The Mercator was
a training ship, launched by the Belgian Royal
Marine in 1932. It was used for the training of
officers of the Merchant Navy until 1960. It was the
depot ship for coastal forces based in Freetown,
Sierra Leone. The coastal forces boats patrolled the
West African Coast to protect the convoys coming
from South Africa to the UK. The Mercator was their
"mother ship".
The Mercator was transformed into a museum in 1961,
and is now moored at Ostend.





