MV Goya was a Norwegian freighter used as a troop transport by Germany and sunk with a massive loss of life near the end of World War II. Completed in 1940 for the Johan Ludwig Mowinckel Rederi company, the ship was named after Spanish artist Francisco Goya. Following Germany's invasion of Norway that year, she was seized by the Kriegsmarine and pressed into service as a troop transport. Near the end of the war, Goya took part in Operation Hannibal, the evacuation of German military and civilian personnel from remaining pockets held by the Germans along the Baltic Sea. Loaded with thousands of refugees, the ship was sunk on 16 April 1945 by the Soviet submarine L-3. Most of the crew and passengers died in the sinking. The sinking of Goya was one of the biggest single-incident maritime losses of life of the war, and one of the largest such losses in history, with just 183 survivors out of roughly 6,700 passengers and crew.
More than 7,000 die when the German transport ship Goya is sunk by a Soviet submarine.
On April 16, in the year 1945, More than 7,000 die when the German transport ship Goya is sunk by a Soviet submarine. This event is recorded as a Historical Events event in the history of April 16, one of 433 recorded events on this date across all of history.
Key Facts
- This event took place on April 16, 1945 (AD era).
- It is categorised as a Historical Events event in recorded history.
- Referenced in 2 Wikipedia articles.
- The event is associated with a specific geographical location (see map below).
- Wikipedia source last updated on 9 January 2026.
On This Date in History 433
This article draws on content from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
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