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HMS Royal Scotsman
HMS ''Royal Scotsman'', originally the MV ''Royal Scotsman'', was an LSI of the British Royal Navy that served during World War II. A former passenger ferry, she saw action in the Mediterranean during the invasions of North Africa ( Operation Torch), Sicily and Italy. The ship was later purchased in 1967 by the Church of Scientology, re- registered to Sierra Leone and renamed to the MV ''Royal Scotman'' (due to a transcription error) and then MV ''Apollo''. It served as the headquarters of the Church of Scientology, the founding flagship of the Sea Org, and the personal residence of L. Ron Hubbard until 1975. Construction The ship was built by Harland and Wolff, at Belfast, for the Burns and Laird Lines as Yard No. 964. Launched on 11 March 1936, the ship was completed on 29 May 1936, and entered service as MV ''Royal Scotsman'' as a passenger and cargo ferry in the Irish Sea, operating between Belfast and Glasgow. Operational history At 09:30 on 5 May 1940 ''Royal Scots ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Harland And Wolff
Harland & Wolff is a British shipbuilding company based in Belfast, Northern Ireland. It specialises in ship repair, shipbuilding and offshore construction. Harland & Wolff is famous for having built the majority of the ocean liners for the White Star Line, including ''Olympic''-class trio – , and HMHS ''Britannic''. Outside of White Star Line, other ships that have been built include the Royal Navy's ; Royal Mail Line's ''Andes''; Shaw, Savill & Albion's ; Union-Castle's ; and P&O's . Harland and Wolff's official history, ''Shipbuilders to the World'', was published in 1986. As of 2011, the expanding offshore wind power industry had been the prime focus, and 75% of the company's work was based on offshore renewable energy. Early history Harland & Wolff was formed in 1861 by Edward James Harland (1831–95) and Hamburg-born Gustav Wilhelm Wolff (1834–1913; he came to the UK at age 14). In 1858 Harland, then general manager, bought the small shipyard on ''Quee ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mo I Rana
Mo i Rana () is a List of towns and cities in Norway, city, and the administrative centre of the Municipalities of Norway, municipality of Rana, Norway, Rana, in Nordland county, Norway. It is located in the Helgeland region of Nordland, just south of the Arctic Circle. Some of the city's suburbs include Båsmoen and Ytteren in the north, Selfors in the east, and Åga/Hauknes/Dalsgrenda in the south. The name "Mo i Rana" (English: ''Mo in Rana, Norway, Rana'') distinguish it from other places named Mo (other)#Places, Mo (including the town of Mosjøen, also located in Helgeland). The city's postal address was "Mo 8600" until 1999, when it was changed to "Mo i Rana 8600". Today, the postal address is "8622 Mo i Rana". The city has a population (2018) of 18,866 and a population density of . This makes it the largest city in Helgeland, and the second largest city (after Bodø (town), Bodø) in Nordland county. Name Directly translated, the name ''Mo i Rana'' means "Mo in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Amphibious Operation
Amphibious warfare is a type of offensive military operation that today uses naval ships to project ground and air power onto a hostile or potentially hostile shore at a designated landing beach. Through history the operations were conducted using ship's boats as the primary method of delivering troops to shore. Since the Gallipoli Campaign, specialised watercraft were increasingly designed for landing troops, material and vehicles, including by landing craft and for insertion of commandos, by fast patrol boats, zodiacs (rigid inflatable boats) and from mini-submersibles. The term ''amphibious'' first emerged in the United Kingdom and the United States during the 1930s with introduction of vehicles such as Vickers-Carden-Loyd Light Amphibious Tank or the Landing Vehicle Tracked.The first LVT prototypes were named ''Alligator'' and ''Crocodile'', though neither species is actual amphibian Amphibious warfare includes operations defined by their type, purpose, scale and means ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Combined Operations Headquarters
Combined Operations Headquarters was a department of the British War Office set up during Second World War to harass the Germans on the European continent by means of raids carried out by use of combined naval and army forces. History The command used air and naval units to deliver the Commandos to various targets, and then recover them. Thus, it was a combined arms coordination and command structure. Admiral of the Fleet Roger Keyes was the first director, from 17 July 1940 to 27 October 1941. He was replaced first by Lord Louis Mountbatten, who led the command for a year. He in turn was succeeded by Major General Robert Laycock (October 1943 – 1947). It comprised background staff whose job was to plan operations and to develop ideas and equipment to harass the enemy in any way possible. It also covered all those who worked with landing craft up to and including the landing ships that were used in the various amphibious operations. The badge of Combined Operations was an ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Operation Halberd
Operation Halberd was a British naval operation that took place on 27 September 1941, during the Second World War. The British were attempting to deliver a convoy from Gibraltar to Malta. The convoy was escorted by several battleships and an aircraft carrier, to deter interference from the Italian surface fleet, while a close escort of cruisers and destroyers provided an anti-aircraft screen. The Italian fleet sortied after the convoy was detected, but turned back after learning the strength of the escorting force. Air attacks by Italian bombers and fighters damaged several ships, and forced one of the merchant vessels to be scuttled. The rest of the convoy arrived at Malta and discharged their cargo. The convoy Operation Halberd was at the time the largest Malta resupply effort of the war. Nine merchant ships carrying 81,000 tons of military equipment and supplies sailed from Liverpool on 16 September and from the Clyde on 17 September as part of convoy WS (Winston Specials) 11 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Malta
Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies south of Sicily (Italy), east of Tunisia, and north of Libya. The official languages are Maltese and English, and 66% of the current Maltese population is at least conversational in the Italian language. Malta has been inhabited since approximately 5900 BC. Its location in the centre of the Mediterranean has historically given it great strategic importance as a naval base, with a succession of powers having contested and ruled the islands, including the Phoenicians and Carthaginians, Romans, Greeks, Arabs, Normans, Aragonese, Knights of St. John, French, and British, amongst others. With a population of about 516,000 over an area of , Malta is the world's tenth-smallest country in area and fourth most densely populated sovereign cou ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gibraltar
) , anthem = " God Save the King" , song = " Gibraltar Anthem" , image_map = Gibraltar location in Europe.svg , map_alt = Location of Gibraltar in Europe , map_caption = United Kingdom shown in pale green , mapsize = , image_map2 = Gibraltar map-en-edit2.svg , map_alt2 = Map of Gibraltar , map_caption2 = Map of Gibraltar , mapsize2 = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = , established_title = British capture , established_date = 4 August 1704 , established_title2 = , established_date2 = 11 April 1713 , established_title3 = National Day , established_date3 = 10 September 1967 , established_title4 = Accession to EEC , established_date4 = 1 January 1973 , established_title5 = Withdrawal from the EU , established_date5 = 31 January 2020 , official_languages = English , languages_type = Spoken languages , languages = , capital = Westside, Gibraltar (de facto) , coordinates = , largest_settlement_type = largest district , l ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Convoy WS-11X
A convoy is a group of vehicles, typically motor vehicles or ships, traveling together for mutual support and protection. Often, a convoy is organized with armed defensive support and can help maintain cohesion within a unit. It may also be used in a non-military sense, for example when driving through remote areas. Naval convoys Age of Sail Naval convoys have been in use for centuries, with examples of merchant ships traveling under naval protection dating to the 12th century. The use of organized naval convoys dates from when ships began to be separated into specialist classes and national navies were established. By the French Revolutionary Wars of the late 18th century, effective naval convoy tactics had been developed to ward off pirates and privateers. Some convoys contained several hundred merchant ships. The most enduring system of convoys were the Spanish treasure fleets, that sailed from the 1520s until 1790. When merchant ships sailed independently, a privateer could ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Convoy WS-8C
A convoy is a group of vehicles, typically motor vehicles or ships, traveling together for mutual support and protection. Often, a convoy is organized with armed defensive support and can help maintain cohesion within a unit. It may also be used in a non-military sense, for example when driving through remote areas. Naval convoys Age of Sail Naval convoys have been in use for centuries, with examples of merchant ships traveling under naval protection dating to the 12th century. The use of organized naval convoys dates from when ships began to be separated into specialist classes and national navies were established. By the French Revolutionary Wars of the late 18th century, effective naval convoy tactics had been developed to ward off pirates and privateers. Some convoys contained several hundred merchant ships. The most enduring system of convoys were the Spanish treasure fleets, that sailed from the 1520s until 1790. When merchant ships sailed independently, a privateer could ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Scapa Flow
Scapa Flow viewed from its eastern end in June 2009 Scapa Flow (; ) is a body of water in the Orkney Islands, Scotland, sheltered by the islands of Mainland, Graemsay, Burray,S. C. George, ''Jutland to Junkyard'', 1973. South Ronaldsay and Hoy. Its sheltered waters have played an important role in travel, trade and conflict throughout the centuries. Vikings anchored their longships in Scapa Flow more than a thousand years ago. It was the United Kingdom's chief naval base during the First and Second World Wars, but the facility was closed in 1956. Scapa Flow has a shallow sandy bottom not deeper than and most of it is about deep; it is one of the great natural harbours and anchorages of the world, with sufficient space to hold a number of navies. The harbour has an area of and contains just under 1 billion cubic metres of water. Since the scuttling of the German fleet after World War I, its wrecks and their marine habitats form an internationally acclaimed diving lo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Azores
) , motto =( en, "Rather die free than subjected in peace") , anthem= ( en, "Anthem of the Azores") , image_map=Locator_map_of_Azores_in_EU.svg , map_alt=Location of the Azores within the European Union , map_caption=Location of the Azores within the European Union , subdivision_type=Sovereign state , subdivision_name=Portugal , established_title=Settlement , established_date=1432 , established_title3=Autonomous status , established_date3=30 April 1976 , official_languages=Portuguese , demonym= ( en, Azorean) , capital_type= Capitals , capital = Ponta Delgada (executive) Angra do Heroísmo (judicial) Horta (legislative) , largest_city = Ponta Delgada , government_type=Autonomous Region , leader_title1=Representative of the Republic , leader_name1=Pedro Manuel dos Reis Alves Catarino , leader_title2= President of the Legislative Assembly , leader_name2= Luís Garcia , leader_title3= President of the Regional Government , leader_name3=José Manuel Bolieiro , le ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
War Plan Gray
War Plan Gray was a plan for the United States to invade the Azores Islands in 1940–41 given the possibility of Germany seizing the islands. Gray is one of the many color-coded war plans created in the early 20th century. On 22 May 1941, President Franklin D. Roosevelt directed the U.S. Army and Navy to draft an official plan to occupy the Portuguese Azores. Approved by the Joint Board on 29 May, War Plan Gray called for a landing force of 28,000 troops, one half Marine and one half Army. While motions were made to prepare for this invasion, a shifting of focus halted War Plan Gray and the Azores were never invaded. This was mainly credited to intelligence sources producing evidence making it highly unlikely that Nazi Germany would invade pro-fascist Francoist Spain and the scrupulously neutral Portuguese Estado Novo. With Germany turning its attention to Russia, this eased American fears concerning the Azores, resulting in the suspension of War Plan Gray, letting the US ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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