SS Pfalz (1913)
.jpg) Sister ship SS Pommern 1924 as USS Rappahannock |
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| History | |
|---|---|
   German Empire; Australia; Greece
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| Name: | Pfalz |
| Operator: | Norddeutscher Lloyd |
| Port of registry: | Bremen (until 1914); Syra (after 1926) |
| Route: | Bremerhaven - Cape Town - Australia (for NDL) |
| Builder: | Bremer Vulkan |
| Yard number: | 570 |
| Launched: | 8 November 1913 |
| Completed: | 19 December 1913 |
| Renamed: |
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| Identification: |
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| Fate: | Wrecked 1937 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type: | Rheinland - Class cargo ship |
| Tonnage: | 6557 GRT |
| Length: | 472.6 ft (144.0 m) |
| Beam: | 59.2 ft (18.0 m) |
| Draught: | 36.8 ft (11.2 m) |
| Installed power: | 470 NHP |
| Propulsion: | triple expansion steam engine built by North East Marine Engineering Co, Newcastle-upon-Tyne; single screw |
| Speed: | 12.5 knots (23.2 km/h) |
The Pfalz was a 6,557 ton cargo steamer operated by German shipping company Norddeutscher Lloyd. The ship became the target of the first shot fired by Australian forces in World War I, soon after departing the Port of Melbourne in Australia.
The ship departed Victoria Dock in Melbourne on 5 August 1914, with Williamstown-based pilot Captain Montgomery Robinson aboard. As the ship passed Portsea it was momentarily stopped by the SS Alvina but allowed to proceed.
Just before the ship approached Port Phillip heads, the Royal Australian Garrison Artillery stationed at Fort Nepean was informed of the declaration of war with Germany, and had received an order to "stop her or sink her". Signals were hoisted, commanding the ship to halt. As the warning had no effect, a shot was fired across the bow of the ship from one of the fort's 6 inch Mk VII guns. This was the first British Empire shot of the war.
The pilot convinced the ship's master that a second round would likely be directed at the ship itself, and the ship was turned around. The ship was taken back to Portsea where the crew was placed under arrest.
The ship was subsequently requisitioned by the Royal Australian Navy and refitted as a troopship at Williamstown. She was renamed HMT Boorara. Soon after, she took part in the second Australian convoy to the Mediterranean, with subsequent duties including the transportation of Ottoman prisoners from the Dardanelles Campaign.
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