''Empire Blanda'' was a cargo ship that Lithgows Ltd, Port Glasgow built in 1919 as ''Nile''. It was sold to a

Yugoslavia Yugoslavia (; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Jugoslavija, Југославија ; sl, Jugoslavija ; mk, Југославија ;; rup, Iugoslavia; hu, Jugoszlávia; rue, label=Pannonian Rusyn, Югославия, translit=Juhoslavija ...

n company in 1930 and renamed ''Sokol'' in 1933, serving until 1939 when it was sold to a

Panama Panama ( , ; es, link=no, Panamá ), officially the Republic of Panama ( es, República de Panamá), is a transcontinental country spanning the southern part of North America and the northern part of South America. It is bordered by Co ...

nian company and renamed ''Rio Grande''. In 1940, 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) requisitioned ''Nile'', which was renamed ''Empire Blanda''. On 19 February 1941

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 ...

ed ''Nile'', sinking it.

Description

The ship was a cargo ship. It was built by Lithgows Ltd, Port Glasgow, as yard number 715. The ship was launched as ''Nile'' on 30 September 1919 and completed in November. It was long, with a beam of and a depth of . The ship was powered by a

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. It was manufactured by J G Kincaird Ltd, Greenock. The ship could make .

Career

''Nile'' was owned by the Nile Steamship Co Ltd and operated under the management of Glen & Co Ltd. Its port of registry was

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 ...

. In 1930, ''Nile'' was sold to Jugoslovenska Plovidba DD, Susak. It was renamed ''Sokol'' in 1933. In 1939, ''Sokol'' was sold to Compagnia Panamena de Vapores Ltda and renamed ''Rio Grande''. It was operated under the management of T & N Coumantaros Ltd,

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders ...

. In June 1940, ''Rio Grande'' sailed from

Bermuda ) , anthem = "God Save the King" , song_type = National song , song = "Hail to Bermuda" , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , mapsize2 = , map_caption2 = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = , es ...

to Halifax,

Nova Scotia Nova Scotia ( ; ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. Nova Scotia is Latin for "New Scotland". Most of the population are native Eng ...

to join Convoy HX 51, which arrived at

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 2 July. It was carrying a cargo of

lumber Lumber is wood that has been processed into dimensional lumber, including beams and planks or boards, a stage in the process of wood production. Lumber is mainly used for construction framing, as well as finishing (floors, wall panels, wi ...

and sulphur. On arrival, ''Rio Grande'' was requisitioned by the MoWT and renamed ''Empire Blanda''. It was operated under the management of the Larrinaga Steamship Co Ltd. Its port of registry was

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

. Convoy HX 107 departed Halifax on 3 February 1941 and was to arrive at Liverpool on 28 February. ''Empire Blanda'' was carrying a cargo of steel, bound for Glasgow. At 08:18 on 19 February 1941, ''Empire Blanda'' was torpedoed and sunk by south of Iceland with the loss of all 37 crew and three DEMS gunners, having straggled from the convoy. Those lost on ''Empire Blanda'' are commemorated at the Tower Hill Memorial, London.

Official Numbers and Code Letters

Official Numbers were a forerunner to IMO Numbers. ''Nile'' and ''Empire Blanda'' had the UK Official Number 141931. ''Nile'' used the Code Letters KOWS from 1930. ''Rio Grande'' used the Code Letters HPKQ ''Empire Blanda'' used the Code Letters GLXW.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Empire Blanda 1919 ships Ships built on the River Clyde Steamships of the United Kingdom Merchant ships of the United Kingdom Steamships of Yugoslavia Cargo ships of Yugoslavia Steamships of Panama World War II merchant ships of Panama Empire ships Ministry of War Transport ships Ships sunk by German submarines in World War II World War II shipwrecks in the Atlantic Ocean Maritime incidents in February 1941 Ships lost with all hands