British Zeal
Photo Courtesy of Library of Contemporary History, Stuttgart
| Name | British Zeal | ||
| Type: | Motor tanker | ||
| Tonnage | 8.532 tons | ||
| Completed | 1937 - Lithgows Ltd, Port Glasgow | ||
| Owner | British Tanker Co Ltd, London | ||
| Homeport | London | ||
| Date of attack | 31 Dec, 1940 | Nationality:  British | |
| Fate | Damaged by U-65 (Hans-Gerrit von Stockhausen) | ||
| Position | 15.40N, 20.43W - Grid EJ 6315 - See location on a map - | ||
| Complement | ? men (? dead and ? survivors). | ||
| Convoy | |||
| Route | Liverpool - Freetown | ||
| Cargo | Ballast | ||
| History | | ||
| Notes on loss | At 23.00 hours on 31 Dec, 1940, the unescorted British Zeal was hit underneath the bridge by a stern torpedo from U-65 near the Cape Verde Islands. The U-boat had chased the tanker for about eight hours and missed with a spread of two torpedoes (one was a tube-runner) at 17.52 hours. The tanker then evaded a first coup de grāce but was hit by the second. The Germans could not use the deck gun in the darkness and left the area after observing how the crew abandoned ship, assuming that the tanker will sink. However, the crew reboarded the British Zeal and reached Freetown safely. | ||
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