MARINERS around Australia and the world paused on Saturday 3 September – Merchant Navy Day – to reflect on the bravery and sacrifice of seafarers during times of war.

Each year, Merchant Navy Day commemorates the anniversary of the first merchant vessel sinking during World War II, on 3 September 1939.

British liner SS Athenia was torpedoed by German submarine U-30 just 10 hours after Britain’s declaration of war in 1939.

David Parmeter, chair of the Australian Mariners Welfare Society, said the day is an opportunity to reflect on the role merchant mariners played during wartimes, serving in the face of danger and under challenging circumstances.

He said Australian merchant ships and their civilian crews transported service personnel, supplies and equipment during the two world wars and the Vietnam War.

Some vessels were converted into military hospital ships for wartime service.

“Unlike naval warships, vessels in the merchant navy were often unarmed,” Mr Parmeter said.

“This left them exposed to attack from the enemy, both in foreign waters and closer to the Australian coastline.”

The Department of Veterans’ Affairs said around 1000 Australian merchant mariners are known to have died serving the allied cause during the two world wars.

David Field, chairman of The Merchant Navy War Memorial Fund, said Australia’s merchant sailors were “ordinary men” doing a job they had done for many years.

“When World War I broke out, and then in World War II, their daily workplace became a bloodied battlefield — and merchant ships became a lucrative target,” Mr Field said in his Merchant Navy Day message.

“That’s because their contribution to the war effort was vital. They crewed hospital ships, and transported food, water, fuel, ammunition, and so many other vital supplies.

“But despite this grave risk, merchant sailors pressed on with the job at hand. They were not trained for war, and their ships were not prepared for bullets, bombs, and torpedoes.

“What it must have taken them to pack their bags, kiss their family members goodbye, dig deep and board those ships – is unimaginable to most of us.”

Services were held around the country on Saturday to commemorate Merchant Navy Day, including a service in Mosman, Sydney.

The contribution of merchant mariners is also commemorated by the Merchant Navy Seamen’s Memorial on the edge of Lake Burley Griffin in Canberra.