MV ''British Splendour'' was a tanker which was

torpedo A modern torpedo is an underwater ranged weapon launched above or below the water surface, self-propelled towards a target, and with an explosive warhead designed to detonate either on contact with or in proximity to the target. Historically, su ...

ed and sunk on 7 April 1942 during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

by . ''British Splendour'' was making her way from

Houston, Texas Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...

to ultimately meet a British bound convoy off of Nova Scotia and deliver 10,000 tons of gasoline.

History

The ship was a steel-hulled

oil tanker An oil tanker, also known as a petroleum tanker, is a ship designed for the bulk transport of oil or its products. There are two basic types of oil tankers: crude tankers and product tankers. Crude tankers move large quantities of unrefined crud ...

built in 1931 by Palmers Shipbuilding & Iron Company for the British Tanker Company. She could travel at a speed of up to 11 knots.

Wartime service

In 1939, ''British Splendour'', along with her sister ships, was chartered by the British Government to transport fuel supplies for the armed forces. On 20 February 1941, she was bombed and damaged by enemy aircraft one mile off South Black Head, having just left Falmouth. She was sunk 7 April 1942 by torpedo from ''

U-552 German submarine ''U-552'' was a Type VIIC U-boat built for Nazi Germany's ''Kriegsmarine'' for service during World War II. She was laid down on 1 December 1939 at Blohm & Voss in Hamburg as yard number 528, launched on 14 September 1940, and ...

'' off the coast of

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...

Sinking

The tanker was carrying 10,000 tons of gasoline, which caught fire quickly when the torpedo hit. Out of the ship's 53 crew members, 12 died in the attack. Captain John Hail ordered the crew to abandon ship and the 41 survivors escaped on lifeboats and a raft. The trawler, HMS ''St Zeno'', later rescued them from the sea and took them to

Norfolk, Virginia Norfolk ( ) is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. Incorporated in 1705, it had a population of 238,005 at the 2020 census, making it the third-most populous city in Virginia after neighboring Virginia Be ...

Footnotes

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:British Splendour World War II merchant ships of the United Kingdom 1930 ships Ships sunk by German submarines in World War II Shipwrecks of the Carolina coast Ships of BP Shipping World War II tankers World War II shipwrecks in the Atlantic Ocean