''Empire Duke'' was a
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 used during the Second World War in investigations into the metallurgical problems that
Liberty ship
Liberty ships were a class of cargo ship built in the United States during World War II under the Emergency Shipbuilding Program. Though British in concept, the design was adopted by the United States for its simple, low-cost construction. Mass ...
s were suffering from.
''Empire Duke'' was built in 1943 by
J L Thompson & Sons Ltd,
Sunderland, Co Durham for the
Ministry of War Transport
The Ministry of War Transport (MoWT) was a department of the British Government formed early in the Second World War to control transportation policy and resources. It was formed by merging the Ministry of Shipping and the Ministry of Transport ...
(MoWT) as an
Empire ship
An Empire ship is a merchant ship that was given a name beginning with "Empire" in the service of the Government of the United Kingdom during and after World War II. Most were used by the Ministry of War Transport (MoWT), which owned them and co ...
.
She was transferred to France in 1945 and renamed ''Lieutenant J Le Meur''. She was sold to Morocco in 1949 and renamed ''Zelidja''. In 1955, she was sold to Liberia and renamed ''Propontis'', not being renamed after a sale in 1957. She served until 1966, when she was scrapped in Taiwan.
Description
The ship was built in 1943 by
J L Thompson & Sons Ltd,
Sunderland
Sunderland () is a port city in Tyne and Wear, England. It is the City of Sunderland's administrative centre and in the Historic counties of England, historic county of County of Durham, Durham. The city is from Newcastle-upon-Tyne and is on t ...
.
She was yard number 628.
The ship was long, with a beam of . She had a depth of and a draught of . She was assessed at , .
The ship was propelled by a 510
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 ...
triple expansion steam engine
A compound steam engine unit is a type of steam engine where steam is expanded in two or more stages.
A typical arrangement for a compound engine is that the steam is first expanded in a high-pressure ''(HP)'' cylinder, then having given up he ...
, which had cylinders of , and diameter by stroke. The engine was built by Duncan Stewart & Co Ltd,
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 ...
.
[ It drove a single screw propeller and could propel the ship at .][
]
History
World War II
''Empire Duke'' was launched on 20 July 1943 and completed in November.[ The United Kingdom ]Official Number
Official numbers are ship identifier numbers assigned to merchant ships by their flag state, country of registration. Each country developed its own official numbering system, some on a national and some on a port-by-port basis, and the formats hav ...
180048 and Code Letters
Code letters or ship's call sign (or callsign) Mtide Taurus - IMO 7626853"> SHIPSPOTTING.COM >> Mtide Taurus - IMO 7626853/ref> were a method of identifying ships before the introduction of modern navigation aids and today also. Later, with the i ...
GCJW were allocated. Her port of registry was Sunderland and she was placed under the management of H Hogarth & Sons Ltd.[ Armament consisted of either a 4-in or a 4.7-inch gun, and six machine guns.][
''Empire Duke'' departed from Sunderland on 2 December for the Tyne, arriving that day. She departed from the Tyne on 18 December to join Convoy FN 1208,] which had departed from Southend
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 ...
, Essex the previous day and arrived at Methil
Methil (Scottish Gaelic: Meadhchill) is an eastern coastal town in Scotland. It was first recorded as "Methkil" in 1207, and belonged to the Bishop of St Andrews. Two Bronze Age cemeteries have been discovered which date the settlement as ov ...
, Fife
Fife (, ; gd, Fìobha, ; sco, Fife) is a council area, historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area of Scotland. It is situated between the Firth of Tay and the Firth of Forth, with inland boundaries with Perth and Kinross (i ...
on 19 December. She then joined Convoy EN 322, which departed on 21 December and arrived at Loch Ewe
Loch Ewe ( gd, Loch Iùbh) is a sea loch in the region of Wester Ross in the Northwest Highlands of Scotland. The shores are inhabited by a traditionally Gàidhlig-speaking people living in or sustained by crofting villages, the most notab ...
on 23 December. ''Empire Duke'' sailed on to Oban
Oban ( ; ' in Scottish Gaelic meaning ''The Little Bay'') is a resort town within the Argyll and Bute council area of Scotland. Despite its small size, it is the largest town between Helensburgh and Fort William. During the tourist season, th ...
, Argyllshire
Argyll (; archaically Argyle, in modern Gaelic, ), sometimes called Argyllshire, is a historic county and registration county of western Scotland.
Argyll is of ancient origin, and corresponds to most of the part of the ancient kingdom of ...
, arriving the next day.[ Laden with a cargo of coal,][ she departed on 26 December to join Convoy OS 63/KMS 37G,][ which departed from ]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 popul ...
, Lancashire on 25 December and split at sea on 7 January 1944. Convoy OS 63 arrived at Freetown
Freetown is the capital and largest city of Sierra Leone. It is a major port city on the Atlantic Ocean and is located in the Western Area of the country. Freetown is Sierra Leone's major urban, economic, financial, cultural, educational and p ...
, Sierra Leone on 17 January. ''Empire Duke'' was in the part of the convoy that formed Convoy KMS 37G, which arrived at Gibraltar
)
, anthem = " God Save the King"
, song = " Gibraltar Anthem"
, image_map = Gibraltar location in Europe.svg
, map_alt = Location of Gibraltar in Europe
, map_caption = United Kingdom shown in pale green
, mapsize =
, image_map2 = Gib ...
on 7 January. She then joined Convoy KMS 37, which departed on 9 January and arrived at Port Said
Port Said ( ar, بورسعيد, Būrsaʿīd, ; grc, Πηλούσιον, Pēlousion) is a city that lies in northeast Egypt extending about along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea, north of the Suez Canal. With an approximate population of 6 ...
, Egypt on 20 January. ''Empire Duke'' left the convoy at Oran
Oran ( ar, وَهران, Wahrān) is a major coastal city located in the north-west of Algeria. It is considered the second most important city of Algeria after the capital Algiers, due to its population and commercial, industrial, and cultural ...
, Algeria, where she arrived on 10 January. She departed on 25 January to join Convoy GUS 28,[ which had departed from Port Said on 15 January and arrived at the ]Hampton Roads
Hampton Roads is the name of both a body of water in the United States that serves as a wide channel for the James River, James, Nansemond River, Nansemond and Elizabeth River (Virginia), Elizabeth rivers between Old Point Comfort and Sewell's ...
, Virginia
Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...
, United States on 15 February. She left the convoy at Casablanca
Casablanca, also known in Arabic as Dar al-Bayda ( ar, الدَّار الْبَيْضَاء, al-Dār al-Bayḍāʾ, ; ber, ⴹⴹⴰⵕⵍⴱⵉⴹⴰ, ḍḍaṛlbiḍa, : "White House") is the largest city in Morocco and the country's econom ...
, Morocco, She departed on 1 February, joining Convoy SL 147,[ which had departed from Freetown on 22 January and rendezvoused at sea with Convoy MKS 38 on 2 February.] The combined convoys arrived at Liverpool on 13 February. ''Empire Duke'' sailed on to Loch Ewe, arriving on 12 February and joining Convoy WN 544, which arrived at Methil on 14 February.[
''Empire Duke'' was a member of Convoy EN 350, which departed from Methil on 24 February and arrived at Loch Ewe two days later.] She left the convoy at Aberdeen
Aberdeen (; sco, Aiberdeen ; gd, Obar Dheathain ; la, Aberdonia) is a city in North East Scotland, and is the third most populous city in the country. Aberdeen is one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas (as Aberdeen City), and ...
on 25 February. ''Empire Duke'' departed on 7 March to join Convoy EN 355,[ which had departed from Methil the previous day and arrived at Loch Ewe on 8 March.] She sailed on to the Clyde Clyde may refer to:
People
* Clyde (given name)
* Clyde (surname)
Places
For townships see also Clyde Township
Australia
* Clyde, New South Wales
* Clyde, Victoria
* Clyde River, New South Wales
Canada
* Clyde, Alberta
* Clyde, Ontario, a tow ...
, arriving the next day. ''Empire Duke'' departed on 16 March to join Convoy ON 228,[ which had departed from Liverpool the previous day and arrived at New York, United States on 1 April. She left the convoy at Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada,] arriving on 30 March.[ Laden with a cargo of grain,][ she departed on 7 April to join Convoy HX 286,][ which had departed from New York on 5 April and arrived at Liverpool on 20 April. She was bound for ]Manchester
Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...
, Lancashire.
''Empire Dukes'' movements are not recorded for over eight weeks.[ It may have been during this period that she was on loan to the ]Cambridge University Engineering Department
The University of Cambridge Department of Engineering is the largest department at the University of Cambridge and one of the leading centres of engineering in the world. The department's aim is to address the world's most pressing challenges wit ...
for tests to be undertaken in connection with research into problems affecting various Liberty Ship
Liberty ships were a class of cargo ship built in the United States during World War II under the Emergency Shipbuilding Program. Though British in concept, the design was adopted by the United States for its simple, low-cost construction. Mass ...
s ( see below).[ She departed from Southend on 12 June as a member of Convoy ETM 7, which arrived at the ]Seine Bay
The Baie de Seine (Bay of the Seine River) is a bay in northern France.
Geography
It is a wide, rectangular inlet of the English Channel, approximately 100 kilometres (east-west) by 45 kilometres, bounded in the west by the Cotentin Peninsula, in ...
, France the next day. She spent the next three months shuttling between those two place in various ETM and FTM convoys, arriving at Southend on 12 September as a member of Convoy FTM 2A.[
''Empire Duke'' departed from Southend on 30 October as a member of Convoy FN 1526, which arrived at Methil on 1 November. She departed from Methil on 24 November with Convoy FS 1646, arriving at Southend on 26 November. She spent the next four months sailing between Southend and ]Antwerp
Antwerp (; nl, Antwerpen ; french: Anvers ; es, Amberes) is the largest city in Belgium by area at and the capital of Antwerp Province in the Flemish Region. With a population of 520,504, , Belgium with various TAM and ATM convoys, arriving at Southend on 28 March 1945 as a member of Convoy ATM 106. ''Empire Duke'' was a member of Convoy TBC 117, which departed from Southend on 3 April and arrived at Milford Haven
Milford Haven ( cy, Aberdaugleddau, meaning "mouth of the two Rivers Cleddau") is both a town and a community in Pembrokeshire, Wales. It is situated on the north side of the Milford Haven Waterway, an estuary forming a natural harbour that has ...
, Pembrokeshire
Pembrokeshire ( ; cy, Sir Benfro ) is a Local government in Wales#Principal areas, county in the South West Wales, south-west of Wales. It is bordered by Carmarthenshire to the east, Ceredigion to the northeast, and the rest by sea. The count ...
on 6 April. She then sailed to the Clyde, where she arrived two days later. She departed on 22 April to join Convoy ON 298,[ which had departed from Southend on 21 April and arrived at New York on 7 May. Her destination was ]Montreal
Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...
, Quebec, Canada. She arrived at Father Point, Quebec on 6 May.[
]
Solving the Liberty ship problem
Early Liberty ship
Liberty ships were a class of cargo ship built in the United States during World War II under the Emergency Shipbuilding Program. Though British in concept, the design was adopted by the United States for its simple, low-cost construction. Mass ...
s suffered problems with brittle fracture
Fracture is the separation of an object or material into two or more pieces under the action of stress. The fracture of a solid usually occurs due to the development of certain displacement discontinuity surfaces within the solid. If a displa ...
s, leading to some of them breaking in two without warning. Following the loss of off the Aleutian Islands
The Aleutian Islands (; ; ale, Unangam Tanangin,”Land of the Aleuts", possibly from Chukchi language, Chukchi ''aliat'', "island"), also called the Aleut Islands or Aleutic Islands and known before 1867 as the Catherine Archipelago, are a cha ...
, Alaska
Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S., ...
, United States in 1943, research was carried out by Cambridge University Engineering Department
The University of Cambridge Department of Engineering is the largest department at the University of Cambridge and one of the leading centres of engineering in the world. The department's aim is to address the world's most pressing challenges wit ...
in the United Kingdom into the causes of these losses. ''Empire Duke'' was lent for the purpose of testing of the steel used to build ships in the United Kingdom. Constance Tipper
Constance Tipper (born Constance Fligg Elam; 16 February 1894 – 14 December 1995) was an English metallurgist and crystallographer. She investigated brittle fracture and the ductile-brittle transition of metals used in the construction of ...
proved that low temperatures sustained by Liberty ships in the North Atlantic were leading to brittle fractures. Further research into the plasticity of steel led to the development of specialist steels that are used in artificial human and animal joints.[ The ]Victory ship
The Victory ship was a class of cargo ship produced in large numbers by North American shipyards during World War II to replace losses caused by German submarines. They were a more modern design compared to the earlier Liberty ship, were slight ...
was developed, which was stronger and faster than the Liberty ship.
Post-war
In June–July 1945 ''Empire Duke'' sailed from Montreal to The Downs, off the coast of Kent
Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...
and then back to Montreal. She then sailed from Montreal on 11 August, arriving in Casablanca on 24 August and then sailed to Avonmouth
Avonmouth is a port and outer suburb of Bristol, England, facing two rivers: the reinforced north bank of the final stage of the Avon which rises at sources in Wiltshire, Gloucestershire and Somerset; and the eastern shore of the Severn Estuar ...
, Somerset, where she arrived on 8 September.[ As a member of Convoy TAM 32, she departed Southend on 28 December and arrived at Antwerp the next day.]
In May 1946, ''Empire Duke'' was transferred to the French Government and renamed ''Lieutenant J Le Meur'',[ after Julien Le Meur, an officer who had served on ,][ and had been killed in ]Provence
Provence (, , , , ; oc, Provença or ''Prouvènço'' , ) is a geographical region and historical province of southeastern France, which extends from the left bank of the lower Rhône to the west to the Italian border to the east; it is bor ...
on 28 August 1944, whilst serving as a pilot
An aircraft pilot or aviator is a person who controls the flight of an aircraft by operating its directional flight controls. Some other aircrew members, such as navigators or flight engineers, are also considered aviators, because they a ...
with the ''Marine Nationale
The French Navy (french: Marine nationale, lit=National Navy), informally , is the maritime arm of the French Armed Forces and one of the five military service branches of France. It is among the largest and most powerful naval forces in th ...
'' when his aircraft crashed. She was operated by the Compagnie Générale Transatlantique
The Compagnie Générale Transatlantique (CGT, and commonly named "Transat"), typically known overseas as the French Line, was a French shipping company. Established in 1855 by the Péreire brothers, brothers Émile and Issac Péreire under the ...
.[ ''Lieutenant J Le Meur'' loaded a cargo of ]ammonium nitrate
Ammonium nitrate is a chemical compound with the chemical formula . It is a white crystalline salt consisting of ions of ammonium and nitrate. It is highly soluble in water and hygroscopic as a solid, although it does not form hydrates. It is ...
at the Port of Texas City
The Port of Texas City is a major deepwater port in Texas City, Texas at Galveston Bay, United States. Its location on the bay, which is used by the Port of Houston and the Port of Galveston, puts Texas City in the heart of one of the world's mo ...
, Texas, United States between 8 and 10 April 1947, a week before the exploded in the Texas City Disaster,[ which killed 581 and injured 3,500 people.]
In 1949, ''Lieutenant J Le Meur'' was sold to the Compagnie Franco Chérifienne de Navigation', Casablanca
Casablanca, also known in Arabic as Dar al-Bayda ( ar, الدَّار الْبَيْضَاء, al-Dār al-Bayḍāʾ, ; ber, ⴹⴹⴰⵕⵍⴱⵉⴹⴰ, ḍḍaṛlbiḍa, : "White House") is the largest city in Morocco and the country's econom ...
, Morocco and was renamed ''Zelidja''.[ In 1955, she was sold to Compagnia de Navigazione Hellespont SA, ]Monrovia
Monrovia () is the capital city of the West African country of Liberia. Founded in 1822, it is located on Cape Mesurado on the Atlantic coast and as of the 2008 census had 1,010,970 residents, home to 29% of Liberia’s total population. As the ...
, Liberia and was renamed ''Propontis'',[ after the ]Sea of Marmara
The Sea of Marmara,; grc, Προποντίς, Προποντίδα, Propontís, Propontída also known as the Marmara Sea, is an inland sea located entirely within the borders of Turkey. It connects the Black Sea to the Aegean Sea via the ...
.[ She was placed under the management of A M Embiricos, ]Monaco
Monaco (; ), officially the Principality of Monaco (french: Principauté de Monaco; Ligurian: ; oc, Principat de Mónegue), is a sovereign city-state and microstate on the French Riviera a few kilometres west of the Italian region of Lig ...
.[
In 1957, ''Propontis'' was sold to Compagnie de Navigazione Propontis Liberia SA, Monrovia. She was not renamed and remained under the management of Embiricos. ''Propontis'' served until 1966, arriving on 24 May at ]Kaohsiung
Kaohsiung City (Mandarin Chinese: ; Wade–Giles: ''Kao¹-hsiung²;'' Pinyin: ''Gāoxióng'') is a special municipality located in southern Taiwan. It ranges from the coastal urban center to the rural Yushan Range with an area of . Kaohsi ...
, Taiwan for scrapping.[
]
Notes
A Sources give the year as 1945.[ A month of May is given by one source,][ but ''Empire Duke'' was (another states) still in service under that name in December 1945.][
]
References
External links
Photo of ''Lieutenant J Le Meur''
Photo of ''Lieutenant J Le Meur''
Photo of ''Zelidja''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Empire Dryden
1943 ships
Ships built on the River Wear
Empire ships
Ministry of War Transport ships
Steamships of the United Kingdom
Merchant ships of the United Kingdom
Steamships of France
Merchant ships of France
Steamships of Morocco
Merchant ships of Morocco
Steamships of Liberia
Merchant ships of Liberia
Ships of the Compagnie Générale Transatlantique