The SS ''Carsbreck'' was a British cargo steamship. She was sunk while carrying supplies to the UK in the Second World War.

Early years and convoy SC 7

Ayrshire Dockyard Co Ltd,

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built the ship, completing her in September 1936 as ''Coulbeg''. Her first owner was Dornoch Shipping Co Ltd, which registered her in Glasgow and contracted Lambert Bros Ltd to manage her. In 1938 the Carslogie Steam Ship Co bought her, renamed her ''Carsbreck'' and contracted Honeyman and Company of Glasgow to manage her. She sailed in a number of convoys in the Second World War, carrying supplies to and from the UK. She was part of

Convoy SC 7 SC 7 was the code name for a large Allied World War II convoy of 35 merchant ships and six escorts, which sailed eastbound from Sydney, Nova Scotia, for Liverpool and other United Kingdom ports on 5 October 1940. While crossing the Atlantic, ...

in October 1940, carrying a cargo of timber. The convoy was overwhelmed by a wolfpack of U-boats, and at 0204 hours on 18 October , commanded by

Heinrich Liebe __NOTOC__ Heinrich Liebe (29 January 1908 – 27 July 1997) was a German naval officer during World War II. He served as a U-boat commander. Liebe was credited with sinking of 34 ships for a total of . Awards * Wehrmacht Long Service Award 4th Cl ...

, torpedoed and badly damaged ''Carsbreck''. She was able to reach port, escorted by the .

Convoy HG-75 and sinking

''Carsbreck'' later formed part of

Convoy HG 75 A convoy is a group of vehicles, typically motor vehicles or ships, traveling together for mutual support and protection. Often, a convoy is organized with armed defensive support and can help maintain cohesion within a unit. It may also be use ...

from Almería to Barrow-in-Furness. She carried a cargo of 6,000 tons of iron ore. At 0636 hours on 24 October 1941

Reinhard Suhren Reinhard Johann Heinz Paul Anton Suhren (16 April 1916 – 25 August 1984) was a German U-boat commander in World War II and younger brother of '' Korvettenkapitän (Ing.)'' and Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross recipient Gerd Suhren. Suhren was ...

's sighted the convoy and fired five torpedoes at it. Three ships were hit, and all three sank: , and ''Carsbreck''. Twenty four of the ''Carsbreck''’s complement were killed: 19 crewmen, four DEMS gunners and the Master. 16 crew members and two DEMS gunners survived and were rescued by the Free French ''Elan''-class minesweeping aviso '' Commandant Duboc''. They were transferred to the CAM ship . Two days later torpedoed and damaged ''Ariguani''. She was abandoned, but later was re-boarded and towed to

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 ...

. The Flower-class corvette picked up ''Carsbreck''s survivors and transferred them to the V-class destroyer , which took them to Gibraltar.

Footnotes

References

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Carsbreck 1936 ships Ships built on the River Clyde Maritime incidents in October 1940 Maritime incidents in October 1941 Ships sunk by German submarines in World War II Steamships of the United Kingdom World War II merchant ships of the United Kingdom World War II shipwrecks in the Atlantic Ocean