Fennia

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Fennia

Post by shipstamps » Wed Sep 17, 2008 9:28 am


FENNIA was built at Nantes, France circa 1902 as CHAMPIGNY a steel four masted barque of some 3.200 tons. She was 312ft in Length with a beam of 45ft. and an exceptionally long poop deck, used during her days as a Finnish training vessel as class-Room and accommoda¬tion for some 50 cadets.
She sailed under the French flag, as the CHAMPIGNY until 1912 when she was taken over by a Finnish organisation with the grand name of "Aktiebolaget Finska Skolskeppsrederiet
Helsingfors" who used her as a cadet training vessel.
On 25th April 1927 all was going nicely, all caution to meet Cape Horn storms had been taken. By the 29th the barometer had fallen to 723mm with high seas running.
For the next few days she suffered much damage her main rigging had parted just below the lower topmast yard and lay on the starboard side entangled in the lower rigging, backstays and running gear, the fore royal was also carried away. Later her mizzen topmast fell down the topmast broke about 6 feet above the mizzen yard. Mizzen topsail yards were cocked up at an angle of 45 degrees. A decision was made to return to the Falklands, six days later she was being towed Into Stanley Harbour where she remained as a storage hulk for the Falkland Island Co. During 1939 – 1945 she was used to accommodate German prisoners and internees. She finally left Stanley Harbour in Nov. 1967 under tow for San Francisco to be restored. Unfortunately she ended up in a breakers yard in Uruguay.

SG620. Log Book Dec 2004.

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