SS Queen of Bermuda

Queen of Bermuda in Hamilton in the early 1950s
History
United Kingdom
Owner	Furness, Withy & Co Ltd
Operator	Furness Bermuda Line (1933–39, 1943–66) Royal Navy (1939–43)
Port of registry	Hamilton, Bermuda
Route	New York – Hamilton (1933–39, 1949–66)
Builder	Vickers-Armstrongs
Yard number	681
Launched	2 September 1932
Completed	14 February 1933
Maiden voyage	21 February 1933 Liverpool – New York
In service	1933
Out of service	1966
Identification	UK official number 156189 call sign VQJP pennant number F73 (1939–43)
Fate	Scrapped
General characteristics
Tonnage	22,575 GRT tonnage under deck 13,107 12,777 NRT
Length	553.4 ft (168.7 m)
Beam	76.7 ft (23.4 m)
Draught	27 ft (8.2 m)
Depth	39 ft (12 m)
Installed power	4274 NHP
Propulsion	2 × steam turbines, electric generators & motors, 4 × screws
Speed	19 knots (35 km/h)
Capacity	700 1st class and 31 2nd class passengers (1933–39) 733 passengers, all 1st class (1949–61)
Sensors and processing systems	direction finding equipment; echo sounding equipment; gyrocompass; submarine signalling equipment
Armament	as AMC: 7 × BL 6-inch Mk XII naval guns 2 × QF 3-inch 20 cwt anti-aircraft guns
Notes	sister ship: Monarch of Bermuda

SS Queen of Bermuda was a British turbo-electric ocean liner that belonged to Furness, Withy & Co Ltd. Its Furness Bermuda Line subsidiary operated her between New York and Bermuda before and after the Second World War. During the war she served as first an armed merchant cruiser and then as a troop ship.

Building[]

Furness, Withy ordered Queen of Bermuda to replace the liner MV Bermuda, which had been destroyed by fire in June 1931 after barely three and a half years' service. Queen of Bermuda was the sister ship of Monarch of Bermuda which had been launched in March 1931 and entered service that December.

Vickers-Armstrongs built Queen of Bermuda at its shipyard in Barrow-in-Furness. She was launched on 2 September 1932 and completed in February 1933. She was 553.4 ft (168.7 m) long, had a beam of 76.7 ft (23.4 m) and draught of 27 ft (8.2 m). She was assessed as 22,575 GRT and 12,777 NRT.^[1] She had capacity for refrigerated cargo,^[1] and as built she had berths for 700 first class and 31 second class passengers.^[2]

The ship had eight water-tube boilers with a combined heating surface of 39,720 square feet (3,690 m²). The boilers supplied steam at 400 lb_f/in² to two steam turbines.^[1] The turbines drove electric generators that powered electric motors to drive her four screws, giving her a speed of 19 knots (35 km/h).^[3] As built, she had three funnels.^[4]

Liner, auxiliary cruiser and troop ship[]

In 1933 Queen of Bermuda joined Monarch of Bermuda on scheduled services between New York and Hamilton, Bermuda. A round trip took six days.^[4]

Just before the Second World War, on 29 August 1939 the Admiralty requisitioned the ship for conversion into an armed merchant cruiser. One of her three funnels was removed,^[4] either as a disguise or to improve the field of fire for her guns. Her primary armament was seven BL 6-inch Mk XII naval guns.^[5][6] Her secondary armament included two QF 3-inch 20 cwt anti-aircraft guns.^[5][7]

She was commissioned on 28 October as HMS Queen of Bermuda with the pennant number F73. As a cruiser she served on patrol duty and as a convoy escort, mostly in the North and South Atlantic. In March 1941 she visited Deception Island and destroyed shore facilities there to prevent their use by German merchant cruisers^[8]. In 1943 she served with the Eastern Fleet^[5] in the Indian Ocean and made one visit to Fremantle in Western Australia.^[2]

HMS Queen of Bermuda during WWII

In May 1943 the Admiralty returned the ship to Furness, Withy and the Ministry of War Transport had her refitted as a troop ship. For the next two years she carried troops between Britain, Gibraltar, Port Said in Egypt and Taranto in Italy, and in 1945 she made one visit to Bombay. In 1946 she repatriated Italian prisoners of war from Liverpool to Naples and UK military personnel from the Far East to Britain. She operated between Liverpool, Bombay and Singapore.^[2]

Post-war civilian service[]

In 1947 the UK Government released the ship for return to civilian service. Furness, Withy had her overhauled and refitted and her third funnel was reinstated. As refitted she had berths for 733 passengers, all first class.^[4][9]

The S.S. Queen of Bermuda departing the island in December 1952 / January 1953. The Devonshire Dock is in the foreground.

In February 1949 she returned to her pre-war route between New York and Hamilton.^[2] Her sister Monarch of Bermuda did not join her as she had been damaged by fire in a shipyard in 1947 and Furness, Withy had sold her. In 1951 a new Furness, Withy ship, the 13,834 GRT Ocean Monarch, joined Queen of Bermuda on the route.

1961 Refit[]

In October 1961 Harland and Wolff in Belfast started work to modify Queen of Bermuda. She was lengthened, all three funnels were removed and one modern funnel was installed amidships.^[2] This gave the ship the distinction of being the only ocean liner to have sailed with one, two and three funnels.^[4] As rebuilt she was now assessed as 22,552 GRT.^[10] Her sea trials began on 23 February 1962 and returned to her regular route on 7 April.^[2]

End of Service[]

In November 1966 Furness, Withy ceased its Furness Bermuda Line operation.^[4] New owners bought Ocean Monarch for further passenger service but Queen of Bermuda was sold for scrap. On 6 December that year she arrived in Faslane in Scotland to be broken up.^[2]

References[]

Bibliography[]

• Hardy, AC (8 September 1936). "Bermudian Luxury Liners". Shipping Wonders of the World (Part 31): 970–974. Retrieved 13 May 2020.
• Harnack, Edwin P (1938) [1903]. All About Ships & Shipping (7th ed.). London: Faber and Faber.
• Harnack, Edwin P (1964) [1903]. All About Ships & Shipping (11th ed.). London: Faber and Faber.
• Miller, William, Jr (2001). Picture History of British Ocean Liners 1900 to the Present. Mineola: Dover Publications. p. 76. ISBN 0-486-41532-5.