SS ''Galeka'' was a steam ship built in 1899 for the Union-Castle Mail Steamship Company by Harland and Wolff. She was launched on 21 October 1899 and completed on 23 December 1899. Later she was requisitioned for use as a British

troop transport A troopship (also troop ship or troop transport or trooper) is a ship used to carry soldiers, either in peacetime or wartime. Troopships were often drafted from commercial shipping fleets, and were unable land troops directly on shore, typicall ...

and then a hospital ship during the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. On 28 October 1916 she struck a

mine Mine, mines, miners or mining may refer to: Extraction or digging * Miner, a person engaged in mining or digging *Mining, extraction of mineral resources from the ground through a mine Grammar *Mine, a first-person English possessive pronoun ...

laid by the German

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 role ...

''UC-26''.

History

The ship was the last vessel to enter service before the merger between the Union and Castle shipping lines in 1900. She served on the South Africa route until the First World War when she was used by the UK as a troop transport, carrying troops of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps to the Gallipoli Campaign. ''Galeka'' was then refitted as a hospital ship with accommodation for 366 wounded passengers.

Sinking

On 28 October 1916, while entering

Le Havre Le Havre (, ; nrf, Lé Hâvre ) is a port city in the Seine-Maritime department in the Normandy region of northern France. It is situated on the right bank of the estuary of the river Seine on the Channel southwest of the Pays de Caux, very cl ...

, HMHS ''Galeka'' struck a mine. She was not carrying patients at the time, but 19

Royal Army Medical Corps The Royal Army Medical Corps (RAMC) is a specialist corps in the British Army which provides medical services to all Army personnel and their families, in war and in peace. The RAMC, the Royal Army Veterinary Corps, the Royal Army Dental Corps a ...

personnel died in the sinking. She was beached at Cap la Hogue, but was a total loss, Union-Castle's first war casualty.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Galeka World War I shipwrecks in the English Channel Maritime incidents in 1916 Hospital ships in World War I 1899 ships Ship names Ships built in Belfast Hospital ships of the Royal Navy Ships sunk by German submarines in World War I Ships of the Union-Castle Line Ships sunk by mines Ships built by Harland and Wolff

History

Sinking

See also

References