SS Strathnaver Troop Ship ~ National Service
Why are we writing about ships you may wonder - well this one in particular is important in many ways. One of which is because it symbolizes to me the difference in generations.
The SS Strathnaver brought my father home in 1948 from the other side of the world after risking his life and seeing friends and comrades lose theirs.
That was a time when men were men !
Finding himself in 1946, at only 19 years of age, on the RMS Andes troop ship leaving Southampton bound for Port Said in Egypt to face the horrors of the Arab Revolt and Jewish Insurgency is beyond the comprehension of most people today.
Remember also, news and information was not remotely what it is today. Nobody on that outbound troop ship fully understood, or indeed remotely understood, why, other than to fight for their country, they were going there to risk life and limb.
The Troop Ship that Returned My Father
It would serve a modern generation well to remember, or appraise themselves, of the sacrifices of those who have gone before them. The reason they have the freedom to shuffle about in hoodies is because of the sacrifices of those before.
Did my father ask for counselling when he came back ?
No, he lived with his experiences and used the nightmare to make himself stronger !
Did he get compensation because of the terrible army boots ?
No, that is the preserve of the modern professional soldier !
Subsequently, did he sue one of his employers for something pathetic ?
No of course not, he worked hard and did everything he could to raise his station in life !
Does he try and get compensation from the council for tripping on a paving stone ?
No he tells himself to watch where he’s bloody going !
Is there any chance that the teenage round-shouldered, fat, foot dragging moron who is barely literate after 12 years of education could ever fill the shoes of a previous generation of men ?
NO CHANCE !
I take my hat off and very humbly thank all those who have gone before me, especially those who made the ultimate sacrifice, and thank them for giving me and the next generation the chance to live in a country where …
We have never had it so good and have never wasted so many of those opportunities afforded to us by the sacrifice and efforts of others.
We should look back with pride, look around us with shame and look ahead with trepidation !
[Later Edit 01.04.10] A lot of peole are looking at this article - if you’ve been on the ship or indeed know of somebody who has then please do leave a comment - thank you
Witches of Eastwick said,
June 30, 2008 @ 11:38 am
Rod,
The kids at primary school level do study WW2 and have to produce a project at the end…. who can say whether the message hits home. It occurs to us that we wouldn’t want any other generation to suffer like our parents and grandparents did and that we should remember well what happened and why we must avoid it for the future of this planet. Trouble is the political problems that existed then, still exist.
The great tale of the heroes of Telemark should still register with the young people today… it has a Bond like quality and shows the skill and absolute single mindedness of those involved. We recommend everyone sees the documentary made about it.
WoE
Rod said,
June 30, 2008 @ 12:09 pm
WoE
for school projects read: downloading pages from Wikipedia !
best
Rod
Little Brother said,
June 30, 2008 @ 8:49 pm
Rod,
Fine work fella, “You used to get your sweet plonked on top of your bully beef in a mess tin and everything was covered in sand-but you were bloody grateful for it”
None of them ever had ‘issues’ with their employer. God help us if we have to rely on this lot in the future.
LB
Martin Davies said,
November 3, 2009 @ 1:30 am
Rod, thanks for taking the time to create. I was reading my father’s autobiography, he mentions returning to England on the SS Strathnaver while serving in the RAF during WW2. I goggled it… and I found your site.
It seems that our fathers both travelled on this troop ship. My father from Ceylon to England in January 1948. He served in the RAF as a part of a small metrological 6 man team in Japanese occupied Burma taking weather measurements and radioing back, then on the streets of pre-independence India as Muslims and Hindus went at each other as independence came and finally in Ceylon teaching the Cingalese how to become meteorologists. I wonder if they were on the same voyage just think they might have possibly known each other.
I think your comments about the qualities of the different generations that fought the 1st and 2nd world wars are truly admirable. It pains me to see the products that are my children’s generation and the myopic raw ignorance and disinterest they exhibit of the price paid by their forefathers for their charmed comfortable lives.
Rod said,
November 3, 2009 @ 8:23 am
Hi Martin,
welcome to the site and thanks for taking the time to comment, hope you return.
It is a sobering thought when I see and hear things such as this and sadly many people now consider it of little importance and interest.
Can you imagine how most of the young men would cope with being taken odff the street and sent to Ceylon and Burma as your father was ?
I see young lads crying and hugging each other nowadays - imagine that 60 years ago or more.
All the best
Rod
topsi turner said,
November 11, 2009 @ 9:37 pm
i was watching the great liners and the strathnaver came to mind. i sailed on her from india to england through the canal in 1948. i was eight years old,my father was a soldier in india. yes i too wathched the indians and soon to be pakistanis kill each other. one scene i remember we had a flat by the gateway and we stood on roof looking down at the carnage going on, and indirectly it still is.but i had pleasant memories of india, calcutta, dargeeling, karachi, bombay, delhi , train journeys as went from posting to posting. then we came into southampton. my first sight of england was dismal, cold, snow freezing and squalor, but i got used to it and enjoyed my young years in rotherham and liverpool, bulford before i too joined the forces, the navy. ive come to realise there is good and bad,its all politics and people with vested interest who cause the trouble and responsible for the change in our country.a couple of years ago my scooters’ electrics failed so i started pushing it home, a couple of hoodies came up and asked me how had i to go, i said top of russells hall, okay mate we’ll push it. i was amazed these two rough looking lads hooded up pushed my bike all the way home for me and wouldn’t take any recompense.so i understand your comments of the youth of today, but it was my generation who cocked up this country because we were greedy, workshy(the world owes us a living brigade)and stuff you jack i’m inboard routine, both workers and bosses, but there you go, once in while people surprise. i’ve seen the world when it was the world and it took you six weeks to get to Singers, now you fly there in twelve hours, the world is all coco-cola land, but the land of UK is still the best place in the world.
Rod said,
November 12, 2009 @ 8:39 am
Hi Topsi,
thnaks for the great and very reasoned comment and welcome to the site - I hope you’ll return and comment again.
I agree that the responsibility lies with the adults of today - I do not blame ‘the kids’ they are simply a product of their environment.
There are still some great young people out there and I have to say I personally seem to get along with the ones I meet.
I’ve read you comment twice Topsi and it is fascinating as is the perspective you bring from experience - hope to be reading comments on other articles should you have the time and inclination
Best Wishes
Rod
topsi turner said,
November 14, 2009 @ 10:26 am
rod as a child on board we could roam the ship, there was strick rules for the civilian passengers(adults) and the forces personnel, they were not allowed to mix. i used to play up forward(for’rad) in the well deck where the derricks were and we had some fun especially with the soldiers, one day in the red sea i loosed my jumper and the wind took it, it tried to grab it and one of the (pongos)soldiers grabbed hold of me before i went over the side.
i often wonder who he was.we went thru the canal and saw the desert, camels, and the bitter lakes, when i went thru again as a sailor my dreams came true. as a young lad in liverpool i used to go for a sunday ride on the overhead railway along the dock road, look at the ships and knew i was going to be a sailor.nothing compares to making landfall from the sea, air travel is too instant. so your dad and i could have been on the same voyage and i would imagine he picked the ship up either port said or suez and i would imagine he told you the good times.
the lads today that are serving are sound, they are fighting a different war than your dad or anything i had in my timehad to contend with. we were not limelighted by the media, we got on with the job without hinderance from the media, human rights, and whiter than thou brigade, and of course politicians who fall over themselves to prove to the world how “fair” they are, this permeates to the civilian authorities.
we get the uk we vote for. i think the outpouring of emotion started with princess dianas’ death, since then everybody is in on the act. the people of wootton bassett quietly stood still and doffed their hats and bowed their heads to the coffins of fallen armed forces personnel, they did this quietly and with dignity, now the media is there and its becoming vulgar, strangely you dont see any politicians there. i came out of the navy not because of the navy but because of government policies, but i am navy through and through and my flag is the white ensign, and no matter how hard they try to change this country i still get into my car and drive out to shropshire or worcestershire and manage to find in places the old england .
yet where i live i am completely surrounded by our asian and black friends and our park is the only park in the borough not trashed which is more than could be said for the more non ethnic areas.anyway to end on a good note in 73 i was hauling thru austria on xmas eve bound for florence italy , going up to the brenner pass on the mountain autobahn i stopped to see the skiers coming down a mountain on the other side and started to brew up, a couple of other hgvs pulled up and i offered them some coffee, a few more joined us and we ended up with a cook up of pot mess and then we mixed some cider and wine and a merry time was had by all (dont worry we couldnt drive again because of the law of not driving on xmas day)anyway there we were about a dozen different nationalities with a smattering of english, german, italian, we were joined by some austrian motorway police who had something to eat with us and some coffee, and reminded us gently not to drive. the next day these same coppers came up a minibus(paddy wagon) locked up the cabs and took us back their hq for a xmas lunch and a drink……..memories eh good times!!!!!always
hope you enjoyed topsi
Rod said,
November 14, 2009 @ 1:55 pm
Topsi,
Fantatic !
Very poignant and thought provoking and a breath of fresh air too.
I think the wiorld’s full of decent people and I don’t care where they come from, what colour they are or what their religion is . . . you’re either a decent human being or not - simple as that.
Your local park and xmas beano illustrates that point perfectly.
Many thanks Topsi
All the best
Rod
susan said,
December 31, 2009 @ 4:00 am
Hi Rod,
I recently saw in a charity shop a ship plan/ layout of the Strathnaver fron the 30s. I now wish I had bought it and could have sent it to you. The youngters of today have no idea, but in time it will click. There are too many druggie parents who are raising thir children the same way. I was only born in 1964, but I had a job at 12. All the political correctness has made things bad, it’s messing up everything. Sue
Rod said,
December 31, 2009 @ 7:39 am
Hi Sue,
thanks for the interesting comment and welcome to the site - hope you’ll return.
I couldn’t agree with you more - I find myself shaking my head in disbelief on a daily basis nowadays - I can’t imagine where we’ll be as a country in 20 or 30 years time.
All the best Sue
Rod
lyn said,
January 31, 2010 @ 9:37 pm
Hi. I know this is a shot in the dark, but hope you find it interesting.My son found a journal a few years ago, written by a young man. He left Southampton aboard the Strathnave on 3rd April, probably 1946 and arrived in Singapore on 26th April, then travelled overland to Malaya. The only thing I know about him is that his first name was Tom and he lived in the West midlands, probably Willenhall, Wednesfield or Wolverhampton. His journal carries draft letters to a young lady, who he was introduced to by his friend, whose name was Ken.
I know it will be almost impossible to trace him without a surname, but if I could get in touch with some of the other passengers, one of them may remember him. Where do I begin????
I would love to be able to pass this journal on to his family.
Thank you for your time,
Lyn
Rod said,
February 1, 2010 @ 8:12 am
Hi Lyn,
that is very interesting thanks for posting it.
I’m not sure what you could actively do to trace the family but actually putting the story on here is a good bet as a lot of people look at this every month and it may well ring a bell with somebody
Thanks again Lyn and best of luck with it - let us know how you get on
All the best
Rod
Blaidd said,
February 26, 2010 @ 11:25 pm
This ship brought my Taid ( Grandfather) back from the war in 1948 also. And as much as I am proud of my Taid, I am equally proud of my ex pupils who are currently fighting in Afghanistan. Let us not tar young people all with the same brush. ALL soldiers fighting for our freedom deserve the highest merit, regardless of whether they have counselling after war or not.
Rod said,
February 27, 2010 @ 8:41 am
Blaidd,
thanks for the comment and welocme to the site:
ALL soldiers fighting for our freedom deserve the highest merit
Absolutely, I couldn’t agree more !
All the best
Rod
Vincent said,
November 20, 2010 @ 5:11 pm
My father travalled to Bombay on board the Strathnaver in 1945, his name was Ken. Could it be???
Liz said,
March 1, 2011 @ 4:11 pm
Rod- I recently googled Strathnaver and found your site. I travelled on the Strathnaver when it was a troop ship in 1946 and sailed with my Mum, my brother aged 5 and baby sister 6 months old, I was 4 going out on the boat. We were travelling to Mauritius to my Dad who was in the army and had been posted there for 18 months. The trip took 6 weeks and we were all crammed into cabins with three tiers of bunks along with other wives and families. I recall we had to leave the ship at Port Said I believe, and stay over in an army camp whilst the ship went through the Suez Canal. We were then taken by bus to join the ship again and continue our trip via Mombassa and Madagascar to Mauritius. I am just in the processof writing up my childhood memories so was interested to find your site.
Rod said,
March 1, 2011 @ 6:47 pm
Liz,
we’re getting some great comments tonight, thanks for sharing that with us Liz - really is appreciated.
Welcome to the site and best of luck with the memoirs
Kind regards
Rod
John Milner said,
April 10, 2011 @ 5:29 pm
Hi Rod,
I was looking for a picture of the Strathnaver to include in a book about my father Gerald Milner.
He sailed just pat midnight on 13/14 August 1941. In a letter to my mother before he sailed he wrote, “unless you hear from me otherwise. The old address will still find me but the above will be much quicker. I am expecting to leave at any moment now. Breakfast is at 2.30 am in the morning so it seems like a lomg journey. My thoughts will be with you dear. Please don’t worry about me. I realise all the dangers of the sea and the East that will face me but I have full confidence in the navy. One of our chaps shot himself yesterday. All some of the men think of seems to be torpedoes. I don’t know whether he was one of them. I’ve just heard another one has followed suit. I don’t know whether it is right or not. Anyway, they have taken all rifles and ammo from us. I reckon that is to prevent an epidemic. Had another V.D. inspection yesterday. I’m beginning to lose count of them now. We have to go through the gas chamber without respirators this afternoon. All kit is being collected today. Please do not pass on any of this to outsiders as we want a sporting chance to get there. ”
Do you know anything about copyright of the picture on your site?
Kind regards
John Milner
Rod said,
April 10, 2011 @ 5:56 pm
John,
that is absolutely superb, many thanks indeed for sharing it and welcome to the site.
That’s exactly the sort of thing I love to get on the site - tremendously interesting not only to me but many others as well.
The picture was on an old picture postcard I believe
Regards
Rod
David Davies said,
May 8, 2011 @ 11:47 am
Hello Rod
Good of you to set up this site.
My father WGL Davies travelled on the SS Strathnaver on 22.10.46 to Singapore he was in the RAF. He started courting my mother Marie Katherine Langford on board and married her 2 years later. My mother had joined the WVS and was also posted to Singapore.
Regards
David
Rod said,
May 8, 2011 @ 6:48 pm
David,
many thanks for the contribution, really appreciated and a warm welcome to the site
All the best
Rod
Mike May said,
December 28, 2011 @ 9:37 am
I came across your website whilst researching the Strathnaver. I am preparing my Father’s diaries for publication and thought you might be interested in the following extract. I have to mention that I own the original diaries and the Worldwide Rights:-
LIVERPOOL
17 November 1940
We sailed at dawn on the ‘H.T.Strathnaver’. There were six in the convoy, all large ships. The boat itself was still undergoing alteration when we left and we dropped the workman off at Glasgow where we picked up the remainder of the convoy; four ships. To escort us we had a battleship, two heavy cruisers, two light cruisers and five destroyers.
The weather had been very rough up to now and I hadn’t felt comfortable. How this tub could roll and pitch when in rough water.
Regarding the boat she was of 22,000 odd tons - a P& O three funnel passenger liner converted to a troopship. She could make 27 knots and we averaged 420 miles a day. We were constantly zigzagging on the course and were always on the lookout for enemy submarines or aircraft. We had aboard 2000 RAF and 1600 Army and cargo, W.D. stores, Munitions etc. What a target!!
Many of the personnel aboard were in cabins on ‘C’, ‘D’ and ‘E’ decks and very comfortable at that. I was on ‘G’ deck which is pretty well down in the boat, just above the water line in fact. We could only have the portholes open when in port. I happened to see some of the cabins which were normally for 1st Class passengers and they were really lavish. Marvellous grained woods, Walnut, Mahogany etc. Chromium fittings, panelling and furniture, made it a luxury trip compared with us blokes on the lower mess decks.
Rod said,
December 28, 2011 @ 5:56 pm
Mike,
thanks for taking the time to share that, really appreciated and welcome to the site.
All the best
Rod