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D/S Granli To Granli on the "Ships starting with G" page. Manager: Rolf Ugelstad, Oslo Built in Oslo 1935. Previous name: Siredal until 1938. Captain: Leif Thorbjørnsen
There's a ship by this name listed in Convoy HN 6 from Norway to the U.K. in Dec.-1939/Jan.-1940. As will be seen by clicking on the link, several Norwegian ships took part. A French visitor to my website has told me that Granli was in Casablanca in March-1940. She sailed from there in Convoy 74 KS under French escort on March 9-1940; at Le Verdon on March 3. Rescued 26 men from Empire Volunteer in Sept.- 1940, Page 2 has a full report. At the time she was in the slow Sydney (C.B.)-U.K. Convoy SC 3, from which the Norwegian Lotos was sunk. Granli had a cargo of pulp wood for Medway. A couple of months later, on Nov. 13-1940 she was scheduled for Convoy SC 12, but instead joined the next convoy later that month, SC 13, cargo of pulp for Preston. Follow the links for further dates and names of the other ships, several of which were Norwegian. Towards the end of Jan.-1941 we find her in the Gibraltar-U.K. Convoy HG 52, bound for Ardrossan, with a cargo of minerals.
Granli was one of several ships from the dispersed Convoy OB 294 captured and/or sunk on March 15/16-1941 by the German battle cruisers Scharnhorst and Gneisenau, which at that time had become a serious threat to shipping in the Atlantic Ocean (there's more details on this under M/T Bianca and M/T Polykarp). She was on a voyage from Courock for British Guiana, having left Gourock on March 1, when shots were heard in the distance on the night leading up to March 16. The captain ordered a course alteration, but the following morning 3 warning shots were fired near her. Gneisenau ordered the crew to the lifeboats, and in 2 boats they rowed across to the German ship and were taken on board, whereupon Granli was sunk (about 350 n. miles south of Cape Race). They were taken below decks where about 300 other seamen of various nationalities were also held. That same evening the cruisers were spotted by the British battle cruiser Rodney, but the German ships were able to escape with all their "loot", and arrived Brest on March 22, where all the prisoners were put ashore. This means that by the spring of 1941, the Allies had been deprived of over 1000 Norwegian seamen due to the raids of German battle cruisers or auxiliary cruisers; about 600 having been taken from the whaling fleet alone, when captured by Pinguin (see also M/T Sandefjord). Granli's crew spent 3 days at a camp near Brest before they were sent by train to Fallingbosten via Paris, Cologne and Hanover, a journey taking 6 days. The camp had about 6000 prisoners of misc. nationalities, Belgian, French, Polish and Yugoslavian. After about a month they were transferred to another camp near Triers, but were retunred to Fallingbosten a month later, then spent another month there before being sent to Sandbosen(?). 2 weeks later, Granli's crew, together with other Scandinavian seamen were sent to Bremen where they spent 6 days at a hotel, then via Hamburg, Flensburg, Helsingör and Gothenburg they arrived Oslo, Norway. Before they were "freed" they were taken to Akerhus fortress where they had to sign contracts promising to serve on Norwegian ships under German control, whereupon they were given a 2 weeks holiday. They were told, however, that if they did not show up in Oslo for service at a stipulated time, punishment would be strict. Able Seaman A. J. Lunde* went home to his parents and did not show up in Oslo after his 2 weeks vacation were up. He stayed in hiding for several weeks, then escaped to Shetland with a fishing vessel. He may be identical to the Anders Johannesen Lunde who is listed among those who left Bremnes on Sept. 28-1941 with M/B Utnøring, which after a horrendous voyage arrived Lerwick on Sept. 30. Able Seaman Lunde was questioned by authorities in London on Oct. 14-1941 about the sinking of Granli, and some of the above text is based on his statements given at that time. It's also possible that the M/T Geisha narrowly escaped capture by these battle cruisers on March 20, when she had observed a suspicious vessel in position 31°N 59 30W. The vessel had changed course and headed towards Geisha, but she managed to get away.
Back to Granli on the "Ships starting with G" page. Granli - Page 2 Other ships by this name ("Våre gamle skip"): Olsen & Ugelstad had a D/S Granli in WW I, originally delivered in Nov.-1890 as Ithamo for D. & G. T. Pinkney, Sunderland, 2221 gt. Sailed as Swedish Gotland from 1900 until 1911. Purchased as Susanna of Bilbao by A/S Simonsens Dampskibsselskap (A. Simonsen), Haugesund in Oct.-1915, renamed Granli. Sold to Christiania in Apr.-1916, renamed Jenesei. Sailed as Granli for Olsen & Ugelstad from 1917. Ran aground at Isakflu, Lepsøy near Ålesund on a voyage Bremen-Archangels with coal. Additionally, Bergen briefly had a Granli from 1912, 1323 gt (ex Acaster of W. Hartlepool 1882, Jeanne d'Arc of Christiania, 1895) until sold in 1913 to Haugesund and renamed P. O. Haavik. Ran aground near Ibiza, Spain in 1914. Fred. Olsen's D/S Brisk, built 1923 became Granli for O. G. Gjessens Eftf. & Sev. G. Sørensen, Skudeneshavn in March-1953, having been purchased in June-1952. Sold in Febr.-1968 to Østfold Skibsophugning (breakers), partially broken up and used as barge. Sold in 1972 to Gothenburg as barge Sima I. The text on this page was compiled with the help of: "Nortraships flåte", J. R. Hegland, "Sjøforklaringer fra 2. verdenskrig", Volume I (Norwegian Maritime Museum) and misc. - (ref. My Sources).
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