''Polonia'' was a

passenger A passenger (also abbreviated as pax) is a person who travels in a vehicle, but does not bear any responsibility for the tasks required for that vehicle to arrive at its destination or otherwise operate the vehicle, and is not a steward. The ...

steamship A steamship, often referred to as a steamer, is a type of steam-powered vessel, typically ocean-faring and seaworthy, that is propelled by one or more steam engines that typically move (turn) propellers or paddlewheels. The first steamships ...

that was built in

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

in 1910, originally named ''Kursk'' and was registered in the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. ...

. She was an

Allied An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are called ...

troopship 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 ...

in the First World War, when she was briefly operated by

Cunard Line Cunard () is a British shipping and cruise line based at Carnival House at Southampton, England, operated by Carnival UK and owned by Carnival Corporation & plc. Since 2011, Cunard and its three ships have been registered in Hamilton, Berm ...

. After the war she returned to civilian passenger service, in

Latvia Latvia ( or ; lv, Latvija ; ltg, Latveja; liv, Leţmō), officially the Republic of Latvia ( lv, Latvijas Republika, links=no, ltg, Latvejas Republika, links=no, liv, Leţmō Vabāmō, links=no), is a country in the Baltic region of ...

n service until 1930 and then for

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...

Building

The Danish

East Asiatic Company The EAC Invest A/S, formerly known as the Santa Fe Group and East Asiatic Company ( da, italic=yes, Det Østasiatiske Kompagni or ''ØK'') is a multinational holding and investment company, based in Copenhagen, Denmark. History The East Asiat ...

ordered the ship from Barclay, Curle & Co Ltd of

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

. She was built as yard number 482, launched on 7 July 1910 and completed that September. She was launched as ''Kursk'', named after the city of

Kursk Kursk ( rus, Курск, p=ˈkursk) is a city and the administrative center of Kursk Oblast, Russia, located at the confluence of the Kur, Tuskar, and Seym rivers. The area around Kursk was the site of a turning point in the Soviet–German stru ...

in western Russia. ''Kursk'' was long, her beam was and her draught was . Her tonnages were and . The ship had twin four-cylinder quadruple-expansion engines driving twin

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 fa ...

s. Each engine had a

stroke A stroke is a medical condition in which poor blood flow to the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and hemorrhagic, due to bleeding. Both cause parts of the brain to stop functionin ...

and cylinders of , , and

bore Bore or Bores often refer to: *Boredom * Drill Relating to holes * Boring (manufacturing), a machining process that enlarges a hole ** Bore (engine), the diameter of a cylinder in a piston engine or a steam locomotive ** Bore (wind instruments), ...

. Between them, the engines developed 1,020

NHP Horsepower (hp) is a unit of measurement of power, or the rate at which work is done, usually in reference to the output of engines or motors. There are many different standards and types of horsepower. Two common definitions used today are the ...

. The engines were fed by six 215 lb_f/in² single-ended boilers with a total heating surface of . Her boilers were heated by 18 corrugated furnaces with a grate surface of .

Service

The East Asiatic Company registered ''Kursk'' in

Liepāja Liepāja (; liv, Līepõ; see #Names and toponymy, other names) is a state city in western Latvia, located on the Baltic Sea. It is the largest-city in the Kurzeme Planning Region, Kurzeme Region and the third-largest city in the country after R ...

in the

. After the

October Revolution The October Revolution,. officially known as the Great October Socialist Revolution. in the Soviet Union, also known as the Bolshevik Revolution, was a revolution in Russia led by the Bolshevik Party of Vladimir Lenin that was a key moment ...

, the UK

Shipping Controller Shipping Controller was a post created by the Lloyd George Coalition Government in 1916 under the New Ministries and Secretaries Act (6 & 7 George 5 c.68) to regulate and organize merchant shipping in order to supply the United Kingdom with the m ...

chartered her and placed her under

management. In 1920, she was returned to the East Asiatic Company. ''Kursk'' was renamed ''Polonia'', the Latin name for

. In 1930, the East Asiatic Company sold its Latvian subsidiary to Polish owners, who renamed the company Polskiego Transatlantyckiego Towarzystwa Okrętowego ("Polish Transatlantic Shipping Company Limited" or PTTO). The ships were operated by

Gdynia America Line ''Gdynia-America Shipping Lines S.A.'' (Gdynia America Line - GAL) was a Polish-Danish joint stock company based in Gdynia, established in 1930 under the name of the ''Polish Transatlantic Shipping Company Limited'' (PTTO) in order to mark the P ...

, which was restructured in 1934 to absorb PTTO. Gdynia America Line rapidly modernised, taking delivery of the new

motor ship A motor ship or motor vessel is a ship propelled by an internal combustion engine, usually a diesel engine. The names of motor ships are often prefixed with MS, M/S, MV or M/V. Engines for motorships were developed during the 1890s, and by t ...

s in 1935 and in 1936 for its premier transatlantic service. The company sold ''Polonia'' to Francesco Pittaluga in

Savona Savona (; lij, Sann-a ) is a seaport and ''comune'' in the west part of the northern Italy, Italian region of Liguria, capital of the Province of Savona, in the Riviera di Ponente on the Mediterranean Sea. Savona used to be one of the chie ...

, Italy for scrap on 5 March 1939, a few months before two more new motor ships, and , joined the company fleet.

References

Bibliography

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Polonia (1910) 1910 ships Ocean liners Passenger ships of Latvia Passenger ships of Poland Passenger ships of Russia Ships built on the River Clyde Steamships of Latvia Steamships of Poland Steamships of Russia World War I passenger ships of Russia Ships of the Gdynia-America Line