SS Kanguroo
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SS ''Kanguroo'' was a French
heavy-lift ship A heavy-lift ship is a vessel designed to move very large loads that cannot be handled by normal ships. They are of two types: *''Semi-submersible'' ships that take on water ballast to allow the load—usually another vessel—to be floated o ...
built to transport
submarine A submarine (or sub) is a watercraft capable of independent operation underwater. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability. The term is also sometimes used historically or colloquially to refer to remotely op ...
s before World War I. She delivered submarines to Brazil and Peru before the war began. Requisitioned in 1914 by the
French Navy 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 t ...
, she was torpedoed by a German submarine in late 1916 and sunk at
Funchal Funchal () is the largest city, the municipal seat and the capital of Portugal's Madeira, Autonomous Region of Madeira, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean. The city has a population of 105,795, making it the sixth largest city in Portugal. Because of ...
,
Madeira ) , anthem = ( en, "Anthem of the Autonomous Region of Madeira") , song_type = Regional anthem , image_map=EU-Portugal_with_Madeira_circled.svg , map_alt=Location of Madeira , map_caption=Location of Madeira , subdivision_type=Sovereign st ...
.


Background and description

''Kanguroo'' was a ship built to transport submarines for the shipbuilder
Schneider et Cie Schneider may refer to: Hospital * Schneider Children's Medical Center of Israel People *Schneider (surname) Companies and organizations * G. Schneider & Sohn, a Bavarian brewery company * Schneider Rundfunkwerke AG, the former owner of the D ...
. The company's submarines were too small and their endurance too limited to cross the oceans on their own. Schneider deemed towing them too risky so the company commissioned a purpose-built ship to deliver them safely to their destination. She was long with a
beam Beam may refer to: Streams of particles or energy *Light beam, or beam of light, a directional projection of light energy **Laser beam *Particle beam, a stream of charged or neutral particles **Charged particle beam, a spatially localized grou ...
of and a draft of .Croce, p. 199 The ship displaced and could carry out-sized cargo up to in weight. ''Kanguroo'' 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 ...
driving a single shaft that gave her a speed of . She had a crew of four officers and eighteen enlisted crewmen. The ship was essentially a self-propelled
floating dry dock Floating may refer to: * a type of dental work performed on horse teeth * use of an isolation tank * the guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and ...
with three main sections. The stern contained the engine,
bridge A bridge is a structure built to span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or rail) without blocking the way underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, which is usually somethi ...
, crew accommodations, workshops, pumps,
electric generator In electricity generation, a generator is a device that converts motive power (mechanical energy) or fuel-based power (chemical energy) into electric power for use in an external circuit. Sources of mechanical energy include steam turbines, gas ...
s and storage facilities for the submarine's torpedoes. The submarine's batteries were kept charged during the voyage by the current from the generators. The middle section consisted of a double-hulled
well deck In traditional nautical use, well decks were decks lower than decks fore and aft, usually at the main deck level, so that breaks appear in the main deck profile, as opposed to a flush deck profile. The term goes back to the days of sail. Late-20 ...
with
ballast tank A ballast tank is a compartment within a boat, ship or other floating structure that holds water, which is used as ballast to provide hydrostatic stability for a vessel, to reduce or control buoyancy, as in a submarine, to correct trim or list, ...
s between its inner walls and the outer hull. The well deck had a capacity of and was closed off by a pair of water-tight doors at its forward end. The outer plating and structural members of ''Kanguroo''s bow were designed to be partially dismantled to give access to the short tunnel through the bow to the well deck. Additional ballast tanks were positioned below and on each side of the tunnel to raise and lower the bow.Croce, pp. 199–200 Loading a submarine was a lengthy process that took weeks. The first step was to pump the forward ballast tanks empty which elevated the bow out of the water. Once it was dismantled, the ballast tanks were then filled to lower the bow and flood the well deck to allow the submarine to be winched aboard. The well deck's water-tight doors were then closed and the water in the dock was pumped overboard while the submarine settled onto its wooden bilge blocks. The bow was then reassembled and hatch covers were installed over the well deck. These prevented the ship from taking on water during a storm and allowed the crew to perform any necessary maintenance on the submarine while under way.


Construction and service

''Kanguroo'' was launched by
Forges et Chantiers de la Gironde Forges et Chantiers de la Gironde (literally translated ''Forges and dockyards of the Gironde'') was a French shipbuilder at Lormont near Bordeaux on the Gironde estuary. The company was previously called ''Usine de construction navale Chaigneau e ...
on 12 April 1912 at their shipyard in
Bordeaux Bordeaux ( , ; Gascon oc, Bordèu ; eu, Bordele; it, Bordò; es, Burdeos) is a port city on the river Garonne in the Gironde department, Southwestern France. It is the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, as well as the prefectur ...
. She loaded the on 28 June at
Saint-Mandrier-sur-Mer Saint-Mandrier-sur-Mer (, "Saint-Mandrier on Sea"; oc, Sant Mandrier de Mar), commonly referred to simply as Saint-Mandrier (former official name), is a commune in the southeastern French department of Var, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. In ...
, but did not depart for
Callao Callao () is a Peruvian seaside city and Regions of Peru, region on the Pacific Ocean in the Lima metropolitan area. Callao is Peru's chief seaport and home to its main airport, Jorge Chávez International Airport. Callao municipality consists o ...
until 30 July. She arrived in Peru on 19 October, after stops in
São Vicente, Cape Verde São Vicente (Portuguese for " Saint Vincent") is one of the Barlavento Islands, the northern group within the Cape Verde archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean, off the West African coast. It is located between the islands of Santo Antão and Sant ...
,
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, and
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 ...
, but could not unload the submarine until 29 October. The ship delivered ''Ferre''s sister ship in 1913 and the the following year.Croce, p. 202 After the start of World War I in August 1914, the
French Navy 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 t ...
requisitioned the ''Kanguroo''. She was torpedoed and sank at the Port of Funchal,
Madeira ) , anthem = ( en, "Anthem of the Autonomous Region of Madeira") , song_type = Regional anthem , image_map=EU-Portugal_with_Madeira_circled.svg , map_alt=Location of Madeira , map_caption=Location of Madeira , subdivision_type=Sovereign st ...
on 3 December 1916, together with the and the elderly British
cable layer A cable layer or cable ship is a deep-sea vessel designed and used to lay underwater cables for telecommunications, electric power transmission, military, or other purposes. Cable ships are distinguished by large cable sheaves for guiding cab ...
, by the German submarine . A total of thirty-three foreign crewmen and eight Portuguese nationals died during the attack. A monument with a sculpture by Francisco Franco de Sousa was raised in 1917 to commemorate the incident.


References


Bibliography

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External links

*
SS Kanguroo on wrecksite.eu
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kanguroo 1912 ships Ships built in France Steamships of France World War I naval ships of France Ships sunk by German submarines in World War I Maritime incidents in 1916 World War I shipwrecks in the Atlantic Ocean Heavy lift ships