SS Cantabria
Encyclopedia
The SS Cantabria was a Spanish
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...
cargo ship which was sunk in a military action of the Spanish Civil War
Spanish Civil War
The Spanish Civil WarAlso known as The Crusade among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War among Carlists, and The Rebellion or Uprising among Republicans. was a major conflict fought in Spain from 17 July 1936 to 1 April 1939...
, off the coast of Norfolk
Norfolk
Norfolk is a low-lying county in the East of England. It has borders with Lincolnshire to the west, Cambridgeshire to the west and southwest and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the North Sea coast and to the north-west the county is bordered by The Wash. The county...
12 miles ENE of Cromer
Cromer
Cromer is a coastal town and civil parish in north Norfolk, England. The local government authority is North Norfolk District Council, whose headquarters is in Holt Road in the town. The town is situated 23 miles north of the county town, Norwich, and is 4 miles east of Sheringham...
on 2 November 1938. The ship was shelled by the Spanish Nationalist Auxiliary cruiser Nadir, which was part of General Franco’s navy.
The incident
The SS Cantabria (5649 tons) was built in 1919 as the War Chief at the shipyards of J. Coughlan & Sons, VancouverVancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. She was purchased by A.F. Pérez of Santander in 1919 and renamed Alfonso Pérez. In 1937 she was requisitioned by the Departamento de Navegación of Santander for the Republican government and renamed Cantabria. She was registered at the Bay of Biscay
Bay of Biscay
The Bay of Biscay is a gulf of the northeast Atlantic Ocean located south of the Celtic Sea. It lies along the western coast of France from Brest south to the Spanish border, and the northern coast of Spain west to Cape Ortegal, and is named in English after the province of Biscay, in the Spanish...
port of Santander
Santander, Cantabria
The port city of Santander is the capital of the autonomous community and historical region of Cantabria situated on the north coast of Spain. Located east of Gijón and west of Bilbao, the city has a population of 183,446 .-History:...
in northern 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...
. At the time of the incident, the SS Cantabria was under charter to a British Company called the Mid-Atlantic Shipping Company based in 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...
. Cantabria was not engaged in Spanish trade at the time of her sinking. She was on passage in ballast between the River Thames
River Thames
The River Thames flows through southern England. It is the longest river entirely in England and the second longest in the United Kingdom. While it is best known because its lower reaches flow through central London, the river flows alongside several other towns and cities, including Oxford,...
and Immingham
Immingham
Immingham is a town in North East Lincolnshire, located on the south bank of the Humber Estuary...
bound for Leningrad
Leningrad
Leningrad is the former name of Saint Petersburg, Russia.Leningrad may also refer to:- Places :* Leningrad Oblast, a federal subject of Russia, around Saint Petersburg* Leningrad, Tajikistan, capital of Muminobod district in Khatlon Province...
under Captain Manuel Argüelles. On board were 45 people made up of crew and passengers, of which five were children and three women. One of the children was only three years old. The passengers included Argüelles' wife Trinidad, their son Ramon, aged six and their daughter Begoña, aged eight.
Raider Nadir
The Nadir was a 1,132 tn auxiliary cruiser of General Franco's Spanish Nationalist forces armed with a 120 mm main gun, two 105 mm and other two 47 mm AA. She was actually the Ciudad de Valencia, a warship very active during the blockade of Biscay in 1937. The Nationalists had renamed her in order to deceive the Republican navy about the real number of commerce raiders at sea. Her targets were Republican freighters operating from ports in northern Europe. The Nationalist raider had been launched on 18 October 1930 at the shipyard Unión Naval de Levante as the Infante D. Gonzalo, owned by the Transmediterránea company. She was requisitioned by the Nationalist government on 30 October 1936.Shadowed
At around 11.30 am on 2 November, Argüelles was concerned that his freighter was being shadowed by a smaller ship. He had good reason to have concerns as the Spanish Nationalist navy had been given the use of German North sea harbours by Hitler, to act as bases for them to raid Spanish shipping in the North SeaNorth Sea
In the southwest, beyond the Straits of Dover, the North Sea becomes the English Channel connecting to the Atlantic Ocean. In the east, it connects to the Baltic Sea via the Skagerrak and Kattegat, narrow straits that separate Denmark from Norway and Sweden respectively...
and the English Channel
English Channel
The English Channel , often referred to simply as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates southern England from northern France, and joins the North Sea to the Atlantic. It is about long and varies in width from at its widest to in the Strait of Dover...
areas. With this situation in mind, the captain ordered his vessel to change course a degree or two to see if the following ship was following them. To Argüelles' concern, the vessel followed Cantabria 's new course. His officers studied the following vessel with binoculars, but the vessel appeared to be of no threat and looked like an ordinary passenger steamer of around 1500 tons.
The vessel was in fact the Nadir. Captain Argüelles again changed course heading towards the Norfolk coast. The Nadir followed and speeded up. The crew of the Cantabria then saw that the flag of the Spanish insurgents had been raised on the mast of the Nadir. At the same time the raider's guns were unmasked and she ordered the Cantabria to ‘Heave to or I fire’. It was now the afternoon of the 2 November when the Nadir began to riddle the Republican freighter with gunfire.
The action occurred on the high seas, outside British territorial waters, but near enough to the coast to be witnessed from the shore. The Cantabria, according to the statement of Argüelles himself, had refused to stop after having a shot fired high across her bows. At this point, nearby fishing boats intervened by heading towards the Nadir sounding their siren
Siren
In Greek mythology, the Sirens were three dangerous mermaid like creatures, portrayed as seductresses who lured nearby sailors with their enchanting music and voices to shipwreck on the rocky coast of their island. Roman poets placed them on an island called Sirenum scopuli...
s. This had an effect as the attacking ship, although under no threat from the commercial trawlers, changed course and broke off its attack. The fishing boats, satisfied that they had broken up the confrontation, continued on their way. The Nadir, however, as soon as she was back in range, began to target the ship itself. A shell struck the bridge, destroying it. The Nadir circled the Cantabria firing round after round and raking the ship with machine-gun fire. Another shell penetrated the engine room rendering the Cantabria powerless. During this time the radio operator had been sending messages that the ship was ‘being shelled by unknown vessel’. After the bridge had been destroyed and the engine room had been disabled he sent out the SOS
SOS
SOS is the commonly used description for the international Morse code distress signal...
. The Cantabrias position was given as 8½ miles south-east of Haisbro
Haisborough Sands
Haisborough Sands is a sandbank off the coast of Norfolk, England at Happisburgh. The shoal is long and wide and lies parallel to the North east coast of Norfolk. The shoal is marked to the north-west by north by the Haisbro Light Buoy, North cardinal...
Light ship.
Rescue
It was now nearly dark and at 5pm the CromerCromer lifeboat station
Cromer Lifeboat Station is an RNLI station located in the town of Cromer in the English county of Norfolk. The station operates two lifeboats - one for inshore work and the other for offshore work....
Lifeboat H.F. Bailey
Cromer Lifeboat H F Bailey III
H F Bailey III is the most famous Royal National Lifeboat Institution lifeboat to have served from Cromer, because she was used by Coxswain Henry Blogg to perform many of his most famous lifesaving exploits. The lifeboat was on station for the ten years between 1935 and 1945...
with coxswain Henry Blogg
Henry Blogg
Henry George Blogg GC BEM was a famous lifeboatman from Cromer on the north coast of Norfolk, England.Henry Blogg of Cromer is referred to as "the greatest of the lifeboatmen"...
at the helm was launched to rescue the Cantabrias crew and passengers. Before the lifeboat arrived fire had spread through the ship. Two boats were lowered and some of the crew and passengers abandoned the ship. Captain Argüelles, his wife and children and the second steward, Joaquin Vallego, remained aboard the Cantabria fearing what their fate would be if they surrendering to the insurgents aboard the Nadir. With the boats now lowered, the Nadir ceased fire. The attack was witnessed by two freighters, the British Monkwood and a Norwegian
Norwegians
Norwegians constitute both a nation and an ethnic group native to Norway. They share a common culture and speak the Norwegian language. Norwegian people and their descendants are found in migrant communities worldwide, notably in United States, Canada and Brazil.-History:Towards the end of the 3rd...
merchant, which gave up any rescue attempt, fearing the reaction of the Nadir, which was still in international waters. The Monkwood later sent a report to the naval authorities, who dispatched some naval units to the spot to assure that no hostile action would be taken inside British territorial waters. Another British Merchant Vessel, the Pattersonian appeared on the horizon, responding to the SOS
SOS
SOS is the commonly used description for the international Morse code distress signal...
sent from the Cantabria. Captain Blackmore of the Pattersonian had seen the Nadir heading towards the lifeboat and had steered his ship across the attacking ship, getting his vessel between the Nadir and the lifeboat. Eleven of the crew were taken off the Cantabria’s lifeboats by the Pattersonian. A further 20 of the crew in the second lifeboat were captured by the Nadir. This act was judged an unlawful interference with British shipping in the House of Lords
House of Lords
The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster....
, since the Nadir obstructed the legal duty of rescuing seamen. It was now dark and no more shots were being fired. The Cromer
Cromer
Cromer is a coastal town and civil parish in north Norfolk, England. The local government authority is North Norfolk District Council, whose headquarters is in Holt Road in the town. The town is situated 23 miles north of the county town, Norwich, and is 4 miles east of Sheringham...
lifeboat arrived at the scene of the incident at 6.30 pm. A relieved Argüelles signaled the lifeboat with a torch and it pulled along the starboard side of the Cantabria, which was heavily listing. A line was thrown and the children and the captain's wife were handed down to the lifeboat and were soon followed by the steward and the Captain. When the rescue was completed, Cantabria suddenly heeled over damaging the lifeboat’s stanchions. With great haste the lifeboat moved away from the sinking Cantabria. Soon after the Republican steamer sank. At least one sailor, Juan Gil, was lost with the vessel.
Aftermath
H. F. Bailey returned to CromerCromer
Cromer is a coastal town and civil parish in north Norfolk, England. The local government authority is North Norfolk District Council, whose headquarters is in Holt Road in the town. The town is situated 23 miles north of the county town, Norwich, and is 4 miles east of Sheringham...
arriving at 8.15pm. Captain Argüelles, his family and the steward were taken to the Red Lion Hotel. Meanwhile the other 11 rescued crewmen were taken to Great Yarmouth
Great Yarmouth
Great Yarmouth, often known to locals as Yarmouth, is a coastal town in Norfolk, England. It is at the mouth of the River Yare, east of Norwich.It has been a seaside resort since 1760, and is the gateway from the Norfolk Broads to the sea...
by the Pattersonian. An account of the incident was reported on the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
along with a warning to shipping, giving the sunken Cantabrias position. The national press carried the story as their headlines but many of the crew at Yarmouth refused to be photographed fearing reprisals from Franco
Francisco Franco
Francisco Franco y Bahamonde was a Spanish general, dictator and head of state of Spain from October 1936 , and de facto regent of the nominally restored Kingdom of Spain from 1947 until his death in November, 1975...
. Questions were also asked in the Houses of Parliament about the incident.
{| class="wikitable"
|-----
! colspan="3" | SS Cantabria
|-----
! colspan="3" | Rescued Persons
|-----
!By Cromer
Cromer
Cromer is a coastal town and civil parish in north Norfolk, England. The local government authority is North Norfolk District Council, whose headquarters is in Holt Road in the town. The town is situated 23 miles north of the county town, Norwich, and is 4 miles east of Sheringham...
Lifeboat H.F. Bailey
Cromer Lifeboat H F Bailey III
H F Bailey III is the most famous Royal National Lifeboat Institution lifeboat to have served from Cromer, because she was used by Coxswain Henry Blogg to perform many of his most famous lifesaving exploits. The lifeboat was on station for the ten years between 1935 and 1945...
! By the Pattersonian
! Captured by the Nadir
|-----
| Capt. Manuel Argüelles ||José López (English speaking)||24 crew
|-----
| Trinidad Argüelles || Pedro García||Eduardo Collade (wireless operator)
|-----
| Ramón Argüelles (aged 6) || Francisco Pou || The wife of Eduardo Collade
|-----
| Begoña Argüelles (aged 8)|| Francisco García || 2 children of Eduardo Collade
|-----
|Joaquín Vallego|| Fernando Manciro ||
|-----
| || Rafael Leou ||
|-----
| || Hilaro Trilear ||
|-----
| || Santiago Glorente ||
|-----
| || Román Amorebieta ||
|-----
| || Armando Abad ||
|-----
| || Manuel Figuciras ||
|}
Gestapo involvement
Two weeks after the sinking of the SS Cantabria, DanishDenmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
police released information that shed new light on the recent confrontation that proved that it had been no coincidence that the Nadir had intercepted the Cantabria. For some time, the Danish police had been quietly interested in the Copenhagen
Copenhagen
Copenhagen is the capital and largest city of Denmark, with an urban population of 1,199,224 and a metropolitan population of 1,930,260 . With the completion of the transnational Øresund Bridge in 2000, Copenhagen has become the centre of the increasingly integrating Øresund Region...
correspondent
Correspondent
A correspondent or on-the-scene reporter is a journalist or commentator, or more general speaking, an agent who contributes reports to a newspaper, or radio or television news, or another type of company, from a remote, often distant, location. A foreign correspondent is stationed in a foreign...
s for a German newspaper. One of these correspondents was Horst von Pflug-Hartnung. He worked for the paper, Berliner Börsen Zeitung, which was an organ of the Reich
Reich
Reich is a German word cognate with the English rich, but also used to designate an empire, realm, or nation. The qualitative connotation from the German is " sovereign state." It is the word traditionally used for a variety of sovereign entities, including Germany in many periods of its history...
War Ministry. The police arrested Hartnung along with eight other Germans living in Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
, along with three Danes and charged them of operating as spies in Copenhagen
Copenhagen
Copenhagen is the capital and largest city of Denmark, with an urban population of 1,199,224 and a metropolitan population of 1,930,260 . With the completion of the transnational Øresund Bridge in 2000, Copenhagen has become the centre of the increasingly integrating Øresund Region...
. During their investigations the Danish police proved that the accused had all been trained at Gestapo
Gestapo
The Gestapo was the official secret police of Nazi Germany. Beginning on 20 April 1934, it was under the administration of the SS leader Heinrich Himmler in his position as Chief of German Police...
spy
SPY
SPY is a three-letter acronym that may refer to:* SPY , ticker symbol for Standard & Poor's Depositary Receipts* SPY , a satirical monthly, trademarked all-caps* SPY , airport code for San Pédro, Côte d'Ivoire...
schools and had operated secret broadcasting stations, as well as engaging in nautical and hydrographical
Hydrography
Hydrography is the measurement of the depths, the tides and currents of a body of water and establishment of the sea, river or lake bed topography and morphology. Normally and historically for the purpose of charting a body of water for the safe navigation of shipping...
research. Between them they had drawn up maps and charts, graphs and complex mathematical tables of data. They communicated by complex code systems, which they changed frequently. The outlay for so extensive an apparatus as theirs could be justified only as part of Third Reich preparation for war against major countries. The spy ring just so happened to use the shadowing and sinking of Loyalist Spanish freighter SS Cantabria as a practical demonstration of their complicated subversion mechanism that the Gestapo
Gestapo
The Gestapo was the official secret police of Nazi Germany. Beginning on 20 April 1934, it was under the administration of the SS leader Heinrich Himmler in his position as Chief of German Police...
was honing. The sinking had been formulated on behalf of Franco, backed by his allies, as a warning to Britain. Franco was serving notice on British government that, unless she proved reasonable in the current flux of world events, this was a warning of threats to come. Thanks to the investigations of the Danish police, it had been established that the attack had been planned by a more sinister power than General Francisco Franco, and one that was in a better position to threaten, namely Nazi Germany. In effect, Nadir and her sister ship Ciudad de Alicante used the German town of Lunden
Lunden
Lunden is a municipality in the district of Dithmarschen, in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. It is situated on the river Eider, approx. 16 km north of Heide.Lunden is part of the Amt Kirchspielslandgemeinde Eider....
on the Eider river in Schleswig-Holstein
Schleswig-Holstein
Schleswig-Holstein is the northernmost of the sixteen states of Germany, comprising most of the historical duchy of Holstein and the southern part of the former Duchy of Schleswig...
, as a resupply base.
Horst von Pflugk-Hartnung
Horst von Pflugk-HartungHorst von Pflugk-Hartung
Horst Gustav Friedrich Pflugk-Harttung was a German intelligence officer and spy for Nazi Germany.-Post World War 1:...
was a German spy, who along with his brother Georg, had previously been charged in Berlin for the assassination of the Socialist leaders, Karl Liebknecht
Karl Liebknecht
was a German socialist and a co-founder with Rosa Luxemburg of the Spartacist League and the Communist Party of Germany. He is best known for his opposition to World War I in the Reichstag and his role in the Spartacist uprising of 1919...
and Rosa Luxemburg
Rosa Luxemburg
Rosa Luxemburg was a Marxist theorist, philosopher, economist and activist of Polish Jewish descent who became a naturalized German citizen...
. Both men were acquitted but evidently many thought them guilty, for the brother was assassinated himself sometime later. After Horst von Pflugk-Hartung's trial in Denmark, he was only sentenced to a year and a half in prison and was released after a few months owing to German government pressure. He became one of the leading German Intelligence chiefs in Denmark.
2006
Captain Manuel Argüelles and his wife Trinidad eventually emigrated with their children to MexicoMexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
to make a new life for themselves and their family. In 2006, when the new Henry Blogg lifeboat museum was opened, Ramón Argüelles along with his sister Begoña made a visit to pay tribute to Henry Blogg and his crew.