As the Patrician before being taken over by the Admiralty
Previous name: Patrician, HMS Invincible, RFA Tarakol,
Subsequent name: British Vine, Busen
Official Number: 113459
Class: Emergency Wartime Purchase LEAF Group Freighting Tanker
Pennant No: Y7.175
Signal Letters: JNHT (1919)
Laid down:
Builder: C S Swan & Hunter, Wallsend
Launched: 22 February 1901
Into Service: 30 November 1914 hired by Admiralty
Out of service: 15 July 1919 sold to commercial interests
Fate: 29 July 1935 arrived Genoa for breaking up
Items of historic interest involving this ship: –
Background Data:
During WW1, eighteen vessels of varying types were acquired second hand and converted or purchased and converted while on the stocks or in a few cases building as tankers. Some were converted after serving with the Dummy Battleship Squadron by the insertion of cylindrical tanks in their holds. All were originally intended to operate as RFA’s, however owing to reasons of international law and the operation of the US Neutrality Act, these oilers became Mercantile Fleet Auxiliaries, being renamed with the LEAF nomenclature and placed under civilian management, although operationally they remained under Admiralty control
7 February 1901 the Dundee Evening Telegraph newspaper reported an attempt to launch the PATRICIAN without success …
22 February 1901 launched by C.S. Swan & Hunter Ltd, Wallsend as Yard Nr: 261 named PATRICIAN for Charente Steamship Co Ltd ( T. & J. Harrison, Managers) Liverpool
27 February 1901 the Lloyds List newspaper reported …
3 April 1901 delivered at a cost of £114,221 initially for on the Gulf of Mexico service to Mobile or New Orleans during the cotton season thence on to the Far east trade as a cargo liner. Sailed this day from the River Tyne for New Orleans
19 May 1901 passed the Old Head of Kinsale when on passage from New Orleans to Liverpool
20 May 1901 berthed at Liverpool from New Orleans
31 May 1901 sailed Liverpool
28 June 1901 cleared New Orleans for Cape Town, South Africa with 960 horses
2 September 1901 arrived at New Orleans from Algoa Bay
5 October 1901 at 1°02S 25°50W Fireman James Carter discharged dead – malaria
20 November 1901 at 21°31N 34°40W Horseman W R Johnson discharged dead – drowned
22 November 1901 arrived New Orleans from Natal
29 January 1902 berthed at New Orleans after passage from Liverpool
5 February 1902 cleared New Orleans for Cape Town, South Africa with 970 horses as cargo
6 May 1902 sailed New Orleans for Table Bay, South Africa
3 July 1902 arrived at New Orleans from Table Bay, South Africa
27 August 1902 sailed Liverpool to Calcutta
4 September 1902 at Malta
8 September 1902 entered Suez Canal southbound
27 November 1902 sailed Calcutta for Liverpool
13 February 1903 passed Gibraltar while on passage from Calcutta to Liverpool
24 February 1903 arrived at Liverpool from Calcutta
6 March 1903 sailed Liverpool for Calcutta
26 April 1903 sailed Calcutta for Liverpool
12 June 1903 sailed Liverpool for Calcutta
5 August 1903 at Colombo on passage to Liverpool from Calcutta
15 September 1903 sailed Liverpool for Calcutta
23 September 1903 passed Gibraltar while on passage from Liverpool to Calcutta
11 December 1903 berthed at Liverpool from Calcutta and London
2 January 1904 arrived Port Said while on passage from Liverpool to Calcutta
8 June 1904 passed Gibraltar while on passage from Calcutta to London
1 September 1904 in the Gulf of Aden Fireman Abdool Mahd. Hassein discharged dead – drowned
7 October 1904 sailed Liverpool to Calcutta with 2 passengers
23 March 1905 passed Sagres while on passage from Calcutta to London
23 May 1905 berthed at Calcutta from Liverpool
16 August 1905 sailed Liverpool to Calcutta with 2 passangers
21 August 1905 passed Gibraltar while on passage from Liverpool to Calcutta
30 October 1905 arrived at Gravesend having sailed from Calcutta
26 November 1905 arrived at Port Said while on passage to Calcutta from Liverpool
February 1906 in collision with the Nourse Line sailing vessel FORTH in the River Mersey
30 May 1906 sailed Liverpool to Calcutta
8 August 1906 at Colombo while on passage from Calcutta to London
22 September 1906 sailed Liverpool to Calcutta with 5 passengers
21 November 1906 sailed Colombo to London
4 December 1906 sailed Port Said to London
17 December 1906 passed Portland Bill while on passage from Calcutta to London
4 January 1907 sailed Liverpool to Calcutta with 1 passenger
24 March 1908 sailed Liverpool to Calcutta with 1 passenger. Captain Thomas A Chandler was in command
14 June 1908 berthed at Port of London from Calcutta, India
10 October 1908 sailed Liverpool to Calcutta with 7 passenger. Captain Thomas A Chandler was in command
30 December 1908 berthed at Port of London from Calcutta, India
14 January 1909 sailed Liverpool to Calcutta with 1 passenger. Captain Thomas A Chandler was in command
28 January 1909 in collision with the steamer STANLEY HALL in the Suez Canal
7 April 1909 berthed at Port of London from Calcutta, India
9 July 1909 berthed at Port of London from Calcutta, India
2 November 1909 sailed from Liverpool
5 December 1910 arrived New Orleans from Liverpool
13 January 1911 sailed from Liverpool. The Master was Captain E A Brown
20 July 1911 passed St Catherines Point sailing east bound later berthing at Port of London from Calcutta, India
9 August 1911 sailed Liverpool to Calcutta with 3 passenger. Captain E A Brown was in command
12 October 1911 arrived at Suez when on passage from Calcutta to London
15 December 1911 arrived at Calcutta from Liverpool
24 April 1912 at Pt de Galle 1st Tindal Abdool Lotif Durbesh discharged dead from the plague
23 June 1912 berthed at Port of London from Calcutta, India
November 1912 in collision with the French schooner CAPRICIEUSE in the Mediterranean while on passage from Port Said to London
2 March 1913 towed the disabled German vessel BATAVIA into Cascais Bay, Portugal
22 May 1913 passed Gravesend before berthing at Port of London from Calcutta, India
12 June 1913 sailed Liverpool to Calcutta with 3 passenger. Captain C S Rhodes was in command
4 January 1914 sailed Liverpool for New Orleans
26 January 1914 arrived at New Orleans from Liverpool
26 June 1914 arrived at Bombay from Liverpool
6 October 1914 arrived at New Orleans from Liverpool
20 November 1914 passed the Old Head of Kinsale
22 November 1914 arrived at Liverpool from New Orleans
30 November 1914 was hired by the Admiralty for conversion into the Dummy Battle Cruiser HMS INVINCIBLE and on completion of conversion was initially based at Loch Ewe
February to June 1915 deployed in the Aegean
6 July 1915, on disbandment of the DBS Squadron, she was purchased by the Admiralty for £65,000, and after having had cylindrical tanks fitted into her holds, she entered service as the oiler RFA TARAKOL.
1917 her management was transferred to Lane and MacAndrew and she became the oiler transport VINELEAF. Base port Portsmouth
1 February 1917 berthed at Norfolk Virginia
17 May 1918 berthed at New York
7 September 1918 on passage from Hampton Roads to London in a convoy escorted by the Commisioned Escort Ship HMS NANERIC
HMS NANERIC
21 December 1918 arrived at Charleston from Gibraltar
11 January 1919 berthed at Norfolk
13 January 1919 sailed Norfolk
21 January 1919 at Tampa, Florida
29 January 1919 berthed at Norfolk
1 February 1919 sailed Norfolk
14 February 1919 passed the Lizard
17 February 1919 berthed at Thames Haven
25 February 1919 passed Beachy Head
13 March 1919 at Norfolk
21 March 1919 at Tampa
23 March 1919 sailed Tampa
29 March 1919 berthed at Norfolk
1 April 1919 sailed Norfolk
15 April 1919 passed the Lizard
6 May 1919 passed Dover
10 May 1919 at Hull
17 May 1919 arrived at Bermuda when on passage from Hull to Sabine, Texas
31 May 1919 sailed New Orleans for Newport News
5 June 1919 sailed Newport News for Lough Swilly
21 June 1919 arrived at the River Clyde from Baton Rouge
15 July 1919 the Director of Tranport & Shipping, Admiralty reported that RFA VINELEAF had been sold to Anglo-Saxon Petroleum Co Ltd.
8 October 1919 renamed BRITISH VINE
27 November 1919 sailed Halifax NS for Rotterdam
13 December 1919 berthed at Harton Oil Wharf, Manchester
17 December 1919 Captain Francis J Simonds as Master
20 December 1919 sailed Glasgow for Port Arthur in ballast
29 January 1920 arrived at Norfolk from Tampico sailing the same day to Hull
4 February 1920 passed the Lloyds Signal Station on the Lizard sailing east
17 April 1920 arrived at Hull from Tampico
23 April 1920 sailed Hull for Norfolk, VA
4 May 1920 sailed Portland, Dorset for New York
20 May 1920 arrived at Norfolk, VA from Portland
14 June 1920 sailed Norfolk, VA to Avonmouth
28 June 1920 arrived at Avonmouth from Norfolk, VA
8 July 1920 sailed Avonmouth for Cardiff, Wales
12 August 1920 arrived at Norfolk, VA from Avonmouth
25 August 1920 arrived Tampico, Texas
16 September 1920 arrived the Clyde from Tampico, Texas
5 November 1920 arrived at Norfolk VA from Greenock
9 November 1920 sailed Norfolk VA for Tampico, Texas
27 December 1920 sailed off Dartmouth for Newport News
31 December 1920 while 100 WSW the Fasnet Rock suffered a broken rudder stock and damage to her propeller. Tugs were sent from Queenstown.
3 January 1921 towed into Queenstown Harbour, Ireland and entered dry dock for repairs
4 January 1921 the Leicester Daily Post newspaper reported …
6 February 1921 repairs completed and sailed from Queenstown for Newport News
21 February 1921 arrived at Newport News from Queenstown
23 February 1921 sailed Newport News for Tampico
2 March 1921 arrived at New Orleans from Newport News
12 March 1921 sailed Newport News for LEFO
8 April 1921 sailed Dartmouth for Le Harve and Newport News
16 April 1921 sailed Lisbon
30 April 1921 arrived at Newport News
19 May 1921 arrived at Newport News
7 June 1921 arrived at Hull from Tampico
15 June 1922 arrived at the River Tyne
15 November 1922 at the River Tyne
15 December 1922 at the River Tyne
10 January 1923 at the River Tyne
6 May 1923 berthed at New York having sailed from Newcastle on Tyne – Captain Benjamin Collie was in command
31 May 1923 sailed Liverpool for New York
17 June 1923 berthed at New York
21 June 1923 sailed New York
7 July 1923 arrived at Avonmouth from New York sailing the same day for Liverpool
9 July 1923 arrived at Liverpool
29 August 1923 purchased for £37,000 by A/S Tonsberg Hvalfangeri ( H. Borge, Manager ) Tonsberg, Norway converted into a whale oil tanker and was renamed BUSEN for the carriage of whale oil to Europe
5 September 1923 berthed on the River Tyne
3 February 1931 loaded 23,275 bags of whale guano from South Georgia and conveyed them to Curis Bay for the Standard Guano Company
13 October 1932 berthed at Commissioners Straith, River Tyne
June 1935 sold to Italian breakers for scrap
29 July 1935 arrived Genoa for breaking up