SS Empire Bell
Encyclopedia
{|Empire Bell was a 1,744 GRT collier
which was built by Öresundsvarvet, Landskrona
, Sweden
as the 2,023 GRT passenger ship Belgia in 1930. In 1940 she was rebuilt as a cargo ship. In 1941, she was damaged by enemy bombing and burnt out. She was salvaged and sold to the Ministry of War Transport (MoWT), repaired and renamed Empire Bell. She was torpedo
ed and sunk by U-442
on 25 September 1942.
, or collier. The rebuilt ship was 1,744 GRT. During the Second World War, Belgia was a member of a number of convoys.
HN 23B / HN 25
Convoy HN 23B departed from Norway
on 31 March 1940 and arrived at Methil
, Fife on 4 April. Belgia was carrying general cargo and was bound for Rouen
, France
. Belgia may have been a member of this convoy, or of Convoy HN 25, which departed Bergen
, Norway on 7 April and arrived at Methil on 12 April.
HG 41
Convoy HG 41 departed from Gibraltar
on 11 August 1940 and arrived at Liverpool
on 25 August. Belgia was carrying a cargo of iron pyrites from Huelva
, Spain
and was bound for Ardrossan
, Ayrshire
, arriving on 26 August.
On 26 January 1941, Belgia was bombed by German aircraft and set on fire. At the time she was in the Thames Estuary
. Six crew were killed in the attack. On 14 February she was salvaged and towed to Harwich
, Essex
. Her owners sold her to the MoWT who had her repaired and she was renamed Empire Bell. She was placed under the management of James Westroll Ltd and her port of registry was changed to South Shields. Empire Bell was a member of a number of convoys.
RU 29
Convoy RU 29 departed Reykjavík
, Iceland
on 25 June 1942 and arrived at Loch Ewe
on 29 June. Empire Bell was carrying a cargo of vehicles with a destination of Hull
.
UW 42
Convoy UR 42 departed Loch Ewe on 22 September 1942 and arrived at Reykjavík on 27 September. At 16:16 German time
(15:16 British Double Summer Time) Empire Bell was torpedoed and sunk by U-442
at 62°19′N 15°27′W with the loss of ten of her 41 crew. The survivors were picked up by and landed at Reykjavík. Those lost on Empire Bell are commemorated at the Tower Hill Memorial
, London.
. Belgia had the Swedish Official Number 7636 and the Code Letters
KHDP. In 1934, her Code Letters were changed to SHTN. Empire Bell had the UK Official Number 168654 and the Code Letters BDSW.
Collier (ship type)
Collier is a historical term used to describe a bulk cargo ship designed to carry coal, especially for naval use by coal-fired warships. In the late 18th century a number of wooden-hulled sailing colliers gained fame after being adapted for use in voyages of exploration in the South Pacific, for...
which was built by Öresundsvarvet, Landskrona
Landskrona
Landskrona is a locality and the seat of Landskrona Municipality, Skåne County, Sweden with 28,670 inhabitants in 2005.-History:The city of Landskrona was founded at the location of Scania's best natural harbour, as a means of King Eric of Pomerania's anti-Hanseatic policy, intended to compete...
, Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
as the 2,023 GRT passenger ship Belgia in 1930. In 1940 she was rebuilt as a cargo ship. In 1941, she was damaged by enemy bombing and burnt out. She was salvaged and sold to the Ministry of War Transport (MoWT), repaired and renamed Empire Bell. She was torpedo
Torpedo
The modern torpedo is a self-propelled missile weapon with an explosive warhead, launched above or below the water surface, propelled underwater towards a target, and designed to detonate either on contact with it or in proximity to it.The term torpedo was originally employed for...
ed and sunk by U-442
German submarine U-442
German submarine U-442 was a Type VIIC U-boat of the German Kriegsmarine during World War II.The submarine was laid down on 19 October 1940 at the Schichau-Werke at Danzig, launched on 17 January 1942, and commissioned on 21 March 1942 under the command of Fregattenkapitän Hans-Joachim Hesse.U-442...
on 25 September 1942.
Description
Belgia was built by Öresundsvarvet, Landskrona. She was yard number 28 and was launched on 11 January 1930 with completion on 7 May. She was 286 in 6 in (87.33 m) long, with a beam of 40 in 2 in (12.24 m) and a depth of 28 in 4 in (8.64 m). Her GRT was 2,023, with a NRT of 1,074. She was originally built as a passenger ship.Career
Belgia was owned by Förnyade Ångfartygs Aktiebolag Götha. She was managed by F Sternberg, Gothenborg, trading as the Gotha Line. Her port of registry was Gothenborg. Belgia was employed on the Gothenborg - Antwerp route. In 1940, she was withdrawn from service and converted to a cargo shipCargo ship
A cargo ship or freighter is any sort of ship or vessel that carries cargo, goods, and materials from one port to another. Thousands of cargo carriers ply the world's seas and oceans each year; they handle the bulk of international trade...
, or collier. The rebuilt ship was 1,744 GRT. During the Second World War, Belgia was a member of a number of convoys.
HN 23B / HN 25
Convoy HN 23B departed from Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
on 31 March 1940 and arrived at Methil
Methil
Methil is an eastern coastal town in Scotland. It was part of the former Burgh of Buckhaven and Methil. It lies within a continuous urban area described as Levenmouth.Methil lies geographically between Largo bay to the east and Wemyss Bay to the west....
, Fife on 4 April. Belgia was carrying general cargo and was bound for Rouen
Rouen
Rouen , in northern France on the River Seine, is the capital of the Haute-Normandie region and the historic capital city of Normandy. Once one of the largest and most prosperous cities of medieval Europe , it was the seat of the Exchequer of Normandy in the Middle Ages...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. Belgia may have been a member of this convoy, or of Convoy HN 25, which departed Bergen
Bergen
Bergen is the second largest city in Norway with a population of as of , . Bergen is the administrative centre of Hordaland county. Greater Bergen or Bergen Metropolitan Area as defined by Statistics Norway, has a population of as of , ....
, Norway on 7 April and arrived at Methil on 12 April.
HG 41
Convoy HG 41 departed from 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...
on 11 August 1940 and arrived at Liverpool
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
on 25 August. Belgia was carrying a cargo of iron pyrites from Huelva
Huelva
Huelva is a city in southwestern Spain, the capital of the province of Huelva in the autonomous region of Andalusia. It is located along the Gulf of Cadiz coast, at the confluence of the Odiel and Tinto rivers. According to the 2010 census, the city has a population of 149,410 inhabitants. The...
, 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...
and was bound for Ardrossan
Ardrossan
Ardrossan is a town on the North Ayrshire coast in south-western Scotland. The name "Ardrossan" describes its physical position — 'ard' from the Gaelic àird meaning headland, 'ros' a promontory and the diminutive suffix '-an' - headland of the little promontory...
, Ayrshire
Ayrshire
Ayrshire is a registration county, and former administrative county in south-west Scotland, United Kingdom, located on the shores of the Firth of Clyde. Its principal towns include Ayr, Kilmarnock and Irvine. The town of Troon on the coast has hosted the British Open Golf Championship twice in the...
, arriving on 26 August.
On 26 January 1941, Belgia was bombed by German aircraft and set on fire. At the time she was in the Thames Estuary
Thames Estuary
The Thames Mouth is the estuary in which the River Thames meets the waters of the North Sea.It is not easy to define the limits of the estuary, although physically the head of Sea Reach, near Canvey Island on the Essex shore is probably the western boundary...
. Six crew were killed in the attack. On 14 February she was salvaged and towed to Harwich
Harwich
Harwich is a town in Essex, England and one of the Haven ports, located on the coast with the North Sea to the east. It is in the Tendring district. Nearby places include Felixstowe to the northeast, Ipswich to the northwest, Colchester to the southwest and Clacton-on-Sea to the south...
, Essex
Essex
Essex is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England, and one of the home counties. It is located to the northeast of Greater London. It borders with Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent to the South and London to the south west...
. Her owners sold her to the MoWT who had her repaired and she was renamed Empire Bell. She was placed under the management of James Westroll Ltd and her port of registry was changed to South Shields. Empire Bell was a member of a number of convoys.
RU 29
Convoy RU 29 departed Reykjavík
Reykjavík
Reykjavík is the capital and largest city in Iceland.Its latitude at 64°08' N makes it the world's northernmost capital of a sovereign state. It is located in southwestern Iceland, on the southern shore of Faxaflói Bay...
, Iceland
Iceland
Iceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...
on 25 June 1942 and arrived at Loch Ewe
Loch Ewe
Loch Ewe is a sea loch in the region of in the Northwest Highlands of Scotland. The shores are inhabited by a traditionally Gàidhlig speaking people living in or sustained by crofting villages, the most notable of which, situated on the north-eastern shore, is the Aultbea settlement...
on 29 June. Empire Bell was carrying a cargo of vehicles with a destination of Hull
Kingston upon Hull
Kingston upon Hull , usually referred to as Hull, is a city and unitary authority area in the ceremonial county of the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It stands on the River Hull at its junction with the Humber estuary, 25 miles inland from the North Sea. Hull has a resident population of...
.
UW 42
Convoy UR 42 departed Loch Ewe on 22 September 1942 and arrived at Reykjavík on 27 September. At 16:16 German time
UTC+4
UTC+04:00 is an identifier for a time offset from UTC of +04. In ISO 8601 the associated time would be written as . This time is used in:Gulf Standard Time uses UTC+04.-As standard time :...
(15:16 British Double Summer Time) Empire Bell was torpedoed and sunk by U-442
German submarine U-442
German submarine U-442 was a Type VIIC U-boat of the German Kriegsmarine during World War II.The submarine was laid down on 19 October 1940 at the Schichau-Werke at Danzig, launched on 17 January 1942, and commissioned on 21 March 1942 under the command of Fregattenkapitän Hans-Joachim Hesse.U-442...
at 62°19′N 15°27′W with the loss of ten of her 41 crew. The survivors were picked up by and landed at Reykjavík. Those lost on Empire Bell are commemorated at the Tower Hill Memorial
Tower Hill Memorial
The Tower Hill Memorial is a national war memorial on the south side of Trinity Square Gardens, just to the north of the Tower of London. It commemorates those from the Merchant Navy and fishing fleets who died during both world wars and have "no grave but the sea".The First World War memorial...
, London.
Official Numbers and Code Letters
Official Numbers were a forerunner to IMO NumbersIMO ship identification number
The IMO ship identification number is made of the three letters "IMO" followed by the seven-digit number assigned to all ships by IHS Fairplay when constructed. This is a unique seven digit number that is assigned to propelled, sea-going merchant ships of 100 GT and above...
. Belgia had the Swedish Official Number 7636 and the Code Letters
Code letters
Code letters were a method of identifying ships before the introduction of modern navigation aids. Later, with the introduction of radio, code letters were also used as radio callsigns.-History:...
KHDP. In 1934, her Code Letters were changed to SHTN. Empire Bell had the UK Official Number 168654 and the Code Letters BDSW.