Empire Crown
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

''Mparmpa Petros'' 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 built in 1943 as ''Empire Crown'' by John Readhead & 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 ...
, County Durham. She spent much of the
Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
sailing in the
Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the e ...
. In 1945, she was transferred to the French Government and renamed ''Capitaine G Lacoley''. She served until sold to
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 with ...
in 1961 and was renamed ''Mparmpa Petros''. She was wrecked in 1963.


Description

The ship was built in 1943 by John Readhead & 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 537. The ship was long, with a beam of . She was assessed at . Her DWT was 10,280. The ship was propelled 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 ...
.


History


War service

''Empire Crown'' was built for the MoWT. She was placed under the management of J & C Harrison Ltd. Her port of registry was
South Shields South Shields () is a coastal town in South Tyneside, Tyne and Wear, England. It is on the south bank of the mouth of the River Tyne. Historically, it was known in Roman times as Arbeia, and as Caer Urfa by Early Middle Ages. According to the 20 ...
, County Durham. 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 ...
169054 and Code Letters GBPX were allocated. (Enter GBPX or Empire Crown in relevant search box) ''Empire Crown'' departed from the Tyne on her maiden voyage on 4 January 1944, joining Convoy FN 1225, 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 on 3 January 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 on 5 January. She then joined Convoy EN 329, which departed from Methil the next day 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 8 January. She then made a voyage to
Cairnryan Cairnryan ( sco, The Cairn;
gd, Machair an Sgithich) is a vi ...
, Wigtownshire and the sailed 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 ...
to join Convoy OS66 km, 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 24 January and split at sea on 5 February. ''Empire Crown'' was in the part of the convoy which became Convoy KMS 40G and 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 February. She then joined Convoy KMS 40, which departed Gibraltar that day 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 Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...
on 18 February. She left the convoy at Augusta, Italy on 13 February. She then joined Convoy VN 21, which departed from August the next day and arrived at
Naples Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adminis ...
on 15 February. ''Empire Crown'' departed Naples on 27 February as a member of Convoy NV 23, which arrived at Augusta on 29 February. That day, she joined Convoy GUS 32, which had departed from Port Said on 24 February 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 24 March. She left the convoy at
Bône Annaba ( ar, عنّابة,  "Place of the Jujubes"; ber, Aânavaen), formerly known as Bon, Bona and Bône, is a seaport city in the northeastern corner of Algeria, close to the border with Tunisia. Annaba is near the small Seybouse River ...
,
Algeria ) , image_map = Algeria (centered orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Algiers , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , relig ...
on 4 March. She then sailed to
Algiers Algiers ( ; ar, الجزائر, al-Jazāʾir; ber, Dzayer, script=Latn; french: Alger, ) is the capital and largest city of Algeria. The city's population at the 2008 Census was 2,988,145Census 14 April 2008: Office National des Statistiques ...
, returned to Bône and then returned to Algiers. On 29 March, she joined Convoy KMS 45, which had departed from Gibraltar on 27 March and arrived at Port Said on 6 April. She left the convoy at
Philippeville, Algeria Skikda ( ar, سكيكدة; formerly Philippeville from 1838 to 1962 and Rusicade in ancient times) is a city in northeastern Algeria and a port on the Mediterranean. It is the capital of Skikda Province and Skikda District. History The Phoenic ...
the next day. On 9 April, ''Empire Crown'' joined Convoy KMS 46, which had departed from Gibraltar on Gibraltar on 6 April and arrived at Port Said on 16 April. She left the convoy at Augusta on 12 April. The next day, she joined Convoy VN 33,which arrived at Naples on 14 April. She returned with Convoy NV 33, departing Naples on 17 April and arriving back at Augusta on 18 April. ''Empire Crown'' then sailed to
Tripoli, Libya Tripoli (; ar, طرابلس الغرب, translit= Ṭarābulus al-Gharb , translation=Western Tripoli) is the capital and largest city of Libya, with a population of about 1.1 million people in 2019. It is located in the northwest of Libya o ...
and back to Augusta, arriving on 27 April. She then joined Convoy VN 36, which departed Augusta on 28 April and arrived at Naples the next day. She left the convoy at
Torre Annunziata Torre Annunziata (; nap, Torr'Annunziata) is a city and commune in the Metropolitan City of Naples, region of Campania in Italy. It is located on the Gulf of Naples at the foot of Mount Vesuvius. History The city was destroyed in the Vesuvius e ...
. She departed Torre Annunziata on 4 May for Naples. On 7 May, she departed Naples as a member of Convoy NV 37, which arrived at Augusta the next day. ''Empire Crown'' then joined Convoy GUS 39, which had departed from Port Said on 4 May and arrived at the Hampton Roads on 29 May. She left the convoy on 15 May 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. On 29 May, she joined Convoy MKS 50, which had departed from Port Said on 19 May and arrived at Gibraltar on 31 May. She then joined Convoy MKS50G, which departed from Gibraltar that day and rendezvoused at sea with Convoy SL 159MK on 31 May. She was carrying a cargo of vehicles. The combined convoy arrived at Liverpool on 11 June. ''Empire Crown'' left the convoy at Loch Ewe on 10 June, joining Convoy WN 595, which arrived at Methil on 13 June. She then joined Convoy FS 1482, which arrived at Southend on 15 June. She left the convoy at
Middlesbrough Middlesbrough ( ) is a town on the southern bank of the River Tees in North Yorkshire, England. It is near the North York Moors national park. It is the namesake and main town of its local borough council area. Until the early 1800s, the a ...
,
Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a Historic counties of England, historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other Eng ...
on 14 June. ''Empire Crown'' departed Middlesbrough on 22 July, joining Convoy FS 1521, which had departed Methil that day and arrived at Southend on 24 July. Between 30 July and 9 September, she sailed between Southend and 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 ...
in various ETM and FTM convoys. On 10 September, ''Empire Crown'' departed from Southend as a member of Convoy FN 1476, which arrived at Methil the next day. She left the convoy at Middlesbrough, and then sailed to the Tyne. On 23 September, she joined Convoy FS 1584, which had departed from Methil that day and arrived at Southend on 25 September. She departed from Southend on 27 September to join Convoy ON 256, which departed from Liverpool on 28 September and arrived at New York City United States on 12 October. She had to leave the convoy and put into
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 7 October. The next day, she sailed to join Convoy ON 258, which had departed from Southend on 6 October and arrived at New York on 24 October. ''Empire Crown'' left the convoy at St. John's,
Newfoundland Newfoundland and Labrador (; french: Terre-Neuve-et-Labrador; frequently abbreviated as NL) is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region ...
, arriving on 20 October. The next day, she departed with Convoy WB 132, arriving at
Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...
,
Cape Breton Cape Breton Island (french: link=no, île du Cap-Breton, formerly '; gd, Ceap Breatainn or '; mic, Unamaꞌki) is an island on the Atlantic coast of North America and part of the province of Nova Scotia, Canada. The island accounts for 18. ...
, Nova Scotia, Canada on 23 October. She departed the next day as a member of Convoy SH 175, which arrived at Halifax, Nova Scotia on 25 October. ''Empire Crown'' then joined Convoy XB 131, which departed from Halifax on 26 October and arrived at the
Cape Cod Canal The Cape Cod Canal is an artificial waterway in the U.S. state of Massachusetts connecting Cape Cod Bay in the north to Buzzards Bay in the south, and is part of the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway. The approximately canal traverses the neck o ...
,
Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...
, United States on 28 October. She then sailed to New York, arriving the next day and departing the day after that for
Baltimore, Maryland Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...
, arriving on 1 October. ''Empire Crown'' departed from Baltimore on 18 October for the Hampton Roads. She then joined Convoy UGS 61, which departed on 21 November and arrived at Gibraltar on 7 December. She did not dock at Gibraltar, but sailed on to Port Said, arriving on 14 December. From there, she sailed to
Suez Suez ( ar, السويس '; ) is a seaport city (population of about 750,000 ) in north-eastern Egypt, located on the north coast of the Gulf of Suez (a branch of the Red Sea), near the southern terminus of the Suez Canal, having the same boun ...
, Egypt,
Aden Aden ( ar, عدن ' Yemeni: ) is a city, and since 2015, the temporary capital of Yemen, near the eastern approach to the Red Sea (the Gulf of Aden), some east of the strait Bab-el-Mandeb. Its population is approximately 800,000 people. ...
,
Colombo Colombo ( ; si, කොළඹ, translit=Koḷam̆ba, ; ta, கொழும்பு, translit=Koḻumpu, ) is the executive and judicial capital and largest city of Sri Lanka by population. According to the Brookings Institution, Colombo me ...
,
Ceylon Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...
, and
Madras Chennai (, ), formerly known as Madras ( the official name until 1996), is the capital city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost Indian state. The largest city of the state in area and population, Chennai is located on the Coromandel Coast of th ...
,
India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
, where she arrived on 7 January 1945. She departe Madras on 22 January for
Calcutta Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , List of renamed places in India#West Bengal, the official name until 2001) is the Capital city, capital of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of West Bengal, on the eastern ba ...
, arriving on 26 January. On 22 February, ''Empire Crown'' departed Calcutta for
Lourenço Marques Maputo (), formerly named Lourenço Marques until 1976, is the capital, and largest city of Mozambique. Located near the southern end of the country, it is within of the borders with Eswatini and South Africa. The city has a population of 1,088 ...
,
Mozambique Mozambique (), officially the Republic of Mozambique ( pt, Moçambique or , ; ny, Mozambiki; sw, Msumbiji; ts, Muzambhiki), is a country located in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi ...
, where she arrived on 12 March. She departed Lourenço Marques on 30 March for
Buenos Aires Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...
,
Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...
, where she arrived on 20 April. She then made a return voyage to
Rosario Rosario () is the largest city in the central provinces of Argentina, Argentine province of Santa Fe Province, Santa Fe. The city is located northwest of Buenos Aires, on the west bank of the Paraná River. Rosario is the third-most populous ci ...
, arriving back at Buenos Aires on 4 May.


Post-war service

''Empire Crown'' departed Buenos Aires on 15 May and sailed to Gibraltar via
Montevideo Montevideo () is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Uruguay, largest city of Uruguay. According to the 2011 census, the city proper has a population of 1,319,108 (about one-third of the country's total population) in an area of . M ...
, Uruguay. She then sailed to
Newport Newport most commonly refers to: *Newport, Wales *Newport, Rhode Island, US Newport or New Port may also refer to: Places Asia *Newport City, Metro Manila, a Philippine district in Pasay Europe Ireland *Newport, County Mayo, a town on the ...
,
Monmouthshire Monmouthshire ( cy, Sir Fynwy) is a county in the south-east of Wales. The name derives from the historic county of the same name; the modern county covers the eastern three-fifths of the historic county. The largest town is Abergavenny, with ...
and
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, arriving on 26 June. In 1945, ''Empire Crown'' was transferred to the French Government and renamed ''Capitaine G Lacoley''. She was operated under the management of Armement Chastellain. The ship was named after Gaston Lacoley, the French captain of the merchant ship , which was
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, su ...
ed and sunk on 9 December 1942. in 1961, ''Capitaine G Lacoley'' was sold to Mparmpapetros Shipping Co SA,
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 with ...
and renamed ''Mparmpa Petros''. Operated under the management of Pateras Shipbrokers Ltd, London, she served until 22 May 1963, when she ran aground at Porto de Pedras,
Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...
and was wrecked.


References


External links


Photo of ''Capitaine G Lacoley''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mparmpa Petros 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 Greece Merchant ships of Greece Maritime incidents in 1963 Maritime incidents in Brazil