RAN
Australian Hospital Ship
Built
1924 Clyde at Grennock
1943 Converted to Hospital Ship
Tons
1,839
Crew
332, 64 survivors
Ship History
Built by Scott's Shipbuilding & Engineering Company in Greenock, Scotland, for service as a passenger vessel and cargo vessel for the Ocean Steamship Company (better known as Alfred Holt's Blue Funnel Line). Her keel was laid on 16 November 1923, and she entered operation on 29 August 1924. Beginning on the Blue Line's trade route from Fremantle, Western Australia to Singapore. She continued in this role until the war, when she was drafted as a hospital ship by Australian forces.
Wartime History
On November 26, 1941, she rescued survivors of the German Armed
Merchant ship Kormoran, which had been sunk by Australian Light Cruiser HMAS Sydney. Following the start of the Pacific war, Centaur was ordered to Sydney, where she began transfer runs from the east coast of Australia to New Guinea, transporting soldiers and war materiel.
Conversion to Hospital Ship
Centaur was transfered to Australian control on January 4, 1943. At Melbourne she underwent a two month conversion to a hospital ship, capable of voyages of up to 18 days without resupply, and could carry up to 280 cot-bound wounded. Registered with the International Committee of the Red Cross during the first week of February 1943, receiving the designation number 47 in Red Cross records.
Centaur returned to service on March 12, 1943 with a mechanical shakedown run between Melbourne and Sydney and a test run transporting wounded from Townsville to Brisbane. Centaur was tasked with the delivery of medical personnel to Port Moresby to Brisbane with Australian and American wounded, along with a small number of prisoners of war.
When fitted out as a hospital ship she had red crosses painted on her sides, funnel and stern, from the air, a red cross was evident, horizontally on the after deck house.
Sinking History
Arriving in Sydney on May 8, 1943, Centaur was re-provisioned at Darling Harbour. The ship sailed out of Sydney
on the May 12, 1943 bound for Cairns onboard were but equipment and stores of the
2/12 Field Ambulance in the holds. The crew included the captain, 75 crew, 8 army officers, 12 army nurses, 45 other army personnel, 192 soldiers from 2/12 Field Ambulance.
On May 14, 1943 at 04:10am the Centaur 50 miles east-north-nast of Brisbane, Centaur was torpedoed without any warning by Japanese Submarine I-177. Only 64 survived from 332 people on board. Her sinking was the worst merchant ship tragedy on the Australian coast during the war.
War Crimes Justice for Submarine
Captain
It was many years later before the
Japanese Government admitted that Lieutenant Commander Hajime Nakagawa
as the C.O. of I-177 had been responsible. He was found guilty as a War Criminal for having opened fire on survivors
of the British Chivalry, a ship his boat had sunk in the Indian Ocean.
He was sentenced to four years in Sugumo prison.
