The fast Bombay steamer Caledonia was built for the P.& O. Line by Caird,s in 1894. Registered at 7,550 tons, she measured 486 feet in length and had a 54 foot beam. Single-screwed and designed for 16½ knots, she actually made 19½ knots on her trials and established a number of records over the years. Probably her fastest run was Bombay to Marseilles in 12½ days, although her London to Calcutta passage of 24 days 21 hours in 1908 was equally noteworthy. She continued with her Bombay sailings after the Great War broke out but she struck a mine outside Marseilles in December 1915 and was badly damaged. The explosion blew in the entire bottom of No. 1 hold but, after evacuating some 500 passengers and most of the ship,s personnel, her captain remained aboard with a skeleton crew and, between them, nursed Caledonia safely into Marseilles. After extensive repairs she was requisitioned for trooping but eventually returned to P.& O. who ran her until 1925 when she was sold out of the fleet.