SS Rohilla
 transport ship Rohilla at Port Said, 1914
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| History | |
|---|---|
  United Kingdom | |
| Name | Rohilla |
| Owner | British India Steam Navigation Co |
| Port of registry | Glasgow |
| Route | 1906: London – Calcutta |
| Builder | Harland & Wolff, Belfast |
| Yard number | 381 |
| Launched | 6 September 1906 |
| Completed | 16 November 1906 |
| Identification |
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| Fate | On 30 October 1914, struck a reef at Saltwick, near Whitby, and sank. |
| Notes | [1] |
| General characteristics | |
| Type | Passenger ship/troopship, later hospital ship |
| Tonnage | 7,114 GRT, 3,970 NRT |
| Length | 460.1 ft (140.2 m) |
| Beam | 56.0 ft (17.1 m) |
| Depth | 30.6 ft (9.3 m) |
| Installed power | 8,000 ihp (6,000 kW) |
| Propulsion | Twin Harland & Wolff quadruple expansion engines |
| Speed | 16.6 knots (30.7 km/h; 19.1 mph) |
| Capacity | 167 passengers; later about 1,600 troops |
| Notes | |
Rohilla was a
History
Rohilla was ordered in 1905 by the
The ship was named Rohilla in honour of the
After entering service, the sisters were soon taken up for trooping, in 1908 for Rohilla as 'Troopship No.6'. Two years later they were the first BI ships to have
Loss
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Rohilla was called up at the outset of the
The conditions made rescue extremely difficult, but six lifeboats the John Fielden, Robert and Mary Ellis (Whitby), William Riley of Birmingham and Leamington (Upgang), the motor lifeboat Bradford Middlesbrough, Queensbury Scarborough, North Yorkshire, but it was the motor lifeboat Henry Vernon Tynemouth that was to take off the final souls and attempted to close on the wreck.[2][4] Over the next three days, some of those who attempted to swim to safety in the raging seas were rescued, though many were lost, and lifeboats were able to rescue others.[5] In all, 146 of the 229 on board, including Captain Neilson and all the nurses, as well as Titanic survivor Mary Kezia Roberts, survived.[2][6][7][8]
Captain Nielson believed that the ship had struck a mine before grounding.
The Gold Medal of the Royal National Lifeboat Institution, the Institute's highest honour, was presented to Superintendent Major H. E. Burton and Coxswain Robert Smith of the Tynemouth lifeboat Henry Vernon and to Coxswain Thomas Langlands of the Whitby lifeboat. The Empire Gallantry Medal (subsequently changed to the George Cross) was awarded to Burton and Smith in 1924.[10][11] In 1917 a monument was erected at Whitby by the British India Steam Navigation Company, commemorating all those who lost their lives in the tragedy.[12]
See also
- List of United Kingdom disasters by death toll
References
- ^ ISBN 0-905617-65-7.
- ^ a b c Hocking, Charles (1969). Dictionary of Disasters at Sea During the Age of Steam: Vol II. London: Lloyd's Register of Shipping. p. 594.
- ^ "Seventy lost when British hospital ship is wrecked". The Fort Wayne News (Fort Wayne, Indiana). Underwood & Underwood. 18 November 1914. p. 2. Retrieved 6 January 2020.
Among those who were brought ashore by the life guards was the Rev. Holland Allen, chaplain of the Rohilla.
- ^ BBC: Coast, Series 7
- ^ "The Rohilla Wreck". Shields Daily News. 2 November 1914. Retrieved 30 July 2014.
- ^ "Titanic Survivors". Encyclopedia Titanica. 9 September 2002. Retrieved 29 July 2014.
- ^ "The Wrecked Hospital Ship". The Times. London. 1 November 1914. p. 1.
- ^ "Hospital Ship Wreck". The Times. London. 2 November 1914. p. 3.
- ^ a b "The Rohilla Mined". The Times. London. 6 November 1914. p. 5.
- ^ "Lifeboat-men's Gallantry, Court Circular". The Times. London. 1 July 1924. pp. 13 & 19.
- ^ "Memorial to a Lifeboat Hero". The Times. London. 6 June 1928. p. 21.
- ^ "A 'Rohilla' Monument at Whitby". Craven Herald. 15 June 1917. Archived from the original on 30 July 2014. Retrieved 30 July 2014.
Further reading
- Brittain, Colin (2014). Into the Maelstrom: The Wreck of HMHS Rohilla. The History Press. ISBN 978-0-75249-7655
- HMS Rohilla photograph at Port Said(archived)
External links
Shipwrecks and maritime incidents in October 1914 | |
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| Shipwrecks |
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| Other incidents |
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