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Model Maritime Museum Hamburg, Germany
Call sign DIAE. Homeport Wesermunde, Germany. Owner in 1939 Henkel&Cie GmbH and managers Erste Deutsche Walfang GmbH. Built by Bremer Vulcan, Vegesack, Germany in 1921 for the Hamburg Amerika Line as the passenger-cargoship Württemberg between Hamburg,Germany-New York, USA, commissioned on 10 November 1921, in the La Plata service since 31 January 1923, sold to soap manufacturer Henkel&Cie in 1935, converted by Blohm&Voss, Hamburg into a whale factory ship between 1935-1936, commissioned on 6 September 1936, used as tanker to support the German invasion of Norway at Narvik. Sunk by British destroyers on 13 April 1940, salvaged and repaired and still used as tanker, during the evacuation of Memel (Klaipeda, Lithunia) in 1945 damaged, towed to Kiel, dcuttled by British forces in the Heikendorfer Bucht on 6 June 1946, salvaged and finally broken up at Blyth, England in 1947. Gross tonnage tons 11,776, under deck 8,573 tons, net tonnage 6,440 tons and as dimensions 468.8 x 71.4 x 32.7 feet. Several Dutch newspapers published end April-begin May 1940 referred to a statement of a Norwegian pilot reporting that the Jan Wellem was used as transport at Narvik embarking the major part of the troops and war stores and Narvik. She arrived in the Norwegian territorial waters near Andelsnes north of Harstad in the morning of 8 April. The pilot said that she a week earlier had left Germany. Similar ships arrived earlier in other Norwegian harbours. He stated also that in the night before the attack she hoisted the American flag to hide her real nationality.
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