Nov. 22, 1917 the SS King Idwal was sunk by a mine laid by SMS U-75, twenty-three years and one day
later on Nov. 23, 1940 another ship named King Idwal was sunk. This time it would not be a passive sinking, but a torpedo that would end the career of the ship.

Convoy OB-244 departed Liverpool on Nov. 17 bound for various ports and dispersed on Nov. 22 in the North
Atlantic. On Nov. 23, 1940 three ships from the convoy would be lost to one U-boat within a few hours.
Oakcrest was the first victim of the U-123, she lived only six minuets after the torpedo hit, thirty-five men
were lost, the survivors landed on Barra Island, Hebrides.

The second victim of the day was King Idwal, captain Storm, her master, had survived the sinking of
SS King Alfred just months before on Aug. 4, 1940 when U-52 sent her to the bottom. His luck held out as he
again survived a torpedo attack, however twelve of his crew perished.

The third loss was the Swedish cargo ship Anten, the crew abandoned the ship however one man was killed,
probably by the explosion, the derelict drifted for two days before sinking. The 28 survivors from King Idwal
and the 32 from Anten were picked up by HMS Sandwich L-12 and landed at Liverpool.

The commander of the U-123, Kapitänleutnant Karl-Heinz Moehle, failed to sink the Anten because he collided
with some debris underwater and damaged both periscopes, he broke off the attack and returned to Lorient
early, arriving on Nov. 28. In 1945 the U-123 was turned over to the French as war reparations and renamed
Blaison, she served the Marine Nationale until the late 1950's.