SS California was a British

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

 steam-powered passenger ship

Passenger ship

A passenger ship is a ship whose primary function is to carry passengers. The category does not include cargo vessels which have accommodations for limited numbers of passengers, such as the ubiquitous twelve-passenger freighters once common on the seas in which the transport of passengers is...

 of 16,792 tons built in 1923 for the Henderson Brothers Ltd, Glasgow

Glasgow

Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...

.

Construction

California was built by Alexander Stephen & Sons, of Linthouse

Linthouse

Linthouse is a district in the Scottish city of Glasgow. It is situated south of the River Clyde. It is immediately west of Govan, and although it is often referred to locally as 'Govan' due to its closeness, it is in fact a distinct area .Linthouse was home to the shipbuilder...

, Glasgow. Photographs of the ship taken in the 1930s show only one funnel, suggesting either a major refit, or that the original fore and aft funnels were for show only. Note the Infobox photograph shows smoke emerging only from the middle funnel.

Pre-War

California carried passengers between Glasgow and New York

New York City

New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...

, and in 1935 she was transferred to the Anchor Line (1935) Ltd.

World War II

In 1939 she was requisitioned by the Admiralty and converted to a Armed Merchant Cruiser, and from 1942 she was used as a Troopship

Troopship

A troopship is a ship used to carry soldiers, either in peacetime or wartime...

.

Loss

On 8 July 1943 the small fast Convoy Faith

Convoy Faith

Convoy Faith was an Allied convoy of World War II that suffered heavy casualties after being attacked by German Focke-Wulf Fw 200 Condor long-range bomber aircraft on the night of 11/12 July 1943. The convoy departed Greenock, Scotland on 8 July bound for Freetown in Sierra Leone and...

, comprising MV Port Fairy

MV Port Fairy

MV Port Fairy was a UK merchant vessel built in 1928 for the Commonwealth & Dominion Line Ltd shipping company and sold in 1965 to Embajada Compania Naviera SA of Piraeus...

, the troopships Duchess of York and California, and escorted by the destroyer HMS Douglas and the frigate HMS Moyola, sailed Port Glasgow

Port Glasgow

Port Glasgow is the second largest town in the Inverclyde council area of Scotland. The population according to the 1991 census for Port Glasgow was 19426 persons and in the 2001 census was 16617 persons...

, Scotland, for Freetown

Freetown

Freetown is the capital and largest city of Sierra Leone, a country in West Africa. It is a major port city on the Atlantic Ocean located in the Western Area of the country, and had a city proper population of 772,873 at the 2004 census. The city is the economic, financial, and cultural center of...

, Sierra Leone

Sierra Leone

Sierra Leone , officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Guinea to the north and east, Liberia to the southeast, and the Atlantic Ocean to the west and southwest. Sierra Leone covers a total area of and has an estimated population between 5.4 and 6.4...

. On the evening of 10 July the convoy made rendezvous with the Canadian destroyer HMCS Iroquois 500 miles WSW of Land's End. On 11 July 1943 when about 300 miles west of Vigo, Spain

Spain

Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...

, the convoy was attacked by three Focke-Wulf Fw 200

Focke-Wulf Fw 200

The Focke-Wulf Fw 200 Condor, also known as Kurier to the Allies was a German all-metal four-engine monoplane originally developed by Focke-Wulf as a long-range airliner...

 aircraft of Kampfgeschwader 40 based at Merignac near Bordeaux

Bordeaux

Bordeaux is a port city on the Garonne River in the Gironde department in southwestern France.The Bordeaux-Arcachon-Libourne metropolitan area, has a population of 1,010,000 and constitutes the sixth-largest urban area in France. It is the capital of the Aquitaine region, as well as the prefecture...

. Accurate high-altitude bombing left the Duchess of York and California blazing. Both ships were abandoned, and in the early hours of 12 July they were sunk by Royal Navy torpedoes in position 41°15′N 15°24′W as it was feared the flames from the ships would attract U boats. The attack cost the lives of 46 servicemen and crew.

External links

• World War II People's War at the BBC