SS Uganda
Encyclopedia
SS Uganda was a passenger liner, then cruise ship
, hospital ship
and troop ship between 1952 and 1986.
(BI), between London
and East Africa
, calling at Gibraltar
, Naples
, Port Said
, Aden
, Mombasa
, Dar-es-Salaam and Tanga
, between 1952 and 1967. I was a passenger on the SS Uganda in July 1965 when I boarded her in Durban, after which she called at Lorenzo Marques and Beira before Tanga. We also stopped at Marseilles and Barcelona (but not Naples), Gibralter and Cadiz. The voyage ended in Albert Docks, London.The whole one-way trip took 6 weeks. Sisal was loaded on board at Mombasa and Dar-es-Salaam and unloaded at Barcelona. The Uganda's sister ship was the , which continued on the East Africa route until 1969. The round trip took about 60 days. When the Suez Canal
was closed, which happened twice due to warfare in 1956/1957 and from 1967, the route of the ships was Gibraltar
, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria
, Cape Town
, Durban
and East Africa
.
route, Uganda was converted to an educational cruise ship at Howaldtswerke-Deutsche Werft at Hamburg
. Her passenger capacity leapt from 300 to 1200 and tonnage increased to 16,607 tons. In her new role she sailed her maiden voyage
on 27 February 1968 and delighted school children, their teachers, passengers and crew for 14 years cruising mainly Scandinavia
and the Mediterranean, together with her company consort until 1974 when Nevasa was withdrawn and scrapped - Uganda (known as the "UgTug" in the crew bar) ploughed on.
By this time, the British-India Steam Navigation Company
had been totally absorbed into the Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company
, but, uniquely within the P&O fleet, Uganda retained her BI livery. White hull with a black band, black funnel
with two white bands. She deigned to wear the P&O house flag, but a walk through her public rooms and a visit to the bridge
continued to remind one of the days of the British Raj
, not least for her adult cabin passengers - who preferred her gentle cruising style to that of her more rowdy younger sisters like and - continuing to tap a foot to the gentle rhythms of the resident four-piece band.
with the call sign of "Mother Hen". She was called up for military duty while on cruise 276 and discharged her 315 cabin passengers and 940 school children, who were on an educational cruise, in Naples
. When the Uganda was docking in Naples, reporters turned up their microphones to hear a ship full of school children singing "Rule, Britannia!
".
Uganda had a three-day refit in Gibraltar
where she had helicopter platform, fittings for replenishment at sea, satellite communications and her wards and operating theatres kitted out. Two additional water distillers were fitted on the sports deck. In accordance with the Geneva Convention the ship was painted white and eight red crosses were painted, two on each side of the hull, one facing forward on the bridge superstructure, one on the upper deck visible from the air, and one on either side of her funnel. A team of 135 medical staff, including 12 doctors, operating theatre staff and 40 members of the Queen Alexandra's Royal Naval Nursing Service
, left Portsmouth to join the ship taking large quantities of medical supplies with them.
Working closely with Uganda were the converted survey ships HMS Hecla
, HMS Hydra
and HMS Herald
.
Uganda sailed to and fro between "Red Cross Box 2" – at position 50°50′S 58°40′W and Middle Bay, taking on casualties, both British and Argentine, transferring those who were well enough to the converted survey ships for passage to Montevideo. On the 28th of May the land battles started and Uganda anchored in Grantham Sound
, 11 miles North West of Goose Green
, where casualties from both sides arrived by helicopter and were treated. By the 31st May she had 132 casualties on board.
Uganda co-ordinated the movements of the four British and three Argentine hospital ships Bahia Paraiso, Almirante Irizar
and Puerto Deseado
and treated 730 casualties, 150 of them Argentine making four rendezvous with the Argentine ships.
By 10 July her role as a hospital ship was over and the crew held a party for 92 Falkland children more in keeping with her peacetime role. On the 14th July, Uganda was deregistered as a hospital ship and the red crosses were painted out. Two days later she went back to Grantham Sound, to embark the Gurkha regiment and their equipment, before sailing for the UK on 18 July. She arrived at Southampton on the 9th August 1982, 113 days after she had sailed to join the Task Force. During this time, she had sailed 26,150 miles, consuming 4,700 ton of fuel with over a 1,000 helicopter landings on her flight deck and 3,111 personnel had been transferred to or from the ship.
After a refit in North Shields
(the games deck windows never did close properly again after having Sea King
helicopters landing on the quoits
court), the ship returned to the familiar relaxed pattern of educational cruising again, but only for a few months as in January 1983 she took the Queen's shilling
a second time and returned to duty as a troop ship serving between Ascension Island
and the Falkland Islands
.
and despite efforts to keep her steaming was eventually sold for scrap and, rebadged as the SS Triton, taken on her final voyage to Taiwan
(no school children aboard this time - and a crew of just 21) where she anchored awaiting breaking.
She was driven ashore by Typhoon Wayne
on 22 August 1986 near Kaohsiung
, Taiwan
and there she lay until broken up in 1992.
The ship's original tonnage was 14,430 gross and she was fitted with two steam turbine
s developing 12,300 horse power. On trials her top speed was slightly over 19 knots.
Cruise ship
A cruise ship or cruise liner is a passenger ship used for pleasure voyages, where the voyage itself and the ship's amenities are part of the experience, as well as the different destinations along the way...
, hospital ship
Hospital ship
A hospital ship is a ship designated for primary function as a floating medical treatment facility or hospital; most are operated by the military forces of various countries, as they are intended to be used in or near war zones....
and troop ship between 1952 and 1986.
Passenger liner
Initially Uganda operated as a passenger/cargo liner of the British-India Steam Navigation CompanyBritish-India Steam Navigation Company
British India Steam Navigation Company was formed in 1856 as the Calcutta and Burmah Steam Navigation Company. The company had been formed out of Mackinnon, Mackenzie & Co, a trading partnership of the Scots William Mackinnon and Robert Mackenzie, to carry mail between Calcutta and Rangoon. It...
(BI), between London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
and East Africa
East Africa
East Africa or Eastern Africa is the easterly region of the African continent, variably defined by geography or geopolitics. In the UN scheme of geographic regions, 19 territories constitute Eastern Africa:...
, calling at Gibraltar
Gibraltar
Gibraltar is a British overseas territory located on the southern end of the Iberian Peninsula at the entrance of the Mediterranean. A peninsula with an area of , it has a northern border with Andalusia, Spain. The Rock of Gibraltar is the major landmark of the region...
, Naples
Naples
Naples is a city in Southern Italy, situated on the country's west coast by the Gulf of Naples. Lying between two notable volcanic regions, Mount Vesuvius and the Phlegraean Fields, it is the capital of the region of Campania and of the province of Naples...
, Port Said
Port Said
Port Said is a city that lies in north east Egypt extending about 30 km along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea, north of the Suez Canal, with an approximate population of 603,787...
, Aden
Aden
Aden is a seaport city in Yemen, located by the eastern approach to the Red Sea , some 170 kilometres east of Bab-el-Mandeb. Its population is approximately 800,000. Aden's ancient, natural harbour lies in the crater of an extinct volcano which now forms a peninsula, joined to the mainland by a...
, Mombasa
Mombasa
Mombasa is the second-largest city in Kenya. Lying next to the Indian Ocean, it has a major port and an international airport. The city also serves as the centre of the coastal tourism industry....
, Dar-es-Salaam and Tanga
Tanga, Tanzania
Tanga is both the name of the most northerly seaport city of Tanzania, and the surrounding Tanga Region. It is the Regional Headquarters of the region.With a population of 243,580 in 2002, Tanga is one of the largest cities in the country...
, between 1952 and 1967. I was a passenger on the SS Uganda in July 1965 when I boarded her in Durban, after which she called at Lorenzo Marques and Beira before Tanga. We also stopped at Marseilles and Barcelona (but not Naples), Gibralter and Cadiz. The voyage ended in Albert Docks, London.The whole one-way trip took 6 weeks. Sisal was loaded on board at Mombasa and Dar-es-Salaam and unloaded at Barcelona. The Uganda's sister ship was the , which continued on the East Africa route until 1969. The round trip took about 60 days. When the Suez Canal
Suez Canal
The Suez Canal , also known by the nickname "The Highway to India", is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, connecting the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea. Opened in November 1869 after 10 years of construction work, it allows water transportation between Europe and Asia without navigation...
was closed, which happened twice due to warfare in 1956/1957 and from 1967, the route of the ships was Gibraltar
Gibraltar
Gibraltar is a British overseas territory located on the southern end of the Iberian Peninsula at the entrance of the Mediterranean. A peninsula with an area of , it has a northern border with Andalusia, Spain. The Rock of Gibraltar is the major landmark of the region...
, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria
Las Palmas de Gran Canaria
Las Palmas de Gran Canaria commonly known as Las Palmas is the political capital, jointly with Santa Cruz, the most populous city in the Autonomous Community of the Canary Islands and the ninth largest city in Spain, with a population of 383,308 in 2010. Nearly half of the people of the island...
, Cape Town
Cape Town
Cape Town is the second-most populous city in South Africa, and the provincial capital and primate city of the Western Cape. As the seat of the National Parliament, it is also the legislative capital of the country. It forms part of the City of Cape Town metropolitan municipality...
, Durban
Durban
Durban is the largest city in the South African province of KwaZulu-Natal and the third largest city in South Africa. It forms part of the eThekwini metropolitan municipality. Durban is famous for being the busiest port in South Africa. It is also seen as one of the major centres of tourism...
and East Africa
East Africa
East Africa or Eastern Africa is the easterly region of the African continent, variably defined by geography or geopolitics. In the UN scheme of geographic regions, 19 territories constitute Eastern Africa:...
.
Cruise ship
When made redundant on the East AfricaEast Africa
East Africa or Eastern Africa is the easterly region of the African continent, variably defined by geography or geopolitics. In the UN scheme of geographic regions, 19 territories constitute Eastern Africa:...
route, Uganda was converted to an educational cruise ship at Howaldtswerke-Deutsche Werft at Hamburg
Hamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
. Her passenger capacity leapt from 300 to 1200 and tonnage increased to 16,607 tons. In her new role she sailed her maiden voyage
Maiden voyage
The maiden voyage of a ship, aircraft or other craft is the first journey made by the craft after shakedown. A number of traditions and superstitions are associated with it....
on 27 February 1968 and delighted school children, their teachers, passengers and crew for 14 years cruising mainly Scandinavia
Scandinavia
Scandinavia is a cultural, historical and ethno-linguistic region in northern Europe that includes the three kingdoms of Denmark, Norway and Sweden, characterized by their common ethno-cultural heritage and language. Modern Norway and Sweden proper are situated on the Scandinavian Peninsula,...
and the Mediterranean, together with her company consort until 1974 when Nevasa was withdrawn and scrapped - Uganda (known as the "UgTug" in the crew bar) ploughed on.
By this time, the British-India Steam Navigation Company
British-India Steam Navigation Company
British India Steam Navigation Company was formed in 1856 as the Calcutta and Burmah Steam Navigation Company. The company had been formed out of Mackinnon, Mackenzie & Co, a trading partnership of the Scots William Mackinnon and Robert Mackenzie, to carry mail between Calcutta and Rangoon. It...
had been totally absorbed into the Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company
Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company
The Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company, which is usually known as P&O, is a British shipping and logistics company which dated from the early 19th century. Following its sale in March 2006 to Dubai Ports World for £3.9 billion, it became a subsidiary of DP World; however, the P&O...
, but, uniquely within the P&O fleet, Uganda retained her BI livery. White hull with a black band, black funnel
Funnel (ship)
A funnel is the smokestack or chimney on a ship used to expel boiler steam and smoke or engine exhaust. They can also be known in as stacks.-Purpose:...
with two white bands. She deigned to wear the P&O house flag, but a walk through her public rooms and a visit to the bridge
Bridge (ship)
The bridge of a ship is the room or platform from which the ship can be commanded. When a ship is underway the bridge is manned by an OOW aided usually by an AB acting as lookout...
continued to remind one of the days of the British Raj
British Raj
British Raj was the British rule in the Indian subcontinent between 1858 and 1947; The term can also refer to the period of dominion...
, not least for her adult cabin passengers - who preferred her gentle cruising style to that of her more rowdy younger sisters like and - continuing to tap a foot to the gentle rhythms of the resident four-piece band.
Falklands War Service
In 1982 the ship served as a hospital ship in the Falklands WarFalklands War
The Falklands War , also called the Falklands Conflict or Falklands Crisis, was fought in 1982 between Argentina and the United Kingdom over the disputed Falkland Islands and South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands...
with the call sign of "Mother Hen". She was called up for military duty while on cruise 276 and discharged her 315 cabin passengers and 940 school children, who were on an educational cruise, in Naples
Naples
Naples is a city in Southern Italy, situated on the country's west coast by the Gulf of Naples. Lying between two notable volcanic regions, Mount Vesuvius and the Phlegraean Fields, it is the capital of the region of Campania and of the province of Naples...
. When the Uganda was docking in Naples, reporters turned up their microphones to hear a ship full of school children singing "Rule, Britannia!
Rule, Britannia!
"Rule, Britannia!" is a British patriotic song, originating from the poem "Rule, Britannia" by James Thomson and set to music by Thomas Arne in 1740...
".
Uganda had a three-day refit in Gibraltar
Gibraltar
Gibraltar is a British overseas territory located on the southern end of the Iberian Peninsula at the entrance of the Mediterranean. A peninsula with an area of , it has a northern border with Andalusia, Spain. The Rock of Gibraltar is the major landmark of the region...
where she had helicopter platform, fittings for replenishment at sea, satellite communications and her wards and operating theatres kitted out. Two additional water distillers were fitted on the sports deck. In accordance with the Geneva Convention the ship was painted white and eight red crosses were painted, two on each side of the hull, one facing forward on the bridge superstructure, one on the upper deck visible from the air, and one on either side of her funnel. A team of 135 medical staff, including 12 doctors, operating theatre staff and 40 members of the Queen Alexandra's Royal Naval Nursing Service
Queen Alexandra's Royal Naval Nursing Service
Queen Alexandra's Royal Naval Nursing Service is the nursing branch of the British Royal Navy. The Service unit works alongside the Royal Navy Medical Branch....
, left Portsmouth to join the ship taking large quantities of medical supplies with them.
Working closely with Uganda were the converted survey ships HMS Hecla
HMS Hecla (A133)
HMS Hecla was the lead ship of the Hecla class, an oceangoing survey ship type in the Royal Navy. She was ordered in the mid 1960s, along with her sisters ships and . A fourth ship, , was completed in the early 1970s. The ship served for thirty years in this role, and various others, before...
, HMS Hydra
HMS Hydra (A144)
HMS Hydra was a Royal Navy deep ocean hydrographic survey vessel, the third of the original three of the Hecla class. The ship was laid down as yard number 2258 on 14 May 1964 at Yarrow Shipbuilders, at Scotstoun on the River Clyde and launched on 14 July 1965 by Mary Lythall, wife of the then...
and HMS Herald
HMS Herald (H138)
HMS Herald was a Hecla-class ocean survey ship that served with the Royal Navy during both the Falklands War and Gulf War. She was built by Robb Caledon Shipbuilders in Leith, Scotland....
.
Uganda sailed to and fro between "Red Cross Box 2" – at position 50°50′S 58°40′W and Middle Bay, taking on casualties, both British and Argentine, transferring those who were well enough to the converted survey ships for passage to Montevideo. On the 28th of May the land battles started and Uganda anchored in Grantham Sound
Grantham Sound
Grantham Sound is a bay on East Falkland, Falkland Islands, which opens out into the Falkland Sound. At its landward end, it narrows and becomes Brenton Loch . Mount Usborne overlooks it....
, 11 miles North West of Goose Green
Goose Green
Goose Green is a settlement in Lafonia on East Falkland in the Falkland Islands. It lies on Choiseul Sound, on the east side of the island's central isthmus, south-southwest of Darwin. With a population of about 70, it is the second largest settlement of the Falkland Islands.Goose Green has a shop...
, where casualties from both sides arrived by helicopter and were treated. By the 31st May she had 132 casualties on board.
Uganda co-ordinated the movements of the four British and three Argentine hospital ships Bahia Paraiso, Almirante Irizar
ARA Almirante Irízar (Q-5)
The ARA Almirante Irízar is a large icebreaker of the Argentine Navy. The ship is currently out of service since 2007, when a fire broke out in the auxiliary generator compartment...
and Puerto Deseado
Puerto Deseado
Puerto Deseado, originally called Port Desire, is a city of about 15,000 inhabitants and a fishing port in Patagonia in Santa Cruz Province of Argentina, on the estuary of the Deseado River....
and treated 730 casualties, 150 of them Argentine making four rendezvous with the Argentine ships.
By 10 July her role as a hospital ship was over and the crew held a party for 92 Falkland children more in keeping with her peacetime role. On the 14th July, Uganda was deregistered as a hospital ship and the red crosses were painted out. Two days later she went back to Grantham Sound, to embark the Gurkha regiment and their equipment, before sailing for the UK on 18 July. She arrived at Southampton on the 9th August 1982, 113 days after she had sailed to join the Task Force. During this time, she had sailed 26,150 miles, consuming 4,700 ton of fuel with over a 1,000 helicopter landings on her flight deck and 3,111 personnel had been transferred to or from the ship.
After a refit in North Shields
North Shields
North Shields is a town on the north bank of the River Tyne, in the metropolitan borough of North Tyneside, in North East England...
(the games deck windows never did close properly again after having Sea King
Westland Sea King
The Westland WS-61 Sea King is a British licence-built version of the American Sikorsky S-61 helicopter of the same name, built by Westland Helicopters. The aircraft differs considerably from the American version, with Rolls-Royce Gnome engines , British made anti-submarine warfare systems and a...
helicopters landing on the quoits
Quoits
Quoits is a traditional game which involves the throwing of metal, rope or rubber rings over a set distance, usually to land over or near a spike . The sport of quoits encompasses several distinct variations.-The history of quoits:The history of quoits is disputed...
court), the ship returned to the familiar relaxed pattern of educational cruising again, but only for a few months as in January 1983 she took the Queen's shilling
King's shilling
For many years a soldier's daily pay, before stoppages, was the shilling given as an earnest payment to recruits of the British Army and the Royal Navy of the 18th and 19th centuries...
a second time and returned to duty as a troop ship serving between Ascension Island
Ascension Island
Ascension Island is an isolated volcanic island in the equatorial waters of the South Atlantic Ocean, around from the coast of Africa and from the coast of South America, which is roughly midway between the horn of South America and Africa...
and the Falkland Islands
Falkland Islands
The Falkland Islands are an archipelago in the South Atlantic Ocean, located about from the coast of mainland South America. The archipelago consists of East Falkland, West Falkland and 776 lesser islands. The capital, Stanley, is on East Falkland...
.
Final voyage
Two years later, she was laid up, rusting, in the River FalRiver Fal
The River Fal flows through Cornwall, United Kingdom, rising on the Goss Moor and reaching the English Channel at Falmouth. On or near the banks of the Fal are the castles of Pendennis and St Mawes as well as Trelissick Garden. The River Fal separates the Roseland peninsula from the rest of...
and despite efforts to keep her steaming was eventually sold for scrap and, rebadged as the SS Triton, taken on her final voyage to Taiwan
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
(no school children aboard this time - and a crew of just 21) where she anchored awaiting breaking.
She was driven ashore by Typhoon Wayne
Typhoon Wayne (1986)
Typhoon Wayne is the longest-lived tropical cyclone on record for the western Pacific ocean...
on 22 August 1986 near Kaohsiung
Kaohsiung
Kaohsiung is a city located in southwestern Taiwan, facing the Taiwan Strait on the west. Kaohsiung, officially named Kaohsiung City, is divided into thirty-eight districts. The city is one of five special municipalities of the Republic of China...
, Taiwan
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
and there she lay until broken up in 1992.
The ship's original tonnage was 14,430 gross and she was fitted with two steam turbine
Steam turbine
A steam turbine is a mechanical device that extracts thermal energy from pressurized steam, and converts it into rotary motion. Its modern manifestation was invented by Sir Charles Parsons in 1884....
s developing 12,300 horse power. On trials her top speed was slightly over 19 knots.