Hospital ship

A hospital ship is a ship designated for primary function as a medical treatment facility or hospital; most are operated by the military forces or navies of various countries around the world, as they are intended to be used in or near war zones.^[1] Firing on a hospital ship is generally considered a war crime.

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History

An early example of a hospital ship was USS Red Rover in the 1860s, which aided the wounded soldiers of both sides during the American Civil War. During World War I and World War II, some passenger liners were converted for use as hospital ships. RMS Aquitania and HMHS Britannic were two such ships to serve in this capacity. The SS Deutschland was a WWII German example, sunk by British air attack in 1945 with substantial loss of life, because in the chaos of the war's closing days, she had not been sufficiently marked as a hospital ship.

The last British Royal Yacht, the post WWII HMY Britannia, was constructed in a way as to be easily convertable to a hospital ship, during the Falklands War but never served in this role. USNS Mercy and USNS Comfort are hospital ships now operated by the United States Navy, and are the largest naval ambulances extant. Both ships are converted oil tankers.

Legal status

Modern hospital ships display large Red Crosses or Red Crescents to enjoy Geneva convention protection under the laws of war. However, such markings did not stop the sinking of the Australian Hospital Ship Centaur on 14 May 1943 off the coast of Queensland, by a Japanese submarine. Some hospital ships, such as the SS Hope, belong to civilian agencies, and as such are automatically not part of a navy force.

The British Royal Fleet Auxiliary ship RFA Argus would be a hospital ship were it not for its armaments. When performing its medical role it is designated a 'primary casualty receiving ship'.

See also

Lists

• List of Australian hospital ships
• List of hospitals and hospital ships of the Royal Navy
• List of Sanitation Commission Hospital Ships
• List of United States Army hospital ships
• List of US Navy Hospital Ships

Other

• Mercy Ships
• MS_Jutlandia

References

1. ^ Hospital Ship (definition via WordNet, Princeton University)