HMS Bayano (1913)

HMS Bayano, built in 1913, was originally a banana boat for the Elders & Fyffes line. At the outbreak of World War I it was drafted into the Royal Navy on 21 November 1914 as an armed merchant auxiliary cruiser.[2] On 11 March 1915, it was torpedoed by SM U-27 and sank within minutes killing around 200 of its crew.[2] Twenty-six survivors were pulled from the water.[3]

HMS Bayano with dazzle camouflage
History
 UK
Name: Bayano
Operator: Elders & Fyffes, Ltd., Glasgow
Builder: Alexander Stephen and Sons, Ltd., Glasgow
Completed: 1913
History
UK
Name: HMS Bayano
Operator: Royal Navy
Fate: Torpedoed by SM U-27 on 11 March 1915
General characteristics [1]
Tonnage: 5,948 GRT
Speed: 14 knots
Armament: 2 x 6 inch guns

Background

Once in the Royal Navy she was part of the 10th Cruiser Squadron.[2]

Sinking

In the North Channel on her Glasgow to Liverpool route at 05:15 on 11 March 1915, HMS Bayano was attacked by the German submarine SM U-27 about ten miles (16 km) west of Corsewall Lighthouse, Corsewall Point, Galloway, Scotland.[2][3] The auxiliary cruiser sank in just five minutes and took the commander, Commander H. C. Carr, and 194[4] other crew members down with it. Most of the crew was asleep and only 26 men survived to be rescued by the British steamer Castlereagh.[3] Bayano's Lieutenant Commander Guy described Captain Carr on the bridge, standing without fear waving goodbye while shouting "Good luck to you boys" before the ship disappeared under the waves.[3]

Residents of the Isle of Man were greatly affected by the sinking as a number of bodies washed up on her shores.[5] The funeral procession for the Bayano victims numbered in the thousands even though the victims were not from the island.[5] The Dominion of Newfoundland, then a part of the British Empire, was also hard hit. A dozen men from the Newfoundland Royal Naval Reserve were lost on the Bayano.[6]

Baralong incidents
Main article: Baralong incidents

SM U-27 (Germany) was attacked and sunk in the Western Approaches in position 50°43′N 07°22′W by gunfire from Q-ship HMS Baralong. Her entire crew, including Bernhard Wegener, was killed in the so-called Baralong incidents.[7]

Notes
  1. Helgason, Guðmundur. "Ships hit during WWI: HMS Bayano". German and Austrian U-boats of World War I - Kaiserliche Marine - Uboat.net. Retrieved 12 March 2015.
  2. Merseyside Roll of Honour 2010
  3. Johnston 2015
  4. Corkill, Adrian. Hostile Sea. p. 21. ISBN 9780954011529.
  5. Smith 2015, p. 29
  6. Hadley 1996, p. 251
  7. Bridgland 1999, pp. 20–55

References
  • Bridgland, Tony (1999). Sea Killers in Disguise: The Story of the Q-ships and Decoy Ships in the First World War. Leo Cooper. ISBN 9780850526752.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • Hadley, Michael L., Robert Neil Huebert & Fred W. Crickard (1996). Nation's Navy: In Quest of Canadian Naval Identity. McGill-Queen's University Press. ISBN 9780773515062.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • Johnston, Willie (12 March 2015). "Centenary of HMS Bayano disaster off the Galloway coast". BBC News. Retrieved 12 March 2015.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • Osborne, Richard; Spong, Harry & Grover, Tom (2007). Armed Merchant Cruisers 1878–1945. Windsor, UK: World Warship Society. ISBN 978-0-9543310-8-5.
  • Merseyside Roll of Honour (2010). "H.M.S. Bayano". mroh. Retrieved 12 March 2015.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • Smith, Caroline (2015). Isle of Man in the Great War. Pen and Sword Books. ISBN 9781783831227.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)

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