D/S Gudvor
Updated Sept. 25-2011

To Gudvor on the "Ships starting with G" page.

Pictures are available on this external page (click in them to make them larger).

As will be seen when going to Page 1 of the archive documents, Gudvor was at St. Lucia when war broke out in Norway on Apr. 9-1940, departing that day for Demerara.

A French visitor to my website has told me that she was stopped for examination in the Caribbean sea (17 32N 64 35W) by the French cruiser Primauguet on Apr. 21-1940. Ordered to Fort-de-France (French East Indies) where she arrived on Apr. 22 (the archive doc. mentioned above gives arrival as Apr. 23; could be just a matter of different time zones used). Released on Apr. 23 provided she complied with orders from London-based operating office. The rest of her 1940 voyages are shown on Page 1 above, while the majority of her 1941 voyages are listed on Page 2.

She was scheduled for the slow Sydney (C.B.)-U.K. Convoy SC 61 on Dec. 21-1941, but instead joined the next convoy on Dec. 27, SC 62, general and timber for Reykjavik, where she arrived Jan. 9-1942. Montbretia and Rose are named among the escorts.

She left Reykjavik again on Jan. 28-1942, with the intention of joining the westbound North Atlantic Convoy ON 60*, but according to A. Hague, the Iceland portion did not meet the main convoy. Aust, Fagersten, Henrik Ibsen, Inger Elisabeth, Ledaal, Lisbeth, Rena (the latter 2 returned), Selbo and Suderøy are listed in ON 60, which had started out in Liverpool on Jan. 26 and had Halifax as its final destination. Gudvor, however, arrived St. John's, N.F. on Febr. 7. Her subsequent voyages are listed on Page 3, while convoy info for some of them can be found in the Voyage Record above.

Skipping now to Oct.-1942, when she's listed Convoy SC 104* from New York, but she only went as far as Sydney, C.B., where she arrived Oct. 9, proceeding to Argentia a couple of days later. This convoy left New York on Oct. 3 and arrived Liverpool on the 21st, having lost several ships, including Fagersten and Senta - follow the links for more details. Bonde (returned), Bernhard, Boreas, Garnes, Inger Lise, Ingerfem, Lido, Nea, Suderøy and Vinga are also listed and Acanthus, Eglantine, Montbretia and Potentilla are named among the escorts (see SC convoy escorts) - note that my page about Potentilla has an eye witness account. The following month, Gudvor made a voyage from New York to Halifax only in Convoy SC 111*, departing New York Nov. 25. Brush (to Halifax), Harpefjell (lost touch, went to Halifax), Heimgar (returned), Norjerv (also returned), Novasli, Sevilla (to Sydney, C.B.) and Sir James Clark Ross (returned) are also included - it looks like this convoy encountered bad weather, and many ships returned to port. SC 111 arrived Liverpool Dec. 17; but Gudvor arrived Halifax Nov. 29 - see also Page 4 (as can be seen, the document indicates that she stopped at St. John's on the way).

Gudvor subsequently made a voyage to Greeland and back (convoy info in the table above), and in Febr.-1943, we find her in station 74 of the westbound North Atlantic Convoy ON 160. This convoy had started out in Liverpool (for New York) on Jan. 11, but Gudvor joined from Halifax on Febr. 1, arriving New York on Febr. 5; follow the link for more convoy info.

In March that same year, she was fortunate to miss what has been dubbed the worst convoy battle of the war fought in the North Atlantic. This involved the two eastbound convoys SC 122 and HX 229. Cruising orders and charts, and analysis of attacks are also available. Gudvor (bound for Iceland), Askepot and Polarland had started out from New York in Convoy SC 122 on March 5, but only Askepot was present when the attacks started, the other 2 having lost touch with the convoy in a storm and returned to port (in Gudvor's case, this was Halifax). The battle lasted for 5 days and when it was over on March 20, 22 merchant ships had been sunk, with HX 229 being the hardest hit. Abraham Lincoln was the Commodore Vessel for HX 229 in which Elin K was sunk.

As mentioned, Gudvor had gone into Halifax after having lost touch with SC 122. She left Halifax again on March 17, joining Convoy SC 123* in order to complete her voyage to Reykjavik, where she arrived, via Loch Ewe, on Apr. 12 (again, see Page 4). This convoy had originated in New York on March 14 and arrived Liverpool Apr. 3 and also included Carrier, Fjordheim and Para.

Gudvor also escaped harm later that month when in the westbound Convoy ONS 5, even though she was a straggler. She had joined this convoy from Iceland on Apr. 26-1943, and arrived St. John's, N.F. with 3 other stragglers on May 9, escorted by HMS Pink. Again, follow the link for much more info - see also my page about D/S Bonde, which was sunk, as well as the external links at the end of this page. The Commodore was in the Norwegian Rena.

Her subsequent voyages are shown on Page 4, with convoy info in the Voyage Record.

On Oct. 24-1943, she's listed in Convoy SC 145 from Halifax - Potentilla and Rose were among the escorts for a while. Gudvor had a general cargo and lumber and was again bound for Reykjavik, where she arrived (via Loch Ewe) on Nov. 12. At the beginning of the following month, we find her, with a cargo of U.S. Government stores for Bristol, in Convoy RU 99 from Reykjavik. She arrived Bristol on Dec. 7, later joining the westbound North Atlantic Convoy ONS 26*, which originated in Liverpool on Dec. 29 and arrived Halifax Jan. 18-1944; Gudvor, however, started out from Milford Haven on Dec. 28 and was bound for New York, where she arrived Jan. 22 (see Page 5). Elise, Romulus and Tropic Star are also listed in this convoy.

She did not go back across the Atlantic again until the beginning of June-1944, when she's listed in the New York-U.K. Convoy HX 294, for which Abraham Lincoln served as the Commodore Vessel, while the Vice Commodore was in Geisha. Gudvor joined with the Halifax portion, general cargo for Iceland, where she arrived June 27. She subsequently left Iceland for Loch Ewe with Convoy RU 126 on July 7, and from Loch Ewe, she joined the westbound Convoy ON 245*, which started out in Liverpool on July 18 and arrived New York Aug. 2; Gudvor arrived Boston that day. She had again been in the company of several other Norwegian ships, namely Bralanta, Chr. Th. Boe, Emma Bakke (Commodore Vessel), Fjordaas, Mathilda, Montevideo, O. B. Sørensen, Petter II and Tanafjord.

The rest of her voyages are shown on Page 5, Page 6 and Page 7, with convoy details in A. Hague's Voyage Record (it looks like she finally got to go home to Norway in the spring of 1946).

Related external links:
HX 229 16 - 19 March | SC 122, 17 -19 March - the battle day by day.

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