100 years ago, in February/March 1915, the Allied Powers in World War I began what became known as the Gallipoli Campaign - an attempt to control the sea route to Russia that was, ultimately, a disaster.
It began with a failed naval attack by British and French ships on the Dardanelles Straits and was quickly followed by a major land invasion of the Gallipoli Peninsula on April 25 by 70,000 men from Great Britain, Australia and New Zealand along with troops from France. This also failed, after eight months’ fighting, owing to an underestimation of the fighting ability of the Turkish army, a lack of sufficient intelligence and a complete ignorance of the terrain.
The campaign was one of the greatest Ottoman (Turkish) victories during the war and is regarded as a defining moment in the nation’s history. It is also considered the birth of national consciousness in Australia and New Zealand and the date of the landing, April 25, is known as Anzac Day.
Unfortunately, Irish battalions suffered extremely heavy losses during the “V” beach landing at Cape Helles, which was defended by entrenched Turkish machine gun posts. The main force was deployed from the SS River Clyde and included the 1st Battalion of the Royal Munster Fusiliers plus two companies of the 2nd Battalion, of the Royal Hampshire Regiment and one company of the 1st Battalion Royal Dublin Fusiliers. Another invasion attempt was made in August at Suvla Bay, but this also failed with significant losses to the 10th Division. Evacuation began in December 1915 and was completed early the following January.
The stamps were designed by Vermillion Design. The 68c stamp shows Irish soldiers in a trench at Gallipoli. The second stamp, the €1 value, features an image of the SS
RIVER CLYDE. This was a landing ship that played a very important part of the invasion, carrying 2,000 troops of the invasion force.
Source: Ireland Post website
RIVER CLYDE: This cargo vessel was built under yard No 537 by Russel & Co., Port Glasgow for the SS River Clyde Co. Ltd. (Ormond, Cook & Co.), Glasgow.
23 February 2005 launched as the RIVER CLYDE.
Tonnage 3,913 gross, 2,526 net, 6,400 dwt. Dim. 109.2 x 15.2 x 5.5m. (draught), length bpp. 105.1m.
Powered by one 3-cyl. triple expansion steam engine, manufactured by J.C. Kincaid & Co., Greenock, 374 nhp. Speed 10 knots.
March 1905 completed, homeport Glasgow.
SS RIVER CLYDE was a 3,913 GRT British collier built by Russell & Co of Port Glasgow on the Firth of Clyde and completed in March 1905. In the First World War the Admiralty requisitioned her for the Royal Navy and in 1915 she took part in the Gallipoli landings. After the war she was repaired and sold to Spanish owners, with whom she spent a long civilian career trading in the Mediterranean before being scrapped in 1966.
Propulsion
RIVER CLYDE had nine corrugated furnaces with a combined grate area of 169 square feet (16 m2) that heated three 180 lbf/in2 single-ended boilers with a combined heating surface of 6,150 square feet (571 m2) to raise steam for her three-cylinder triple expansion engine. The engine was built by J.G. Kincaid & Co of Greenock and was rated at 374 NHP.
Gallipoli
1915 Sold to Sefton SS Co., Ltd., (H.E. Moss & Co.), Glasgow, 12 April 1915 purchased by the British Admiralty. RIVER CLYDE was adapted to be a landing ship for the joint French and British invasion of the Gallipoli Peninsula.
Openings were cut in her steel hull as sally ports from which troops would emerge onto gangways and then to a bridge of smaller boats from the ship to the beach. Boiler plate and sandbags were mounted on her bow, and behind them a battery of 11 machine guns was installed. The machine gun battery was manned by Royal Naval Air Service men commanded by Josiah Wedgwood. Work began on painting RIVER CLYDE’s hull sandy yellow as camouflage, but this was incomplete by the time of the landing.
By 11 April 1915 RIVER CLYDE was in the natural harbour of Moudros[ on the Aegean island of Lemnos, where French and British ships were assembling in final preparation for the landings. The troop ship HMT ARAGON reached Moudros from the Port of Alexandria in Egypt and transferred the 4th Battalion, the Worcestershire Regiment and the 2nd Battalion, the Hampshire Regiment to RIVER CLYDE. Both Battalions were units of the 88th Brigade, which was part of the 29th Division.
On 25 April 1915 RIVER CLYDE sailed to take part in the landing at Cape Helles. She was commanded by Commander Edward Unwin, formerly of the Dryad-class torpedo gunboat HMS HUSSAR. She was carrying 2,000 soldiers; mostly from 86th Brigade units of the 29th Division: the 1st Battalion of the Royal Munster Fusiliers and men from the 1st Battalion, the Royal Dublin Fusiliers.
Unwin beached RIVER CLYDE at V Beach beneath the Sedd el Bahr castle, on the tip of the Gallipoli peninsula. The plan failed and the RIVER CLYDE, beached under the guns of the Turkish defenders, became a death trap. Three attempts to land made by companies of Munsters, Royal Dublins and Hampshires all ended in costly failure. Further landing attempts were abandoned and the surviving soldiers waited until nightfall before trying again.
Members of RIVER CLYDE’s crew maintained the bridge from the ship to the beach and recovered the wounded. For their bravery six of them were decorated with Victoria Crosses: Commander Unwin (aged 51), Midshipmen George Drewry (20) and Wilfred Malleson (18), Able Seaman William Williams (34) and Seaman George Samson (26), plus Sub-Lieutenant Arthur Tisdall (24) of the Royal Naval Division (RND). Williams was killed in the landing and was decorated posthumously. Samson was severely wounded the next day but survived. On his return to Scotland he was handed a white feather while wearing civilian clothes. Tisdall was killed on 6 May when the 6th (Hood) Battalion RND advanced along Kanlı Dere in the Second Battle of Krithia. Drewry, Samson and Williams had come with Unwin from HMS HUSSAR. Malleson, who died in 1975, served on the Duncan-class battleship HMS CORNWALLIS.
After the Helles beach-head was established, V Beach became the base for the French contingent and the RIVER CLYDE remained beached as a quay and breakwater. Her condensers provided fresh water and her holds became a field dressing station. She remained a constant target for Turkish gunners ashore.
Return to civilian service
RIVER CLYDE was refloated, towed to Mudros were temporary repairs were made, thereafter was she towed by a trawler to Malta, at that time she had a crew of 20 arrived Malta July 1919, and sold unrepaired to the civilian Spanish owner Arturo Pardo at Santander. He brought her to Palermo for repairs. Repairs were completed on 26 February 1921. He operated her as a tramp steamer, renaming her ANGELA. Her first voyage was in ballast from Palermo to the United States, loading phosphate in Tampa then she went to New York for completing loading general deck cargo, she sailed to Santander were she arrived on August 1921. Then made a voyage to Melilla with disassembled barracks for the Spanish troops who were fighting there in the Moroccan Campaign. Then used in tramping to the U.K. 1927 Was she chartered by the British government to transport coal from Newport News, USA to the U.K. after the Welsh coal miners got on strike. Then chartered by Compania Trasatlantica for some time.
07 December 1928 sold to Gumersindo Junquera Blanco, Gijon, Spain for 600,000 pesetas, renamed in MARUJA Y AURORA in 1931.
27 August 1937 at Santander was she arrested by the National forces, and assigned to the Spanish National Navy she made several trips between Santander and Ferrol, captured the coastal steamer MARGARITA, and made some troop voyages from Gijon to Bilbao.
After 1½ year was she returned to her owners.
During World War II she rescued three English airmen whose plane had been shot down, she survived this war.
In 1965 there was an attempt to buy and preserve RIVER CLYDE by British interests but in 1966 her owners sold her for scrap and she was broken up at Avilés, Spain.
Sold to Desguaces y Salvamentos S.A.. Aviles, and on 15 March 1966 demolition work commenced at San Juan de Nieva.
Ireland 2015 1 Euro sg?, scott? (The photo shows her on arrival Malta 1919.)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SS_River_Clyde http://vidamaritima.com/2011/03/la-hist ... -un-heroe/