Convoy HX 70 - warsailors.com

Transcribed from several documents received from Roger Griffiths (Advance Sailing Telegrams and A 1 forms) - His source: Public Records Office, Kew.

The ships are listed in the order in which they appear on the various documents.

Ship

Nationality

Cargo

Station

Destination

Remarks

Bermuda Section (BHX 70) - Sailed Aug. 31

Cape of Good Hope

British

lead - lumber

–

Sharpness

Carelia

"

Tanker W

–

Clyde f. o.

–

Daytonian

"

steel - lumber - wood pulp - general

–

Liverpool?

–

Ensis

"

Tanker W

–

Milford Haven

–

Hird

Norwegian

general

–

Manchester

Sunk by U-65 on Sept. 15
See * in notes

Historian

British

general

–

Manchester

–

Hopetarn

"

lead - lumber - spelter

–

Cardiff

–

Kalypso Vergotti

Greek

phosphates

–

Garston

From HX 69

Regent Lion

British

Tanker W

–

Belfast / Avonmouth

–

Saltwick

"

sugar

–

Belfast f. o.

–

Theodoros Coumantaros

Greek

sugar

–

Liverpool / Clyde

–

Halifax Section

Bosworth

British

steel - scrap

22

Glasgow

From HX 69

Breedijk

Dutch

general

–

Glasgow

–

Hilda Knudsen

Norwegian

Adm. tanker B

–

Clyde

–

Hilary

British

general

51

Liverpool

–

Lorca

"

steel

32

Hull

–

Monkleigh

"

scrap iron

31

Liverpool

–

Silverelm

"

general

71

Liverpool

–

Royal Crown

"

steel

11

Belfast

–

Helle

Norwegian

pulp wood

42

Barrow

–

Trekieve

British

steel

81

Newport

–

West Harshaw

American / MOWT 1940 *

steel

91

Newport

* Became Empire Oryx
later Empire Robin

Urla

British

steel - lumber

–

London

Coryton

"

steel

12

Hull

–

Stigstad

Norwegian

Tanker B
lube oil

72

Manchester

–

Kongsgaard *

"

Tanker B

–

–

* To be held at Halifax
(Listed in HX 76)

Bente Mærsk

Danish / MOWT 1940

Tanker B
crude oil

61

Manchester

From HX 69

Triton

Dutch

general

–

Liverpool

From HX 69

Empire Caribou

British

steel

–

Middlesbrough

Corbis

"

Tanker B
fuel oil - diesel oil

41

Mersey

West Kedron

American / MOWT 1940 *

pig iron

82

Swansea

From HX 69
* Became Empire Eland

Topdalsfjord

Norwegian

phosphates

62

Garston

–

Additionally, the A 1 form lists the following ships (none of these ships are included in the Advance Sailing Telegram):
Botavon (Br.) in station 21, cargo of steel for Glasgow.
Cerinthus (Br.) in station 23, cargo of fuel oil.
Falsterbo (Swedish) in station 52, wood pulp for Liverpool.
Corvus (Norw.) in station 92, lumber for Newport.

Sydney Section - Sailed Sept. 1
(some names are hard to decipher - hence my question marks)

Arosa

Norwegian

pit props

A 61

–

–

Lechistan

Polish

pit props

A 62

Ardrossan

Alderamin

Dutch

general

A 81

Liverpool

–

Augvald

Norwegian

grain

A 52

Newcastle

–

Beaverford?

British

general

A 41

Cardiff

Vice Commodore

Bengore Head?

"

general - grain

A 91

Dublin

–

Europa

Danish / MOWT 1940

general

A 71

Liverpool

–

Rupert de Larrinaga

British

grain

A 51

Manchester

–

Additionally, the A 1 form lists the following ships, none of which are included in the Advance Sailing Telegram for the Sydney section:
In station A 72 - looks like Manchester Division (Br.), general cargo for Manchester.
In station A 92 - looks like Kalliopi S (Greek) with grain for Belfast - cancelled from Convoy SC 3.
In station A 31 - looks like Danby or similar, steel and lumber for London.

Notes:
Commodore was in Hilary.
Commodore to Clyde: In Botavon.
Commodore to Milford Haven: In West Harshaw.

Ocean Escort: HMS Montclare.

* According to my information for Hird, she left Bermuda in convoy on Sept. 7 (not Aug. 31), but lost sight of the convoy due to a fire on board, and never rejoined. See text for Hird

Narrative of voyage by commanding officer of HMS Montclare, dated Sept. 5
Unfortunately the times in the narrative are illegible, so I've only included the details (wherever I've started a new line, a different time is given in the report):

Sept. 1
- Sailed.
- Rounded Red Buoy and set course 116 degrees, 12 knots.
- Cerinthus and Bente Mærsk (both delayed sailing) rounded Red Buoy.
- In station with convoy, speed 6 knots. All closed up except Cerinthus and Bente Mærsk both in sight astern.

Sept. 2
- Thick fog.
- Fog cleared. All ships present except Coryton. Convoy badly out of station. One ship (Corvus) of column 9 was in column 3 and several others two to four columns out. Consider fog signals not made sufficiently frequently.
- Thick fog. D. R. Noon position: 43 39N 60 45W.
- Visibility 3 miles; increased to 7 knots.
- Thick fog.
- Course was altered by sound signal 20 degrees to port in succession.
- Course altered 20 degrees to port by sound signal. Course signalled as 073 degrees (C O).

Sept. 3
- Fog cleared.
- Fog shut down again.
- Fog lifted.
- 8 knots.
- 8 1/2 knots.
- West Kedron and Cerinthus not with convoy.
- Position 17 miles astern of Position 4. Visibility 8 miles.
- Altered course 097 degrees.
- Speed 8 knots. Noon position: 44 01N 57 19W. Visibility 10 miles.
- Patches of fog started.

Sept. 4
- Patches of fog, thick at times.
- Fog cleared - proceeded at 14 knots to search north of convoy for SHX convoy (this was the Sydney section).
- No sign of SHX 70. Ordered Vice Commodore to make callsign at 13:00 (15:00?) GMT(?).
- Rejoined convoy.
- Unable to tell whether bearing 106(?) degrees or ? degrees. As Commodore is sure it was ? degrees, proceeded ahead of convoy at 14 knots. (Noon position is given, but unable to decipher).

The convoy arrived rendezvous on Sept. 13.

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