RMS Ausonia
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 Ausonia anchored at Liverpool, November 1947
| |
| History | |
|---|---|
 United Kingdom | |
| Name | RMS Ausonia |
| Owner | Cunard Line |
| Builder | Armstrong Whitworth, Newcastle upon Tyne |
| Yard number | 970 |
| Launched | 22 March 1921 |
| Maiden voyage | 31 August 1922 |
| Fate | Scrapped, 1965 |
| General characteristics | |
| Tonnage | 13,912 gross register tons (GRT) |
| Length | 538 ft (164 m) |
| Beam | 65 ft 4 in (19.91 m) |
| Propulsion | Geared turbines, 8,500 shp (6,338 kW), twin screws |
| Speed | 15 knots (28 km/h; 17 mph) |
| Capacity | 510 cabin class, 1,178 third class |
| Crew | 270 |
RMS Ausonia, launched in 1921, was one of Cunard's six post-World War I "A-class" ocean liners for the Canadian service.
History
Ausonia was built in Newcastle by Armstrong, Whitworth & Co., launched on 22 March 1921, and completed in June. She made her maiden voyage on 31 August 1921 from Liverpool to Montreal, and the following season went into service on the London-Canada route.
In December 1938, the Ausonia carried about 50 American veterans of the
Abraham Lincoln Brigade returning from the Spanish Civil War
from Le Havre, France, by way of England and Halifax, Nova Scotia, arriving in New York City on 20 December 1938.
On 29 April 1939, English composer
recital for voice and piano.[1]
On 2 September 1939, with British involvement in the
Oerlikon 20 mm cannon fitted in its place.[4][5] She served in the Far East for the rest of the war.[4]
After return from the Far East, she was laid up in reserve at
Mediterranean Fleet, replacing Ranpura.[4][6] She gradually assumed more duties, becoming a depot ship for submarines and minesweepers based at Malta in 1962. She finally left Malta on 7 August 1964,[4] returning to Portsmouth on 18 August where she was laid up. In September 1965, having been sold for scrap, she left Portsmouth to be broken up at Castellón de la Plana, Spain.[6]
See also
Footnotes
- ^ Carpenter 1992, pp. 128–129
- ^ "Liner puts into dock: Being repainted grey". Kalgoorlie Miner. 4 September 1939. p. 7. Retrieved 31 May 2021 – via Trove.
- ^ Lenton & Colledge 1973, p. 303
- ^ a b c d e "Grand Old Lady of Lazaretto Creek home after six years in the Med.: Ausonia—The Big 'A' To Pay Off" (PDF). Navy News. September 1964. p. 7. Retrieved 31 May 2021.
- ^ Lenton & Colledge 1973, p. 368
- ^ a b Critchley 1982, p. 82
References
- ISBN 0-571-14324-5.
- Critchley, Mike (1982). British Warships Since 1945: Part 2. Liskeard, UK: Maritime Books. ISBN 0-9506323-6-8.
- Lenton, H. T.; Colledge, J. J. (1973). Warships of World War II. Shepperton, UK: Ian Allan. ISBN 0-7110-0403-X.
- Osborne, Richard; Spong, Harry & Grover, Tom (2007). Armed Merchant Cruisers 1878–1945. Windsor, UK: World Warship Society. ISBN 978-0-9543310-8-5.
External links