RMS Aquitania - World War II Service

World War II Service

As time went on Aquitania grew older and was scheduled to be replaced by RMS Queen Elizabeth in 1940. This plan was shattered with the coming of World War II. In 1940 Aquitania was in New York awaiting further orders. For a time she was tied up alongside RMS Queen Mary, the Queen Elizabeth, and the Normandie and the four ships made an impressive sight amongst large liners. Shortly after Aquitania sailed for Sydney, Australia, in her Cunard colours, to become a troop transport. Aquitania served valiantly as a troop transport, just as she had in World War I. Later in 1940 Aquitania, Queen Mary, Queen Elizabeth, SS Ile de France and other ships sailed in a magnificent convoy out of Sydney, Australia. In November 1941 Aquitania was in Singapore (then still a British colony) now repainted in battleship grey set sail to take part indirectly in the loss of the Australian cruiser HMAS Sydney. The Sydney had engaged in battle with the German auxiliary cruiser Kormoran. There has been much unsubstantiated speculation that Kormoran was expecting Aquitania, after spies in Singapore had notified Kormoran's crew of the liner's sailing, and planned to ambush her in the Indian Ocean west of Perth but instead encountered Sydney on 19 November. Both ships were lost after a fierce battle and a short time later Aquitania arrived on the scene to pick up survivors of the German ship, the captain going against orders not to stop for survivors of sinkings. There were no survivors from the Sydney. In her eight years of further military work, Aquitania sailed more than 500,000 miles, and carried nearly 400,000 soldiers, to and from places as far afield as New Zealand, Australia, the South Pacific, Greece and the Indian Ocean.