1915 – 1916 / The third and largest of the Olympic-class trio, the Britannic would unfortunately never carry a single paying passenger. While serving as a hospital ship during World War I, she was sunk in the Mediterranean.
Monthly archives: March 2018
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1917 – 1918 / Also known as Statendam (II) / Launched for the Holland-America Line, she was requisitioned by the British for wartime use as a troopship. In that role, she was unfortunately torpedoed and sunk after only a year in service.
1921 – 1958 / As a four-funnelled ship not on the North Atlantic run, Union-Castle Line’s Arundel Castle was of a rare breed. She was later rebuilt with two funnels, and served profitably for almost four decades before being scrapped.
1921 – 1947 / Another CGT masterpiece, the Paris followed the company line in offering comfort and amenities rather than speed. Unfortunately, she suffered fires two times in her life, the second of which led to her capsizing in port shortly before World War II.
1922 – 1936 / Also known as Columbus / Originally a German ship, her construction was interrupted by World War I. Handed over to White Star after the war and renamed Homeric, it took several more years to complete her. She then served as a British ship for a little more than a decade, before being sent to the breakers.
1922 – 1943 / The second of Union-Castle Line’s ‘four-stackers’, the Windsor Castle was not as fortunate as her younger sister. She was torpedoed and sunk in the Mediterranean during World War II.
1922 – 1940 / Also known as Bismarck / Originally built as the final and largest ship of HAPAG’s pre-WWI trio, she never saw service as a German ship. Awarded to White Star after the war, she became their flagship Majestic.
1922 – 1952 / Also known as Admiral von Tirpitz, Tirpitz, and Empress of China (II) / Built and intended as a ship of the Hamburg-Amerika Line, this ship was yet another that was handed over to Britain following World War I. Joining the Canadian-Pacific Line, she then had a long career both as a civilian vessel and a troop transport.
1935 – 1946 / Arguably the most celebrated liner of all time, the Normandie was a French tour de force that would influence maritime design for decades to come. Her impact was enormous, but she tragically met her demise in New York harbour where she sank after having been ravaged by fire.
1952 – Present Day / The ocean greyhound to rule them all, United States was the last liner to capture the Blue Riband. However, her career was soon put on life support with government subsidies, and she was retired in 1969. Astonishingly, she survives to this day, although a sad shadow of her former self and with a very uncertain future.