, ''Czaritza''{{'}}s tonnages were {{GRT|6522}} and {{NRT|3940}}. She had twin four-cylinder [[Marine steam engine#Triple or multiple expansion|quadruple-expansion engines]] driving twin [[propeller|screw]]s. Each engine had a {{convert|48|in|cm|adj=on}} [[Stroke (engine)|stroke]] and cylinders of {{convert|21+1/2|in|cm|adj=on}}, {{convert|30+3/4|in|cm|adj=on}}, {{convert|44|in|cm|adj=on}} and {{convert|63|in|cm|adj=on}} [[Bore (engine)|bore]]. Between them the engines developed 889 [[Horsepower#Nominal horsepower|NHP]] and gave her a speed of {{convert|14|kn|km/h}}. The engines were fed by six 215 [[Pounds per square inch|lb<sub>f</sub>/in<sup>2</sup>]] single-ended boilers with a total heating surface of {{convert|13302|sqft|0}}. Her boilers were heated by 18 corrugated furnaces with a grate surface of {{convert|332|sqft|0}}.<ref name=LR33/>

==First World War and Russian Civil War==
She spent the remainder of the war as a [[troopship]]. She was evacuated from Russia during the [[Russian Civil War]]. [[Cunard Line]] bought her in 1917 and used her to carry troops between the USA and Europe and between the UK and [[Crown Colony of Malta|Malta]]. In 1920 she returned to Arkhangelsk, this time with the [[Allies of World War I|Allied]] [[Allied expeditionary force|expeditionary forces]] intervening in the Russian Civil War.

==Between the wars==
The Russian American Line was a subsidiary of the Danish [[East Asiatic Company]].{{sfn|Gibbs|1970|p=174}} In January 1921 the ship was transferred to another East Asiatic Company subsidiary, [[Baltic American Line]], who renamed her ''Lituania''. She worked various trans-oceanic routes, including a circular route  [[City of Halifax|Halifax]] – [[New York City|New York]] – [[Port of Copenhagen|Copenhagen]] – [[Port of Danzig|Danzig]] – [[Liepāja]].

In 1930 the East Asiatic Company sold Baltic American Line to Polish owners who renamed the company [[Gdynia America Line|Polskie Transatlantyckie Towarzystwo Okrętowe]] ("Polish Transatlantic Shipping Company Limited" or PTTO){{sfn|Gibbs|1970|p=174}} and renamed the ship ''Kościuszko''. On 8 June she reached [[Gdynia]], which became her port of registry on 20 June. She was operated by [[Gdynia America Line]], at first with a mixed Polish and Danish crew, but from 1931 her crew was entirely Polish. She served on the [[Port of Gdynia|Gdynia]] – Copenhagen – Halifax route, and also made short [[Cruise ship|tourist cruises]].

In 1935 ''Kościuszko''{{'}}s tonnages were re-assessed as {{GRT|6852}} and {{NRT|4207}} and her old [[code letters]] were replaced with the radio [[Maritime call sign|call sign]] SPEA.<ref>{{cite book |url= https://plimsoll.southampton.gov.uk/shipdata/pdfs/35/35b0464.pdf |year=1935–36 |title=Lloyd's Register, Steamers & Motorships |place=London |publisher=[[Lloyd's Register]] |access-date=1 July 2020}}</ref> By 1938 she was equipped with wireless [[direction finding]] navigation equipment.<ref>{{cite book |url= https://plimsoll.southampton.gov.uk/shipdata/pdfs/38/38b0495.pdf |year=1938–39 |title=Lloyd's Register, Steamers & Motorships |place=London |publisher=[[Lloyd's Register]] |access-date=1 July 2020}}</ref>

The delivery of the modern [[motor ship]]s {{MS|Piłsudski||2}} in 1935 and {{MS|Batory||2}} in 1936 displaced ''Kościuszko'' from transatlantic service. She started to work the [[Constanţa]] – [[Haifa]] route in 1935 and a route to [[South America]] in October 1936. The delivery of the smaller motor ships {{MS|Sobieski||2}} and {{MS|Chrobry||2}} in 1939 made ''Kościuszko'' surplus to requirements so early in 1939 Gdynia America Line withdrew her from service.

==World War II==
At the outbreak of [[World War II]] the [[Polish Navy]] requisitioned ''Kościuszko'' and evacuated her to [[Dartmouth, Devon|Dartmouth]] in the UK before the [[Invasion of Poland]]. On 10 November 1939 she was [[Ship commissioning|commissioned]] as ORP ''Gdynia''. Initially she was a troopship, but she was considered unsuitable for service at sea and served instead as a base ship in the UK. She housed a canteen, a hospital, a Naval [[Non-commissioned officer|NCO]] school and several other offices. In her naval service the ship was visited by, among others, [[Winston Churchill]] and King [[George VI of the United Kingdom|George VI]]. During a German air raid on [[Denver, Norfolk]], on 25 September,{{clarify|date=July 2020|reason=Which year?}} she was hit by two aerial bombs, but swift action by the crew prevented the ship from catching fire.

On 30 June 1941 she was decommissioned, restored to Gdynia America Line and reverted to her name ''Kościuszko''. She was placed under the management of the British [[Lamport and Holt]] Line, but was crewed entirely by Poles except for a Lamport and Holt liaison officer.{{sfn|Heaton|2004|p=102}} She served as a troopship in the [[Indian Ocean]] and [[British Malaya#The Second World War (1941–1945)|Malaya]]. Japanese aircraft attacked her several times. In 1943 a torpedo hit her but did not explode.

She was transferred to the [[Mediterranean Sea]] and took part in the [[Allies of World War II|Allied]] [[Invasion of Sicily]]. Then she returned to the Indian Ocean, this time as a part of United Maritime Authority.

==After World War II==
In 1945 the UK repatriated ''Batory'' to Poland but the crews of ''Kościuszko'' and another Gdynia America Line ship, ''[[SS Czar|Pułaski]]'', refused to be repatriated. All crew members of both ships signed UK articles{{sfn|Heaton|2004|p=102}} and the ships were transferred from Gdynia America Line to the UK [[Ministry of War Transport]], who kept her under Lamport and Holt management. ''Kościuszko''{{'}}s port of registration was changed from Gdynia to London. Her call sign was changed to GLSW and she was given the UK [[official number]] 142335.<ref>{{cite book |url= https://plimsoll.southampton.gov.uk/shipdata/pdfs/45/45a0623.pdf |year=1945–46 |title=Lloyd's Register, Steamers & Motorships |place=London |publisher=[[Lloyd's Register]] |access-date=1 July 2020}}</ref>

In April 1946 the MoWT renamed ''Kościuszko'' as ''Empire Helford'' and sold her to Lamport and Holt. She continued to serve as a troop transport and for transportation of displaced persons. In 1949 she was withdrawn from service, and on 2 May 1950 she reached [[Blyth, Northumberland]] to be scrapped.<ref name=Clydeships/>

==References==
{{reflist}}

==Bibliography==
*{{cite book |last=Gibbs |first=CR Vernon |year=1970 |title=Western Ocean Passenger Liners 1934–1969 |place=Glasgow |publisher=Brown, Son & Ferguson }}
*{{cite book |last=Heaton |first=Paul M |year=2004 |title=Lamport & Holt Line |place=Abergavenny |publisher=PM Heaton Publishing |isbn=1-872006-16-7 |pages=102–103 }}

==External links==
* {{Commons category-inline|Czaritza (ship, 1915)}}
* [http://www.merchantnavyofficers.com/LH5.html Lamport and Holt Line]

{{Gdynia America Line}}
{{WWII Polish ships}}
{{Empire ships}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kosciuszko}}
[[Category:1915 ships]]
[[Category:Allied intervention in the Russian Civil War]]
[[Category:Auxiliary ships of Poland]]
[[Category:Empire ships]]
[[Category:Maritime incidents in September 1939]]
[[Category:Ocean liners]]
[[Category:Passenger ships of Latvia]]
[[Category:Passenger ships of Russia]]
[[Category:Passenger ships of Poland]]
[[Category:Ships built on the River Clyde]]
[[Category:Ships of the Lamport and Holt Line]]
[[Category:Steamships of Latvia]]
[[Category:Steamships of Poland]]
[[Category:Steamships of Russia]]
[[Category:Steamships of the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:Troop ships of the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:World War I merchant ships of the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:World War I passenger ships of Russia]]
[[Category:World War II naval ships of Poland]]
[[Category:Ships of the Gdynia-America Line]]