| Navy | The Royal Australian Navy |
| Type | Armed Merchant Cruiser |
| Class | [No specific class] |
| Pennant | F 95 |
| Built by | Harland & Wolff Ltd. (Govan, Scotland) |
| Ordered | |
| Laid down | |
| Launched | 25 Apr 1929 |
| Commissioned | 17 Jan 1940 |
| End service | Feb 1943 |
| History | On 2 November 1939 the passenger ship Westralia of the Huddart Parker Ltd, Victoria was requisitioned by the Admiralty and converted to an armed merchant cruiser. Conversion was completed on 17 January 1940. Displacement: 8108 BRT Career: From December 1942 to February 1943 used as accommodiation ship, then converted to a landing ship LSI(L) from February 1943 to 31 May 1943. From September 1945 used as troopship. As LSI(L) she carried 933 troops. On 19 September 1949 decommissioned and on 27 March 1951 returned to owner. |
Commands listed for HMAS Westralia (F 95)
Please note that we're still working on this section.
| Commander | From | To | ||
| 1 | Cdr. Alvord Sydney Rosenthal, RAN | 27 Oct 1939 | 24 Sep 1940 | |
| 2 | A/Capt. (emergency) Henry Victor Hudson, OBE, RAN | 25 Sep 1940 | 29 Oct 1942 | |
| 3 | A/Capt. John Malet Armstrong, RAN | 30 Oct 1942 | 17 Dec 1942 | |
| 4 | A/Cdr. Robert Stephen Pearson, RAN | 18 Dec 1942 | 14 Feb 1943 | |
| 5 | Cdr. Alfred Victor Knight, RD, RANR(S) | 15 Feb 1943 | ||
| 6 | Lt.Cdr. Eric Walton Livingston, RANR(S) | Oct 1944 | ||
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Notable events involving Westralia include:
4 Jul 1942
HrMs Tromp (Cdr. J.B. de Meester, RNN) departed Sydney as escort for convoy ZK 11 that was to proceed to Fremantle. Convoy ZK 11 was made up of the Australian liner Duntroon (10346 GRT, built 1935) and the Australian Armed Merchant Cruisers HMAS Manoora (A/Capt. J.M. Armstrong, RAN) and HMAS Westralia (A/Capt. (emergency) H.V. Hudson, OBE, RAN).
The American destroyer USS Flusser ( Lt.Cdr. L.H. Miller, USN) was also part of the escort until 0600/5 when she returned to Sydney as previously ordered. (1)
27 Jul 1942
HrMs Tromp (Cdr. J.B. de Meester, RNN) departed Fremantle to escort convoy ZK 12 part of the way from Fremantle to Sydney. Convoy ZK 12 was made up of the following ships; British passenger (troops) / cargo ships Athlone Castle (25564 GRT, built 1936), City of Canterbury (8421 GRT, built 1923), British cargo ships Dunedin Star (11168 GRT, built 1936), Martand (7967 GRT, built 1939), Australian liner (troopship) Duntroon (10346 GRT, built 1935) and the Australian Armed Merchant Cruisers HMAS Manoora (A/Capt. J.M. Armstrong, RAN) and HMAS Westralia (A/Capt. (emergency) H.V. Hudson, OBE, RAN).
Also part of the escort were the US light cruiser USS Phoenix (Capt. H.E. Fischer, USN) and the Australian destroyer HMAS Voyager (Lt.Cdr. R.C. Robison DSC, RAN). (1)
Sources
- File 2.12.03.6850 (Dutch Archives, The Hague, Netherlands)