SS ''Bardic'' was a Greek

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 shelled and sunk by the

German battleship Scharnhorst ''Scharnhorst'' was a German capital ship, alternatively described as a battleship or battlecruiser, of Nazi Germany's ''Kriegsmarine''. She was the lead ship of her class, which included her sister ship . The ship was built at the ''Kriegsm ...

in the

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe ...

northwest of

Cape Verde , national_anthem = () , official_languages = Portuguese , national_languages = Cape Verdean Creole , capital = Praia , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , demonym ...

on 9 March 1941.

Construction

''Bardic'' was launched on 19 December 1918 and completed on 13 March 1919 at the Harland & Wolff Ltd. shipyard in

Belfast Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdo ...

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

. The ship was long, had a beam of and had a depth of . She was assessed at and had 2 x Triple expansion engines driving two screw propellers. The ship could generate 1138 n.h.p. with a speed of 11 knots.

1924 Incident

While ''Bardic'' was on route from

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

to the

on 31 August 1924, she ran aground on Stag Rock off

Lizard Point, Cornwall Lizard Point () in Cornwall is at the southern tip of the Lizard Peninsula. It is situated half-a-mile (800 m) south of Lizard village in the civil parish of Landewednack and about 11 miles (18 km) southeast of Helston. Lizard Point ...

. Her crew evacuated the ship yet her officers remained onboard until 8 September. The ship was eventually refloated on 29 September and towed to

Falmouth, Cornwall Falmouth ( ; kw, Aberfala) is a town, civil parish and port on the River Fal on the south coast of Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It has a total resident population of 21,797 (2011 census). Etymology The name Falmouth is of English or ...

where she was beached to await repairs.

Sinking

On 9 March 1941, ''Bardic'' (then named ''Marathon'') encountered the

in the

northwest of

Cape Verde , national_anthem = () , official_languages = Portuguese , national_languages = Cape Verdean Creole , capital = Praia , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , demonym ...

. The German battleship shelled and sunk the ''Marathon'', with all the crew being taken as

prisoners of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held Captivity, captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold priso ...

Wreck

The wreck of ''Bardic'' lies approx. at ().

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bardic Ships of the Aberdeen Line Ships of the White Star Line Ships built by Harland and Wolff Ships built in Belfast Maritime incidents in 1924 Maritime incidents in March 1941 1918 ships Cargo ships of Greece Steamships of the United Kingdom World War II shipwrecks in the Atlantic Ocean Steamships of Greece