The Regal Lady/ Oulton Belle
Regal Lady was built by Fellows & Co. Shipbuilders of Great Yarmouth in 1930 to withstand easterly gales with strong bulkheads down below and high free board. She was launched on the morning of 23rd May 1930 and named Oulton Belle.
Entering service in late 1930 Oulton Belle soon became a favourite with her holiday passengers, operating out of Great Yarmouth and Lowestoft on the Norfolk Coast of England. She ran her holiday excursions for the following nine years up until the beginning of the Second World War .
On the 14th May 1940 the BBC made the following announcement:-
'The Admiralty have made an order requesting all owners of pleasure craft between 30 and 100ft in length to send all particulars to the Admiralty within 14 days.
In May 1940 there were 450,000 soldiers in France and Belgium forced back by the German army. Germany had invaded Holland which was a neutral country.
If the German Army could go through Holland and Belgium they could get to the channel ports and cut off the British army. The British army fell back to a place in northern France called Dunkirk and there was only one way for them to get back to England and that was across the channel.
During the 2nd week in May 1940, a call went out named Operation Dynamo, which requested all these little boats go across the channel to rescue the British Army. 700 little ships went across to Dunkirk to bring the army back. They were called the Skylark Navy. All together it took 7 days to complete the evacuation.
We know the Regal Lady went across 3 times.
Operation Dynamo lasted about ten days and 338,000 soldiers were brought back. It is believed that the Regal Lady brought back around 1,200.
Sir Winston Churchill and Admiral Ramsey at Dover thought they would only get 45,000 soldiers back, but because of little ships like the Regal Lady and Coronia, they managed to get all the soldiers back which meant we still had an army. The Regal Lady was decommissioned in 1946 and came here up to Scarborough in 1951 and re-named the Yorkshire lady, then in 1954 the Regal lady in 1954. When the Regal Lady came up, she was a steamer and she was coal burning right up to 1955 and since then they've both been running in and out of Scarborough.
To commemorate her gallant service as part of this fleet which braved the mines, the E boats and the Luftwaffe, Regal Lady proudly flies the flag of the 'Association of Dunkirk Little Ships' at her masthead.
Entering service in late 1930 Oulton Belle soon became a favourite with her holiday passengers, operating out of Great Yarmouth and Lowestoft on the Norfolk Coast of England. She ran her holiday excursions for the following nine years up until the beginning of the Second World War .
On the 14th May 1940 the BBC made the following announcement:-
'The Admiralty have made an order requesting all owners of pleasure craft between 30 and 100ft in length to send all particulars to the Admiralty within 14 days.
In May 1940 there were 450,000 soldiers in France and Belgium forced back by the German army. Germany had invaded Holland which was a neutral country.
If the German Army could go through Holland and Belgium they could get to the channel ports and cut off the British army. The British army fell back to a place in northern France called Dunkirk and there was only one way for them to get back to England and that was across the channel.
During the 2nd week in May 1940, a call went out named Operation Dynamo, which requested all these little boats go across the channel to rescue the British Army. 700 little ships went across to Dunkirk to bring the army back. They were called the Skylark Navy. All together it took 7 days to complete the evacuation.
We know the Regal Lady went across 3 times.
Operation Dynamo lasted about ten days and 338,000 soldiers were brought back. It is believed that the Regal Lady brought back around 1,200.
Sir Winston Churchill and Admiral Ramsey at Dover thought they would only get 45,000 soldiers back, but because of little ships like the Regal Lady and Coronia, they managed to get all the soldiers back which meant we still had an army. The Regal Lady was decommissioned in 1946 and came here up to Scarborough in 1951 and re-named the Yorkshire lady, then in 1954 the Regal lady in 1954. When the Regal Lady came up, she was a steamer and she was coal burning right up to 1955 and since then they've both been running in and out of Scarborough.
To commemorate her gallant service as part of this fleet which braved the mines, the E boats and the Luftwaffe, Regal Lady proudly flies the flag of the 'Association of Dunkirk Little Ships' at her masthead.
