HMHS Gloucester Castle
{{Short description|British steam ship}}
{{Other uses|Gloucester Castle}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2018}}
{{Use British English|date=March 2018}}
| {{Infobox ship begin}}
{{Infobox ship image |Ship image=SS Gloucester Castle.jpg |Ship caption=Gloucester Castle }} {{Infobox ship career |Hide header= |Ship country=United Kingdom |Ship flag={{shipboxflag|United Kingdom|civil}} {{shipboxflag|United Kingdom|naval}} |Ship name= |Ship owner= |Ship operator=File:Union-Castle Line house flag.svg Union-Castle Line (1911—1914; 1919—1942 Royal Navy (1914—1919) |Ship registry=London |Ship route= |Ship ordered= |Ship builder= Fairfields S&E, Glasgow |Ship original cost= |Ship yard number=478 |Ship way number= |Ship laid down= |Ship launched= 13 May 1911 |Ship completed=August 1911 |Ship christened= |Ship acquired= |Ship maiden voyage= |Ship in service= |Ship out of service= |Ship identification= |Ship fate=Sunk by auxiliary cruiser Michel on 15 July 1942 |Ship notes= }} {{Infobox ship characteristics |Ship tonnage={{GRT|7999}} |Ship length={{convert|452.7|ft|m|abbr=on}} |Ship beam={{convert|56.2|ft|m|abbr=on}} |Ship draught={{convert|30.7|ft|m|abbr=on}} |Ship propulsion=Steam, quadruple expansion engines, 722 nhp |Ship speed={{convert|13|kn|km/h|lk=in}} |Ship range= |Ship complement= |Ship notes= }} |
HMHS Gloucester Castle (His Majesty's Hospital Ship) was a steam ship originally built for the Union-Castle Line, but requisitioned for use as a British hospital ship during the First World War. On 30 March 1917 she was torpedoed by German U-boat UB-32.{{cite web|title=Union Line and Castle Lines|url=http://www.merchantnavyofficers.com/unioncastle2.html|date=2009|publisher=Merchant Navy Officers|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130530064840/http://www.merchantnavyofficers.com/unioncastle2.html|archive-date=30 May 2013|access-date=21 August 2009}} She was, however, salvaged, and returned to civilian service after the war. She was sunk by the German commerce raider Michel in 1942 off Ascension Island in the South Atlantic.
History
In the First World War Gloucester Castle was hired to transport troops of the British Expeditionary Force from 6 August 1914 to 25 May 1915. From 26 May onwards she served as a hospital ship.{{cite web |url=https://www.ancestry.co.uk/search/collections/1687/?keyword=Gloucester_Castle |url-access=subscription |title=LIST OF VESSELS engaged for Naval, Military and Commercial purposes, with details as to dates of entry and discharge, rates of hire &c. |series=Service lists of naval ships |date=1914–1918 |via=Ancestry |at=image 82 of 314, archive reference ADM 171/199 |language=en |access-date=7 July 2025 }}
She was torpedoed off the Isle of Wight by German U-boat UB-32 (Kapitänleutnant Max Viebeg) on 30 March 1917. Three died during the transfer of crew and wounded but she was able to be towed back to port after two weeks.
After the war she was returned to her owners on 9 September 1919 for service on the intermediate routes and later served on the round-Africa service, earning the nickname 'Go Slowster Castle' because of her inadequate speed.
File:HMS Gloucester Castle - 31 March 1917.JPG
In the Second World War she remained in civilian service as a passenger and general cargo liner. On 15 July 1942, off the coast of Angola, she was intercepted by the German auxiliary cruiser Michel. Michel's commander KzS Helmuth von Ruckteschell chose to attack after dark without warning. The first shells from Michel destroyed the bridge and radio room and, consequently, no S.O.S. was transmitted. The ship sank with 93 killed, including the Master, Herbert H. Rose, six woman passengers, and two children. The remaining 61 survivors were picked up by the Michel and interned at Yokohama, Japan. After repatriation, the survivors reported the conditions under which they were forced to work and live.
See also
References
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External links
{{Commons category|Gloucester Castle (ship, 1911)}}
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{{March 1917 shipwrecks}}
{{July 1942 shipwrecks}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gloucester Castle}}
Category:Ships built on the River Clyde
Category:Hospital ships in World War I
Category:Maritime incidents in 1917
Category:Maritime incidents in July 1942
Category:Ships of the Union-Castle Line
Category:World War II shipwrecks in the South Atlantic