København (ship)
History | |
---|---|
Denmark | |
Name | København |
Namesake | Copenhagen |
Owner | East Asiatic Company |
Builder | Ramage & Ferguson, Leith |
Yard number | 242 |
Laid down | 1913 |
Completed | 24 March 1921 |
Fate | Disappeared after 22 December 1928 |
General characteristics | |
Class and type | sail training |
Type | Five-masted barque |
Tonnage | 3,965 GRT |
Length | 131.9 m (432.74 ft) o/a |
Beam | 14.9 m (48.88 ft) |
Height | 48.6 m (159.45 ft) |
Depth | 8.7 m (28.54 ft) |
Propulsion | Auxiliary diesel engine |
Sail plan |
|
Crew | 26 crew and 45 cadets |
København (Copenhagen) was a Danish owned, British-built five-masted
The København was last heard from on 21 December 1928, while en route from Buenos Aires to Australia. When it became clear the ship was missing, a lengthy search ensued, but neither København nor anyone who had been aboard her on her final voyage was ever found. Despite both the extensive search and much speculation about the vessel's fate, København remains missing and what happened to her crew and cadets remains a mystery.
Description
The København was built by the firm of
Known as the "Big Dane", it was the largest sailing ship in the world when completed. It was 430 feet (131 metres) long (tip to tail) with a 390 foot long deck and grossed 3,965 tons empty, with a capacity of 5200 tons. A central water ballast of up to 1245 tons provided excellent stability.[1] Its five masts stood 197 feet (60m) over the keel, with sails spanning a total of 56,000 square feet (5,202 square metres). It had an auxiliary diesel motor as well as a wireless transmitter. The figurehead was a carving of a helmeted Bishop Absalon, the warrior-priest who founded the state of Denmark.[2] The heavy standing rigging ran to 4.5 miles in length and weighed 27 tons, the lighter running rigging stretched to a further 23 miles and weighed a further 23 tons. Her 204 tons of fuel oil could propel the ship for 75 days without wind.[1]
Two Bolinder engines served the ballast pump and provided electric lighting.[1]
Primarily intended for training young cadets seeking an officer's license, the ship offset some of its costs by carrying limited amounts of cargo on its voyages. Baron Niels Juel-Brockdorff oversaw the ship's construction and subsequently served as its first captain on its trip from Leith to Copenhagen. In Copenhagen the magnificent ship had 12000 visitors including the King and Queen of Denmark.[1]
The crew included a schoolmaster and doctor, several officers and 28 able seamen originally with 18 trainee cadets. This was later increased to 60 cadets. Cadets were exclusively Danish.[1]
Trips
From 1921 to 1928 the ship made nine commercial voyages, visiting nearly every continent and completing two circumnavigations.[2] These included:[1]
- Maiden Voyage – World circumnavigation – 30 September 1921 – 7 November 1922. 38326 sea miles (information taken from the private log of her Captain on that voyage Baron Niels Juel-Brockdorff)
- 1925 – London to Bangkok via the Suez Canal – 64 days
- October 1925 – left leg took 81 days
- 1926 – Banyuwangi to Copenhagen– 86 days
- 1926 – Copenhagen to Adelaide – 78 days
- 1927 – Adelaide to Falmouth – 109 days
- 1927 – Liverpool to Chile via the Panama Canal
However, on this last trip, under Cpt. Christiansen, 300 miles south of Callao on the west coast of South America she lost a propeller blade and had to go to Callao for repair.
- October 1927 – Gdańsk– 81 days
Disappearance
On 21 September 1928 the København departed from Nørresundby in Vendsyssel for Buenos Aires on its tenth, and ultimately final, voyage. The captain was Hans Andersen; 75 persons were aboard, including 26 crew and 45 cadets. The goal was to unload a shipload of chalk and bagged cement in Buenos Aires, take on another load of cargo and sail for Melbourne, and then bring a shipment of Australian wheat back to Europe.[2][3][4]
The København arrived at Buenos Aires on 17 November 1928, impressing the locals, in particular emigrant Danes. The cargo was unloaded; however, the departure was delayed as there were no paying commissions to take the cargo to Australia. Finally, on December 14, Captain Andersen decided to ship out to Australia without a cargo. The voyage was expected to take 45 days. On December 22 the København exchanged radio messages with the Norwegian steamer William Blumer, indicating they were about 900 miles from Tristan da Cunha and that "all is well". The Blumer attempted to contact the København again later that night, but received no response. The ship was never heard from again.[2][4]
She was officially announced "missing" by Lloyd's of London on 1 January 1930.[1]
Search and legacy
Search and rescue efforts were not launched immediately after København dropped out of contact, due to the length of the voyage to Australia, and the fact that Andersen routinely went long periods without sending a message. After months without any sight of or word from København, concerns arose that something had gone wrong. In April 1929, four months after København was last seen and heard from, the Danish East Asiatic Company dispatched a
A number of theories for the København's disappearance have been advanced. The most commonly accepted is that the ship struck an iceberg in the dark or fog. If so, the ship may have sunk too quickly for the crew to react. The lack of wreckage found later may have been the result of the ship's particularly secure loading and rigging, a necessity against the strong winds known as the Roaring Forties. An alternative theory is that the ship, which was in ballast with no cargo, may have been capsized by heavy winds, disabling the lifeboats for survivors.[2]
For the next two years after the København's disappearance there were a number of sightings of a mysterious five-masted ship fitting its description in the Pacific, fueling further speculation about the vessel. Early reports came from Chilean fishermen, then in July 1930, the crew of an Argentine freighter sighted a five-masted "phantom ship" during a gale. The captain took their statements and wondered if this was the "wraith of the Copenhagen". Further sightings came in the following weeks from Easter Island and the Peruvian coast. Later some wreckage, including a piece of stern bearing the name "København", reportedly was found off Western Australia.[4]
Tentative evidence for the ship continued to emerge. In 1934
Notes
- ^ ISBN 0 85174 114 2
- ^ a b c d e f g Mooney, Michael J. (1993). "Last Call at Buenos Aires: Disappearance of the Danish ship København". Americas. 45 (6): 38–44.
- ^ a b "København (+1928)". Retrieved 23 June 2009.
- ^ Milwaukee Journal. Retrieved 7 August 2012.[permanent dead link]
- New York Times. Retrieved 11 August 2013.
References
- Bruus Jensen, Palle, og Erik Jensen, Skoleskibet København: historie, forlis, tragedie. Kbh., 2005. (ISBN 87-12-04178-5)
- Jens Kusk Jensen: Håndbog i praktisk sømandskab. Kbh., 1924, Foreningen til Søfartens Fremme (ISBN 87-14-28284-4)
- Alan Villiers, Posted Missing: The Story of Ships Lost Without Trace in Recent Years New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1956, illus., p. 195–214.