HMAS Berrima was a passenger liner which served in the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) during World War I as an armed merchantman and troop transport. Launched in 1913 as the P&O liner SS Berrima, the ship initially carried immigrants from the United Kingdom to Australia via Cape Town. In August 1914, Berrima was requisitioned for military use, refitted and armed, and commissioned into the RAN as an auxiliary cruiser. The ship transported two battalions of the Australian Naval and Military Expeditionary Force to the German New Guinea colonies in September. Paid off from naval service in October 1914, Berrima then sailed as part of the second ANZAC troop convoy; in addition to carrying soldiers to the Middle East, the ship towed the submarine . Berrima continued to work under the liner requisition scheme until 18 February 1917, when she was torpedoed. She was towed ashore and repaired, then requisitioned by the Shipping Controller as a stores and munitions ferry. Berrima returned to P&O service in 1920, and resumed the expatriate run. This continued until the route's cancellation in 1929. Berrima was sold for breaking up in 1930. Construction and early career The P&O passenger liner SS Berrima was built by Caird & Company, Greenock. The 11,137 gross register ton vessel was one of five B-class passenger liners ordered for P&O's emigrant service from the United Kingdom to Australia via Cape of Good Hope, a route acquired when the company took ownership of the Blue Anchor Line in 1910. Berrima was in length, with a beam of , and a draught of . Propulsion machinery consisted of two 4-cylinder quadruple expansion steam engines producing , connected to twin screws, with a top speed of . The ship had permanent accommodation for 350 third-class passengers, plus room for another 250 passengers in temporary accommodation. Berrima was launched on 20 September 1913, and delivered to P&O on 5 December. The liner sailed from London later that month on her maiden voyage, calling at Cape Town, Adelaide, and Melbourne before reaching Sydney. Military service In August 1914, the ship was requisitioned for military service. Berrima was taken to Cockatoo Island Dockyard on 12 August for refitting, but instead of being converted into a troop transport as originally planned, the ship underwent a six-day conversion for naval service. The modifications included converting holds into accommodation for 1,500 officers and soldiers, establishing a hospital was on