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SS City of Benares
The City of Benares was a passenger ship, the largest of Ellerman's City built in 1936 for service between England and India. On Friday, September 13, 1940, she sailed from Liverpool in a convoy of nineteen ships bound for Canada. She carried 406 crew and passengers including 101 adults and 90 children being evacuated to Canada by the Children's Overseas Reception Board.
Four days, 600 miles out to sea, the destroyer HMS Winchelsea and two sloops, who had been escorting the convoy, departed to meet eastbound Convoy HX71. Despite a standing order to disperse the convoy and let all ships proceed on their own, Rear Admiral Mackinnon delayed the order. Shortly after 10pm the City of Benares was torpedoed by Uboat, U-48.
The order to abandon City of Benares was given but due to rough conditions and Force 5 winds, lowering the boats was difficult and several capsized. Two hundred and forty five lives were lost either from drowning or exposure. Rescue did not arrive until 14:15 the following afternoon when HMS Hurricane arrived on the scene and rescued 105 survivors.
Only 13 of the children survived, 6 of whom spent seven days in a live boat before being rescued by HMS Anthony. The Evacuation Overseas scheme was eventually abandoned, one positive result of the tragedy was the decision to have all convoys accompanied by rescue escorts
The Children's Overseas Reception Board had safely evacuated 2 664 children, 1532 to Canada, 576 to Australia, 353 to South Africa and 203 to New Zealand and it is believed that another 11000 children went by private arrangement, over 6000 to Canada and the remainder to the United States.
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Those known to have sailed in SS City of Benares during the Second World War 1939-1945. The names on this list have been submitted by relatives, friends, neighbours and others who wish to remember them, if you have any names to add or any recollections or photos of those listed,
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Records of SS City of Benares from other sources.
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Want to know more about SS City of Benares ? There are:0 items tagged SS City of Benares available in our Library
These include information on officers, regimental histories, letters, diary entries, personal accounts and information about actions during the Second World War. |
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Ronald Cooper Ronald Cooper was a member of the crew of the SS City of Benares.
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Bohdan Nagorski Bohdan Nagorski was a member of the crew of the SS City of Benares which was lost on 13th of September 1940.
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Nurse. Marion Dick Buchanan (d.18th Sep 1940) Marion Dick Buchanan. First Aid Nursing Yeomanry. age 21 died on 18 Sep 1940 when the SS City of Benares was lost enroute to Canada from the UK.
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