D/S Galatea - Norwegian Merchant Fleet 1939-1945

D/S Galatea
Updated June 8-2009

To Galatea on the "Ships starting with G" page.

Crew List

Owner: A/S Dampskib Balatea
Manager: Th. Gjesdal, Bergen
Tonnage: 1152 gt, 671 net, 1820 tdwt
Call Sign: LDYD

Built by Bergens Mekaniske Verksted A/S, Bergen in 1912.

Captain: Peder Brendsdal

Please compare the above voyages with Arnold Hague's Voyage Record below.

Voyage Record
From Jan.-1940 to Dec.-1944:

(Received from Don Kindell - His source: The late Arnold Hague's database).

Follow the convoy links provided for more information on each.

Errors may exist, and the record is incomplete (see archive documents above).

	Departure	From	To	Arrival	Convoy	Remarks
1940	Jan. 19	Norwegian Waters	Methil	Jan. 22	HN 8	See also narrative below
	Febr. 3	Tyne	Southend	Febr. 5	FS 86	Convoy available at FS convoys (external link)
	Febr. 22	Tyne	Methil	Febr. 23	TM 12	Convoy available at TM 12 (external link)
	Febr. 28	Methil	Norwegian Waters	March 2	ON 16	–
	March 22	Norwegian Waters	Methil	March 25	HN 21	See also Page 1 (missing voyages)
	July 26	Methil	–	–	OA 190	For Sydney, C.B. Dispersed July 29. Convoy available at OA 190 (external link) See also Page 1 above
	Aug. 25	Sydney, C.B.	Liverpool	Sept. 10	SC 2	See also Page 1, Page 2, Page 3 & Page 4
1941	July 25	Milford Haven	–	–	ON 1	For St. John, N.B. Dispersed 42 29N 45 45W, Aug. 9. See Page 4 above
	Sept. 5	Sydney, C.B.	Loch Ewe	Sept. 20	SC 43	Convoy will be added. See ships in SC convoys
	Sept. 22	Loch Ewe	Methil	Sept. 23	WN 183	Convoy available at WN convoys (external link) See also Page 4 (missing voyages)
	Nov. 15	Methil	Oban(?)	Nov. 18	EN 6/2	Convoy available at EN convoys (external link)
	Dec. 9	Oban	Methil	Dec. 12	WN 216	Convoy available at WN convoys (external link) See also Page 4 & Page 5 (missing voyages)
1942	Jan. 6	Methil	Oban	Jan. 8	EN 29/2	Convoy available at EN convoys (external link)
	Jan. 20	Belfast Lough	Milford Haven*	Jan. 21	BB 126	Convoy available at BB convoys (external link) * see Page 5
?	Febr. 14	Milford Haven	Plymouth	Febr. 15	WP 112	Convoy available at WP convoys (external link) Missing voyages, Page 5 above
	Febr. 15	Holyhead	Milford Haven	Febr. 16	HM 4	Convoy available at HM 4 (external link) Missing voyages, Page 5
	March 14	Holyhead	Newport	March 16	BB 149	Convoy available at BB convoys (external link) See also Page 6 (missing voyages)
	March 28	Holyhead	Barry	March 29	BB 154	Convoy available at link above Missing voyages, Page 6
	Apr. 11	Holyhead	Mumbles	Apr. 13	BB 160	Convoy available at link above (missing voyages, Page 6)
	Apr. 24	Holyhead	Cardiff	Apr. 26	BB 166	Convoy available at link above (missing voyages, Page 6 & Page 7)
	May 16	Holyhead	Holyhead	May 17	BB 174	Put back. Convoy available at link above
	May 19	Holyhead	Swansea(?*)	May 20	BB 176	Convoy available at link above See Page 7*
	May 30	Holyhead	Barry	May 31	BB 180	Convoy available at link above (missing voyages, Page 7)
	Aug. 19	Holyhead	Barry	Aug. 21	BB 211	Convoy available at link above
	Aug. 30	Holyhead	Barry	Aug. 31	BB 215	Convoy available at link above See also Page 8, Page 9, Page 10, Page 11, Page 12 & Page 13 (missing voyages)
1944	June 6	Barry	Plymouth	June 7	EBC 3	Convoy available at EBC convoys (external link)
	June 15	Barry	Portsmouth	June 17	EBC 12	Convoy available at link above Compare w/Page 14
	July 11	Barry	Southampton	July 13	EBC 38	Convoy available at link above (missing voyages, Page 14)
	July 18	Portsmouth	Barry	July 19	Escorted	Compare w/Page 14
	July 22	Barry	Southampton	July 24	EBC 49	Convoy available at link above Missing voyages, Page 14 & Page 15
*	Nov. 2	Gibraltar	Malta	Nov. 7	KMS 67	To Malta with engine defects. Convoy will be added. See ships in KMS convoys
	* According to Page 15 of the archive documents, Galatea was in the U.K. at this time; no voyages were made to Gibraltar and Malta in this time period, nor at all during the war. I believe the voyage should be deleted.
	Nov. 29	Solent	Milford Haven	Dec. 1	EBF 51	Convoy available at EBF 51 (external link) For further voyages, see Page 15 above, & Page 16

Some Convoy Voyages:

For voyages made in between those discussed here, please see the documents received from the National Archives of Norway as well as Hague's Voyage Record above. Follow the convoy links provided for more details on them - other Norwegian ships also took part.

According to Arnold Hague, Galatea sailed in Convoy HN 8 from Norway to the U.K. in Jan.-1940. However, she also appears in Convoy HN 9A, and I'm not sure which is correct. At the end of the following month, we find her in the U.K.-Norway Convoy ON 16, and towards the end of March (just a couple of weeks before Norway was invaded), she was in Convoy HN 21, bound for Hull with general cargo. As will be seen when clicking on the links, several Norwegian ships took part in all these convoys. On Apr. 9, the day of the German invasion of Norway, she left Immingham in order to return to Norway (Skien), but was diverted to Rouen, arriving there on Apr. 21, according to Page 1 of the archive docs.

At the end of July-1940, Galatea shows up in Convoy OA 190, bound for Sydney, C.B in ballast, sailing in station 83 of the convoy, which left Methil on July 26 and dispersed on the 29th, Galatea arriving her destination on Aug. 11. Again, several other Norwegian ships took part (see the external link provided below and within the above table). She returned to the U.K. later that month with the slow Convoy SC 2, in which the Norwegian Gro was sunk. Galatea had a cargo of lumber for Bristol, where she arrived on Sept. 12.

Skipping now to July-1941, when she joined the westbound North Atlantic Convoy ON 1, originating in Liverpool on July 26-1941, dispersed Aug. 9, Galatea arriving St. John, N.B. on Aug. 14. According to A. Hague, she headed back to the U.K. on Sept. 5 in Convoy SC 43 from Sydney, C.B. - see Page 4. This convoy is not yet available among the SC convoys included in my Convoys section (will be added); for now, the ships sailing in it are named in the section listing ships in all SC convoys.

A. Hague has also included her in Convoy KMS 67 in Nov.-1944 (voyage Gibraltar-Malta), but as noted in the above Voyage Record, this information does not at all match up with the voyages listed on Page 15 of the archive documents, so I believe it must be an error.

Related external links:
OB (& OA) convoys - OA 190 is included.

OA & OB convoys

Final Fate - 1945:

Galatea was on a voyage alone from Liverpool to Barry in ballast when she was sunk in St. Georges Channel, off Bardsey Island by U-1051* (Holleben) in the evening of Jan. 21-1945 (hit on the starboard side, foreship), position 52 40N 05 23W. According to Page 16 of the archive documents, she had left Liverpool on Jan. 17; time of the loss is given as 21:00.

The sole survivor, stoker Harald Hvidtsten, was picked up from a raft by the British frigate HMS Tyler (K-576) a few hours later**, in the early morning hours of Jan 22 and landed in Liverpool in the evening of the 24th. 20 had died, including 3 gunners, out of a crew of 18 and 3 gunners.

* "Nortraships flåte" says that Galatea was sunk by U-1172 (Kuhlmann), which also (possibly) sank another Norwegian ship, D/S Vigsnes two days later. U-1172 was sunk shortly thereafter (Jan. 27, though Rohwer indicates 26th, U-1051 was sunk on the 27th) in St. George's Channel, off Bardsey Island, position 52 24N, 05 42W, by depth charges from the British frigates HMS Tyler, Keats and Bligh.

** Charles Hocking (listed in My Sources) says the survivor was picked up on Febr. 8. A visitor to my website has told me that "Shipwreck Index of the British Isles" also says he was picked up on Febr. 8 after being adrift on his own in a small boat for 18 days. This source gives the position 50 40N 05 53W for the sinking (north of Lands End). The dates that I've given in the first paragraph above are from H. Hvidsten's own report presented at the maritime hearings in London on March 20-1945.