SS Jeddah
Encyclopedia
SS Jeddah was a steamship that was originally thought sunk with a great loss of life among the Muslim pilgrims aboard.
On 17 July 1880 the S.S. Jeddah sailed from Singapore
bound for Penang
and Jeddah
, with 778 men, 147 women and 67 children on board. The passengers were Muslims from the Malay states and they were traveling to Mecca
and Medina
for the holy pilgrimage.
The Jeddah sailed under the British flag and was crewed largely by British officers. It was owned by the Singapore Steamship Company, whose managing director, Syed Mohamed al-Sagoff, came from a wealthy Arab family well established in Singapore. Syed Omar al-Sagoff, Muhammad’s nephew, was on board at the time of the incident. After terrible weather conditions in the first week of passage, the ships' boilers ‘started adrift from their seatings’ and the Jeddah had been taking in water. The vessel sprang a large leak, the water rose rapidly and the captain and officers abandoned the heavily listing ship taking Syed Omar with them. They were picked up by another vessel and taken to Aden where they told a story of violent passengers and a foundering ship. The pilgrims were left to their fate, an apparently certain death.
However, to much astonishment, given reports of its loss, on 8 August a French steamship towed the Jeddah into Aden
—the pilgrims had survived. They had been abandoned by those meant to protect them and an official inquiry followed into this great scandal. It is strongly suspected that this dishonorable tale inspired Joseph Conrad
, who had landed in Singapore in 1883, and that he wove the main themes of Lord Jim
around it using the name for his fictional pilgrim ship.
On 17 July 1880 the S.S. Jeddah sailed from Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
bound for Penang
Penang
Penang is a state in Malaysia and the name of its constituent island, located on the northwest coast of Peninsular Malaysia by the Strait of Malacca. It is bordered by Kedah in the north and east, and Perak in the south. Penang is the second smallest Malaysian state in area after Perlis, and the...
and Jeddah
Jeddah
Jeddah, Jiddah, Jidda, or Jedda is a city located on the coast of the Red Sea and is the major urban center of western Saudi Arabia. It is the largest city in Makkah Province, the largest sea port on the Red Sea, and the second largest city in Saudi Arabia after the capital city, Riyadh. The...
, with 778 men, 147 women and 67 children on board. The passengers were Muslims from the Malay states and they were traveling to Mecca
Mecca
Mecca is a city in the Hijaz and the capital of Makkah province in Saudi Arabia. The city is located inland from Jeddah in a narrow valley at a height of above sea level...
and Medina
Medina
Medina , or ; also transliterated as Madinah, or madinat al-nabi "the city of the prophet") is a city in the Hejaz region of western Saudi Arabia, and serves as the capital of the Al Madinah Province. It is the second holiest city in Islam, and the burial place of the Islamic Prophet Muhammad, and...
for the holy pilgrimage.
The Jeddah sailed under the British flag and was crewed largely by British officers. It was owned by the Singapore Steamship Company, whose managing director, Syed Mohamed al-Sagoff, came from a wealthy Arab family well established in Singapore. Syed Omar al-Sagoff, Muhammad’s nephew, was on board at the time of the incident. After terrible weather conditions in the first week of passage, the ships' boilers ‘started adrift from their seatings’ and the Jeddah had been taking in water. The vessel sprang a large leak, the water rose rapidly and the captain and officers abandoned the heavily listing ship taking Syed Omar with them. They were picked up by another vessel and taken to Aden where they told a story of violent passengers and a foundering ship. The pilgrims were left to their fate, an apparently certain death.
However, to much astonishment, given reports of its loss, on 8 August a French steamship towed the Jeddah into 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...
—the pilgrims had survived. They had been abandoned by those meant to protect them and an official inquiry followed into this great scandal. It is strongly suspected that this dishonorable tale inspired Joseph Conrad
Joseph Conrad
Joseph Conrad was a Polish-born English novelist.Conrad is regarded as one of the great novelists in English, although he did not speak the language fluently until he was in his twenties...
, who had landed in Singapore in 1883, and that he wove the main themes of Lord Jim
Lord Jim
Lord Jim is a novel by Joseph Conrad originally published as a serial in Blackwood's Magazine from October 1899 to November 1900.An early and primary event is Jim's abandonment of a ship in distress on which he is serving as a mate...
around it using the name for his fictional pilgrim ship.