Coals and Cables: The remarkable career of MV Dame Caroline Haslett

Abstract

In 1950 Dame Caroline Haslett was accorded the honour of launching a motor collier ship named after her at the shipyard of Hall, Russell and Co., Aberdeen. Coal was the UK’s principal source of energy and colliers were commonplace around UK coasts. If MV Dame Caroline Haslett had remained as one collier amongst many it would not have been sufficiently remarkable to justify further investigation. However, this article brings together, some notable aspects of the vessel: it was one of a relatively small number of motor-engined colliers (most were steam powered), it was named after a very remarkable woman, and it later became a cable-laying ship laying the first Cross-Channel power interconnector.