Courland
British Steam merchant
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| Name | Courland | ||
| Type: | Steam merchant | ||
| Tonnage | 1,325 tons | ||
| Completed | 1932 - Barclay, Curle & Co Ltd, Whiteinch, Glasgow | ||
| Owner | James Currie & Co Ltd, Leith | ||
| Homeport | Leith | ||
| Date of attack | 9 Feb 1941 | Nationality:  British | |
| Fate | Sunk by U-37 (Asmus Nicolai Clausen) | ||
| Position | 35° 53'N, 13° 13'W - Grid CG 7555 | ||
| Complement | 34 (3 dead and 31 survivors). | ||
| Convoy | HG-53 | ||
| Route | Lisbon - London | ||
| Cargo | 1395 tons of general cargo | ||
| History | Completed in February 1932 | ||
| Notes on event | At 04.30 hours on 9 February 1941, U-37 fired two G7a torpedoes at two ships in convoy HG-53 about 160 miles southwest of Cape St. Vincent, Portugal and sank both ships, Courland and Estrellano. At 05.00 hours, one G7e torpedo was fired, but it missed the ships in station #61 and #31 and did not hit a ship beyond them, as Clausen thought. Three men of the 25 crew members, two gunners and seven passengers aboard Courland (Master Robert Cecil Smith) were lost. 31 survivors were picked up by Brandenburg which was sunk by the same U-boat the next day. The only survivor of the second sinking was a passenger from Courland, who was picked up by HMS Velox (D 34) (LtCdr E.G. Roper, DSC, RN) and landed at Gibraltar. | ||
| On board | We have details of 34 people who were on board. | ||
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