BJanman Posted 13 January , 2007 Share Posted 13 January , 2007 Hi Does anybody know if a hospital ship existed called HMHT Dunluer Castle? I have a letter from a lady trying to trace her Grandfather who served in the RAMC. The lady states that all she has is a postcard written by him to her mum and on it is written HMHT DUNLUER CASTLE and sent from Marseilles, France with the words printed in red British Red Cross & Order of St John. I do not appear to have any information on this ship at all, and I cannot find any reference to it being mentioned on this site before either when I did a search. At first I wondered if it might be Dunluce Castle, but that ship served in Gallipoli/East Africa area. Many thanks Barbara Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
historydavid Posted 13 January , 2007 Share Posted 13 January , 2007 Barbara, I can't find any mention of the Dunluer Castle. The Dunluce Castle was in the Eastern Med on 23 Feb 1917 when she was stopped by a U-boat for checking of her papers. It doesn't seem unreasonable to suppose that she was also employed in the Western Med as well if the need arose. Best wishes David Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BJanman Posted 14 January , 2007 Author Share Posted 14 January , 2007 Hello David Thank you for your reply. It did cross my mind that The Dunluce Castle may have sailed from the Eastern Med to the Western. I have it recorded that she served from July 1915 - April 1919 and a copy of a personal diary that places her travelling to Mudros in 1915. So if you have details that places her in the Eastern Med in 1917 then she would have gone to the Western Med towards the end of the war, presumably. I'll have to see if I can find any info on that. Thanks again for your help. Barbara Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wayne Saillard Posted 14 January , 2007 Share Posted 14 January , 2007 Hello Barbara ! I do not know if this helps, but the Dunluce Castle made a number of trips from Gallipoli to the central Mediterranean during 1915 with sick and wounded troops destined for hospitals on Malta. Although some hospital ships then proceeded to England via Gibraltar, I am not in a position to comment on this particular ship. Perhaps someone more knowledgeable than me can enlighten you further. While on the subject of the Dunluce Castle, has anyone seen a photograph of her in hospital ship livery ? Regards Wayne Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Gilinsky Posted 14 January , 2007 Share Posted 14 January , 2007 Wayne: yes there are some official bw postcards of the Dunluce Castle as a hospital ship circa 1915-1916. The National Archives at Kew also have official papers from the ship both as logbooks and others. John Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doc2 Posted 14 January , 2007 Share Posted 14 January , 2007 According to Plumridge, "Hospital ships and Ambulance Trains", the Dunluce Castle was in service 6 July 1915-2 Apr 1919. At some time (dates not given), she was suppporting a campaign in East Africa ("Among the hospital ships present in the campaign in East Africa were the Dunluce Castle.....). Doc2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wayne Saillard Posted 14 January , 2007 Share Posted 14 January , 2007 Hello John ! Thank you for that information. Would you happen to have one of these postcards ? If so, could I please ask if you might email a high resolution scan to me ? Thanks & regards Wayne Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BJanman Posted 14 January , 2007 Author Share Posted 14 January , 2007 Hi Thanks Wayne, John and Doc2 for your help. Wayne, I am planing to go to The National Archive shortly, in fact I've been itching to get there since Nov but things keep cropping up which have stopped me, when I do I will look up info on the Dunluce Castle and email to you, if you still need it by then. Barbara Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kath Posted 14 January , 2007 Share Posted 14 January , 2007 John Gilinsky:"The National Archives at Kew also have official papers from the ship both as logbooks and others". John, can you give the Reference No. for these? Kath. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wayne Saillard Posted 15 January , 2007 Share Posted 15 January , 2007 Hello Barbara, Glad to have been of some small assistance. Thank you for you kind offer to look up the documents in the Nataional Archives. It is greatly appreciated. Regards Wayne Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter Beckett Posted 15 January , 2007 Share Posted 15 January , 2007 Barbara, Dunluce Castle Pic of the ship at this webpage Peter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Esskay Posted 15 January , 2007 Share Posted 15 January , 2007 There is an interesting webpage I stumbled on this afternoon that confirms the Dunluce Castle made at least one voyage as a hospital ship from Malta to England. The webpage is a copy of a diary written by John Evan Adlard and donated to the Australian War Memorial - it makes fascinating reading all through: http://users.chariot.net.au/~cadlard/shoestring.htm The period in question is- (they were in Malta) 10/10/15 Parade 1000 for clothes and 1330 for departure in motor, a drive for some miles past everlasting stone walls and cuttings and small harbours, shops, houses and goats, thro an arch allowing about 3 inches each side to spare to the main dockyard and then aboard a Hospital Ship. BOUND FOR ENGLAND. Note: routine S.S. Dunluce Castle: 0700 Breakfast - eggs, porridge 0900 Doctor 1100 Medical Officer in charge Inspection (a stuck up pig this Major) 1200 Lunch - soup, meat, pudding 1700 Tea - eggs, bread and butter, tea 1900 Supper - cocoa, bread and butter 2030 in bed 2100 lights out 17/10/15 Sunday. Very calm. Church: First Class Saloon 1030. Very nice service. The food on board is very short. The bread horrible. Uneatable! 19/10/15 ARRIVE ENGLAND (JEA doesn't mention which port) Fearfully cold, no sun. Off ship 0930. Board Hospital Train 1130 for Waterloo Station (London). Taken off train at Clapham Junction and sent to 3rd London General Hospital, Wandsworth. Grand tucker at last Cheers Sue Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wayne Saillard Posted 15 January , 2007 Share Posted 15 January , 2007 Hello Sue ! Thank you for posting that information. I am currently researching a serviceman who was evacuated from Gallipoli aboard the DUNLUCE CASTLE on 22 September 1915, arriving Malta on the 27th. From the diary entries on the link you kindly gave, the ship must have made one more return trip to Gallipoli and back to Malta where it collected John Evan Adlard etc on 10 October for the voyage to England. I notice that John Evan Adlard mentions being taken to St Andrew's Hospital on Malta, and thought you might like the attached photograph. Regards Wayne Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BJanman Posted 15 January , 2007 Author Share Posted 15 January , 2007 Hello Peter Thank you for the link to the picture of The Dunluce Castle. I've noticed it is described as HMAT as opposed to HMHT, which the lady transcribed from the post card. I will ask her if she minds sending me a copy of the postcard. A good picture of HMHS Letitia as well. Hello Sue Thank you for the link to the diary. I wonder if The Dunluce Castle went on to France before returning to the East then. Hopefully I'll get a copy of the postcard and it will have a stamp date. I'll let you all know. Many thanks Barbara Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wayne Saillard Posted 15 January , 2007 Share Posted 15 January , 2007 Hello Barbara, What I find interesting is that, although there is a postcard of her identified as H.M.A.T., I have been unable to find her in the Australian embarkation rolls. Regards Wayne Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
historydavid Posted 16 January , 2007 Share Posted 16 January , 2007 To try to clarify hospital ship nomenclature. Put simply: HMHS - Hospital Ship (unarmed, fully illuminated). Only allowed to carry patients (normally seriously wounded who would normally require ongoing treatment such as surgery etc.). HMHT - Hospital Transport (usually armed). Allowed to carry war materials as well as wounded (normally these would be recovering patients who would only require nursing care). Sometimes referred to as HMAT. Best wishes David Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wayne Saillard Posted 16 January , 2007 Share Posted 16 January , 2007 Hello David ! Thank you for the clarification on hospital ship nomenclature. I was under the impression that H.M.A.T. stood for His Majesty's AUSTRALIAN Transport. Using your input, would I be correct as interpreting it to also stand for His Majesty's AUXILIARY Transport ? Regards Wayne Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Morcombe Posted 16 January , 2007 Share Posted 16 January , 2007 Here are some notes I made referencing ships transporting RND casualties:- HS "DUNLUCE CASTLE" 20/6/15 at Mudros, arrived Alex. 3/7/15: 3/7/15 at Alex. from Cape Helles: 12/8/15 arrives Malta from Mudros/C.Helles: 23/12/15 arrives Alex. from Cape Helles: 26/12/15 leaves Alex. to transport Cases to “Brittanic” at Mudros: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BJanman Posted 17 January , 2007 Author Share Posted 17 January , 2007 Hello David and Wayne The caption to the picture Peter gave a link to did describe The Dunluce Castle as 'HM Australian Transport' whereas the picture of the Letitia is titled Hospital Ship. I have a copy of the personal diary of a Sister who served on the Dunluce Castle from 26-8-15 to the 30-8-15 when she changed onto the hospital carrier TPS Hunsend, she refers to The Dunluce Castle as HMHS, a hosptial ship. Plumridge also describes it as a Hospital Ship. As there is a clear difference between HMHS and HMHT or HMAT I've become somewhat confused. The sister took a photo of the Dunluce Castle leaving the Hunsend, which I've just zoomed in on and I cannot see a red cross or anything else on it that would make it stand out as a hospital ship. However, the Sister also served on the Aquitania, she states that "work on the Aquitania was much the same as the others until she became a hosptial ship & more fully equipped". Could it be possible then that the Dunluce Castle started as hospital transport but changed to a hospital ship? Barbara Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
historydavid Posted 17 January , 2007 Share Posted 17 January , 2007 Barbara, On 11th February 1915 the Dunluce Castle was requisitioned to transport troops to Africa, but was released and another vessel substituted (from Hurd, OH Merchant Navy). It is therefore safe to assume that at this date she was in normal service. Although I have no further record, it is quite possible that she was taken up again and used as a Hospital Transport prior to her conversion into a fully fledged Hospital Ship. The term Hospital Transport is often confused with Hospital Ship and many authors, who should know better, refer only to Hospital Ships. In my previous post I stated that Hospital Transports (HMHT) were sometimes referred to as HMAT. Whilst this is unfortunately true, it causes confusion, because HMAT is also used to describe regular Australian Transports. Best wishes David Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Gilinsky Posted 17 January , 2007 Share Posted 17 January , 2007 Hello John ! Thank you for that information. Would you happen to have one of these postcards ? If so, could I please ask if you might email a high resolution scan to me ? Thanks & regards Wayne Wayne: My apologies but basically I am geting ready to move and almost all my historical stuff including the pcs that I think I bought many years ago( over 10! ) of this particular hs are packed away. Try the Imperial War Museum or the Natioanal Maritime Museum (I believe both have now fairly extensive online collections search functions). Sorry I could not help you out this time. From across the big pond! John Toronto Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Gilinsky Posted 17 January , 2007 Share Posted 17 January , 2007 Hello Peter Thank you for the link to the picture of The Dunluce Castle. I've noticed it is described as HMAT as opposed to HMHT, which the lady transcribed from the post card. I will ask her if she minds sending me a copy of the postcard. A good picture of HMHS Letitia as well. Hello Sue Thank you for the link to the diary. I wonder if The Dunluce Castle went on to France before returning to the East then. Hopefully I'll get a copy of the postcard and it will have a stamp date. I'll let you all know. Many thanks Barbara HMAT = His Majesty's Ambulance Transport Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Gilinsky Posted 17 January , 2007 Share Posted 17 January , 2007 Record Summary Scope and content Hospital Ship, Dunluce Castle Covering dates 1917 Jan. - 1919 Apr. Availability Open Document, Open Description, Normal Closure before FOI Act: 30 years Held by The National Archives, Kew This of course is the official war diary or official copy of same for this hospital ship in the latter years of the war at Kew (as per requested). For the former Board of Trade (later Ministry of Transport) see: Transport Dunluce Castle. Military Commanding Officer's Voyage Report Cape Town to Southampton; remarks regarding `Horse Fittings'. `Drainage', `Ventilation' etc. 1914 MT 23/408 Collision of S.S. Dunluce Castle with S.S. Neuralia. Masters' report, responsibility for damage. 1915 MT 23/485 Hospital Ship Dunluce Castle. Details of personnel and stores conveyed to Salonica. 1916 These are the most obvious: there are probably other buried records at Kew as well. Hope this steers you in the right direction. Many if not most of the merchant marine or RNVR men and officers would have been her peacetime crew and most probably served throughout the war. John from across the big pond! Toronto Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Gilinsky Posted 17 January , 2007 Share Posted 17 January , 2007 Sorry to forget the official archival citation: W.O. 95 / 4143 Lines of Communication War Diaries WWI Dunluce Castle 1917 1919 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BJanman Posted 17 January , 2007 Author Share Posted 17 January , 2007 Thank you David, you have really helped. Barbara Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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