Ramb IV was an Italian hospital ship, built at Monfalcone by the

United Yards of the Adriatic Cantieri Riuniti dell'Adriatico ("United Shipbuilders of the Adriatic") was an Italian manufacturer in the sea and air industry which was active from 1930 to 1966. This shipyard is now owned by Fincantieri. History In 1930, Stabilimento Tecnico ...

(''Cantieri Riuniti dell'Adriatico'', CRDA) in 1938. ''Ramb IV'' was the last of four sister ships all built to the same design. The other ships were the , , and the . The four ships were built for the Royal Banana Monopoly Business (''Regia Azienda Monopolio Banane''). These ships were originally devised as " banana boats" for transporting refrigerated bananas from

Somaliland Somaliland,; ar, صوماليلاند ', ' officially the Republic of Somaliland,, ar, جمهورية صوماليلاند, link=no ''Jumhūrīyat Ṣūmālīlānd'' is a ''de facto'' sovereign state in the Horn of Africa, still conside ...

and

Eritrea Eritrea ( ; ti, ኤርትራ, Ertra, ; ar, إرتريا, ʾIritriyā), officially the State of Eritrea, is a country in the Horn of Africa region of Eastern Africa, with its capital and largest city at Asmara. It is bordered by Ethiopia ...

in Italian East Africa. In the event of war, the design of ''Ramb IV'' allowed it to be refitted as an " auxiliary cruiser" for commerce raiding. She was 3,667 tons displacement, oil powered, and capable of knots. Following a declaration of war, ''Ramb IV'' was capable of being armed with two guns and eight anti-aircraft guns and of becoming an auxiliary cruiser. Instead, ''Ramb IV'' was converted into a hospital ship for the Italian Royal Navy ('' Regia Marina''). The goal of ''Ramb IV'', in case of fall of Eritrea, was transporting Italian wounded back to Italy. However, this mission was impossible because of the British control of the

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 ...

. In addition, it would have been suicide to attempt to round the

Cape of Good Hope The Cape of Good Hope ( af, Kaap die Goeie Hoop ) ;''Kaap'' in isolation: pt, Cabo da Boa Esperança is a rocky headland on the Atlantic coast of the Cape Peninsula in South Africa. A common misconception is that the Cape of Good Hope is t ...

and enter the Mediterranean Sea past

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 ...

. The work to convert the banana boat to a hospital ship was performed at the

n port of

Massawa Massawa ( ; ti, ምጽዋዕ, məṣṣəwaʿ; gez, ምጽዋ; ar, مصوع; it, Massaua; pt, Maçuá) is a port city in the Northern Red Sea region of Eritrea, located on the Red Sea at the northern end of the Gulf of Zula beside the Dahlak ...

. ''Ramb IV'' was part of the Italian Navy's Red Sea Flotilla. When the port of Massawa fell on 10 April 1941 during the East African Campaign, the British captured ''Ramb IV''. Pressed into British service, she then operated in the Red Sea and later off Libya. ''Ramb IV'' was bombed and set afire by German aircraft and sank off Alexandria in Egypt on 10 May 1942.

References

Bibliography

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ramb 4 Naval ships of Italy captured by the United Kingdom during World War II Hospital ships of Italy Hospital ships in World War II World War II naval ships of the United Kingdom Ships sunk by German aircraft 1937 ships RAMB ships Ships built by Cantieri Riuniti dell'Adriatico Ships built in Monfalcone Maritime incidents in May 1942 Captured ships

See also

References

Bibliography