SS (RMS) ''Mona's Queen'' (II) No. 76308, was an iron-built

paddle steamer A paddle steamer is a steamship or steamboat powered by a steam engine that drives paddle wheels to propel the craft through the water. In antiquity, paddle wheelers followed the development of poles, oars and sails, where the first uses we ...

which served with the

Isle of Man Steam Packet Company An isle is an island, land surrounded by water. The term is very common in British English. However, there is no clear agreement on what makes an island an isle or its difference, so they are considered synonyms. Isle may refer to: Geography * Is ...

. She was the second vessel in the company's history to be so named. ''Mona's Queen'' served from 1885 until 1929. In 1917, during the

Great 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 ...

, she collided with a German submarine.

Construction and dimensions

''Mona's Queen'' was built in 1885, by the Barrow Shipbuilding Company of

Barrow-in-Furness Barrow-in-Furness is a port town in Cumbria, England. Historic counties of England, Historically in Lancashire, it was incorporated as a municipal borough in 1867 and merged with Dalton-in-Furness Urban District in 1974 to form the Borough of B ...

, at a cost of £55,000. Length 320'1"; beam 30'3"; depth 14'5" and a service speed of 19 knots. ''Mona's Queen'' was constructed from Siemens-Martin mild steelIsle of Man Examiner. Saturday 25 April 1885 and had a registered tonnage of . ''Mona's Queen'' carried four

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 ...

as well as eight William's double-lined raft seats. ''Mona's Queen'' was launched by the Mayoress of Barrow, Mrs. Fell, on Saturday 18 April 1885. For the occasion, the Directors of the company were taken to Barrow on board the ''Ellan Vannin'', which departed

Douglas Douglas may refer to: People * Douglas (given name) * Douglas (surname) Animals * Douglas (parrot), macaw that starred as the parrot ''Rosalinda'' in Pippi Longstocking *Douglas the camel, a camel in the Confederate Army in the American Civi ...

at 07:30hrs, arriving in Ramsden Dock, Barrow at 11:30hrs. Her engine design attracted considerable attention when she was first built, for she had a set of compound surface condensing cylinder engines, which produced 5,000 i.h.p. Her boiler steam pressure was . ''Mona's Queen'' was the last ship built for the company to be fitted with oscillating engines. The

diameter In geometry, a diameter of a circle is any straight line segment that passes through the center of the circle and whose endpoints lie on the circle. It can also be defined as the longest chord of the circle. Both definitions are also valid fo ...

of the high pressure cylinders was 50 inches, the diameter of the low pressure cylinders was 88 inches, both producing a stroke length of 72 inches. Her saloons were described as "very commodious," being panelled in satin wood and walnut, and decorated in gold. The main saloon, together with the Captain's Room were upholstered in 'peacock blue velvet', with the Ladies Saloon decorated with bronze green velvet and furnished with sycamore and walnut, with gold mountings. The design of the Ladies Saloon enabled easy conversion into sleeping accommodation. Her Smoke Room was paneled with ash with oak framing and teak mouldings. The upholstery was carried out by Townson, Ward & Barrow, who also provided the upholstery in the ''Peveril.''

Service life

The second of the large

paddle steamers A paddle steamer is a steamship or steamboat powered by a steam engine that drives paddle wheels to propel the craft through the water. In antiquity, paddle wheelers followed the development of poles, oars and sails, where the first uses were w ...

which dominated the Steam Packet's fleet until the Company turned solely to

screw A screw and a bolt (see '' Differentiation between bolt and screw'' below) are similar types of fastener typically made of metal and characterized by a helical ridge, called a ''male thread'' (external thread). Screws and bolts are used to f ...

( propeller) driven vessels from 1905, ''Mona's Queen'' started service on the

Fleetwood Fleetwood is a coastal town in the Borough of Wyre in Lancashire, England, at the northwest corner of the Fylde. It had a population of 25,939 at the 2011 census. Fleetwood acquired its modern character in the 1830s, when the principal lando ...

schedule, but was transferred to the main home run to help meet and beat the competition from the Isle of Man, Liverpool and Manchester Company. ''Mona's Queen'' was considered a fast vessel, and in her first season often steamed from Douglas to the Wyre Light at

in under three hours. In 1888, she was overhauled at Barrow and fitted with new paddles.

War service

Together with other Steam Packet vessels, ''Mona's Queen'' had a most distinguished record 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 ...

. She was chartered in 1915 and was used as a troop carrier. The necessary work to fit her out was undertaken by the Steam Packet's own workshops in Douglas, and once completed her initial task was to ferry troops mainly between

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 ...

and the main

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 ...

serving the British Expeditionary Force at

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 ...

. On 16 February 1917, under the command of Captain William Cain, she left Southampton on a fine night with a

full moon The full moon is the lunar phase when the Moon appears fully illuminated from Earth's perspective. This occurs when Earth is located between the Sun and the Moon (when the ecliptic longitudes of the Sun and Moon differ by 180°). This means ...

, with over 1,000 troops embarked. Less than an hour's steaming from

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 ro ...

surfaced almost dead ahead, and not more than 200

yards The yard (symbol: yd) is an English unit of length in both the British imperial and US customary systems of measurement equalling 3 feet or 36 inches. Since 1959 it has been by international agreement standardized as exactly ...

away. Cain kept his course, and when within about ten

of the submarine a

torpedo A modern torpedo is an underwater ranged weapon launched above or below the water surface, self-propelled towards a target, and with an explosive warhead designed to detonate either on contact with or in proximity to the target. Historically, s ...

was observed travelling underneath the ship, and then to track away to starboard. The U-boat was almost instantaneously hit by the

paddlebox of the ''Mona's Queen'', her steel paddle floats rammed home into the submarine's bow and it was severely damaged. The collision damaged the vessel, which managed to steam slowly to Le Havre. The troops were disembarked, and the ''Mona's Queen'' set off under tow for major repair work in

. The weather was bad, and the captain decided to complete the journey without aid while a tug stood by. She eventually reached Southampton in more than twice her normal time. After her repairs she returned to her trooping duties in March 1917.

Post-war service

''Mona's Queen'' rejoined the Steam Packet fleet in time for the 1920 tourist season, and continued with her normal duties. She was the last paddle steamer in service with the company, until it was decided to dispose of her in 1929. In some quarters it was hoped to retain the ''Mona's Queen'' along with the ''Fenella'' so as they could form part of the forthcoming Centenary Celebrations scheduled for the

in 1930.''Isle of Man Examiner.'' Friday 12 July 1929. However the two vessels were offered for sale at the end of August, being subsequently inspected by representatives of a

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

firm of shipbrokers, and also by shipbrokers from

Ardrossan Ardrossan (; ) is a town on the North Ayrshire coast in southwestern Scotland. The town has a population of 10,670 and forms part of a conurbation with Saltcoats and Stevenston known as the ' Three Towns'. Ardrossan is located on the east shore ...

. Both ''Mona's Queen'' and the ''Fenella'' were offered at

auction An auction is usually a process of buying and selling goods or services by offering them up for bids, taking bids, and then selling the item to the highest bidder or buying the item from the lowest bidder. Some exceptions to this definition ex ...

by Messers C. W. Kellock at the

Cunard Building The Cunard Building is a Grade II* listed building in Liverpool, England. It is located at the Pier Head and along with the neighbouring Royal Liver Building and Port of Liverpool Building is one of Liverpool's ''Three Graces'', which line the ...

Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a populat ...

, on Thursday 27 September 1929, and it was reported that the auction was well attended.''The Ramsey Courier.'' Friday 28 September 1929. Bidding for the ''Mona's Queen'' commenced at £4,500 and the vessel was withdrawn at £5,920. She was sold for breaking to Smith & Co. of Port Glasgow for £5,920.

References

;Bibliography * Chappell, Connery (1980). ''Island Lifeline'' T.Stephenson & Sons Ltd

External links