| Accession Number | A02847 |
|---|---|
| Collection type | Photograph |
| Object type | Black & white - Glass original half plate negative |
| Maker |
Unknown |
| Conflict |
First World War, 1914-1918 |
| Copyright |
Item copyright: Copyright expired - public domain
|
Australian Hospital/Troopship Warilda. Requisitioned in 1915 as a troop/cargo ship, it was taken ...
Description
Australian Hospital/Troopship Warilda. Requisitioned in 1915 as a troop/cargo ship, it was taken over by the Admiralty in June 1916 and converted to a hospital ship manned by an Australian crew. Originally operating brightly lighted and painted, the ship was camouflaged early in 1917, as in this photograph, after Germany stated all vessels operating in the English Channel would be attacked. In May 1917 the Australian crew, apart from officers and engineers, returned home and a British crew signed on. On 3 August 1918 Warilda, loaded with hospital patients and other personnel, was sunk off Le Havre by a German Navy submarine with the loss of 125 lives. See H13972, showing the ship before it was camouflaged.