M/S Troja
Updated Apr. 12-2009

To Troja on the "Ships starting with T" page.


Photo by Herbert Baasch, author of "Handelsschiffe im Kriegseinsatz".
The picture was taken in 1961 off Cuxhaven (Germany).
Received from the owner of Baasch's photo collection.

Some Convoy Voyages:

(More will be added).

As will be seen when going to Page 1 above, Troja was on her way from Calcutta to Oslo, Norway when the country was invaded, but was diverted to London. With general cargo for Falmouth, she's listed in station 83 of Convoy HG 30 from Gibraltar in May-1940. Follow the link for cruising order. She arrived Falmouth on May 23, later proceeding to London, with arrival there May 26. The following month, she shows up among the ships in Convoy OA 167, which left Southend on June 13 and dispersed on the 16th, Troja arriving Philadelphia June 26. Other Norwegian ships included in this convoy are Heina, Lysaker IV and Tungsha. (Svint was also scheduled, but did not sail - ref. external links at the end of this page).

In Nov.-1940, she's listed in Convoy HX 86. She had started out in Bermuda on Nov. 8 with the Bermuda portion of Convoy HX 87, which later joined up with HX 86. This latter convoy had originated in Halifax on Nov. 10. (There was also a Bermuda portion for HX 86, but this convoy had returned to Bermuda). Troja was bound for Clyde with general cargo - several other Norwegian ships also took part.

In Dec.-1940, we find her in Convoy OB 266, departing Liverpool on Dec. 28, dispersed Jan. 1-1941. Her destination is given as Baltimore, where she arrived Jan. 10, having started out from Oban on Dec. 29, according to Page 1 (again, ref. external link at the end of this page).

Skipping now to March 19-1945, when she, according to Arnold Hague, joined Convoy HX 345 from New York. This convoy is not yet available among the HX convoys included in my own Convoys section (will be added), but I've linked directly to Hague's listing at the end of this page. From Page 5, we learn that Troja arrived Avonmouth on Apr. 2, and the following month, she's listed in Convoy OS 129/KMS 104, which left Liverpool on May 17 and dispersed on the 21st. Her destination is not given, but she arrived Port Said on May 30, having started out from Milford Haven on May 18. She later proceeded to Aden and Bombay.

To find convoy information for a few of the voyages made in between those already mentioned here, please follow the instructions provided at the external link below, then compare the results with the details found on the various archive documents.

What follows has been extracted from John Simpson's story in my Warsailors Stories section - he had just survived the sinking of Elsa, so he must have joined Troja some time after Apr.-1942:

I reported to the Norwegian Consulate in Sydney, because it was the best way to get in touch with the Norwegian shipping line that had employed me, and told them everything that had happened to the Elsa. I said I wanted another job, and they posted me to the Troja in Melbourne (according to Page 2, Troja had arrived Melbourne from Colombo on Apr. 16-1942 - her subsequent voyages are listed on Page 3). The ship was Norwegian, owned by Wilh. Wilhelmsen Lines, a very large shipping company which had 73 ships at the outbreak of war.

Norway was occupied by the Germans, but the Norwegian merchant fleet, anything that had got away from Germany, was all over the world working for the Allies. The Troja had been doing regular runs to Australia and was on charter to the Australian government. It was a ship of the line, not a tramp, you see. Tramps went all over the place, but ships of the line had a regular run, for instance between Europe and the Antipodes.

I joined the Troja during her fitting out as a DEMS, a Defensively Equipped Merchant Ship - 4.7 inch guns on the poop, Holman projectors, Bofors on the wings of the bridge. The Holman projectors fired grenades using compressed air.

On the subsequent voyage to the Middle East carrying military equipment for the Australian forces we used to have gun practice. I remember the Holman projector wasn't aimed very well and the grenade dropped down onto the deck. Everybody scattered like mad. Nobody got hurt - they were very lucky. It went off as it hit the deck.

We discharged at Lake Timsah on the Suez Canal and Port Said, and made a return voyage with phosphate and copper; phosphate from Port Safaga on the Red Sea and copper ingots from Beira in Portuguese East Africa, as it was then. We returned to discharge in Hobart, Tasmania.

On the next voyage to the Middle East our main cargo seemed to be beer for the Australian Army. After landing 500 tons of Richmond Bitter at Lake Timsah, handled by the army, the Australian diggers, we were the most popular ship in the Middle East. For the Australians, anyway!

After discharge we proceeded to Port Said waiting for orders, and then had orders to proceed to Haifa with all speed. That was an overnight run from Port Said to Haifa. There were explosions during the night where somebody was being attacked by either the Eyeties or the Jerries, we don't know which, but we were not allowed to stop to find out.

We were told at Haifa that they were trying to make up a convoy to go to the relief of Malta. Anyway, back in Haifa, the requirement was for ships that could sail at 15 knots or more, and as we could only manage 13 knots we were not included in the convoy. All the Norwegians were quite disappointed, as they wanted to be in the action. So we had a couple of holds converted into troop quarters, and we took about 300 Australian soldiers on leave back to Australia.

After three or four voyages to and from the Middle East, I asked the shipping company if I could get a ship going back to the UK. They agreed to do this, with the Chief Engineer's backing. They were very good to me. And I joined the Tiradentes in Sydney, which was due to return to Liverpool via the Middle East.

POST WAR:

Sold on Apr. 2-1962 to Mardita Cia. Naviera S.A. (Michail A. Karageorgis, manager), Greece and renamed Ioanna. Transferred to Panamanian registry in 1964. Had an engine room explosion on March-20-1966 when in the Red Sea about 200 miles from Jeddah, position 24 06N 36 12E, on a voyage from Tarragona to Rangoon with a cargo of soya bean oil. The resulting fire was extinguished on March 22. Arrived Suez in tow on March 25. Was found to be beyond economical repair and was declared a constructive total loss. Sold to S.p.A. Cantieri Navali del Golfo for scrapping. Arrived Spezia in tow on Nov. 18-1966 and demolition commenced the following month.

Related external links:
OB (& OA) convoys - OA 167 is included. Note also that by going to this section of the same site (based on Arnold Hague's database) and clicking on "Ship Search", using "Troja" as keyword, a few convoys that are not mentioned in my own text will come up. Here are OB 266, HX 345 and OS 129/KMS 104, all mentioned in the above narrative.

The Australian War Memorial has another picture of this ship. It can be found by running a search through their collection search page.

Lillesand Sjømannsforening also has a picture.

Back to Troja on the "Ships starting with T" page.

Wilh. Wilhelmsen later had 3 more ships by this name.

The text on this page was compiled with the help of: Wilh. Wilhelmsen fleet list and misc. - (ref. My sources).