The steel steamship War Severn was laid down by the Shipping Controller towards the end of World War One but was launched as Allie on 28th July 1919 from the Alloa yard of the Forth Shipbuilding and Engineering Co Ltd (Yard No 37) She measured 235.6′ x 36.2′ x 15.4′ and her tonnage was 1369 gross tons, 738 net tons. She was powered by a triple expansion steam engine by her builders delivering 144 nominal horse power. She was purchased during her construction by Messrs Stone and Rolfe, Llanelly and operated for this owner until she was sold to Kvarner Brodarsko DD, Susak, Yugoslavia in 1931 who renamed her Trsat.
Steamship Trsat
Lloyd’s register 1939
In the early years of World War Two she participated in two convoys between Gibraltar and Liverpool before she was requisitioned by the Admiralty. She was fitted with a defensive armament of one Hotchkiss machine gun, a Holman anti-aircraft projector, a Lewis machine gun and two PAC anti-aircraft rocket launchers.
On 1st September 1941 Trsat joined a small convoy of six vessels off Iceland heading for Loch Ewe loaded with 845 tons of fish. She was commanded by Captain A Glavan who had a crew of sixteen men and a naval gunner aboard. They arrived at Loch Ewe on 5th September where she joined up with a coastal convoy of seventeen ships heading from Oban to Methil on the Firth of Forth. The convoy departed from Loch Ewe the following day heading north round Cape Wrath and through the Pentland Firth. As they reached the area off Dunnet Head Trsat could not maintain her station and fell behind the rest of the ships so Captain Glavan stopped off at Scrabster where he was ordered to join a small fleet of trawlers heading east towards the Moray Firth. However Trsat, struggling with her steam pressure, was unable to keep up with these vessels either leaving Glavan to proceed independently on his assigned route. He set a course for Kinnaird Head steaming at 8 1/2 knots.
At 9pm on 7th September, when in a position later reported as seven miles NE by E of Kinnaird Head they spotted a German bomber, probably a Heinkel III, off their starboard bow. The bomber was apparently gliding without engine power to disguise the approach. As the pilot restarted his engines the bomber began a pass across Trsat from her starboard side. The first bombs dropped harmlessly into the sea but then one bomb struck her in No 1 hold and a second struck her at No 2 hatch. The whole episode had happened so quickly Trsat was unable to mount any defence and almost immediately began to go down by the bow. Within three minutes her decks were awash. She was sinking fast leaving the crew, who failed to successfully launch the starboard lifeboat, with no choice but to jump into the water. Luckily the port lifeboat floated off the sinking ship and the crew were able to climb aboard. Two men, the naval gunner Small and the bosun Johannes Kvam did not make it into the lifeboat and unfortunately the fireman Omar Warsama died on the lifeboat. The remaining crew were picked up later by the Fraserburgh lifeboat John and Charles Kennedy and taken ashore.
Lifeboat Magazine Issue 1941
The wreck believed to be Trsat lies in position 57° 54.967’N, 01° 53.218’W in 63 metres with a least depth clearance of 55 metres. She is oriented 105/285 degrees and reported to be significantly degraded but with some superstructure midships and towards the stern still visible. The wreck, first dived by Buchan Divers in 2012, has not been well explored at this date and, although it is almost certainly Trsat, has not been positively identified.
We’d like to acknowledge the contribution of Buchan Divers in the preparation of this article. Further details can be viewed on their website buchandivers.com
