SS Malabar
Encyclopedia
The SS Malabar was a P & O
mail
steamship of 917 tons launched in 1858 which was lost in Point de Galle harbor on 22 May 1860.
The passengers had embarked on the Malabar when a gale
from the northeast drove the vessel's stern
on to a reef
. The water began to rise in the ship's rear section and the captain opted to beach
the ship in a sandy bay on the opposite side of the harbor. However, the sand turned out to be loose and almost like quicksand
, and it was decided to give the order to abandon ship. There was no loss of life.
The passengers included Lord Elgin and Baron Gros, the British and French plenipotentiaries
to China
, and Times
journalist Thomas William Bowlby
, who later published an account of the wreck.
It was reported that the Malabar's cargo included 1,080 boxes of bullion, worth nearly £300,000 and 725 chests of opium
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...
Mail
Mail, or post, is a system for transporting letters and other tangible objects: written documents, typically enclosed in envelopes, and also small packages are delivered to destinations around the world. Anything sent through the postal system is called mail or post.In principle, a postal service...
steamship of 917 tons launched in 1858 which was lost in Point de Galle harbor on 22 May 1860.
The passengers had embarked on the Malabar when a gale
Gale
A gale is a very strong wind. There are conflicting definitions of how strong a wind must be to be considered a gale. The U.S. government's National Weather Service defines a gale as 34–47 knots of sustained surface winds. Forecasters typically issue gale warnings when winds of this strength are...
from the northeast drove the vessel's stern
Stern
The stern is the rear or aft-most part of a ship or boat, technically defined as the area built up over the sternpost, extending upwards from the counter rail to the taffrail. The stern lies opposite of the bow, the foremost part of a ship. Originally, the term only referred to the aft port section...
on to a reef
Reef
In nautical terminology, a reef is a rock, sandbar, or other feature lying beneath the surface of the water ....
. The water began to rise in the ship's rear section and the captain opted to beach
Beach (nautical)
Beaching is when a vessel is laid ashore, or grounded deliberately in shallow water. This is more usual with small flat-bottomed boats. Larger ships may be beached deliberately, for instance in an emergency a damaged ship might be beached to prevent it from sinking in deep water...
the ship in a sandy bay on the opposite side of the harbor. However, the sand turned out to be loose and almost like quicksand
Quicksand
Quicksand is a colloid hydrogel consisting of fine granular matter , clay, and water.Water circulation underground can focus in an area with the optimal mixture of fine sands and other materials such as clay. The water moves up and then down slowly in a convection-like manner throughout a column...
, and it was decided to give the order to abandon ship. There was no loss of life.
The passengers included Lord Elgin and Baron Gros, the British and French plenipotentiaries
Plenipotentiary
The word plenipotentiary has two meanings. As a noun, it refers to a person who has "full powers." In particular, the term commonly refers to a diplomat fully authorized to represent his government as a prerogative...
to China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
, and Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
journalist Thomas William Bowlby
Thomas William Bowlby
Thomas William Bowlby was a British correspondent for The Times in Germany and China.-Early life:Born in Gibraltar, he was the son of Thomas Bowlby, a Captain in the Royal Artillery, and Williamina Martha Arnold Balfour, daughter of Major-General William Balfour, a former Lieutenant-Governor of...
, who later published an account of the wreck.
It was reported that the Malabar's cargo included 1,080 boxes of bullion, worth nearly £300,000 and 725 chests of opium
Opium
Opium is the dried latex obtained from the opium poppy . Opium contains up to 12% morphine, an alkaloid, which is frequently processed chemically to produce heroin for the illegal drug trade. The latex also includes codeine and non-narcotic alkaloids such as papaverine, thebaine and noscapine...