''Klio'' was a

cargo ship A cargo ship or freighter is a merchant ship that carries cargo, goods, and materials from one port to another. Thousands of cargo carriers ply the world's seas and oceans each year, handling the bulk of international trade. Cargo ships are usu ...

that was built in 1924 by

AG Weser Aktien-Gesellschaft „Weser" (abbreviated A.G. „Weser”) was one of the major German shipbuilding companies, located at the Weser River in Bremen. Founded in 1872 it was finally closed in 1983. All together, A.G. „Weser" built about 1,400 ...

Bremen Bremen (Low German also: ''Breem'' or ''Bräm''), officially the City Municipality of Bremen (german: Stadtgemeinde Bremen, ), is the capital of the German state Free Hanseatic City of Bremen (''Freie Hansestadt Bremen''), a two-city-state consis ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

for Neptun Line. In 1945, she was seized by the Allies and passed to the Ministry of War Transport (MoWT), renamed ''Empire Conclyde''. In 1946, she was passed to the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...

and renamed ''Shota Rustavelli''.

Description

The ship was built in 1924 by AG Weser, Bremen. The ship was a

tweendecker Tweendeckers are general cargo ships with two or sometimes three decks. The upper deck is called the ''main deck'' or ''weather deck'', and the next lower deck is the ''tweendeck''. Cargo such as bales, bags, or drums can be stacked in the ''twe ...

(two cargo decks) long, with a beam of a depth of . She had a GRT of 1,403 and a NRT of 635. The ship was propelled by a

triple expansion steam engine A compound steam engine unit is a type of steam engine where steam is expanded in two or more stages. A typical arrangement for a compound engine is that the steam is first expanded in a high-pressure ''(HP)'' cylinder, then having given up he ...

, which had cylinders of , and diameter by stroke. The engine was built by AG Weser.

History

''Klio''

''Klio'' was built for «Dampfschiffahrts Gesellschaft "Neptun"» AG (Neptun Line), Bremen. Her port of registry was Bremen. The

Code Letters Code letters or ship's call sign (or callsign) Mtide Taurus - IMO 7626853"> SHIPSPOTTING.COM >> Mtide Taurus - IMO 7626853/ref> were a method of identifying ships before the introduction of modern navigation aids and today also. Later, with the i ...

QLWR and German

Official Number Official numbers are ship identifier numbers assigned to merchant ships by their flag state, country of registration. Each country developed its own official numbering system, some on a national and some on a port-by-port basis, and the formats hav ...

2467 were allocated. On 18 September 1925, the steamer пароход was transferred under the management of the combined German-Dutch company «Deutsch-Niederlandische Finanzabkommen GmbH», Berlin. However, she returned to the company «Dampfschifffahrts Gesellschaft "Neptun"», Bremen, on 7 March 1930. Морской флот СССР. Суда ММФ СССР. » Список форумов ‹ Портал » Галерея ‹ Портал » Сахалинское Морское Пароходство » пх Шота Руставели.
/ref> In 1934, the ship's Code Letters were changed to DONP. At the beginning of

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 ...

the ship ''Klio'' based at the Spanish ports of

Bilbao ) , motto = , image_map = , mapsize = 275 px , map_caption = Interactive map outlining Bilbao , pushpin_map = Spain Basque Country#Spain#Europe , pushpin_map_caption ...

and Muzel (russian: Музел). The steamer delivered goods to the southern ports of France from 18 September 1940.

''Empire Conclyde''

In May 1945, ''Klio'' was seized by the Allies at

Rendsburg Rendsburg ( da, Rendsborg, also ''Rensborg'', nds, Rendsborg, also ''Rensborg'') is a town on the River Eider and the Kiel Canal in the central part of Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. It is the capital of the ''Kreis'' (district) of Rendsburg-Ecke ...

. She was passed to the MoWT and renamed ''Empire Conclyde''. She was placed under the management of William Robertson & Co Ltd,

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

. Her port of registry was changed to

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

and the Code Letters GSPZ, and United Kingdom

BR № 180740.

''Шота Руставели''

In March 1946, as per repatriation, ''Empire Conclyde'' was transferred to the Soviet Union, renamed ''Shota Rustavelli'' (russian: Шота Руставели) signed on to

Sakhalin Shipping Company Sakhalin Shipping Company (SASCO) (russian: Сахалинское морское пароходство) is a Russian shipping company. Headquartered in Kholmsk, on Sakhalin Island's west coast, the company was created in 1945, and privatized in ...

. The ship sailed from

on 19 March 1946. Destination port was

Odessa Odesa (also spelled Odessa) is the third most populous city and municipality in Ukraine and a major seaport and transport hub located in the south-west of the country, on the northwestern shore of the Black Sea. The city is also the administrativ ...

, for repair. The ship visited

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 = Gib ...

during 27–29 March 1946. She passed

Istanbul Istanbul ( , ; tr, İstanbul ), formerly known as Constantinople ( grc-gre, Κωνσταντινούπολις; la, Constantinopolis), is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, serving as the country's economic, ...

Bosphorus Strait The Bosporus Strait (; grc, Βόσπορος ; tr, İstanbul Boğazı 'Istanbul strait', colloquially ''Boğaz'') or Bosphorus Strait is a natural strait and an internationally significant waterway located in Istanbul in northwestern T ...

, on 8 April 1946. After repair ''Шота Руставели'' sailed from Odessa to

Far East The ''Far East'' was a European term to refer to the geographical regions that includes East and Southeast Asia as well as the Russian Far East to a lesser extent. South Asia is sometimes also included for economic and cultural reasons. The ter ...

and passed

, on 2 August and passed

Suez Canal The Suez Canal ( arz, قَنَاةُ ٱلسُّوَيْسِ, ') is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, connecting the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea through the Isthmus of Suez and dividing Africa and Asia. The long canal is a popular ...

during 8–11 August 1946. The ship visited: *

Djibouti Djibouti, ar, جيبوتي ', french: link=no, Djibouti, so, Jabuuti officially the Republic of Djibouti, is a country in the Horn of Africa, bordered by Somalia to the south, Ethiopia to the southwest, Eritrea in the north, and the Red ...

on 18 and 19 August, *

Aden Aden ( ar, عدن ' Yemeni: ) is a city, and since 2015, the temporary capital of Yemen, near the eastern approach to the Red Sea (the Gulf of Aden), some east of the strait Bab-el-Mandeb. Its population is approximately 800,000 people. ...

during 19–24 August, *

Colombo Colombo ( ; si, කොළඹ, translit=Koḷam̆ba, ; ta, கொழும்பு, translit=Koḻumpu, ) is the executive and judicial capital and largest city of Sri Lanka by population. According to the Brookings Institution, Colombo me ...

during 5–11 September, *

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...

during 7–10 October 1946. After regular repair in

Vladivostok Vladivostok ( rus, Владивосто́к, a=Владивосток.ogg, p=vɫədʲɪvɐˈstok) is the largest city and the administrative center of Primorsky Krai, Russia. The city is located around the Zolotoy Rog, Golden Horn Bay on the Sea ...

the ship arrived in own home port Kholmsk,

. The ship ''Шота Руставели''

Call sign In broadcasting and radio communications, a call sign (also known as a call name or call letters—and historically as a call signal—or abbreviated as a call) is a unique identifier for a transmitter station. A call sign can be formally assigne ...

was UKID (russian: УКИД). МОРФЛОТ » Морской флот СССР. Суда ММФ СССЗ. » Морские Пароходства » Портал: Сахалинское Морское Пароходство
/ref> The cargo ship ''Shota Rustavelli'' was decommissioned and withdrawn from the ship's list of the

in the end of 1963.

Other ships ''Шота Руставели''.

New Soviet passenger sip ''Shota Rustaveli'' (russian: Шота Руставели) was built for the Soviet Union in 1968. Pay attention please that cargo ship ''Шота Руставели'' (1925) was named in English ''Shota Rustavelli'' (double L), and passenger ship ''Шота Руставели'' (1968) had English name ''Shota Rustaveli'' (single L).

Photos

''Шота Руставели'' at anchor.

''Шота Руставели'' alongside the berth.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Klio 1924 ships Steamships of Germany Merchant ships of Germany World War II merchant ships of Germany Ministry of War Transport ships Empire ships Steamships of the United Kingdom Merchant ships of the United Kingdom Steamships of the Soviet Union Merchant ships of the Soviet Union Germany–Soviet Union military relations Ships built in Bremen (state)