KENILWORTH
CASTLE (2) was built in 1904 by Harland & Wolff at Belfast
with a tonnage of 12275grt, a length of 570ft 2in, a beam of
64ft 8in and a service speed of 17.5 knots. Sister of the Armadale
Castle she entered service in May 1904 and in August 1914 she
was requisitioned by the Admiralty for troopship duties. On
4th June 1918 she was proceeding up the English Channel in convoy
when she was in collision with the destroyer HMS Rival. A number
of the destroyer's depth charges went overboard and exploded
under the stern of the Kenilworth Castle but she managed to
limp safely into Plymouth. Fifteen men were drowned when two
lifeboats were swamped. In 1919 she was quarantined for three
weeks in Table Bay due to an influenza epidemic in South Africa.
She was broken up in 1936. (Photo: from UCPSC 22/143)
CLUNY
CASTLE (3) was built in 1903 by Barclay, Curle & Co. at
Glasgow with a tonnage of 5147grt, a length of 419ft 1in, a
beam of 50ft 2in and a service speed of 12 knots. Sister of
the Comrie Castle she was used as an extra steamer when she
entered service in September 1903 operating through to Mauritius
where she generally loaded sugar. Both vessels were noted for
their 'cork-screwing' in a head sea and were the only passenger
ships built for the company without any rake. In 1924 she was
transferred to the company's subsidiary company Bullard, King
& Co's Natal Line and renamed Umkuzi and given a taller
funnel. She was finally broken up in 1939.
(Photo: Ship Society of South Africa)
COMRIE CASTLE was built in 1903 by Barclay,
Curle & Co. at Glasgow with a tonnage of 5167grt, a length
of 419ft 1in, a beam of 50ft 2in and a service speed of 12 knots.
Sister of the Cluny Castle she shared the same peculiarities
and was similarly employed as an extra steamer operating through
to Mauritius. During the First World War she spent most of her
time operating as a troopship. In 1924 she was transferred to
the company's subsidiary company Bullard, King & Co's Natal
Line and renamed Umvoti. During 1940 she was requisitioned by
the Admiralty and sunk as a block ship in Folkestone Harbour,
the wreck was removed in 1943 in preparation for 'D' day.
DOVER
CASTLE (2) was built in 1904 by Barclay, Curle & Co. at
Glasgow with a tonnage of 8271grt, a length of 476ft 5in, a
beam of 56ft 8in and a service speed of 14 knots. She was built
for the Intermediate service but in 1910 was transferred to
the London-Cape-Mombasa run. On 11th August 1915 she was commissioned
as a hospital ship for 607 patients plus cots. Two years later,
on 17th May 1917, she was torpedoed by UC-67 north of Bone in
the Mediterranean whilst on a voyage from Bone-Malta-Gibraltar.
All 632 patients were saved with most of them being transferred
to the British India hospital ship Karapara. The wallowing derelict
was then sunk by a torpedo fired from an escorting vessel. (Photo:
UCPSC 14/20)
DUNLUCE
CASTLE (2) was built in 1904 by Harland & Wolff at Belfast
with a tonnage of 8114grt, a length of 475ft 5in, a beam of
56ft 8in and a service speed of 14 knots. Sister of the Dover
Castle she was built for the Intermediate service and in January
1910 undertook the first London-Cape-Delgoa Bay- Mombasa sailing.
In August 1914 she became a troopship and took part in the famous
six ship Union-Castle convoy which brought 4000 troops to Europe.
She was commissioned as a hospital ship for 755 patients on
6th July 1915 and at Gallipoli and Mudros acted as transfer
ship to White Star's Britannic before going to East Africa for
duty with the Indian Government. In 1916 she was back in the
Mediterranean for service which included voyages from the Adriatic
to North Africa with wounded Serbs. On 23rd February 1917 she
was stopped by a U-boat and after checking that she was complying
with the Hague Convention was allowed to proceed. She returned
to commercial service on 2nd April 1919 and resumed her original
run until 1931 when she was transferred to the Round Africa
service. In July 1939 she was sold for breaking up but acquired
by the Admiralty for use as an accommodation ship for small
vessels first in the River Humber and then at Scapa Flow. She
was finally broken up by Thos.W. Ward and Inverkeithing in 1945.
DURHAM
CASTLE was built in 1904 by Fairfield Ship Building & Engineering
Co. at Glasgow with a tonnage of 8217grt, a length of 475ft
5in, a beam of 56ft 8in and a service speed of 14 knots. Sister
of the Dover Castle she was initially deployed as an Intermediate
steamship but was transferred to the Cape - Mombasa run in 1910.
During the First World War she remained on commercial service
but often acted as a troopship on the northbound passage.. In
1931 she was deployed on the East Africa via the Suez Canal
service and in 1939 was put up for disposal after being replaced
by the Pretoria Castle and was acquired by the Admiralty for
war service. On 26th January 1940, while being towed to Scapa
Flow for use as a base accommodation ship, she was mined off
Cromarty. The German U-boat U-57 claimed her as her victim and
as the Durham Castle was clear of the British mine fields the
claim is probably correct. (Photo: UCPSC 16/139)
HELIUS was built in 1888 by Fairfield
Ship Building & Engineering Co. at Glasgow with a tonnage
of 4579grt, a length of 390ft 6in, a beam of 46ft 8in and a
service speed of 10 knots. She was built as the Dresden for
Norddeutscher Lloyd of Bremen as the first of eight passenger-cargo
liners. In 1903 she was sold to R. P. Houston & Co. for
their South American cargo-passenger service to South America
and renamed Helius. She was acquired by Union-Castle as a reserve
steamer in 1904 and laid up at Netley. However, after the end
of the Boer War an 1902 there was a surplus of tonnage to South
Africa and she was no longer required. Consequently, she was
sold to the Turkish Government in 1906 and renamed Tirimujghian.
On 6th November 1914 she was sunk by Russian forces in the Black
Sea.
STORK was built in 1905 by Hawthorn
& Co. at Leith with a tonnage of 278grt, a length of 115ft
7in, a beam of 24ft 1in and a service speed of 8 knots. She
was built to replace the Midge as the tender at East London
carrying passengers and their baggage from the mail ships lying
in the roadstead. Because of the heavy swell the gangway could
not be used so large baskets were swung over the side and onto
the tender by the ship's derricks. Sold in 1942 to the South
African Government she remained with them for about ten years
before she was broken up.
HANSA was built in 1904 by A.G. 'Neptun'
at Rostock with a tonnage of 880grt, a length of 215ft, a beam
of 30ft 7in and a service speed of 9 knots. She was built for
Donald Currie's Liverpool to Hamburg Line and transferred to
Union-Castle in 1907 where she operated the Hamburg - Bremen
- Southampton feeder service with the Eider. In 1937 she was
sold to Jack Billmeir and renamed Stanray. Billmeir purchased
23 elderly ships to trade to Spain and the Mediterranean during
the Spanish Civil War (17th July 1936 until April 1939). More
often than not they were loaded for one voyage with pre-paid
supplies for the Republican War Zone in Spain. On 9th June 1937
the Hansa was machine gunned by aircraft during the approach
to Valencia without any casualties and broken up in Belgium
during 1938.
BALMORAL
CASTLE (2) was built in 1910 by Fairfield Ship Building &
Engineering Co. at Glasgow with a tonnage of 13361grt, a length
of 570ft, a beam of 64ft 6in and a service speed of 14 knots.
Sister of the Edinburgh Castle she was based on the Walmer Castle
but without a break in the after superstructure. When she made
her maiden mail voyage in February 1910 she completed the run
in 16.5 days. In October of the same year, acting as a royal
yacht with a white hull and yellow funnels, she carried the
Duke and Duchess of Connaught to South Africa for the opening
of Parliament. She was requisitioned as a troopship on the northbound
voyages in 1914 but continued to maintain the mail service.
Between March and May 1915 she trooped to Gallipoli landing
them on 23rd April. Following the Armistice in 1918 she repatriated
US and Australian troops. In 1919 she made to voyages between
Liverpool and New York for Cunard before returning to service
with Union-Castle. She was broken up at Newport, Monmouthshire
in June 1939. (Photo: UCPSC 08/112)
EDINBURGH
CASTLE (2) was built in 1910 by Harland & Wolff at Belfast
with a tonnage of 13362grt, a length of 570ft, a beam of 64ft
5in and a service speed of 14 knots. Sister of the Balmoral
Castle she was the last of a group of almost identical ships
and replaced the Norman. On 14th August 1914 sailed from Cape
Town with mail and government only passengers to Gibraltar where
she embarked troops before being escorted to England by HMS
Minerva. She was then taken over as an auxiliary cruiser for
the South Atlantic patrol and in January 1915 sailed from Devonport
for South Africa with White Star's Ceramic to hunt for the German
ships Karlsruhe and Kronprins Wilhelm. In 1918 served in the
North Atlantic on convoy work. She resumed commercial operations
in 1919 after a refit and during that year carried General Smuts
back to South Africa. She was withdrawn from service in 1938
and laid up at Netley until she was bought by the Admiralty
for use as an accommodation ship in Freetown, Sierra Leone for
Naval personnel and survivors of sunken ships. In 1945, as towing
back to England would not be cost effective, she was towed 60
miles out to sea by the tug Empire Lawn and sunk by gunfire
and depth charges from the armed trawler Cape Warwick, HMS Porchester
Castle and HMS Launceston Castle.
FIREFLY was a launch built in 1910 for
use at Cape Town and transported there by the Dunluce Castle.
GLOWORM was a sister of the Firefly
also built in 1910 for use at Mombasa. She was sold by the company
in 1920.
GRANTULLY
CASTLE (2) was built in 1910 by Barclay, Curle & Co. at
Glasgow with a tonnage of 7612grt, a length of 450ft 7in, a
beam of 54ft 4in and a service speed of 13 knots. Together with
her sister, the Garth Castle, she was one of the last pair ordered
under the personal supervision of Sir Donald Currie who died
on 23rd April 1909 at the age of 83. One of five ships built
for the Intermediate trade she was given a 'G' name to replace
the ex-Union 'G' class but the class was never as popular as
the 'D' class ships. In January 1915 she was being used as a
troopship and while at Mudros during the Gallipoli campaign,
in company with the Alnwick Castle, and Balmoral Castle, was
held for five weeks from 18th March when the troops, because
of mines, were unable to force the Dardanelles straits until
23rd April when they eventually landed to oppose a re-inforced
Turkish army. She left the Dardanelles on 1st May 1915 for Malta
where she was commissioned as a hospital ship with 552 beds.
She reverted to Union-Castle on 11th March 1919 and served for
a further 20 years before being broken up in 1939.
(Photo: UCPSC 13/134)
GARTH
CASTLE (2) was built in 1910 by Barclay, Curle & Co. at
Glasgow with a tonnage of 7612grt, a length of 452ft 7in, a
beam of 54ft 4in and a service speed of 13 knots. Sister of
the Grantully Castle she spent most of her career on the Intermediate
service. In 1915 she was requisitioned by the Royal Navy for
use as a supply ship and moving naval personnel to places like
Scapa Flow where they would join their ships. She was later
used as a hospital ship and on 24th June 1917, during a fleet
inspection, the surgeons and nursing staff were presented to
HM King George V. She was broken up in 1939 (Photo: UCPSC 05/139)
KENILWORTH
CASTLE (2) was built in 1904 by Harland & Wolff at Belfast
with a tonnage of 12275grt, a length of 570ft 2in, a beam of
64ft 8in and a service speed of 17.5 knots. Sister of the Armadale
Castle she entered service in May 1904 and in August 1914 she
was requisitioned by the Admiralty for troopship duties. On
4th June 1918 she was proceeding up the English Channel in convoy
when she was in collision with the destroyer HMS Rival. A number
of the destroyer's depth charges went overboard and exploded
under the stern of the Kenilworth Castle but she managed to
limp safely into Plymouth. Fifteen men were drowned when two
lifeboats were swamped. In 1919 she was quarantined for three
weeks in Table Bay due to an influenza epidemic in South Africa.
She was broken up in 1936. (Photo: from UCPSC 22/143) 
CLUNY
CASTLE (3) was built in 1903 by Barclay, Curle & Co. at
Glasgow with a tonnage of 5147grt, a length of 419ft 1in, a
beam of 50ft 2in and a service speed of 12 knots. Sister of
the Comrie Castle she was used as an extra steamer when she
entered service in September 1903 operating through to Mauritius
where she generally loaded sugar. Both vessels were noted for
their 'cork-screwing' in a head sea and were the only passenger
ships built for the company without any rake. In 1924 she was
transferred to the company's subsidiary company Bullard, King
& Co's Natal Line and renamed Umkuzi and given a taller
funnel. She was finally broken up in 1939.
DOVER
CASTLE (2) was built in 1904 by Barclay, Curle & Co. at
Glasgow with a tonnage of 8271grt, a length of 476ft 5in, a
beam of 56ft 8in and a service speed of 14 knots. She was built
for the Intermediate service but in 1910 was transferred to
the London-Cape-Mombasa run. On 11th August 1915 she was commissioned
as a hospital ship for 607 patients plus cots. Two years later,
on 17th May 1917, she was torpedoed by UC-67 north of Bone in
the Mediterranean whilst on a voyage from Bone-Malta-Gibraltar.
All 632 patients were saved with most of them being transferred
to the British India hospital ship Karapara. The wallowing derelict
was then sunk by a torpedo fired from an escorting vessel. (Photo:
UCPSC 14/20) 
DUNLUCE
CASTLE (2) was built in 1904 by Harland & Wolff at Belfast
with a tonnage of 8114grt, a length of 475ft 5in, a beam of
56ft 8in and a service speed of 14 knots. Sister of the Dover
Castle she was built for the Intermediate service and in January
1910 undertook the first London-Cape-Delgoa Bay- Mombasa sailing.
In August 1914 she became a troopship and took part in the famous
six ship Union-Castle convoy which brought 4000 troops to Europe.
She was commissioned as a hospital ship for 755 patients on
6th July 1915 and at Gallipoli and Mudros acted as transfer
ship to White Star's Britannic before going to East Africa for
duty with the Indian Government. In 1916 she was back in the
Mediterranean for service which included voyages from the Adriatic
to North Africa with wounded Serbs. On 23rd February 1917 she
was stopped by a U-boat and after checking that she was complying
with the Hague Convention was allowed to proceed. She returned
to commercial service on 2nd April 1919 and resumed her original
run until 1931 when she was transferred to the Round Africa
service. In July 1939 she was sold for breaking up but acquired
by the Admiralty for use as an accommodation ship for small
vessels first in the River Humber and then at Scapa Flow. She
was finally broken up by Thos.W. Ward and Inverkeithing in 1945.
DURHAM
CASTLE was built in 1904 by Fairfield Ship Building & Engineering
Co. at Glasgow with a tonnage of 8217grt, a length of 475ft
5in, a beam of 56ft 8in and a service speed of 14 knots. Sister
of the Dover Castle she was initially deployed as an Intermediate
steamship but was transferred to the Cape - Mombasa run in 1910.
During the First World War she remained on commercial service
but often acted as a troopship on the northbound passage.. In
1931 she was deployed on the East Africa via the Suez Canal
service and in 1939 was put up for disposal after being replaced
by the Pretoria Castle and was acquired by the Admiralty for
war service. On 26th January 1940, while being towed to Scapa
Flow for use as a base accommodation ship, she was mined off
Cromarty. The German U-boat U-57 claimed her as her victim and
as the Durham Castle was clear of the British mine fields the
claim is probably correct. (Photo: UCPSC 16/139) 
BALMORAL
CASTLE (2) was built in 1910 by Fairfield Ship Building &
Engineering Co. at Glasgow with a tonnage of 13361grt, a length
of 570ft, a beam of 64ft 6in and a service speed of 14 knots.
Sister of the Edinburgh Castle she was based on the Walmer Castle
but without a break in the after superstructure. When she made
her maiden mail voyage in February 1910 she completed the run
in 16.5 days. In October of the same year, acting as a royal
yacht with a white hull and yellow funnels, she carried the
Duke and Duchess of Connaught to South Africa for the opening
of Parliament. She was requisitioned as a troopship on the northbound
voyages in 1914 but continued to maintain the mail service.
Between March and May 1915 she trooped to Gallipoli landing
them on 23rd April. Following the Armistice in 1918 she repatriated
US and Australian troops. In 1919 she made to voyages between
Liverpool and New York for Cunard before returning to service
with Union-Castle. She was broken up at Newport, Monmouthshire
in June 1939. (Photo: UCPSC 08/112) 
EDINBURGH
CASTLE (2) was built in 1910 by Harland & Wolff at Belfast
with a tonnage of 13362grt, a length of 570ft, a beam of 64ft
5in and a service speed of 14 knots. Sister of the Balmoral
Castle she was the last of a group of almost identical ships
and replaced the Norman. On 14th August 1914 sailed from Cape
Town with mail and government only passengers to Gibraltar where
she embarked troops before being escorted to England by HMS
Minerva. She was then taken over as an auxiliary cruiser for
the South Atlantic patrol and in January 1915 sailed from Devonport
for South Africa with White Star's Ceramic to hunt for the German
ships Karlsruhe and Kronprins Wilhelm. In 1918 served in the
North Atlantic on convoy work. She resumed commercial operations
in 1919 after a refit and during that year carried General Smuts
back to South Africa. She was withdrawn from service in 1938
and laid up at Netley until she was bought by the Admiralty
for use as an accommodation ship in Freetown, Sierra Leone for
Naval personnel and survivors of sunken ships. In 1945, as towing
back to England would not be cost effective, she was towed 60
miles out to sea by the tug Empire Lawn and sunk by gunfire
and depth charges from the armed trawler Cape Warwick, HMS Porchester
Castle and HMS Launceston Castle. 
GRANTULLY
CASTLE (2) was built in 1910 by Barclay, Curle & Co. at
Glasgow with a tonnage of 7612grt, a length of 450ft 7in, a
beam of 54ft 4in and a service speed of 13 knots. Together with
her sister, the Garth Castle, she was one of the last pair ordered
under the personal supervision of Sir Donald Currie who died
on 23rd April 1909 at the age of 83. One of five ships built
for the Intermediate trade she was given a 'G' name to replace
the ex-Union 'G' class but the class was never as popular as
the 'D' class ships. In January 1915 she was being used as a
troopship and while at Mudros during the Gallipoli campaign,
in company with the Alnwick Castle, and Balmoral Castle, was
held for five weeks from 18th March when the troops, because
of mines, were unable to force the Dardanelles straits until
23rd April when they eventually landed to oppose a re-inforced
Turkish army. She left the Dardanelles on 1st May 1915 for Malta
where she was commissioned as a hospital ship with 552 beds.
She reverted to Union-Castle on 11th March 1919 and served for
a further 20 years before being broken up in 1939.
GARTH
CASTLE (2) was built in 1910 by Barclay, Curle & Co. at
Glasgow with a tonnage of 7612grt, a length of 452ft 7in, a
beam of 54ft 4in and a service speed of 13 knots. Sister of
the Grantully Castle she spent most of her career on the Intermediate
service. In 1915 she was requisitioned by the Royal Navy for
use as a supply ship and moving naval personnel to places like
Scapa Flow where they would join their ships. She was later
used as a hospital ship and on 24th June 1917, during a fleet
inspection, the surgeons and nursing staff were presented to
HM King George V. She was broken up in 1939 (Photo: UCPSC 05/139)
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