SS ''Oria'' was a Norwegian steamer that sank on 12 February 1944, causing the death of some 4,095

Italian prisoners of war Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...

, 21 Greeks and 15 Germans. It was one of the worst maritime disasters in history, and the worst maritime disaster caused by the sinking of a single ship in the

Mediterranean Sea The Mediterranean Sea ( ) is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the east by the Levant in West Asia, on the north by Anatolia in West Asia and Southern Eur ...

Ship

The ''Oria'' was built in 1920 by Osbourne, Graham & Co in

Sunderland Sunderland () is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. It is a port at the mouth of the River Wear on the North Sea, approximately south-east of Newcastle upon Tyne. It is the most p ...

. It had a tonnage of , and was the property of the Norwegian company Fearnley & Eger of

Oslo Oslo ( or ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of 1,064,235 in 2022 ...

. At the beginning of World War II, it was part of a convoy sent to North Africa, and was in

Casablanca Casablanca (, ) is the largest city in Morocco and the country's economic and business centre. Located on the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic coast of the Chaouia (Morocco), Chaouia plain in the central-western part of Morocco, the city has a populatio ...

when interned in June 1940, shortly after the

German occupation of Norway The occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany during the Second World War began on 9 April 1940 after Operation Weserübung. Conventional armed resistance to the German invasion ended on 10 June 1940, and Nazi Germany controlled Norway until th ...

. One year later the ship was requisitioned by the

Vichy French Vichy France (; 10 July 1940 – 9 August 1944), officially the French State ('), was a French rump state headed by Marshal Philippe Pétain during World War II, established as a result of the French capitulation after the defeat against G ...

, renamed ''Sainte Julienne'', and used in the Mediterranean. In November 1942 it was formally returned to its former owner and therefore renamed ''Oria'', but soon after it was assigned to the German company of Hamburg.

Sinking

In the fall of 1943, after the German invasion of the Dodecanese, the Germans transferred tens of thousands of Italian prisoners to mainland Greece. These transfers were made often using unseaworthy vessels, cramming prisoners onboard without any safety standard. Several ships were sunk, either by Allied attack or by accident, causing the death of thousands of prisoners. ''Oria'' was one of the vessels used to carry Italian prisoners. On 11 February 1944, it sailed from

Rhodes Rhodes (; ) is the largest of the Dodecanese islands of Greece and is their historical capital; it is the List of islands in the Mediterranean#By area, ninth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. Administratively, the island forms a separ ...

bound for

Piraeus Piraeus ( ; ; , Ancient: , Katharevousa: ) is a port city within the Athens urban area ("Greater Athens"), in the Attica region of Greece. It is located southwest of Athens city centre along the east coast of the Saronic Gulf in the Ath ...

, carrying 4,116 Italian prisoners (43 officers, 118 non-commissioned officers and 3,955 enlisted men),''Chronik des Seekrieges 1939-1945'', Württembergische Landesbibliothek, entry on February 1944
/ref> 21 German soldiers (part of whom were tasked with guarding the prisoners, while others were on passage to Greece), and a crew of 22 Greeks. The next day the ship was caught by a storm and sank off Cape Sounion on the South East rocks of Patroklos island. Some tugs, arriving the next day on the scene, could only save 21 Italians, 6 Germans, the Norwegian captain and one Greek. The remains of the wreck were discovered in 1999 by Greek pro diver Aristotelis Zervoudis.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Oria Maritime incidents in February 1944 1920 ships Ships built on the River Wear Steamships of Norway Ships of Nortraship World War II merchant ships of France World War II merchant ships of Germany World War II shipwrecks in the Aegean Sea Troop ships of Germany

Ship

Sinking

See also

References