ARABIA 1898

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aukepalmhof
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ARABIA 1898

Post by aukepalmhof » Wed Feb 25, 2015 6:54 pm

To commemorate the 100th year of Mahatma Gandhi's return to India in 1915, India issued in 2015 two stamps and a mint sheet to commemorate this.
The vessel depict in the background of the stamp is the ARABIA on which he made his homeward voyage from London to Bombay.
He arrived 09 January 1915 at 07.30 a.m. at Bombay.
Built as a passenger-cargo vessel under yard No 286 by Caird and Co. Ltd., Greenock, Scotland for the Peninsular & Oriental Steam Navigation Comp. (P&O)
10 November 1897 launched as the ARABIA. The launching was delayed due to an engineer’s strike.
Tonnage 7,903 gross, 4,167 net, 5.051 dwt., dim. 152.31 x 16.55 x 7.47m, draught 8.20m.
Powered by one four cylinder triple expansion steam engine, manufactured by the shipsbuilder, 11,000 ihp, speed 18 knots.
Passenger accommodation 320 first class and 160 second class or 2,500 troops.
Building cost £250,000.
12 March 1898 registered.
She was built for the accelerated Indian and Australian mail contracts.
1898: Took Lord Curzon to India to take up his appointment as Viceroy.
1902: Took a full load of passengers to the Delhi Durbar, who nicknamed her “RMS Grosvenor Square.”
1905: Collided with RIVERDALE in Bombay.
1910: Took part in an impromptu race with Orient Steam’s OMRAH (a ship with which she had a long rivalry) from Gibraltar to Plymouth, but lost.
1912: Involved in a collision with POWERFUL off Southampton.
09 December 1914 sailed from London with on board Mahatma Ghandi bound for India, arrived in Bombay on 09 January 1915.
1915/1916: Three return voyages UK/Australia.
09/05/1915: Escaped a surfaced enemy submarine in the English Channel by laying down a smokescreen.
03/07/1915: Avoided two enemy submarines in the Channel.
06/11/1916: Torpedoed and sunk at about 11am by the German submarine UB.43, at 36N 21E about 112 miles SxW of Cape Matapan, Greece. She was on a voyage from Sydney,NSW to the United Kingdom with 283 crew, 437 passengers and general cargo. 11 engineroom crew were lost but the survivors all took to the boats within 15 minutes and were picked up by four armed trawlers (who landed their rescuees in Malta) and the Ellerman liner CITY OF MARSEILLES, bound for Port Said. ARABIA’s sinking produced an open exchange of letters between the United States of America and Germany, despite the comparatively slight loss of life. It was said that the German authorities claimed that the submarine commander had mistaken the dresses of lady passengers for Chinese soldiers en route for France.

Previous update by Paul Strathdee.

Last updated: by John Newth from the original records by Stuart Cameron
http://www.clydesite.co.uk/clydebuilt/v ... p?id=15029

India 2015 25r sg?, scott? and MS 30r sgMS?, scott?
Source:P&O a Fleet History , World Ship Society. Internet.
Attachments
Arabia.jpg
100 year stamps gandhi return miniature.jpg
08.01.2015.jpg

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