A
hospital ship is a
shipA ship is a large vessel that floats on water. Ships are generally distinguished from boats based on size and passenger capacity. Ships may be found on lakes, seas, and rivers and they allow for a variety of activities, such as the transport of people or goods, fishing, entertainment, public...
designated for primary function as a medical treatment facility or
hospitalA hospital is an institution for health care providing patient treatment by specialized staff and equipment, and often but not always providing for longer-term patient stays....
; most are operated by the
militaryA military is an organization authorized by its nation to use force, usually including use of weapons, in defending its country by combating actual or perceived threats. As an adjective the term "military" is also used to refer to any property or aspect of a military...
forces or
naviesA navy is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval warfare and amphibious warfare; namely, lake- or ocean-borne combat operations and related functions...
of various countries around the
worldWorld is a highly common name for the planet Earth, but it was originally used to mean the sum of human civilization living on it, specifically human experience, history, or the 'human condition' in general....
, as they are intended to be used in or near war zones. Firing on a hospital ship is generally considered a
war crime.War crimes are "violations of the laws or customs of war"; including "murder, the ill-treatment or deportation of civilian residents of an occupied territory to slave labor camps", "the murder or ill-treatment of prisoners of war", the killing of hostages, "the wanton destruction of cities, towns...
.
Hospital ships were covered under the Hague Convention X of 1907.
A
hospital ship is a
shipA ship is a large vessel that floats on water. Ships are generally distinguished from boats based on size and passenger capacity. Ships may be found on lakes, seas, and rivers and they allow for a variety of activities, such as the transport of people or goods, fishing, entertainment, public...
designated for primary function as a medical treatment facility or
hospitalA hospital is an institution for health care providing patient treatment by specialized staff and equipment, and often but not always providing for longer-term patient stays....
; most are operated by the
militaryA military is an organization authorized by its nation to use force, usually including use of weapons, in defending its country by combating actual or perceived threats. As an adjective the term "military" is also used to refer to any property or aspect of a military...
forces or
naviesA navy is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval warfare and amphibious warfare; namely, lake- or ocean-borne combat operations and related functions...
of various countries around the
worldWorld is a highly common name for the planet Earth, but it was originally used to mean the sum of human civilization living on it, specifically human experience, history, or the 'human condition' in general....
, as they are intended to be used in or near war zones. Firing on a hospital ship is generally considered a
war crime.War crimes are "violations of the laws or customs of war"; including "murder, the ill-treatment or deportation of civilian residents of an occupied territory to slave labor camps", "the murder or ill-treatment of prisoners of war", the killing of hostages, "the wanton destruction of cities, towns...
.
Hague Convention
Hospital ships were covered under the Hague Convention X of 1907. Article four of the Hague Convention X outlined the restrictions are for a hospital ship:
- Ship must be clearly marked and lighted as a hospital ship
- The ship should give medical assistance to wounded personnel of all nationalities
- The ship must not be used for any military purpose
- Ships must not interfere or hamper enemy combatant vessels
- Belligerents as designated by the Hague Convention can search any hospital ship to investigate violations of the above restrictions
If any of the above restrictions were violated the ship was determined to be an enemy combatant and could be lawfully sunk. However, to deliberately fire on or sink a Hospital ship complying with regulations would be a war crime.
History
On 8 December 1798, unfit for service as a warship,
HMS VictoryHMS Victory is a first rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, started in 1759 and launched in 1765, most famous as Lord Nelson's flagship at the Battle of Trafalgar...
was ordered to be converted to a hospital ship to hold wounded French and Spanish prisoners of war. Another early example of a hospital ship was
USS Red RoverUSS Red Rover was a 650-ton Confederate States of America steamer that the U.S. Navy captured. After refitting the vessel, the Union used it as a hospital ship during the American Civil War....
in the 1860s, which aided the wounded soldiers of both sides during the
American Civil WarThe American Civil War , also known as the War Between the States and several other names, was a civil war in the United States of America. Eleven Southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America...
. It was the sighting by the Japanese of the Russian hospital ship Orel, correctly illuminated in accordance with regulations, that led to the
Battle of TsushimaThe Battle of Tsushima , commonly known as the “Sea of Japan Naval Battle” in Japan and the “Battle of Tsushima Strait”, was naval history's only decisive sea battle fought by modern steel battleship fleets...
during the
Russo-Japanese WarThe Russo-Japanese War or the Manchurian Campaign in some English sources, was a conflict that grew out of the rival imperial ambitions of the Russian Empire and Japanese Empire over Manchuria and Korea...
. Orel was retained as a prize of war by the Japanese after the battle. During
World War IWorld War I , also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All Wars, was a global military conflict which involved most of the world's great powers, assembled in two opposing alliances: the Triple Entente and the Triple Alliance...
and
World War IIWorld War II, or the Second World War , was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including all great powers, organized into two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, some
passenger linersAn ocean liner is a ship designed to transport people from one seaport to another along regular long-distance maritime routes according to a schedule. Liners may also carry cargo, mail, and may sometimes be used for other purposes .Cargo vessels running to a schedule are sometimes referred to as...
were converted for use as hospital ships.
RMS AquitaniaRMS Aquitania was a Cunard Line ocean liner that was built by the John Brown and Company shipyard near Clydebank, Scotland. She was launched on 21 April 1913 and sailed on her maiden voyage to New York on 30 May 1914. Aquitania was the third in Cunard Line's "grand trio" of express liners,...
and
HMHS BritannicHMHS Britannic was the third and largest of the White Star Line. It was the sister ship of and , and was intended to enter service as a transatlantic passenger liner. However, it was launched on the eve on the First World War and was quickly put to use as a hospital ship...
were two examples of ships serving in this capacity.
The last British Royal Yacht, the post World War II
HMY BritanniaHer Majesty's Yacht Britannia is the former Royal Yacht of the British royal family, the 83rd such vessel since the restoration of King Charles II in 1660. She is the second Royal yacht to bear the name, the first being the famous racing cutter built for The Prince of Wales in 1893...
, was ostensibly constructed in a way as to be easily convertible to a hospital ship, but this is now thought to be largely a ruse to ensure Parliamentary funding, and she never served in this role - reputedly her lifts were too small to take standard-sized stretchers.
USNS MercyThe third USNS Mercy is the lead ship of her class of hospital ships in the United States Navy. She was named for the virtue of compassion. In accordance with the Geneva Conventions, USNS Mercy and her crew do not carry any ordnance...
and
USNS ComfortUSNS Comfort is the third United States Navy ship to bear the name Comfort, and the second Mercy Class Hospital Ship to join the navy fleet...
are hospital ships now operated by the
United States NavyThe United States Navy is the sea branch of the U.S. Armed Forces. It is one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. As of 31 December 2008, the U.S. Navy had about 331,682 personnel on active duty and 124,000 in the Navy Reserve. It operates 283 ships in active service and more than...
, and are the largest naval
ambulanceAn ambulance is a vehicle for transporting sick or injured people, to, from or between places of treatment for an illness or injury. The term ambulance is used to describe a vehicle used to bring medical care to patients outside of the hospital or to transport the patient to hospital for follow-up...
s extant. Both ships are converted oil tankers.
The
Brazilian NavyThe Brazilian Navy is a branch of the Brazilian Armed Forces responsible for conducting naval operations. It is the largest navy in Latin America, with a 32,800-ton aircraft carrier, the NAe São Paulo , British-built frigates, locally-built corvettes, coastal diesel-electric submarines and many...
currently also operates several hospital ships on the Amazon and its tributaries. The Brazilians have an innovative and well-developed program of small, shallow-draft hospital ships that can provide medical care to the people in the interior of the vast Amazon region.
U.S. Navy Hospital Ships
The Navy's two hospital ships are owned and operated by
Military Sealift CommandThe Military Sealift Command is a United States Navy organization that controls most of the replenishment and military transport ships of the Navy. It first came into existence on 9 July 1949 when the Military Sea Transportation Service became solely responsible for the Department of Defense's...
. Named USNS Comfort and
USNS MercyThe third USNS Mercy is the lead ship of her class of hospital ships in the United States Navy. She was named for the virtue of compassion. In accordance with the Geneva Conventions, USNS Mercy and her crew do not carry any ordnance...
, they provide emergency, on-site care for U.S. combatant forces deployed in war or other operations. The hospital ships' secondary mission is to provide full hospital services to support U.S. disaster relief and humanitarian operations worldwide.
Both ships contain 12 fully equipped operating rooms, a 1,000-bed hospital facility, digital radiological services, a medical laboratory, a pharmacy, an optometry lab, a CAT-scan and two oxygen producing plants. Each ship is equipped with a helicopter deck capable of landing large military helicopters. The ships also have side ports to take on patients at sea.
The ships are converted San Clemente-class super tankers. Mercy was delivered in 1986 and Comfort in 1987. Normally, the ships are kept in a reduced operating status in Baltimore, Md., and San Diego, Calif., by a small crew of
civil service mariners and active duty Navy medical and support personnel. Each ship can be fully activated and crewed within five days.
Legal status
Modern hospital ships display large Red Crosses or Red Crescents to signify their Geneva convention protection under the
laws of warThe law of war is a body of law concerning acceptable justifications to engage in war and the limits to acceptable wartime conduct...
. However, a British air attack in 1945 sank the German hospital ship
SS DeutschlandSS Deutschland was a 21,046 gross registered ton German HAPAG ocean liner sunk in a British air attack in 1945, with great loss of life....
with substantial loss of life; in the chaos of the war's closing days, she apparently had not been sufficiently marked as a hospital ship. Even marked vessels are not completely safe. Markings did not stop the sinking of the
Australian Hospital Ship CentaurAustralian Hospital Ship Centaur was a hospital ship which was attacked and sunk by a Japanese submarine off the coast of Queensland, Australia, on 14 May 1943...
on 14 May 1943 off the coast of
QueenslandQueensland is a state of Australia that occupies the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory to the west, South Australia to the south-west and New South Wales to the south. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
by a Japanese submarine, or that of the German Hospital Ship
Tübingen on 18 November 1944 at
PulaPula is the largest city in Istria County, Croatia, situated at the southern tip of the Istria peninsula, with a population of 62,080 ....
by the
Royal Air ForceThe Royal Air Force is the United Kingdom's air force, the oldest independent air force in the world. Formed on 1 April 1918, the RAF has taken a significant role in British military history ever since, playing a large part in World War II and in more recent conflicts.The RAF operates almost 1,109...
heavy fightersA heavy fighter is a fighter aircraft designed to carry heavier weapons or operate at longer ranges. To achieve acceptable performance, most heavy fighters were twin-engined....
, the Japanese Hospital Ship
Buenosuairesu-maru on 26 November 1943 by air bombing.
Some hospital ships, such as the
SS HopeThe SS Hope was a hospital ship operated by Project HOPE .The Hope was originally built as a US Navy hospital ship, USS Consolation. The Consolation was donated to Project Hope in 1958, and served from 1960 until 1974, when she was retired...
, belong to civilian agencies, and as such are automatically not part of any navy.
The
BritishThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe. It is an island country, spanning an archipelago including Great Britain, the northeastern part of Ireland, and many small islands...
Royal Fleet AuxiliaryThe Royal Fleet Auxiliary is a civilian-manned fleet of the British Ministry of Defence which enables ships of the Royal Navy of the United Kingdom to maintain their tasking around the world. The RFA's primary role is to supply the Royal Navy with fuel and supplies. It also counts a repair ship,...
ship
RFA ArgusRFA Argus is an aviation training ship with a secondary role of primary casualty receiving ship in the Royal Fleet Auxiliary. Italian-built, Argus was formerly the container ship MV Contender Bezant...
would be a hospital ship were it not for its armaments. When performing its medical role it is designated a 'primary casualty receiving ship'.
Armed vessels are disqualified from protection as a hospital ship under international law.
See also
Lists:
Other:
- Mercy Ships
Mercy Ships is a global charity that was founded in 1978 by Don Stephens and Deyon Stephens. The organization operates the largest non-governmental hospital ship in the world, providing free health care, community development, agriculture and water projects, mental health programs, AIDS/HIV...
- MS Jutlandia
External links