The Bitter End

The Voyages of Steve Monks

m.s. DEVONIA ex Devonshire

29/10/1965 - 21/12/1965

OFFICERS

Commander	Captain C.W. Leadbetter	Chief Engineer	T.J. Stedman
Chief Officer	P.D.F. Low	2nd Engineer	P. Durham
Purser	M. Stubbington	Deputy Purser	D.W.T. Roscoe

The Devonshire (renamed DEVONIA) was the final ship in the four troopship build program. The third ship Ettrick being built for P & O and was sunk during the Second World War. The Devonia was built for Bibby Line who ran her on trooping duties until selling her to British India for £175,000 in January of 1962.

Launched on the 20th December 1938 she entered service in July of 1939 and does general trooping duties until the outbreak of the war. From then on she is involved in the Mediterranean, Singapore, Sicily and Salerno, Italy. On 7th June during the D-Day landings in line ahead she is accompanied by three other Bibby Line ships, the Cheshire, Lancashire and Worcestershire carrying 10,000 troops for the Normandy Bridgeheads. After the war she continues trooping and is involved in the Korean conflict before arriving in April of 1953 at Glasgow for a refit similar to that of the Dilwara. After refit her tonnage is now 12,773 grt and she carries 130 First Class, 96 Second Class and 824 troops. She resumes her trooping duties February 1954.

She was sold to British India and renamed Devonia in 1962 and embarks on her educational cruise career until being sold for scrap and broken up at La Spezia in 1968.

I joined the Devonia in Liverpool on 29/10/1965 along with 12 other new recruits. We were in Houtman Dormatory Peter Fenwick, Ped Derbyshire, Nick Dore, myself, John Clark, and Mick Gilbert. In Hillary Dormatory was Rob Dawson, Jock Robertson, Graham McHardy, Ralph Wood, Martin Stilliard, Paddy Gately and Bernie Bernthal. We were overseen by Senior Cadets Tofts, Chang and Davey.

Although Devonia was an educational cruise ship, the purpose of this voyage was to carry out a crew change at Karachi and Bombay and was from Liverpool to Malta, Port Said, Suez, Aden, Karachi, Bombay, Aden, Suez, Port Said, Genoa. We flew to Gatwick, London on 21/12/1965 and were taken to join m.s. Chantala.