The SS ''English Trader'' was a British merchant ship wrecked off the coast of

Norfolk, England Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia in England. It borders Lincolnshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the west and south-west, and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the North ...

in October 1941.Cyril Jolly, ''The loss of the English Trader'', Chapter 1, Page 1 After falling behind a

convoy 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 ...

during the

Second World War 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 opposi ...

of which she was a part, the ship ran aground on the Hammond's Knoll sandbank and began to break up during a gale. Several rescue attempts by

lifeboats Lifeboat may refer to: Rescue vessels * Lifeboat (shipboard), a small craft aboard a ship to allow for emergency escape * Lifeboat (rescue), a boat designed for sea rescues * Airborne lifeboat, an air-dropped boat used to save downed airmen A ...

failed, but a further attempt the following day by the Cromer Lifeboat rescued 44 of the crew, three having already been lost.

Construction

The ship was built in 1934 at the shipyards of the Furness Ship Building Company Ltd at Haverton-Hill-on-Tees for the Arctees

Shipping Freight transport, also referred as ''Freight Forwarding'', is the physical process of transporting commodities and merchandise goods and cargo. The term shipping originally referred to transport by sea but in American English, it has been ...

Company Ltd where she was then called ''Arctees''. She was designed by Sir

Joseph Isherwood Sir Joseph William Isherwood, 1st Baronet (23 June 1870 – 24 October 1937) was a British naval architect. He invented the Isherwood System of longitudinal construction of ships and the Arcform System. Isherwood was born in Hartlepool, th ...

and had his revolutionary "Arcform" hull design to improve fuel consumption. Fifty ships were built to that design between 1933 and 1954. In 1936, she was sold to the Trader Navigation Company Ltd as its first tramp vessel and renamed ''English Trader''. All of the company's later vessels had the same "Trader" suffix.

Service

The first three years of the vessel's life were uneventful. On 23 January 1937, the ''English Trader'' was in the waters of the

Devon Devon ( , historically known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South West England. The most populous settlement in Devon is the city of Plymouth, followed by Devon's county town, the city of Exeter. Devo ...

coast. While entering

Dartmouth Harbour Dartmouth Harbour (also Dart Harbour) is a natural port located in Dartmouth, Devon, England. It is situated at the mouth of the River Dart on the English Channel. Bayard's Cove Fort is a small fort, which was built to defend the harbour's en ...

she was run aground close to

Dartmouth Castle Dartmouth Castle is an artillery fort, built to protect Dartmouth, Devon, Dartmouth harbour in Devon, England. The earliest parts of the castle date from the 1380s, when, in response to the threat of a French attack, the civic authorities creat ...

at the entrance to the haven. Attempts were made to re-float her by four tugs and a

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against ...

destroyer without success. She was badly holed and some of the holds were filling with debris and so, after ten days of being stuck fast, drastic measures were taken to save the ship. This involved cutting the ship in two at her bow section which was eventually scrapped. The process took nineteen days after which the undamaged after part was pulled stern-first into Dartmouth Harbour. Later she was moved to

Southampton Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Po ...

. A contract was given to the Middle Docks & Engineering Company of South Shields to repair her. She was rebuilt from the

boiler A boiler is a closed vessel in which fluid (generally water) is heated. The fluid does not necessarily boil. The heated or vaporized fluid exits the boiler for use in various processes or heating applications, including water heating, centr ...

room forward in only 100 days.

Second World War

From the start of the

the ''English Trader'' carried thousands of tons of

cargo Cargo consists of bulk goods conveyed by water, air, or land. In economics, freight is cargo that is transported at a freight rate for commercial gain. ''Cargo'' was originally a shipload but now covers all types of freight, including trans ...

to and from the British Isles. For two years she crossed the seas avoiding

U-boat U-boats were naval submarines operated by Germany, particularly in the First and Second World Wars. Although at times they were efficient fleet weapons against enemy naval warships, they were most effectively used in an economic warfare ro ...

s, mines and aircraft attacks. In October 1941, she was berthed in

London Docks London Docklands is the riverfront and former docks in London. It is located in inner east and southeast London, in the boroughs of Southwark, Tower Hamlets, Lewisham, Newham, and Greenwich. The docks were formerly part of the Port ...

where a cargo of sugar from

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...

was being unloaded. By 23 October, she had discharged her cargo and was taking aboard a mixed cargo bound for

Mombasa Mombasa ( ; ) is a coastal city in southeastern Kenya along the Indian Ocean. It was the first capital of the British East Africa, before Nairobi was elevated to capital city status. It now serves as the capital of Mombasa County. The town is ...

Kenya ) , national_anthem = " Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"() , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Nairobi , coordinates = , largest_city = Nairobi ...

. The cargo contained a variety of export goods including farm tractors and other agricultural implements, umbrellas, pocket watches, whisky, Andrews Liver Salts, dresses and kitchenware. Stamped on the cases was "BRITAIN DELIVERS THE GOODS", in defiance of Germany's aggressive war against Britain. Shipwreck of the English Trader

Convoy EC90

Before her next voyage, a virtually new

crew A crew is a body or a class of people who work at a common activity, generally in a structured or hierarchical organization. A location in which a crew works is called a crewyard or a workyard. The word has nautical resonances: the tasks involved ...

had been signed on – of the crew of 47, only eight men had been on the previous voyage. This eight included Captain Grimstone and his three deck officers, the mate John Elliot, William Hickson the gun layer, two other gunners and the ship steward. On 24 October, in the early afternoon the ''English Trader'' left the

Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after the R ...

. By late afternoon she had reached

Southend on Sea Southend-on-Sea (), commonly referred to as Southend (), is a coastal city and unitary authority area with borough status in southeastern Essex, England. It lies on the north side of the Thames Estuary, east of central London. It is bordered ...

. Here the

Thames estuary The Thames Estuary is where the River Thames meets the waters of the North Sea, in the south-east of Great Britain. Limits An estuary can be defined according to different criteria (e.g. tidal, geographical, navigational or in terms of salini ...

was wide enough for

s to form up in relative safety. Convoy EC90 was made up of 20 ocean-going freighters, two or three coastal steamers and two Royal Navy destroyers, one of which was the ageing . Convoy EC90 set off on its voyage in single file to start with, proceeding at a steady . For the ''English Trader'' this was close to her maximum speed with a crew who knew how to get the best from her, which the new crew did not. The convoy's route took it up the east coast of

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

and around the top of

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...

and down into the Atlantic Ocean. The

English Channel The English Channel, "The Sleeve"; nrf, la Maunche, "The Sleeve" (Cotentinais) or ( Jèrriais), (Guernésiais), "The Channel"; br, Mor Breizh, "Sea of Brittany"; cy, Môr Udd, "Lord's Sea"; kw, Mor Bretannek, "British Sea"; nl, Het Kana ...

was far too hazardous for shipping convoys at this stage of the war. By 3 pm, the ''English Trader''s troubles had begun. She had been running sluggishly, which had been noticed by the crew members from previous voyages. She was now a least a behind the bulk of the convoy and HMS ''Vesper'' was enquiring for the reasons for the poor speed of the ship. The speculation from the more experienced crew members was that the ''English Trader''s

coal Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock, formed as rock strata called coal seams. Coal is mostly carbon with variable amounts of other elements, chiefly hydrogen, sulfur, oxygen, and nitrogen. Coal is formed when ...

-fired boilers, which were forced draught fed, required the booster fans to be precisely set. It was agreed that the ill-experienced new crew and the new chief engineer were unable to accomplish this. The captain was told by the

commodore Commodore may refer to: Ranks * Commodore (rank), a naval rank ** Commodore (Royal Navy), in the United Kingdom ** Commodore (United States) ** Commodore (Canada) ** Commodore (Finland) ** Commodore (Germany) or ''Kommodore'' * Air commodore ...

aboard the ''Vesper'' that if she could not regain her position in the convoy by nightfall she should make for harbour at one of the east coast ports.

Aircraft attack

By nightfall the ''English Trader'' was some from the convoy and at times laboured to achieve , making her vulnerable to attack by enemy U-boats and aircraft. The situation was made worse when, in the darkness, the convoy ahead came under brief air attack, followed by an attack on the ''English Trader'' by a German

Dornier Do 17 The Dornier Do 17 is a twin-engined light bomber produced by Dornier Flugzeugwerke for the German Luftwaffe during World War II. Designed in the early 1930s as a '' Schnellbomber'' ("fast bomber") intended to be fast enough to outrun opposing a ...

bomber. The gunner aboard ''English Trader'' opened up at the approaching aircraft, which released two bombs, which narrowly missed the ship. Two large pillars of white foam rose as high as her mast on the port side just yards from the ship. The bomber now swooped over the ship and into the darkness to prepare for another attack. HMS ''Vesper'', which had broken off from the main convoy to help, opened fire on the aircraft, possibly damaging it as it broke off its attack and was not seen again.

Aground on Hammond Knoll

By midnight all was quiet, but the ship was still labouring to rejoin the main part of the convoy. Between 1 am and 1.30 am on Sunday 26 October, she was struggling against a strong ebbing

tide Tides are the rise and fall of sea levels caused by the combined effects of the gravitational forces exerted by the Moon (and to a much lesser extent, the Sun) and are also caused by the Earth and Moon orbiting one another. Tide tables ...

, which in turn forced her dangerously close to the sandbanks of Hammond Knoll. At around 1.45 am the crew felt a slight jolt followed by a more severe jolt. This flung the ship forward followed by loud grinding, crunching and scraping of metal. Then there was silence. The ship had run aground on Hammond Knoll. The ''English Trader'' was stranded on the knoll with her crew powerless to do anything about her. As the first signs of daylight approached, the weather began to rapidly deteriorate, with the wind reaching

gale A gale is a strong wind; the word is typically used as a descriptor in nautical contexts. The U.S. National Weather Service defines a gale as sustained surface winds moving at a speed of between 34 and 47 knots (, or ).starboard

lifeboat Lifeboat may refer to: Rescue vessels * Lifeboat (shipboard), a small craft aboard a ship to allow for emergency escape * Lifeboat (rescue), a boat designed for sea rescues * Airborne lifeboat, an air-dropped boat used to save downed airmen ...

and its

derrick A derrick is a lifting device composed at minimum of one guyed mast, as in a gin pole, which may be articulated over a load by adjusting its guys. Most derricks have at least two components, either a guyed mast or self-supporting tower, and ...

. The ship's back had broken as it settled on the knoll and the sea started it relentless destruction of the ''English Trader''. The

port A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as H ...

lifeboat, though in the lee of the storm, could not be launched because of the turbulent waves crashing around the sandbank.

Lifeboat launched

At 8.15 am, the Cromer Lifeboat Station was alerted and asked to aid the ''English Trader'' and the lifeboat ''H F Bailey'' was launched. She was crewed by twelve men including the triple RNLI Gold Medal holding

coxswain The coxswain ( , or ) is the person in charge of a boat, particularly its navigation and steering. The etymology of the word gives a literal meaning of "boat servant" since it comes from ''cock'', referring to the cockboat, a type of ship's boa ...

Henry Blogg Henry George Blogg"Henry Blogg, the Greatest of the Lifeboatmen", Jolly, C., Pub: Poppyland Publishing, new edition 2002, GC BEM (6 February 1876 – 13 June 1954) was a lifeboatman from Cromer on the north coast of Norfolk, England, and the ...

. By 11.35 that morning, the lifeboat had reached Hammond Knoll. By this time, three of the ''English Trader''s crew had been swept off the foundering ship to their death. By the time the ''H F Bailey'' reached the ship the gale was at full force. The remaining 44 crew of the stricken ship had taken refuge in the chart room, the highest and safest point on the ship. The Cromer lifeboat made two attempts to get a line to the ''English Trader'' without success. A further attempt at rescue resulted in a near disaster for the ''H F Bailey'' and in the death of one of her crew. Coxswain Blogg had attempted to approach the stricken vessel and a wall of water hit the lifeboat on her port side which washed five of the lifeboat men, including the non-swimmer Blogg, overboard. The five men were hauled back on to the lifeboat but the signalman, Edward "Boy Primo" W Allen after being in the water for 25 minutes fell unconscious and died a short time later. At 3 pm, the Cromer lifeboat broke off the rescue attempt and made for Great Yarmouth. Her crew had tried in vain for seven hours to rescue the crew of the ''English Trader'' and were now exhausted. Meanwhile, the Great Yarmouth and

Gorleston Gorleston-on-Sea (), known colloquially as Gorleston, is a town in the Borough of Great Yarmouth, in Norfolk, England, to the south of Great Yarmouth. Situated at the mouth of the River Yare it was a port town at the time of the Domesday Bo ...

Lifeboat had been launched and was on its way. Between 4 and 6 pm, that lifeboat made five attempts to get alongside, with a line, without success. After these attempts and with darkness setting in, Coxswain Charles Johnson and his crew also reluctantly returned to Great Yarmouth after receiving orders from the Royal Navy. By 8 am the next morning, the Cromer Lifeboat was back at the Sands. The sea had calmed considerably and the ''H F Bailey'' was able to take the beleaguered crew of 44 from the ''English Trader'' with relative ease, taking them to the safety of Great Yarmouth. The ''English Trader'' was then left stuck upon the sands of Hammond Knoll. Reports from the following day said that the ''English Trader'' had gone completely under the waves. Henry Blogg received a RNLI Silver Medal for this rescue.

Cromer Lifeboat crew

The Bust of Henry Blogg of Cromer 11,04,2007

References

* Jolly, Cyril (1981): ''The Loss of the English Trader'' Acorn Editions. * Jolly, Cyril "Henry Blogg, the Greatest of the Lifeboatmen", Pub: Poppyland Publishing, new edition 2002, * Leach, Nicholas & Russell, Paul,''Cromer Lifeboats 1804–2004'', Pub: Tempus Publishing, 2004, * Tikus, Ayer (2004): ''The Ship-wrecks off North East Norfolk'' Pub: Ayer Tikus Publications, ISBN

External links

The Cromer Lifeboat

Cromer Lifeboat Station

H F Bailey Lifeboat (National Register of Historic Vessels)

Lifeboat Museum Gallery
{{DEFAULTSORT:English Trader, Ss 1934 ships Steamships of the United Kingdom World War II merchant ships of the United Kingdom Maritime incidents in 1937 Maritime incidents in October 1941 World War II shipwrecks in the North Sea Shipwrecks of Norfolk Merchant ships of the United Kingdom