Troopship QUEEN MARY in Sydney Harbour

Date1941-1943

Object number00045044

NameGlass plate negative

MediumEmulsion on glass

DimensionsOverall: 81.5 x 107 x 1 mm, 28.07 g

ClassificationsPhotographs

Credit LineANMM Collection Gift from Mike Veness

Terms

DescriptionDuring World War II, passenger ships like Cunard's QUEEN MARY were transformed for the use of the war effort. The ships were painted grey and transported troops and prisoners of war.HistoryDuring World War II the Cunard Ocean liners QUEEN MARY and QUEEN ELIZABETH were commissioned as troopships, painted grey and nicknamed 'The Grey Ghosts'. These ships could carry up to 16,000 troops at one time. The first time these vessels visited Sydney at the same time was on 9 April 1941. With both vessels being too large to be accommodated together they passed each other off Sydney Heads with thousands of onlookers watching from the shore. Between 1941 and 1942 the ships came to Sydney a number of times, the QUEEN MARY making a total of 13 trips. The construction of RMS QUEEN MARY was completed in May 1936 by John Brown & Co at Clydebank, Scotland and it conducted its maiden voyage from Southhampton to New York on 27 May 1936. Between 1936 and 1967 it acted as a passenger liner for the Cunard line, serving as a troop transport during World War II. After this service QUEEN MARY was sold and transferred to Long Beach, California where it currently resides as a tourist attraction, event centre and museum.