The seamens discharge book numbers are usually listed, and you may find the date and place of birth too. We'd like to use additional cookies to remember your settings and understand how you use our services. Germany turned submarines, battleships, aircraft and mines on Britains supply lines, while British and American shipyards worked tirelessly to replace those ships that were sunk. George James William "Dick" Durling BEM. It should be noted that the cards do not always reflect changes in the ship's name and that it may be necessary to search for a ship under its various names. Our first night there we had doors for beds. The movement control staff in Durban were receiving signals from London changing the instructions for the destinations of the various troops. They cover masters with foreign trade certificates sailing either as masters or mates. In themerchant navy the term officer can refer to a master, mate, engineer, fishing boat skipper, second hand or cook. There were still some men on the after deck, but could not see if they had jumped clear before the ship sank. 1 With only two decades since the ending of the Great War most serving shipmasters would have been at sea during . ConsultBT 122-126and BT 128 (index in BT 127). The swell was of considerable height and the ships became almost unmanageable and steering had to be assisted by engines. Many years later he wrote a short fictional story about a Maritime Regiment gunner who brought nothing but bad luck. Merchant Navy - The port where the merchant mariner signed on as a member of a ship's crew at the commencement or during the war. Awarded for service in the Pacific Ocean, South China Sea or the Indian Ocean between 8 December 1941 and 2 September 1945. If you have already submitted a story to the site and your UID reference number is higher than 261046 your information is still in the queue, please do not resubmit, we are working through them as quickly as possible. The British Merchant Navy was the largest in the world and required more crew than Great Britain had merchant seamen, as a result large numbers of Indian, Chinese and West African seamen were engaged to crew ships which regularly traded from Great Britain to ports in those areas. Wafer it states "he failed to re-join ship" and for M. Towers it reads "died as result of accident". At 5.10 p.m. he was assigned A.R.P. It does not, however, include: You may be searching for a ship using a former name. He survived. "The World's largest shipping company". On 1 September 1939 this passenger liner set sail from Glasgow with over 1400 passengers and crew aboard. Now, many warships had immediately packed the harbour, so, the navy men and merchant seamen had all gone to St. John's for their off hours. Willenbrock. They do not contain details of any passengers or crew. Historically many vessels have had their names changed, sometimes on more than one occasion. Monarch of Bermuda sailed for Suez with an estimated 2,200 troops on board on 28th June in company with seven other ships and escorted by the destroyers HMS Reading and Piorun (Polish). We place some essential cookies on your device to make this website work. The ship turned out to be a disguised German raider. Read tagging guidelines. Library contains an ever growing number diary entries, personal letters and other documents, most transcribed into plain text. We do not provide copies of online records please download to view, Visit us in Kew to see original documents or view online records for free, Consider paying for As fast as they drew up new convoy plans, the instructions would change. The cards are of different colours depending on the type of qualification: Consult registers and renewals of certificates of competency ofmasters andmates in BT 317; masters, mates and engineers in BT 318; just engineersin BT 320 (1913-1935) (in process of transfer from National Maritime Museum under references RSS/ENG/5-6); and fishing officers in BT 396. 1. Read tagging guidelines. Discovery is a catalogue of archival records across the UK and beyond, from which you can search 32 million records. How do I find out where my uncle was stationed during his stint in the Navy? A register entry for home trade voyages, from BT 126. ","copyright":"INF13-213 (52)","url":"https://images.prismic.io/findmypast-titan/9794e89f-46cb-4342-8b53-47272a1b0f4b_inf13-213-52-world-war-ii-poster-the-life-line-is-firm-thanks-to-the-merchant-navy.jpg?auto=compress,format"},"caption":"The Life-line Is Firm Thanks To The Merchant Navy Image: INF13-213 (52)"}},{"__typename":"PrismicArticlePage1939BodySliceText","type":"slice-text","primary":{"__typename":"PrismicArticlePage1939BodySliceTextPrimary","content":[{"type":"paragraph","text":"Despite sharing the word Navy in their titles, the difference between the Royal and Merchant Navies was that sailors in the latter were classed as civilians. These cards have been selected as they reflect the economic, social and demographic condition of the UK, as documented by the state's dealings with individuals, communities and organisations outside its own formal boundaries (2.2.2.1 of PRO's acquisition policy). Order records to view when you visit. If you are enjoying the site, please consider making a donation, however small In the top left corner of the record is the ships name. the National Archives. At this point the body of Matthew Towers A.B. heavily illustrated book presents the details of those ships and describes the fate of those lost between 1939 and 1945. Research guide C12: The Merchant Navy: Ship registration and Custom House records; Research guide E1: . From the mid-18th century, masters or owners of most British-registered merchant ships were required to keep a record of their crew before the ship left port. Alternatively, search more than 1 million objects from They also record the location (by latitude and longitude) and date a ship was sunk. Germany turned submarines, battleships, aircraft and mines on Britains supply lines, while British and American shipyards worked tirelessly to replace those ships that were sunk. Particular emphasis was put on implementing the convoy system, by which warships would customarily escort groups of merchant ships to deter attacks from German U-boats. 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Consult our guide to records of merchant seamen serving after 1917for advice on searching within registers of seamen and seamens pouchesto establishvoyage details which you may be able to apply to the service of officers. She was ordered into the Clyde and the 990 RAF and 419 troops on board were going to disembark. These entries record a single voyage during which the seaman was engaged on a particular ship. Arrangements for those who succumbed to seasickness consisted of 40 gallon drums which slid about the deck with unpleasant splashings. Consult series BT 140 for details. His brother Francis David Short was in the First War but I have no details on his service. The Wartime Memories Project is run by volunteers and the free to access part of the website is funded by donations from our visitors. As well as the registers of certificates of competency for engineers at The National Archives (in series BT 139, see above), the National Maritime Museum holds registers for the following years and certificate numbers: The National Maritime Museum holds the registers, bearing numbers 5001-41021 (reference RSS/CO/1-6). He died on 21st Aug 1973. You may be searching for a ship on dates before or after movement cards were in use on that vessel. We'd like to use additional cookies to remember your settings and understand how you use our services. Most of the masters and mates were from West Wales. Merchant Navy 1939-1945. the-raf-in-camera-1939-1945 1/11 Downloaded from uniport.edu.ng on March 2, 2023 by guest . From 10.00 a.m. 11.00 p.m. he was seen on his rounds attending to blackout by J. Lowe. Search for the National Maritime Museums records of master and mate certificates (1850-1927) on Ancestry.co.uk (). Help us improve catalogue descriptions by adding tags. Merchant Navy Day. He listed drowning as the probable cause of death. She left Aden on 21st August and arrived at Suez on 25th August. Merchant ship movement card (catalogue reference: BT 389). ","spans":[]}]}},{"__typename":"PrismicArticlePage1939BodySliceText","type":"slice-text","primary":{"__typename":"PrismicArticlePage1939BodySliceTextPrimary","content":[{"type":"paragraph","text":"After the declaration of war in September 1939, the Ministry of Shipping then under the control of Lieutenant-Colonel Sir John Gilmour took control of the merchant fleet. Samaria sailed out of Liverpool on Friday 14th of May 1943 and was on the Clyde Monday 17th of May. Under an Admiralty instruction during World War II masters of merchant ships were ordered not to record in the tabular section of the log book the ports at which their ships called or details of their voyages in case this information got into enemy hands. On the 18th the weather worsened to force 6 with a rough sea and short, heavy swell with poor visibility. Ronnie stayed with the Merchant Navy during the war and was torpedoed off the east coast of the USA at some point. We do not provide copies of online records please download to view, Visit us in Kew to see original documents or view online records for free, Consider paying for For more information on the Arctic Star and advice on how you can still apply for it, see our guide to Merchant seamans medals and honours. You might also find information about an officer by searching the records of ordinary merchant seamen. The struggle for control over the Atlantic shipping routes, which would eventually become known as the Battle of the Atlantic, was one of the longest campaigns of WWII. Digital copies of Merchant shipping movement cards 1939-1945 can be searched and downloaded. Records of Royal Naval Reserve ratings in service between 1914 -1955 are available online atwww.nationalarchives.gov.uk/records/royal-naval-reserve-service-records.htm. Women also sometimes served at sea in the Merchant Navy. Saudi Arabia and the Second World War (1939-1945) 16. A merchant seaman had to have served a minimum of 28 days at sea. The official history for the Second World War, Australia in the War of 1939-1945, has been digitised and is available for viewing on the Memorial's web site. The series generally contains information about radio equipment . The convoy was originally supposed to sail at the end of October 1942 as WS 13 but its designation was changed to WS 12Z (a lucky omen?). Awarded for service between 10 June 1940 and 12 May 1943, serving in the Mediterranean. Friends of The National The third statement, quite surprising, from W. Orr, is missing from the official records although he is listed as giving evidence to the inquiry into Matty Towers death. Let us know. Suffice it to say the remainder of the convoy including Monarch of Bermuda made the passage safely arriving in Freetown on 13th July to fuel and take on water and sailing on 17th July for Durban. I remember him telling me that he was actually on his first day of a period of survivors leave when D Day commenced. The often slow-moving shipsand the civilian merchant mariners who maneuvered themwere easy targets for enemy fire. giving a true reflection as to when the name-change was made. You can search ()the records in Discovery, our catalogue, by filling in the form below. The only good thing I remember about Drancy was the kindness of the French women who had nothing themselves, but nevertheless threw loaves of bread to us past the guards. In the indexes, names beginning with Mc or Mac are usually found under the letter following that prefix. The column on the right of each record contains a reference number to the entitlement file held by the Registry of Shipping and Seamen. The less said about our stay at Drancy the better. They sailed up the Irish Sea to join with the Clyde portion to form convoy WS 9B. Edit Search New Search. He describes why . This camp bordered on primitive in every sense of the word. Voyages in the registers were usually recorded either as: Home trade voyages (repeated or reported voyages). Woodman here relates the Merchant Navy's colourful history and brings to life the day-to-day experiences of the seamen. TNA has detailed research guides on the Fourth and Fifth Registers of Seamen and other records. Look at the websites of other archives and organisations which hold agreements and crew lists, including the Maritime History Archive in Newfoundland, the National Maritime Museum, the National Records of Scotland, the National Archives of Ireland, and local archives. Records 1939 - 1946. If you don't have an account please register. All Web: UK, World War II Medals Issued to Merchant Seamen, 1939-1945 results for ae. Gunner and T. Moulton Sectionman. This series contains records of Merchant Seamen's Service on Royal Navy Ships. After the outbreak of war, Germany declared that every vessel of the British mercantile marine was to be regarded as a warship, meaning that the sailors of the Merchant Navy faced tremendous risks. Two days later the Coroner held an inquest into Grandad's death and the verdict was given as unascertainable. Search Discovery, our catalogue, by name of person or ship in T 335 to find what the award was, the persons rank at the time, and the ship they were serving on. To view all records for an individual, select 'ALL' in the Service box. The card entries do not all start or end at the same time. Narrow your search by using double quotation marks to find a ships or persons full name, such as Sydney Star or John Williams. Many merchant seamen came from parts of the British Empire, such as India, Hong Kong and west African countries. The database includes every British registered ship from 1855 to the early 1950s with official numbers 1 to 200000. It may help to know the number of a ship as ships are sometimes referred to in the records by their number rather then their name. : s.n., between 1939 and 1940) AWM call number: 387.5071094 M554; Online. My mum told me that he did serve. ", JEng. For example, MacDonald will not appear under the letter M but under D. Within the Returns of Births and Deaths of Passengers 1939-1963 there are for 1939-1945 also records of deaths of soldiers on hospital and troopships, but it is necessary to know the name of the ship. He said he always craved the soil under his boots. The minimum qualifying period was one day. . On the outbreak of the 1939-1945 war between the United Kingdom and Germany (3 September 1939), British-registered merchant ship masters were sent radio messages instructing them to open the sealed envelope which had been deposited in ships' safes as much as a year previously. A register entry for a foreign trade voyage, from BT 124. These records were compiled at the Registrar General of Shipping and Seamen. In 1939 the Admiralty instructed the Board of Trade, for reasons of security, to prevent masters of merchant vessels from using ships logs or crew lists and agreements to record destinations or ports of call. card and his grey suit jacket. 3 hold. The cards are presented in alphabetical order by ship's name. Some useful printed works include: The Roll of Honour of the Merchant Navy and Fishing Fleets 1939-1945, 3 vols (London: Ministry of . Records of Merchant Navy from other sources. Registers were created to record the awarding of these certificates to officers and what they had done to qualify for them. Contact the appropriate state or national archive. This number made up around one third of the entire global merchant fleet at the time, with many of the seamen coming from all over the Empire, including India, Hong Kong and West Africa. Details of masters and mates who have voluntarily passed an examination appear inthe Lloyds Register of Shipping (copies of which are available at The National Archives). The ship left Suez on 27th August via Port Sudan to load commercial cargo at Mombasa for Capetown and the UK. This website is paid for out of our own pockets, library subscriptions and from donations made by visitors. Robert Malcolm Barber MV Patella (d.16th Feb 1944). Merchant Navy Awards 1939-1945 This collection details over 9,000 awards made to those who served in the Merchant Navy from 1939-45. Most of these men were not born in Asia; many were Egyptian. v3.0, except where otherwise stated, guide on Merchant seamens medals and honours, World War Two Medals issued to Merchant Seamen, records of merchant seamen serving after 1917, Abbreviations in merchant seamens records, Friends of The National The Canadian Merchant Marine had only forty-one ocean-going merchant ships at the outbreak of the Second World War. If a seaman is not listed, it may be because they have not claimed their medal entitlement. You need to sign in to tag. By 1895, they were essentially out of business. The certificate number obtained from the index indicates: Certificate numbers with a letter(s) prefix NWS were issued in the colonies. In May 1943 S.S. Samaria was in West Huskisson dock at my grandfather's home port of Liverpool. Canada's air support was crucial throughout the war. The ship had to wait in Aden until the Monster liners Mauretania, Ile de France and Nieuw Amsterdam from convoy CM 15 had passed through ahead of her to disembark at Suez before she did. A total of 254 officers and men lost their lives in the sinking of Anselm, of which 176 were RAF, 70 from other services and 4 crew. ","spans":[]}]}},{"__typename":"PrismicArticlePage1939BodySliceQuote","type":"slice-quote","primary":{"__typename":"PrismicArticlePage1939BodySliceQuotePrimary","content":[{"type":"paragraph","text":"As the outbreak of World War II edged closer in 1939, the British merchant fleet remained the largest in the world, employing some 200,000 men and women. Generally the qualifying service period for the Burma Star could only begin after the 1939-1945 Star had been earned by six months service. Like this page to receive our updates. By now the United States had entered the war and Japanese forces were invading Malaya. The family believed that the torpedoed ship was the Tacoma Star of the Blue Star Line but I believe that ship was lost with all hands and Ronnie's name does not appear on the casualty list. These files have joined our collection in an effort to better serve the public who are looking for proof of their ancestor's service, The first block of this series contained 4,800 cubic feet of records, The Coast Guard National Maritime Center (NMC) is the approving official for World War II Merchant Marine separation documents. Those giving evidence included J. Cornwall M.N. There were no clasps awarded with the Italy Star. Please ensure the tag is appropriate for the record. When he talked to my Grandad he was told that he had a bad headache. The official records state the purser took possession of his discharge book, his I.D. During that period the ship may have been on several voyages, and he may have been engaged for some or all of the period. USA.gov, The U.S. National Archives and Records Administration If a ship had a former name this would be written in brackets. Unfortunately, all their hard work diverting troops and stores came to nothing because Singapore fell into Japanese hands. Monarch of Bermuda sailed on Christmas Eve for Liverpool via Trinidad arriving back on 21st January 1942.