SS Cambridge was a refrigerated steam cargo liner that was built in Germany for the Hamburg America Line. She was launched in 1916 as Vogtland, but after the 1919 Treaty of Versailles the United Kingdom took her as war reparations and sold her to the Federal Steam Navigation Company, who renamed her Cambridge. She operated between Britain and Australasia until 1940, when a German mine sank her off the coast of Australia.
Shin'yō Maru was a cargo steamship that was built in 1894, had a fifty-year career under successive British, Australian, Chinese and Greek owners, was captured by Japan in the Second World War, and sunk by a United States Navy submarine in 1944.
SS Empire Brigade was a 5,184 GRT cargo ship that was built in 1912 as SS Hannington Court. She served through the First World War and was sold in 1936 to Achille Lauro, who renamed her Elios. In 1940 when Italy declared war on France and the United Kingdom she was interned by the UK as a war prize and taken over by the Ministry of War Transport (MoWT), which renamed her Empire Brigade. Four months later she was torpedoed and sunk by U-99.
SS Blairspey was a steam cargo ship that was built in Scotland in 1929 and served in the Battle of the Atlantic in the Second World War. In 1940 she survived being part of Convoy SC 7 and managed to reach port, despite being hit by at least three torpedoes from two different U-boats. The ship was rebuilt with a new bow and renamed Empire Spey 1942. Her original name was restored in 1946. She was renamed Evandros 1961 and scrapped in Italy in 1967.
SS Aenos, formerly SS Cedar Branch, was a British-built cargo steamship. She was completed in England in 1910 and sunk in the Battle of the Atlantic in 1940.
Empire Buffalo was a 6,404 GRT Design 1105 cargo ship which was built in 1919 as Eglantine by Skinner & Eddy for the United States Shipping Board (USSB). She was sold in 1933 to the Lykes Brothers-Ripley Steamship Corporation. In 1940 she was sold to the Ministry of War Transport (MoWT) and renamed Empire Buffalo. She was torpedoed and sunk by U-125 in 1942.
Cap Tafelneh was a 2,266 GRT cargo ship which was built in 1920 by Burntisland Shipbuilding Company Ltd, Fife, Scotland. She was built for Joseph Lasry as Sydney Lasry. In 1931, she was sold to Compagnie Générale Transatlantique and renamed Ariège. In 1938 she was sold to Société Anonyme de Gerance D'Armement and renamed Cap Tafelneh. She was bombed and sunk at Dunkirk in 1940.
SS Polar Chief was a merchant steamship that was built in England in 1897 and scrapped in Scotland in 1952. In her 55-year career she had previously been called Montcalm, RFA Crenella, Crenella, Rey Alfonso, Anglo-Norse and Empire Chief. Early in the First World War she spent eight months pretending to be the battleship HMS Audacious.
Theresia L M Russ was a 1,694 GRT cargo ship that was built in 1927 by Neptun AG, Rostock, Germany for Ernst Russ. She was requisitioned by the Kriegsmarine for two years during the Second World War. In 1944, she was sunk by bombing at Gotenhafen, German occupied Poland. The ship was raised and repaired in 1945. She was seized by the Allies at Copenhagen and passed to the Ministry of War Transport (MoWT) and renamed Empire Concrete.
Jean Marie was a 964 GRT coaster that was built in 1922 by F Schichau GmbH, Elbing, Germany as Tertia for German owners. A sale in 1925 saw her renamed Hornland. In 1926, a further sale saw her renamed Taube. She was seized by the Allies in May 1945, passed to the Ministry of War Transport (MoWT) and was renamed Empire Contour. In 1946, she was transferred to Belgium and renamed Jean Marie. She was sold into merchant service, serving until 1951 when she sank after her cargo shifted.
HMAS Mallina was a 3,213 GRT cargo ship built by Harland & Wolff, Belfast in 1909 as Mallina for the Australian United Steam Navigation Company for the Rockhampton to Sydney cargo route. She was requisitioned by the Royal Australian Navy in 1914, as a store carrier and collier. She was returned to her owners in 1915. She was sold in 1935 to Machida Shokai Kisen Kaisha, Japan and renamed Seiko Maru, before being sold to Kita Nippon Kisen Kaisha and renamed Siberia Maru No. 3, which was later shortened to Siberian Maru. While steaming in the Sulu Sea, Philippines on 24 September 1944, she was attacked by American aircraft of Task Force 38 and sunk with the loss of 158 of the 2,382 people on board.
The North Coast Steam Navigation Company was a shipping company that operated in Australia, formed as the Grafton Steam Navigation Company in 1855. The company was later renamed the Clarence & Richmond River Steam Navigation Company before being renamed in December 1888 as the Clarence, Richmond & Macleay River Steam Navigation Company.
SS Calabria was a passenger and cargo steamship. AG Weser built her for Norddeutscher Lloyd. She was launched as D/S Werra and completed in 1922.
SS Hertford was a refrigerated cargo steamship that was launched in Germany in 1917, seized by the United Kingdom in 1920 as World War I reparations, and sunk by a U-boat in 1942 with the loss of four members of her crew.
Kuroshio Maru was a tanker that was built in 1938 for Japanese owners. She was chartered by the Imperial Japanese Navy and Imperial Japanese Army during World War II: the ship was sunk in January 1945 at Takao, Formosa by American aircraft. Salvaged in 1946, she was allocated as a war prize to China and renamed Yung Hao, but was forced to remain at Hong Kong by the British. She was requisitioned by the Admiralty during the Korean War and allocated to the Royal Fleet Auxiliary. She was to have been named RFA Surf Pilot but due to her poor condition she did not serve in the Royal Fleet Auxiliary. She served as Surf Pilot, a tender to HMS Terror until 1958 and was subsequently scuttled off Pulau Aur, Malaya in 1960.
TSS City of Belfast was a passenger steamship that was built in England in 1893, renamed Nicolaos Togias in 1925, renamed Kephallinia in 1933 and sank in 1941. She was owned and registered in Britain until 1925, when she passed to Greek owners.
Compañía de Filipinas was a cargo steamship that was built in Scotland in 1890 for the Compañía General de Tabacos de Filipinas (CGTF). In the Philippine–American War the Navy of the First Philippine Republic armed her as its flagship and renamed her Filipinas. After that war she reverted to her original name and commercial service. In the Second World War, Japanese forces captured her and renamed her Hoei Maru. She was sunk in July 1945, shortly before the end of the war.
West Hika was a Design 1013 cargo ship built in 1919 by the Los Angeles Shipbuilding & Dry Dock Co of Los Angeles. She was one of many ships built by the company for the United States Shipping Board.
SS Algarve was a Danish cargo steamship that was built in 1921 for DFDS. After Germany invaded Denmark in April 1940 Algarve was transferred to the UK Ministry of War Transport. In 1941 an E-boat sank her with all hands in the North Sea.
SS Macedonia was a steamship that was built in England in 1912, renamed Pincio in 1922 and scrapped in Italy in 1932. She was built as an ocean liner for Greek owners, but within months of being completed she was converted into an armed merchant cruiser for the Royal Hellenic Navy. An Ottoman warship sank her in 1913 in the First Balkan War.
