MS Hans Hedtoft
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MS ''Hans Hedtoft'' was a Danish cargo passenger liner that struck an
iceberg An iceberg is a piece of fresh water ice more than long that has broken off a glacier or an ice shelf and is floating freely in open water. Smaller chunks of floating glacially derived ice are called "growlers" or "bergy bits". Much of an i ...
and sank on 30 January 1959 on her maiden voyage off the coast of Western
Greenland Greenland is an autonomous territory in the Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark. It is by far the largest geographically of three constituent parts of the kingdom; the other two are metropolitan Denmark and the Faroe Islands. Citizens of Greenlan ...
. The only piece of the wreckage found was a lifebelt.


Description

''Hans Hedtoft'' was long, with a beam of and a depth of . She was assessed at , . ''Hans Hedtoft'' was built by Frederikshavns Værft at
Frederikshavn Frederikshavn () is a Danish town in Frederikshavn municipality, Region Nordjylland, on the northeast coast on the North Jutlandic Island in northern Denmark. Its name translates to "Frederik's harbor". It was originally named Fladstrand. The ...
in northern
Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...
. She was yard number 226, launched on 13 August 1958 and completed on 17 December. She had a double bottom and seven watertight compartments and an armoured bow and stern. She was designed to provide a year-round service between Denmark and
Greenland Greenland is an autonomous territory in the Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark. It is by far the largest geographically of three constituent parts of the kingdom; the other two are metropolitan Denmark and the Faroe Islands. Citizens of Greenlan ...
. ''Hans Hedtoft'' had a
rivet A rivet is a permanent mechanical fastener. Before being installed, a rivet consists of a smooth cylinder (geometry), cylindrical shaft with a head on one end. The end opposite the head is called the ''tail''. On installation, the deformed e ...
ed hull, a feature which was criticised by Knud Lauritzen, a shipowner. Lauritzen claimed that a riveted hull was not as resistant to ice pressure as a welded hull. ''Hans Hedtoft'' had the
code letters Code letters or ship's call sign (or callsign) Mtide Taurus - IMO 7626853"> SHIPSPOTTING.COM >> Mtide Taurus - IMO 7626853/ref> were a method of identifying ships before the introduction of modern navigation aids. Later, with the introduction of ...
and
radio call sign In broadcasting and radio communications, a call sign (also known as a call name or call letters—and historically as a call signal—or abbreviated as a call) is a unique identifier for a transmitter station. A call sign can be formally ass ...
OXKA. The ship was named after a former prime minister of Denmark. The ship was armed with three 40 mm anti-aircraft guns, on the orders of the Danish
Ministry of Defence A ministry of defence or defense (see American and British English spelling differences#-ce.2C -se, spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is the part of a government responsible for matters of defence and Mi ...
(MoD). The armament was not part of the original plans, and the ship was strengthened in three places to take the guns. An ammunition room was built into the bow of the ship. The MoD provided the anti-aircraft guns free of charge. Although fitted during tests, the guns were dismounted and carried aboard ''Hans Hedtoft'' at the time of her sinking. An order had been issued that the guns were to be removed from the ship immediately after she arrived back in Copenhagen. It was claimed that the arming of ''Hans Hedtoft'' resulted in a warship being constructed without the approval of the
Folketing The Folketing ( , ), also known as the Parliament of Denmark or the Danish Parliament in English, is the unicameral national legislature (parliament) of the Kingdom of Denmark — Denmark proper together with the Faroe Islands and Greenland. E ...
.


Sinking

''Hans Hedtoft'' sailed from
Copenhagen Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...
on her maiden voyage on 7 January 1959. Her voyage to Julianehaab,
Greenland Greenland is an autonomous territory in the Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark. It is by far the largest geographically of three constituent parts of the kingdom; the other two are metropolitan Denmark and the Faroe Islands. Citizens of Greenlan ...
, was made in record time. ''Hans Hedtoft'' called at
Nuuk Nuuk (; , formerly ) is the capital and most populous city of Greenland, an autonomous territory in the Kingdom of Denmark. Nuuk is the seat of government and the territory's largest cultural and economic center. It is also the seat of gove ...
,
Sisimiut Sisimiut (), also known by its Danish name Holstensborg or Holsteinsborg, is the capital and largest city of the Qeqqata municipality, the second-largest city in Greenland, and the largest Arctic city in North America.The term 'city' is loos ...
and
Maniitsoq Maniitsoq () or Sukkertoppen is a town on Maniitsoq Island, western Greenland located in the Qeqqata municipality. With 2,534 inhabitants , it is the sixth-largest town in Greenland. History Archaeological finds indicate that the area ha ...
before returning to Julianehaab. On 29 January, she began her return journey. The ship had 40 crew, 55 passengers and a cargo of frozen fish on board and in addition to that 3.25 tons of archives concerning Greenlandic history. One of her passengers was the Danish parliament (
Folketing The Folketing ( , ), also known as the Parliament of Denmark or the Danish Parliament in English, is the unicameral national legislature (parliament) of the Kingdom of Denmark — Denmark proper together with the Faroe Islands and Greenland. E ...
) member Augo Lynge. The next day, ''Hans Hedtoft'' collided with an
iceberg An iceberg is a piece of fresh water ice more than long that has broken off a glacier or an ice shelf and is floating freely in open water. Smaller chunks of floating glacially derived ice are called "growlers" or "bergy bits". Much of an i ...
about south of Cape Farewell, the southernmost point of Greenland. A distress call was given at 13:56 (local time) stating that the ship had hit an iceberg at . The call was answered by USCGC ''Campbell'', the
West German West Germany was the common English name for the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) from its formation on 23 May 1949 until its reunification with East Germany on 3 October 1990. It is sometimes known as the Bonn Republic after its capital c ...
trawler ''Johannes Krüss'' of
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and another West German trawler. Within an hour, another message was sent stating that the engine room was flooded. At 15:12, it was announced that the ship was sinking. A final message was sent at 17:41 stating the ship was slowly sinking and requesting immediate assistance. Aircraft in
Newfoundland Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region of Labrador, having a total size of . As of 2025 the population ...
were grounded by the weather and unable to assist in the search for ''Hans Hedtoft''. The beginning of an
SOS SOS is a Morse code distress signal (), used internationally, originally established for maritime use. In formal notation SOS is written with an overscore line (), to indicate that the Morse code equivalents for the individual letters of "SOS" a ...
was received by ''Johannes Krüss'' at 18:06 after which communication with ''Hans Hedtoft'' was lost. Both ''Johannes Krüss'', and U.S. Coast Guard cutter ''Campbell'' were in the area near ''Hans Hedtoft'' and immediately turned toward Hans Hedtoft's position after the initial distress call. However, due to rough seas, floating ice, dwindling daylight and generally bad visibility they were unable to reach the position provided by ''Hans Hedtoft'' before she sank later that afternoon. ''Johannes Krüss'', commanded by Kapitän Albert Sierck, after a dangerous voyage in the ice-filled stormy waters, is believed to have made it to the position of ''Hans Hedtoft'' only a few minutes after her sinking, but was unable to find any survivors under the extremely difficult conditions. On 31 January, USCGC ''Campbell'' reported that conditions were worse than anything the ship had seen while on transatlantic convoy duty during World War II, and there was no sign of ''Hans Hedtoft'' or her passengers and crew. The search was called off on 7 February. The only piece of wreckage ever recovered was a lifebuoy which washed ashore on Iceland and was discovered on 7 October 1959, some nine months after the ship sank. The ship sank with parish registers from
parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christianity, Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest#Christianity, priest, often termed a parish pries ...
es of Greenland, which were meant to be deposited in archives in Denmark, causing a major loss for Greenlandic
genealogy Genealogy () is the study of families, family history, and the tracing of their lineages. Genealogists use oral interviews, historical records, genetic analysis, and other records to obtain information about a family and to demonstrate kin ...
. As a result of the sinking, the airfield at
Narsarsuaq Narsarsuaq (lit. ''Great Plain'';''Facts and History of Narsarsuaq'', Narsarsuad Tourist Information old spelling: ''Narssarssuaq'') is a settlement in the Kujalleq municipality in southern Greenland. It had 123 inhabitants in 2020. There is a thr ...
, Greenland, which had closed in November 1958, was reopened. An appeal fund for the relatives of the victims was opened. Kr40,000 (then £2,000) was raised amongst ten countries in two months. Compensation for the relatives amounted to Kr1,184,936 (then £59,000).


Legacy

On 30 January 2005, Queen Margrethe unveiled a monument at North Atlantic Wharf,
Copenhagen Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...
, to the 95 people lost on ''Hans Hedtoft''. The shipwreck is the theme of the 2014 song "All Hope Abandon" by the Greenlandic band Small Time Giants.


References


External links


Projekt Hans Hedtoft 1959–2009



LIFE Magazine Feb. 16, 1959
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hans Hedtoft Maritime incidents in 1959 Passenger ships of Denmark Shipwrecks in the Atlantic Ocean 1958 ships 1959 in Denmark Ships lost with all hands Ships sunk by icebergs Ships built in Denmark January 1959 in North America 1959 disasters in Europe 1950s disasters in Denmark