INTRODUCTION
_
In August 2014 various countries, governments, local bodies and private organisations began a series of
events which commemorate aspects of the the First World War (1914-1918).
“World war” was a new concept 100 years ago. That there might be a “first” then a “second” world war did not become clear for two decades. The shocking events of 1914-18 (at first “The Great War” or the “1914-18 War”, later “World War I”) have now passed from living memory but their effects remain. New Zealand, like so many other countries, felt the substantial consequences of being a participant in that war: the human cost, the gelling of nationhood, the political, sociological, and economic changes.
In 1914, sea transport was the only way to travel to the other side of the world. Military personnel from New Zealand and Australia faced long sea voyages to reach the war’s European theatre. Unsurprisingly, troop ships featured prominently in logistical plans and in written accounts and diaries of military units and their personnel.
To preserve wartime secrecy ships sailed anonymously. For each voyage, a troop ship was given a new number, and only identified as His Majesty’s New Zealand Troopship/Transport – thus “HMNZT No. 30”, or “HMAT” for vessels sailing from Australia. Some troop ships were well-known, others less so. Details and names of vessels can be gleaned from many sources. Among those relevant to the transport of New Zealand troops were: Aparima, Arawa, Athenic, Corinthic, Dalmore, Devon, Hawkes Bay, Ionic, Ivernia, Knight of The Garter, Knight Templar, Limerick, Manuka, Matatua, Maunganui, Moeraki, Mokoia, Monowai, Navua, Opawa, Orari, Pakeha, Port Lyttelton, Remuera, Ruahine, Ruapehu, Star of India, Tahiti, Talune, Tofua, Turakina, Ulimaroa, Verdala, Westralia, Waihora, Waimana, Waitemata, Waitomo, Warrimoo, Willochra. There were also many other vessels which sailed out of Australian ports.
The accompanying photo of Port Nicholson (ex-Makarini[1]) leaving Sydney on 8 November 1916 is typical of troop departures from Australian and New Zealand ports in the First World War. For many, both on board and on shore, it was to be the final glimpse of their relatives and loved ones. The photo shows those on board straining to stay in sight of those waving goodbye. The massed personnel choking the decks, lining the rigging, and filling the lifeboats, have given the vessel a slight list to starboard.
In addition to carrying troops, horses and military hardware and supplies, troop ships could carry food, raw materials and other goods required by Britain and France for the war effort. On this voyage Port Nicholson carried a cargo of frozen meat for delivery to Europe as well as 1,000 troops. After landing the troops at Plymouth in the south of England the vessel crossed the English Channel to Dunkirk to discharge her cargo. There, 15 miles west of the port, she became a casualty of the war when on 15th January 1917 she hit a mine and sank.
The First World War’s lasting legacy and its significant dates and milestones are being particularly remembered around the world in the series of events which will continue until November 2018, the centenary of the 1918 Armistice.
The New Zealand Ship and Marine Society’s contribution to this commemoration has been the publication of “The White Ships” by Gavin McLean, the story of New Zealand’s WWI hospital ships Maheno and Marama.
Michael Pryce
Editor
Photo: A. Duffey
Troops line the decks as Port Nicholson (ex-Makarini) sails from Sydney on 8th November 1916. On board were 1000 troops destined for disembarkation in England before joining World War I battlefields in Europe.
1] Makarini (10,624 gross tons, built 1912) was built by Workman, Clark & Co, Belfast, for the shipping company G.D. Tyser & Co., London. Immediately prior to the war, she had been carrying immigrants and settlers from the UK to Australia. Makarini had accommodation for up to 1000 migrants. The Victorian Government had often provided assisted passages to Melbourne on the vessel. In 1914 Tyser was taken over by the Commonwealth & Dominion Line Ltd. (Port Line), and Makarini was renamed Port Nicholson. The vessel was then involved in transporting the First Australian Imperial Force to Europe.
The above article is published with permission of the Editor of "New Zealand Marine News" Vol.59 No. 3, 2014, which is the journal of the New Zealand Ship and Marine Society Inc. For more information on the Society refer www.nzshipmarine.com
For other informative reading on maritime matters visit
Hospital Ships: http://www.nzhistory.net.nz/war/merchant-marine/hospital-ships
Merchant Marine: http://www.nzhistory.net.nz/war/merchant-marine
events which commemorate aspects of the the First World War (1914-1918).
“World war” was a new concept 100 years ago. That there might be a “first” then a “second” world war did not become clear for two decades. The shocking events of 1914-18 (at first “The Great War” or the “1914-18 War”, later “World War I”) have now passed from living memory but their effects remain. New Zealand, like so many other countries, felt the substantial consequences of being a participant in that war: the human cost, the gelling of nationhood, the political, sociological, and economic changes.
In 1914, sea transport was the only way to travel to the other side of the world. Military personnel from New Zealand and Australia faced long sea voyages to reach the war’s European theatre. Unsurprisingly, troop ships featured prominently in logistical plans and in written accounts and diaries of military units and their personnel.
To preserve wartime secrecy ships sailed anonymously. For each voyage, a troop ship was given a new number, and only identified as His Majesty’s New Zealand Troopship/Transport – thus “HMNZT No. 30”, or “HMAT” for vessels sailing from Australia. Some troop ships were well-known, others less so. Details and names of vessels can be gleaned from many sources. Among those relevant to the transport of New Zealand troops were: Aparima, Arawa, Athenic, Corinthic, Dalmore, Devon, Hawkes Bay, Ionic, Ivernia, Knight of The Garter, Knight Templar, Limerick, Manuka, Matatua, Maunganui, Moeraki, Mokoia, Monowai, Navua, Opawa, Orari, Pakeha, Port Lyttelton, Remuera, Ruahine, Ruapehu, Star of India, Tahiti, Talune, Tofua, Turakina, Ulimaroa, Verdala, Westralia, Waihora, Waimana, Waitemata, Waitomo, Warrimoo, Willochra. There were also many other vessels which sailed out of Australian ports.
The accompanying photo of Port Nicholson (ex-Makarini[1]) leaving Sydney on 8 November 1916 is typical of troop departures from Australian and New Zealand ports in the First World War. For many, both on board and on shore, it was to be the final glimpse of their relatives and loved ones. The photo shows those on board straining to stay in sight of those waving goodbye. The massed personnel choking the decks, lining the rigging, and filling the lifeboats, have given the vessel a slight list to starboard.
In addition to carrying troops, horses and military hardware and supplies, troop ships could carry food, raw materials and other goods required by Britain and France for the war effort. On this voyage Port Nicholson carried a cargo of frozen meat for delivery to Europe as well as 1,000 troops. After landing the troops at Plymouth in the south of England the vessel crossed the English Channel to Dunkirk to discharge her cargo. There, 15 miles west of the port, she became a casualty of the war when on 15th January 1917 she hit a mine and sank.
The First World War’s lasting legacy and its significant dates and milestones are being particularly remembered around the world in the series of events which will continue until November 2018, the centenary of the 1918 Armistice.
The New Zealand Ship and Marine Society’s contribution to this commemoration has been the publication of “The White Ships” by Gavin McLean, the story of New Zealand’s WWI hospital ships Maheno and Marama.
Michael Pryce
Editor
Photo: A. Duffey
Troops line the decks as Port Nicholson (ex-Makarini) sails from Sydney on 8th November 1916. On board were 1000 troops destined for disembarkation in England before joining World War I battlefields in Europe.
1] Makarini (10,624 gross tons, built 1912) was built by Workman, Clark & Co, Belfast, for the shipping company G.D. Tyser & Co., London. Immediately prior to the war, she had been carrying immigrants and settlers from the UK to Australia. Makarini had accommodation for up to 1000 migrants. The Victorian Government had often provided assisted passages to Melbourne on the vessel. In 1914 Tyser was taken over by the Commonwealth & Dominion Line Ltd. (Port Line), and Makarini was renamed Port Nicholson. The vessel was then involved in transporting the First Australian Imperial Force to Europe.
The above article is published with permission of the Editor of "New Zealand Marine News" Vol.59 No. 3, 2014, which is the journal of the New Zealand Ship and Marine Society Inc. For more information on the Society refer www.nzshipmarine.com
For other informative reading on maritime matters visit
Hospital Ships: http://www.nzhistory.net.nz/war/merchant-marine/hospital-ships
Merchant Marine: http://www.nzhistory.net.nz/war/merchant-marine