SS Leo (1940)

The SS Leo was a small British steam collier, built in 1908 by Stettiner Oderwerke in Germany. She was about 68.9 metres long, with a 10.4 metre beam, a draught of roughly 4.3 metres, and registered at 1,140 tons. Driven by a triple-expansion steam engine, she was the very definition of a hard-working coastal coal boat. On her final voyage she was carrying around 1,536 tons of coal from Seaham to Portsmouth, a routine wartime coastal run that became anything but routine, because the Channel in July 1940 had developed a nasty habit of turning coal convoys into target practice.

On 25 July 1940, during the Battle of Britain period, Leo was part of Convoy CW8, known as “Peewit”, when German Ju 87 Stuka dive-bombers attacked the convoy off Dover. The raid became known as Black Thursday, with several ships sunk, including Leo, Corhaven, Henry Moon, Polgrange, Portslade and Summity. Leo was bombed and machine-gunned from the starboard quarter and sank close to Dover. Sources differ on casualties, with one dive account giving six lost from 27 crew, while a memorial source records 10 crew lost, so I’d avoid a precise number on the event page unless you want to add a footnote and ruin everyone’s cheerful booking mood. For divers, this is a compact wartime collier with real atmosphere: coal cargo, Battle of Britain skies, Stuka attack, and a wreck lying in about 32 metres, only a short run from Dover.