GLENSPEY was built in 1918 by Harland & Wolff at Belfast
with a tonnage of 6498grt, a length of 412ft 2in, a beam of
55ft 9 in and a service speed of 11 knots. Launched as the War
Music (2) she was acquired by the company in 1919. In 1920 she
was sold to King Line Ltd and renamed King Bleddyn and in 1937
became the Stad Maasluis of Halcyon-Lijn N.V. She was sold yet
again in 1950 to Francescu Pittaluga fu Giacomo of Genoa and
renamed Francescu. On 6th April 1954 she grounded in the River
Schelde at the end of a voyage from Bona to Antwerp with a cargo
of iron, broke in two and was subsequently scrapped.
GLENSHANE was another 'N 1' vessel built
in 1918 by Harland & Wolff at Belfast with a tonnage of
6498grt, a length of 412ft 2in, a beam of 55ft 9in and a service
speed of 11 knots. Launched as the War Dream for the Shipping
Controller she was acquired by Glen Line on 9th January 1919
and remained until 1932 when she was sold to H Makita of Japan.
In 1933 she was renamed Sunshine under the management of F.M.Jonas
of Hong Kong for Kyokko Kaiun K.K. For a short time she reverted
to Glenshane and was sold again in 1934 temporarily being known
as Miltonia before being renamed Chang Lung by owners Ding Mao
Dung of Chefoo, China under the management of Tanaka Shoji K
K of Japan. In 1938 she was sold to Syoru Kisen K K of Dairen
with Tanaka Shoji as managers, renamed Shoryu Maru and then
restyled Syoryu Naru to conform with the Kokutai system of western
translation. On 4th May 1944 she was sunk in the Pacific (20
48N 118 03E) by the US submarine USS Parche.
GLENSANDA, was built in 1918 by Swan,
Hunter & Wigham Richardson at Newcastle with a tonnage of
6625grt, a length of 412ft 2in, a beam of 55ft 9in and a service
speed of 11 knots. Launched as the War Courage she was the only
'N 1' built at that yard although two more were modified before
completion for the Union-Castle Line. Acquired by Glen Line
in 1919 she was sold in 1928 to Meldrum & Swinson Ltd of
London for their Essex Line and renamed Essex Lance. On 16th
October 1943 while participating in convoy SQ.36 (Sydney to
Quebec) she was torpedoed in the Atlantic by U-165.
GLENOGLE
(3) was the first of five ships built in 1920 by Harland &
Wolff at Glasgow with a tonnage of 9513grt, a length of 485ft
8in, a beam of 62ft 3in and a service speed of 12.5 knots. At
the time the class was the largest oil engined ships in the
world and, in all, nine were built with a further three going
to the Royal Mail Line and two to Holland Amerika. In April
1949 she was transferred to Blue Funnel Line and renamed Deucalion
(4) for deployment on the Australia - Far East service. She
was sold to British Iron & Steel Co. for scrap in 1956 and
was delivered to Thos. W Ward's breakers yard on 11th March.
(Photo from the Iain Lovie Collection)
GLENFARNE/GLENAPP
(2) was built in 1920 as Glenfarne by Harland & Wolff at
Glasgow, but delivered as Glenapp, with a tonnage of 9503grt,
a length of 485ft 8in, a beam of 62ft 3in and a service speed
of 12.5 knots. In January 1949 she was the first Glen ship to
be transferred to Blue Funnel Line and renamed Dardanus (4).
She was laid up in 1956 at Holy Loch until being delivered to
the breakers yard of Thos. W. Ward at Inverkeithing on 19th
July 1957. (Photo from the Iain Lovie Collection)
GLENGARRY
(2)/GLENSTRAE (3), the third of the quintet, was launched in
1920 but not delivered until 1922 due to a shortage of materials,
and built by Harland & Wolff at Glasgow with a tonnage of
9640grt, a length of 485ft 6 in a beam of 62ft 3in and a service
speed of 12.5 knots. In November 1922 she grounded in the Whangpo
River but was refloated after discharging her cargo into lighters,
and in 1925 collided with the tug Heathercock owned by the Liverpool
Screw Towing and Lighterage but was not to blame. In March 1939
she was renamed Glenstrae in order to release the name for a
ship being built in Denmark. On 7th September 1940 she received
a direct hit during an air raid on the London Docks. The Japanese
attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941 curtailed her routing
and she was subsequently used on the Australian multi-port service.
In February 1949 she was transferred to Blue Funnel Line and
renamed Dolius (2) and in July 1952, after a collision with
the Gladstone Dock, Liverpool, wall, she suffered serious hull
damage and was subsequently put up for disposal. Acquired by
the British Iron & Steel Co. she was scrapped at the Briton
Ferry yard of Thos.W. Ward later in the same year. (Photo from
the Iain Lovie Collection)
GLENBEG (1), the fourth ship, was launched
on 25th December, 1920, but not completed until 1922 due to
a postwar shortage of materials. She was built by Harland &
Wolff at Glasgow with a tonnage of 9461grt, a length of 485ft
6in, a beam of 62ft 3in and a service speed of 12.5 knots. In
1923 during a voyage from Vladivostock to Copenhagen she grounded
on the coast of Jutland. Original deployed on the Far East run
with an extension to Vladivostock she went world-wide after
the Japanese entered the war in 1941. In March 1949 she was
transferred to the Blue Funnel Line for their secondary Far
East service and renamed Dymas (1). She was laid up for a short
time at Holy Loch during 1952 and on 8th April 1954 arrived
at the yard of W.H. Arnott, Young & Co. at Dalmuir for breaking
up.
GLENSHIEL
(2), the last of the five, was built in 1924 by Harland &
Wolff at Glasgow with a tonnage of 0415grt, a length of 485ft
7in a beam of 62ft 3in and a service tonnage of 12.5 knots.
On 3rd April 1942 during a voyage from Colombo to Fremantle
she was torpedoed by the Japanese submarine I-7 300 miles east
of the Maldive Islands. (Photo from the Iain Lovie Collection)
CARNARVONSHIRE
was built in 1914 by Workman, Clark & Co. at Belfast with
a tonnage of 9406grt, a length of 520ft, a beam of 62ft 4in
and a service speed of 14 knots. She was built for Royal Mail's
Shire Line and was one of seven vessels two of which being the
Glengyle and the Gleniffer. Capable of carrying 12 First Class
passengers in bridge accommodation and up to 1000 emigrants
in 'tween deck dormitories she was, in 1914, used to carry troops
of the China garrison at Chinwangtao to Europe. In May 1917
she carried 1200 US troops to the United Kingdom. She was acquired
by Glen Line in 1933 from Royal Mail Line's Receivers, following
the collapse of the group, as a temporary vessel pending new
buildings, retaining her name. In November 1935 she was sold
under the Scrap and Build scheme to Stephens, Sutton Ltd of
Newcastle to cover their building of two ships, the Rugeley
and the Riley. She was eventually sold for scrap for £20,000
to Amakusa Sangyo Kisen of Japan and was broken up at Osaka
in March 1936.(Photo from the Iain Lovie Collection)
GLENEARN (4) was built in 1930 by Lithgows
Ltd at Port Glasgow with a tonnage of 5348grt, a length of 421ft
3in, a beam of 56ft and a service speed of 14 knots. She was
originally intended for Cia Sud Americana de Vapores of Valparaiso
as the Tolten for South American coastal service but the contract
was never completed. Acquired by Glen Line in 1933 as a temporary
replacement for the Glenshane she was sold to Lowden, Connell
& Co in 1935 and reverted to Tolten. In 1938 she was sold
to Trinder, Anderson & Co., of London for their South American
Saint Line service and in 1941 was owned by South American Saint
Line Ltd with B&S Shipping Co. as managers. War time regulations
prevented a name change. In November 1945 she was renamed St
Merriel (2) after the sister of one of the owners and in December
of the same year while undergoing a refurbishment she had a
fire in the engine room which was contained by the crew for
which eight Lloyd's Silver Medals were awarded. In April 1947
she was fitted out as an exhibition ship to display British
goods in South America an made two voyages in that capacity.
Sold to Aktieb Oceanfart of Helsinki in 1950 she was renamed
Helios and in 1959 she was acquired by Santa Irini Shipping
Co. of Beruit with the name Tassos. On 14th April 1967 she arrived
at the yard of Leung Yau Co. in Hong Kong for breaking up.
GLENFINLAS (2) was built in 1917 by
Hawthorn, Leslie & Co at Newcastle with a tonnage of 7601grt,
a length of 455ft 3in, a beam of 56ft 3in and a service speed
of 12 knots. She was completed for the China Mutual S.N. Co.
as the Elpenor and in 1918 was used as a repatriation troopship
between Liverpool and Dublin. In 1922 she was in collision with
Nippon Yusen Kaisha's ship Inaba Maru at Kobe. She was transferred
to Glen Line in April 1935 as the Glenfinlas to replace the
Glenearn (4). On 16th April 1941 she was damaged by bombs and
machine gun fire in the North Sea off Harwich during which 9
crew were killed. During the North African 'Torch' landings
at Bougie Harbour on 12th November 1942 she was damaged by bombs
and allowed to sink in shallow water where she remained until
July 1943 when she was raised and managed to take her remaining
cargo of aviation spirit to Oran. Unfortunately, a vapour explosion
killed two US soldiers. Leaving for the UK she was in collision
and suffered bow damage which was repaired at Sunderland the
following October. In April 1947 she was renamed Elpenor under
the Blue Funnel banner but in August 1950 was transferred back
to Glen Line as the Glenfinlas. She was broken up in 1952 and
the Blyth yard of Hughes, Bolckow.
GLENAFFRIC (1) was built in 1920 by
Caledon S.B. Co. at Dundee with a tonnage of 7806grt, a length
of 459ft 2in, a beam of 56ft 3in and a service speed of 11 knots.
She was completed as the Machaon (2) for the Blue Funnel Line
and was transferred to Glen Line in 1935. On 4th October 1942
she was narrowly missed by a torpedo 240 miles south of Karachi.
In September 1947 she was transferred back to Blue Funnel as
the Machaon but returned to Glen in January 1950 as Glenaffric.
She was sold in 1951 to BISCO for £55,000 for breaking
up at the Briton Ferry yard of Thos. W Ward.
FLINTSHIRE (1) was built in 1923 by
Workman, Clark & Co. at Belfast with a tonnage of 7823grt,
a length of 459ft 5in, a beam of 58ft 4in and a service speed
of 11 knots. She was built for the Blue Funnel Line as the Dardanus
(3) and transferred to Glen Line in 1935 as the Flintshire reverting
back to Blue Funnel as the Dardanus in 1939. On 5th April 1942
she was bombed by Japanese carrier based aircraft of Vizagapatnam,
India and taken in tow by the Gandara of the British India Line.
On the following day both ships were shelled by three Japanese
cruisers and sunk. Nine of the Gandara's crew were killed but
all of the crew of the Dardanus took to the lifeboats and managed
to reach safety.
RADNORSHIRE
(1) was built in 1923 by Caledon SB & E Co. at Dundee with
a tonnage of 7777grt, a length of 458ft 3in, a beam of 58ft
2in and a service speed of 12 knots.. She was built for the
Blue Funnel Line as the Tantalus, transferred to Glen Line in
1936 as Radnorshire, and reverted back to Blue Funnel as Tantalus
in 1939. On 5th December 1941 she was in Hong Kong undergoing
engine repairs when the Japanese attacked. She was towed to
Manila which at that time was under aerial bombardment so, on
25th December, was moved to the Bataan anchorage. On the following
she was set on fire and sunk following an air attach and her
crew became prisoners of war when Manila fell. (Photo from the
Iain Lovie Collection)
GLENEARN
(5) was built in 1938 by Caledon SB & DD Co. at Dundee with
a tonnage of 9784grt, a length of 507ft, a beam of 66fy 4ins
and a service speed of 18 knots. She was the first of eight
ships of the Glenearn class and prototype of over thirty Alfred
Holt Group ships. In September 1939 she was used to carry troops
and supplies to France and in October of that year was acquired
by the Admiralty for conversion into a fast Fleet Supply Ship,
her role being to carry ammunition and fuel to secret Atlantic
squadrons formed to search out and destroy German raiders such
as the Graf Spee. During 1940 she was recalled and converted
into an Infantry Assault Ship her lifeboats being replaced with
12 small Landing Craft. She also carried two 50ft Landing Craft
which were launched by the derricks. In April 1941 she arrived
in the Mediterranean with the Glengyle and on 19th-20th at Bardia,
Cyrenaica made the first ever Commando assault from specialised
ships. On 22nd April, while assisting in the evacuation of Greece.
she received a direct hit on the f'c'sle but remained operational
and on 26th April, when south of Nauplia, two near misses unseated
her machinery. She completed her mission but had to be towed
to Crete by the destroyer, HMS Griffin, and then to Alexandria.The
evacuation force consisted of 45 ships made up of 6 cruisers,
19 destroyers, 3 corvettes, 6 landing craft plus the three Glens
Glenearn, Glengyle and Glenroy, and 8 merchantmen of which 3
were lost. They had negligible air cover but managed to carry
50,672 troops back to Egypt. For safety reasons the Glenearn
passed through the Suez Canal and at the Red Sea end was hit
by the burning Georgic and had to go to Colombo for repairs.
In mid 1942 she returned to the United Kingdom and was fitted
with luffing davits so as to handle larger Landing Craft and
in 1943 was assigned to the Normandy landings and participated
in the rehearsal exercises. On 6th June 1944 she fulfilled the
role of a Landing Ship Infantry (Large) and carried troops to
Normandy. In 1945 she was sent to the Far East to join the Pacific
Fleet and in April of that year was damaged by a fuel explosion
and, consequently, went to Sydney for repairs. At the end of
the war she went to Hainan Island and recovered 700 POW's and
took them to Hong Kong. In July 1946 she was released back to
Glen Line and underwent a twelve month re-conversion before
returning to the Far East route in December 1947. On 11th December
1970 she arrived at Koahsiung for breaking up. (Photo: C. H.
Solomon)
GLENOGLE
(3) was the first of five ships built in 1920 by Harland &
Wolff at Glasgow with a tonnage of 9513grt, a length of 485ft
8in, a beam of 62ft 3in and a service speed of 12.5 knots. At
the time the class was the largest oil engined ships in the
world and, in all, nine were built with a further three going
to the Royal Mail Line and two to Holland Amerika. In April
1949 she was transferred to Blue Funnel Line and renamed Deucalion
(4) for deployment on the Australia - Far East service. She
was sold to British Iron & Steel Co. for scrap in 1956 and
was delivered to Thos. W Ward's breakers yard on 11th March.
(Photo from the Iain Lovie Collection) 
GLENFARNE/GLENAPP
(2) was built in 1920 as Glenfarne by Harland & Wolff at
Glasgow, but delivered as Glenapp, with a tonnage of 9503grt,
a length of 485ft 8in, a beam of 62ft 3in and a service speed
of 12.5 knots. In January 1949 she was the first Glen ship to
be transferred to Blue Funnel Line and renamed Dardanus (4).
She was laid up in 1956 at Holy Loch until being delivered to
the breakers yard of Thos. W. Ward at Inverkeithing on 19th
July 1957. (Photo from the Iain Lovie Collection) 
GLENGARRY
(2)/GLENSTRAE (3), the third of the quintet, was launched in
1920 but not delivered until 1922 due to a shortage of materials,
and built by Harland & Wolff at Glasgow with a tonnage of
9640grt, a length of 485ft 6 in a beam of 62ft 3in and a service
speed of 12.5 knots. In November 1922 she grounded in the Whangpo
River but was refloated after discharging her cargo into lighters,
and in 1925 collided with the tug Heathercock owned by the Liverpool
Screw Towing and Lighterage but was not to blame. In March 1939
she was renamed Glenstrae in order to release the name for a
ship being built in Denmark. On 7th September 1940 she received
a direct hit during an air raid on the London Docks. The Japanese
attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941 curtailed her routing
and she was subsequently used on the Australian multi-port service.
In February 1949 she was transferred to Blue Funnel Line and
renamed Dolius (2) and in July 1952, after a collision with
the Gladstone Dock, Liverpool, wall, she suffered serious hull
damage and was subsequently put up for disposal. Acquired by
the British Iron & Steel Co. she was scrapped at the Briton
Ferry yard of Thos.W. Ward later in the same year. (Photo from
the Iain Lovie Collection) 
GLENSHIEL
(2), the last of the five, was built in 1924 by Harland &
Wolff at Glasgow with a tonnage of 0415grt, a length of 485ft
7in a beam of 62ft 3in and a service tonnage of 12.5 knots.
On 3rd April 1942 during a voyage from Colombo to Fremantle
she was torpedoed by the Japanese submarine I-7 300 miles east
of the Maldive Islands. (Photo from the Iain Lovie Collection)
CARNARVONSHIRE
was built in 1914 by Workman, Clark & Co. at Belfast with
a tonnage of 9406grt, a length of 520ft, a beam of 62ft 4in
and a service speed of 14 knots. She was built for Royal Mail's
Shire Line and was one of seven vessels two of which being the
Glengyle and the Gleniffer. Capable of carrying 12 First Class
passengers in bridge accommodation and up to 1000 emigrants
in 'tween deck dormitories she was, in 1914, used to carry troops
of the China garrison at Chinwangtao to Europe. In May 1917
she carried 1200 US troops to the United Kingdom. She was acquired
by Glen Line in 1933 from Royal Mail Line's Receivers, following
the collapse of the group, as a temporary vessel pending new
buildings, retaining her name. In November 1935 she was sold
under the Scrap and Build scheme to Stephens, Sutton Ltd of
Newcastle to cover their building of two ships, the Rugeley
and the Riley. She was eventually sold for scrap for £20,000
to Amakusa Sangyo Kisen of Japan and was broken up at Osaka
in March 1936.(Photo from the Iain Lovie Collection) 
RADNORSHIRE
(1) was built in 1923 by Caledon SB & E Co. at Dundee with
a tonnage of 7777grt, a length of 458ft 3in, a beam of 58ft
2in and a service speed of 12 knots.. She was built for the
Blue Funnel Line as the Tantalus, transferred to Glen Line in
1936 as Radnorshire, and reverted back to Blue Funnel as Tantalus
in 1939. On 5th December 1941 she was in Hong Kong undergoing
engine repairs when the Japanese attacked. She was towed to
Manila which at that time was under aerial bombardment so, on
25th December, was moved to the Bataan anchorage. On the following
she was set on fire and sunk following an air attach and her
crew became prisoners of war when Manila fell. (Photo from the
Iain Lovie Collection) 
GLENEARN
(5) was built in 1938 by Caledon SB & DD Co. at Dundee with
a tonnage of 9784grt, a length of 507ft, a beam of 66fy 4ins
and a service speed of 18 knots. She was the first of eight
ships of the Glenearn class and prototype of over thirty Alfred
Holt Group ships. In September 1939 she was used to carry troops
and supplies to France and in October of that year was acquired
by the Admiralty for conversion into a fast Fleet Supply Ship,
her role being to carry ammunition and fuel to secret Atlantic
squadrons formed to search out and destroy German raiders such
as the Graf Spee. During 1940 she was recalled and converted
into an Infantry Assault Ship her lifeboats being replaced with
12 small Landing Craft. She also carried two 50ft Landing Craft
which were launched by the derricks. In April 1941 she arrived
in the Mediterranean with the Glengyle and on 19th-20th at Bardia,
Cyrenaica made the first ever Commando assault from specialised
ships. On 22nd April, while assisting in the evacuation of Greece.
she received a direct hit on the f'c'sle but remained operational
and on 26th April, when south of Nauplia, two near misses unseated
her machinery. She completed her mission but had to be towed
to Crete by the destroyer, HMS Griffin, and then to Alexandria.The
evacuation force consisted of 45 ships made up of 6 cruisers,
19 destroyers, 3 corvettes, 6 landing craft plus the three Glens
Glenearn, Glengyle and Glenroy, and 8 merchantmen of which 3
were lost. They had negligible air cover but managed to carry
50,672 troops back to Egypt. For safety reasons the Glenearn
passed through the Suez Canal and at the Red Sea end was hit
by the burning Georgic and had to go to Colombo for repairs.
In mid 1942 she returned to the United Kingdom and was fitted
with luffing davits so as to handle larger Landing Craft and
in 1943 was assigned to the Normandy landings and participated
in the rehearsal exercises. On 6th June 1944 she fulfilled the
role of a Landing Ship Infantry (Large) and carried troops to
Normandy. In 1945 she was sent to the Far East to join the Pacific
Fleet and in April of that year was damaged by a fuel explosion
and, consequently, went to Sydney for repairs. At the end of
the war she went to Hainan Island and recovered 700 POW's and
took them to Hong Kong. In July 1946 she was released back to
Glen Line and underwent a twelve month re-conversion before
returning to the Far East route in December 1947. On 11th December
1970 she arrived at Koahsiung for breaking up. (Photo: C. H.
Solomon) 
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