SS Général Bonaparte

Général Bonaparte was a passenger ship that was built in 1922 by Chantiers & Ateliers de Provence for the Compagnie Marseillaise de Navires à Vapeur. She was torpedoed and sunk by HMS Sportsman (P229) on 19 May 1943 with the loss of 130 lives.

Description
Général Bonaparte was 315 ft long, with a beam of 44 ft and a depth of 24 ft. She was assessed at,. The ship was powered by a four-cylinder triple-expansion steam engine. There were two cylinders of the largest diameter. The engine was built by Chantiers & Ateliers de Provence. It was rated at 484NHP.

History
Général Bonaparte was built in 1922 by Chantiers & Ateliers de Provence, Port-de-Bouc, Bouches-du-Rhône, France for the Compagnie Marseillaise de Navires à Vapeur. She was launched on 1 January 1923. The ship was operated under the management of the Compagnie de Navigation Fraissinet. Her port of registry was Marseille and the Code Letters OVSM were allocated. In 1934, her Code Letters were changed to LOGW.

On 23 October 1937 whilst on board Général Bonaparte, César Campinchi, the Minister of Marine, remarked that he thought war with Italy was "not only inevitable but necessary". He also said that new air bases would need to be established in Corsica, from which an offensive would be launched that would "bring Fascism to its knees". The Italian press were reported to have reacted "violently" to these remarks, although there were not official protests from the Italian Government.

On 19 May 1943, Général Bonaparte was torpedoed and sunk in the Mediterranean Sea by british convoy 40 nmi off Nice, Alpes Maritimes by HMS Sportsman (P229). She was on a voyage from Ajaccio, Corsica to Nice. There were 68 crew and 199 passengers on board. One hundred and thirty-seven survivors were rescued by the Kriegsmarine torpedo boats GERMAN TORPEDO BOAT TA10 and GERMAN TORPEDO BOAT TA11.