Charlotte Cords was a cargo ship that was built in 1923 by Neptun AG, Rostock for German owners.

She was seized by the Allies in Travemünde in May 1945, passed to the Ministry of War Transport (MoWT) and renamed Empire Connah.

[2] On 25 July 1934, she was involved in a collision with the British cargo ship Pear Branch in the North Sea off Grimsby, Lincolnshire, United Kingdom.

[7] On 5 November 1957, Nikolai Bauman was involved in a collision with the Dutch coaster Corale just off the coast at Vlissingen Netherlands, which led to the latter ship sinking.

A third ship,[8] the 10,220 GRT Dongedijk of the Nederlandsch-Amerikaansche Stoomvaart Maatschappij,[9][10] had obscured Corale from Nikolai Bauman.

Two officials tried to board Nikolai Bauman on 6 November, but Captain Pavel Mironiv refused to allow this, claiming that he was not responsible for the collision, and that it was a matter for the Soviet Government.

It was not until that evening that negotiations were concluded and Nikolai Bauman was allowed to continue her voyage to Rotterdam after a much reduced bail had been posted.