Projecting an illusion of floating in a calm ocean without even a ripple to indicate her gentle approach, the HMS Ranchi nears what possibly is the Fremantle Harbour in Western Australia, in this photo produced by Allen Charles Green in 1948-53.
Named after the yesteryear town of Ranchi in India, the HMS Ranchi was a R-Class Steam Ocean liner built to ferry passengers and their belongings from England to India via the Suez Canal. During World War II, she was an armed merchant vessel assigned to transport troops and equipment, sometimes without the protection of formidable warships.
Where the HMS Ranchi was built.
The HMS Ranchi was constructed at the 537 Newcastle-upon-Tyne yard by English shipbuilders Hawthorn, Leslie & Company. The ship was 174 meters in length and factory fitted with twin screws and two quadruple-expansion steam engines capable of generating 15000 ihp.
Furthermore, she was capable of generating a top speed of 17 knots and was among the first to offer refrigerated spaces for the transportation of perishable commodities. Her spacious interior was large enough to comfortably accommodate 953 people, including a crew of 366 personnel. Her cargo hold was some 9,744 cubic metres.
HMS Ranchi, Bombay-England Mail Service.
The HMS Ranchi had begun her maritime career with the Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company in 1925. This steam navigation company was a successful maritime venture. It was founded in 1837 and was in business for 163 years.
In the year 2000, however, the company had relinquished its holdings and commercial interests to the British-American Luxury Cruise provider, the Carnival Corporation, and the Danish shipping giant, Maersk Line.
The Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company had purchased the HMS Ranchi for £ 919,080 and commissioned her to serve alongside her sisters, the HMS Ranpura, the HMS Rawalpindi and the HMS Rajputana. All four ships were part of the yesteryear Bombay-England mail service that connected harbours at London and Southampton with Bombay.
HMS Ranchi, an Armed Merchant Ship.
The HMS Ranchi was commissioned into the Royal Navy on the 27th of August in 1939 – four days before Germany had invaded Poland on the 1st of September in 1939.
Requisitioned by the British Admiralty to serve as an armed merchant vessel, she was refitted for combat duties at the Bombay Harbour. Here, her after funnel was removed and her decks equipped with a pair of 3-inch and 8 six-inch guns.
In the October of 1939, she had sailed for active service with the East Indies Station, a squadron of the British Navy patrolling the Indian Ocean. Later she had served with the British Eastern Fleet on escort and patrol duties – a tour that had lasted till 1943 and had her clocking a total of 300,000 miles of sailing time.
On the 16th of March in 1943, she had docked at Southampton to be refitted for her new role as a troop transport. She was assigned to operate in the Middle East and in the Mediterranean arena, and had later participated in the allied invasion of Italy.
In 1943, while serving as the flagship of an eastbound convoy, she had come close to being hit by an enemy bomb, near Benghazi. The bomb, however, having been deflected by the wirespan of her forecastle had fallen through a troop’s latrine without exploding.
Transporting the 407th Air Division.
A passage from the historical book, Chinese America (History and Perspectives), reveals the HMS Ranchi to be the transport ship that ferried the American 407th Air Division to Burma in 1944.
On this voyage she was filled to maximum capacity. Soldiers and officers had not only occupied her first and second-class compartments but also used her polished floors for sleep. The living conditions on board was much worse for the ship’s own East Indies Crew, especially those of the lowest ranks.
Furthermore, during the voyage, the showers on board the ship had provided the salt water of the sea for baths and the troops on board were fed with only two meals a day. The morning meal had comprised of salted fish, biscuits, margarine and tea. The evening meal was watery stew, sausages and biscuits.
While navigating the Mediterranean, she was spotted by a German reconnaissance plane and fearing an assault had assembled the troops on deck in full gear, in anticipation of having to abandon ship.
Last years of service of the HMS Ranchi.
After her service in the Mediterranean and Middle East, the HMS Ranchi was assigned to participate in the liberation of Malaya from Japanese hold. Though she was prepped up to blockade a Malayan river, the surrender of the Japanese army on the 2nd of September in 1945, however, had dissolved her last mission and brought her military service to an end.
On the 18th of July in 1947, she was derequisitioned by the British Admiralty and returned to the Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company to be refitted and reequipped to serve as an emigrant ship ferrying passengers both home bound and to new destinations.
Farbound.Net Digital Wallpaper: The HMS Ranchi, R-Class Steam Ocean Liner and Armed Merchant Vessel, 1925-1957 ad.
Dismantling of the HMS Ranchi.
On the 7th of January 1953, a year after the ship had suffered from a fire accident near Sydney Harbour, it was sold off to the salvage company, British Iron and Steel Corporation for £ 200,000. The ship was handed over to the salvage company on the 19th of January in 1953, and dismantled shortly afterwards.
During her twenty seven years at sea, the Ranchi sailed over 600, 000 miles of salty waters with military duties alone making up 386,000 miles. As an armed merchant ship, she ferried some 54,711 troops over 86,000 miles and as an emigrant ship, transported a total of 925 emigrant passengers to Australia and later from Jakarta to Amsterdam, between 1947-52.
The Photo.
This photo is archived with the State Library of Victoria in Melbourne, Australia. The original caption attached with the photo reads:
P&O SN Co passenger steamship Ranchi, built by Hawthorn, Leslie & Co at Hebburn, England in 1925 and scrapped at Newport, Monmouthshire in 1953. She served as an armed merchant cruiser 1939–43 and a troop ship 1943–47. She was built with two funnels but when she was refitted in 1947 her after funnel was removed. After her refit she served as an emigrant ship.
Allen Charles Green was a professional portrait photographer by trade, yet one whose love for naval ships led to a vast collection of war and sail ship photos, mostly in the black and white medium. Born on the 21 of December in 1878 in Daylesford, Green owned a photo studio in Victoria and worked as a commercial photographer. He passed away on the 25th of April in 1954.
Out of the four sister ships of the England-Bombay mail service, only the HMS Ranchi and the HMS Rangpura survived the war.
I F I This is an Independent Story produced to highlight this Vintage Photo of the HMS Ranchi by photographer Allen C. Green. The story also sheds light on the history of the HMS Ranchi and a bit on photographer Allen C. Green. It has been created from facts curated from literary and historical sources. I
